Friends, Fashion and Fyggs - Let's Play Dragon Quest IX!

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 1:52 pm

Video: Overture
Music: Overture IX

What is this game?

This is the ninth game in the main Dragon Quest series, and the first to be released on a handheld (not including remakes or spin-offs). It was released in 2009 in Japan and 2010 everywhere else. The Dragon Quest series as a whole is all about being incredibly traditional JRPGs, although this one is something of an exception in that it started out as an action RPG for some reason before shifting back to the series' standard gameplay later in development. In any case, this was also the first main-series Dragon Quest game to feature multiplayer features, and this was pushed as one of the main selling points.

Why are you LPing it?

This was my first Dragon Quest game, and I kind of love it even though it's got some big flaws. As such, I know a lot about this game and will be trying to go over the mechanics in detail.

How far are you going to go?

I'll be trying to see everything the game has to offer, but there's no way I'm doing certain things such as fighting the Legacy Bosses at level 99 or getting all the Accolades. That's a level of madness even I'm not willing to go to.

What will be the format of the LP?

Since the entire party in this game are completely blank slates, this will be a narrative SSLP where you, the thread, will be submitting character ideas when prompted and I'll attempt to write them into the game. Party composition will, of course, also be voted on. Dialogue I've added to existing characters as well as my own interjections are in italics.

What's your spoiler policy?

Please, no spoilers. Discussing other games in the series is fine, but please don't talk about future plot events from this game. This should probably go without saying, too, but really blatant hinting isn't welcome either.

Related LPs

Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker by Epicmissingno - My last LP. SA Forums/Archive.
Etrian Odyssey III by Araxxor - a very similar format to what I'm going for here. Currently only on SA, since it's not archived yet.

Thanks should go to Dragonic77 and Nadea3609 for helping with proofreading and generally being friends. Thanks should also go to yab over on GameFAQs for providing me with an AI script for this game as well as various bits of information. In fact, thank the GameFAQs board in general, since there's a lot of knowledge stored on there.

Updates

Part 1: Nine's Non-Canon Adventure
Part 2: Solitaire's Big Break
Part 3: Bloom and Bust
Part 4: Rocks Fall, No-one Dies
Part 5: Horrors of the Hexagon
Part 6: Inn Intrigue

Part 7: We Like To Party
Part 8: The Daily Grind
Part 9: Wight Knight Fight All Night, Alright?
Part 10: Zere We Go!
Part 11: Doom and Gloom
Part 12: Thrown in the Brig(adoom)
Part 13: Less Is Morag
Part 14: Failure To Launch

Part 15: An Alchemical Adventure
Part 16: The Lethal Cough Epidemic of '09
Part 17: Quarantomb Quarrels
Part 18: The End of Ragin' Contagion
Part 19: Saviours of Coffinwell
Part 20: Back to Base
Part 21: The Big Backtrack
Part 22: A Rest from the Quest
Part 22.5: More Rest from the Quest

Part 23: Vocation, Vocation, Vocation
Part 24: Trading Spaces
Part 25: The Trade-Off
Part 26: New Faces, Old Places
Part 27: Seeking Employment

Part 28: Naff All in Llaffan
Part 29: The Whorlleater (Hard)
Part 30: Side Stuff at the Seaside

Part 31: Thieves' Town
Part 32: Oh, Lonesome Me
Part 33: Climb Every Mountain
Part 34: Stone Free
Part 35: A Range(r) of Activities
Part 36: A Glimpse of the Future

Part 37: Dark Days in Flower Fields
Part 38: Valley of the Dolls

Mechanics

Character Creation
Barrels, Pots, Cupboards and Blue Chests
Battle Formulae
Style
Status Effects
Fountain Group

Vocations

Minstrel
Warrior
Priest
Mage
Martial Artist
Thief
Gladiator
Paladin
Armamentalist
Ranger
Sage
Luminary

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 1:54 pm

Characters

The Hero, Solitaire (submitted by FoolyCharged):

Solitaire, being the daughter of one of the most influential Celestrians, has an incredibly high opinion of herself which was raised further due to her recent appointment as Guardian of Angel Falls. This is not an opinion shared with most of the other Celestrians, who prefer to call her by her real name, Ginny. She aspires to one day be in charge of the Observatory.

The Warrior, Slasha (submitted by Jeabus Mahogany):

"You want To Fight? Slasha vill Fight. Slasha iz STRONK. STRONKER zan any ozzer zat vould DARE to APPROACH Slasha's turf. You point Slasha at problem? Slasha vill Fight it. Slasha vill Vin. Because Slasha iz STRONK."

The Priest, Healie (submitted by Rabbi Raccoon):

Healie is a wide-eyed, cheerful young man. Something in the way his smile flickers for just a second and his eyes darken and turn sad when looking at certain things indicates he's definitely got a story to tell. Somehow both very open and friendly but closed off at the same time. Utterly average looking in every way. Height, weight, hairstyle all scream he'd blend into any crowd in moments. The only thing that stands out is his blue hair, which he swears he dyes but the store doesn't sell that color. Claims he's always been a healer and gives a little giggle after mentioning it.

The Mage, Freddy (submitted by Dance Officer):

Freddy had always been drawn to the pretty flames, so his concerned parents had their little pyromaniac trained as a mage in hopes of him putting his fascination to some good use. He may or may not have been forced to flee his home after an incident involving a cake, a policeman, a pretty girl and his flames. He often sneaks out to light a match, to get his daily dose you see.

The Martial Artist, Steph (submitted by Toyotasomi no Miko)

When you hear the phrase 'Martial Artist', what do you expect? Someone who's quiet, a rule follower, and thinks heavily before they act, perhaps? Steph is none of that, despite being from "a place far away, where everything is peaches and roses" since she'd then go on to say she hated that place. She's undoubtedly boisterous and lives by the phrase "Speak harshly while carrying a big stick." Sugarcoating isn't something that Steph does in the slightest, so taking her with you on a mission where you need someone gentle is... not a good idea in the slightest. In fact, keep her far, far, far away from them.

The Thief, Reona (submitted by Kemix)

Reona: Thief extraordinaire! She's the type to not only charm the pants off of someone with her fiery passion, but she's also the type to steal them off of someone's body just to get a quick gold out of them! Unfortunately, her charm has long since...dissipated. After a horrific accident with eyedrops, knives and a slime (don't ask, you're liable to wind up with a shank between your ribs if you ask), she wound up captured by the local guards and her eyes permanently opened wide and make her look souless as hell. But due to a clause in Stornway's laws that she managed to lawyer her way to, she was let free...on the added clause that she become an adventurer and join the group of whoever is willing to take her, otherwise it's back to the slammer.

The Minstrel, Ron (submitted by BlackPersona)

Ron was always a sucker for stories, so it was natural for him to always attend church to devoutly listen to all the sermons, or badger every traveler that came to his little village about the outside world. He loved the romance of the Celestrian Guardians who watched over every part of the world, and stopped at nothing to chronicle everything that came his way while he grew up. Unfortunately, that helped him grow to become a very gullible man, who had very... conflicting lore of the world, shall we say. For example, he's absolutely convinced that the creators of the world ran out of ideas for life and made all the varieties of Slimes in the world, or that the Celestrians sleep in those statues they have in some towns ("That's why that earthquake was so awful! Destroying the statue here, that's caused all these monsters to come out!")

It did not help anyone when he decided to pick up the lute and travel 'round the world, spreading his (unintentionally tall) tales to all that would listen to him. Since he claims to be a lover, not a fighter, he's been run out of many towns thanks to all the angry townsfolk he spread misinformation to. As a result, he's gotten quite good at defending himself with the least lethal weapon he could find, a fan.

Has recently heard about an amazing fellow Minstrel that had done many heroic deeds in one part of the world, from defeating a knight to stopping a disease from destroying an entire city. In honour of that Minstrel, Ron decided to style himself in a similar style to her. That has unfortunately led Ron to being mistaken for a relative of hers (If not the very Minstrel herself, in some ungodly way!), though he tells himself that it's one step closer to becoming a hero himself. Probably to help cope with all the people that call him a liar or a con artist for trying to crib on another person's deeds.

The Gladiator, Axander (submitted by werbear)

War is Art and Art is War. The straight cut of a sharp blade, the thundering smash of a heavy hammer - overpowering your enemy is just the first step to victory. You have to look good when winning. And winning will make you look good.

Axander has a fascination for skilled warriors and strong monsters alike. The more varied and fancy the fighting style one shows off the better. His goal in life is to find the Ultimate Technique, a skill that truly takes your last breath away.

The Paladin, Valeria (submitted by Sordas Volantyr)

For as long as she can remember, all Valeria has wanted is to protect people. For most of her childhood, her diminutive stature meant that nobody took her seriously, but she put serious effort into working out, until eventually, come one winter, she was hoisting more firewood over her shoulders than most any man in the village could. After that, people started taking her seriously, and started getting her caught up on the art of combat. Everything was going well, and it looked like she would be able to accomplish her dreams. In a way, she was right - when a rabid bear attacked the village, she held it off long enough for the rest of the guards to arrive. The bite wounds and broken bones healed, but her eyes, brutally raked by the bear's claws, did not. Still, she pressed on - now using the sound of her opponent's movements to guide her through a fight. Her upbringing means she's rather simple-minded (no schooling at all, but at least she can do basic math), but is warm and considerate for friends.

She uses hammers, as fine aiming isn't exactly her forte - it wouldn't be yours either, if you were blind!

The Armamentalist, D'Art (submitted by BadgerKingX)

Bonjour Mon ami! Despite being from a poor family D’Art was never in want of literature. He grew up with the stories of the brave Armamentalists of old. Because of growing up with only these stories the D’Art may not have the firmest grasp on reality.

Despite his tendency to relate most events to the stories old Armamentalists; D’Art is brave, a crack shot with a bow, and above all fashionable. Just as any proper Armamentalist should be.

The Ranger, Hannah (submitted by MightyPretenders)

Animal lover who turned to thievery in her teenage years upon seeing a lack of actual employment possibilities (though also for fun), then twisted those skills into the ability to survive in the wilderness.
Read philosophy in her spare time, but gave up on it for a while when she noticed a few things that frustrated her as a person and an animal lover.
* Why was it that the divine insisted on addressing humans as "Mortals?" Was it that they were the only kind of being that could die? (That was obviously not true, as any hunter or guard who squished a slime could tell you.) Or did they mean that limitation in comparison to Gods and Celestrians was what mattered?
* On closer inspection, a lot of celestial messages had quite the egotistical subtext, and it was difficult to see what they'd actually done to justify that attitude. (The Almighty created everything, yeah, but what did the rest of them actually do to justify those statues?)
* Why wasn't there any mention of dogs, cats, bears, lizards, ect, anywhere she could find? Monsters, at least, were mentioned as things to beware of and that the righteous were protected from, but there wasn't much about them either.
Eventually she set those questions aside for a while while she tested what made crime bad, what uncivilized spaces were actually like, and overall finding a life she could enjoy. But she hasn't forgotten them.

The Sage, Theo (submitted by Gilgamesh225)

You would think that, with his hair color, his red eyes, and that expression on his face, that he'd be a trusted backstabbing lieutenant for some overlord somewhere; but no, his heart is set on the path of being a sage; to seek enlightenment, and help his fellow man...not that this dissuades people from thinking less of him.

...Okay, so just MAYBE he's seeking enlightenment for power, and is going to point and laugh at those who mocked and derided him, saying he'd never be anything more than some jerk with a chronic backstabbing syndrome. But those people are rude; it's not like he's going to blow people up, just the monsters! And besides, it was his late uncle with the aforementioned syndrome!

Currently deciding between the tried and true approach of a bow, or the novelty of a boomerang, because like heck he's going in close to whack a monster. Ewww.

The Luminary, ~~Samantha~~ Lumin (submitted by Cloudmonkey98)

A young lady with a stubborn desire to be more flashy and popular an entertainer then any mere Minstrel, with a bad sense of direction, and a worse sense for punny names and jokes, she ends up joining because it gets her out of town she's been stuck in ~~because she sucks at singing~~ because the town is a bunch of stingy misers.

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 2:03 pm

Part 1: Nine's Non-Canon Adventure

Music: Intermezzo (IV)

Welcome to Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies! Upon starting up the game, you get to see that video in the OP. It's a bit disjointed and not particularly representative of this game's contents, so I won't be transcribing it. Sorry! Instead, let's begin a new game.

Immediately we're prompted to create a character. Since this is the first update, I'll just go with the defaults. Don't worry, I'll go over character creation in a separate post. The name the main character goes by in the manual is Nine (technically NINE, but who cares) so that's what we're going with for now.

Music: None

After finishing the selection, Nine sprouts wings and a halo. As you do.

He must go now. His planet needs him.

Video: Welcome to Angel Falls

The game opens on a cloudy sky, which pans up to reveal the stars above.

If you're there, say something. Show yourself.

Thus do the voices of the mortals plead, ever hopeful of proof of our existence...

For how long now have we watched over their realm...?

For how long have we Celestrians existed...?

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

The scene cuts to a village at sunset, where birds are sitting outside a house.

They're scared away when a boy and his dog run out. We're never seeing those birds again, are we?

On his way across the village, the boy stops to wave to this guy over by a stable.

The dog runs over, too. He's a good dog.

More camera panning! This screenshot highlights one of the weird things that this game does: mixing NPC sprites and models. Also, there's a named character here! See if you can tell which one it is.

There's also a fisherman here. He does fisherman things and makes the camera zoom out.

In fact, it zooms out so much that it reveals our temporary hero, Nine, as well as this bald guy.

But its inhabitants' continued peace and safety is proof of your devotion. When Apus Major bade me, "Aquila, take Nine as your apprentice", I never imagined I would see you bloom so. Especially on account of your...affliction.

...

I never realised before how little talking contributed to fulfilling our duties. In any case, you are worthy of your title indeed, Nine, Guardian of Angel Falls.

Music: None

Aquila notices these two walking along the road to the village. I'm not surprised; that girl's clearly a Plot Character. Is it the purple hair? I think it's the purple hair.

And now we're looking at some shrubbery. Hopefully Nine's tasks as Guardian won't include cutting down trees with a herring.

Oh, it's just some monsters. There's a musical sting that plays when these guys leap out of the trees, and it's way too dramatic for what they look like. One of them's a cucumber, for goodness' sake!

Unfortunately it looks like they've spotted Erinn. Nine and Aquila might want to do something about that.

Come, Guardian of Angel Falls, it is time to fulfil our duty as Celestrians!

They've noticed us, Nine! Draw your sword and defend yourself!

Music: Are You A Loser

Let's talk battles, shall we?

This is the battle menu. Picking Fight moves us on to the next menu, so we'll go over that last. Examine gives us an idea of what ailments or effects the enemy are under. We won't be seeing any of those in this battle, though, so we just get a generic message. Flee does the obvious and lets us escape from battle, although of course it won't work in this fight. Misc. is less blatant, but it lets us change characters' weapons, tactics and row. Aquila is permanently set to Focus On Healing here to stop the battle ending in loss. It's not like we need healing or anything, since the battle will always end in at most three turns when Aquila kills everything for us. Oh, and we can change characters between the front and back row. Monsters are slightly less likely to attack party members in the back row, but the exact probabilities don't seem to be documented.

The Fight menu has a few more options to choose from. Attack is, well, an attack. It's exactly what you'd expect: damage to a single enemy based on your Attack and their Defence. Nine currently has no Spells or Abilities, so those options currently do nothing. Defend will simply halve damage done to whoever uses it for that turn. Items lets us use items, obviously. Again, Nine doesn't have any right now. The final command here is Coup de Grâce and, er, it's something that shows up randomly and probably deserves its own mechanics update. Let's not talk about it here.

The cruelcumber goes first and attacks, doing pitiful damage to Aquila. He's level 20, so it's not too surprising, but let's take a look at this monster's stats, shall we?

#002 Cruelcumber wrote:
Code: Select all
Plant Family
HP: 10         MP: 2
Attack: 12     Defence: 9    Agility: 10
Exp: 3         Gold: 5
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Antidotal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Moonwort bulb (1/128)

Poky little vegetables that often trouble travellers, but are terribly sour losers.

The violent vestiges of veggies vetoed by unadventurous eaters. They fight for the favour they didn't find as food.

I know all that is a lot to take in, but the main thing to take away from that wall of text is that cruelcumbers are weak to all elements and immune to fizzle, the muting ailment. That's almost certainly not going to matter because they're so weak, though. I'll go over all the ailments later, but the elements are Fire, Ice, Wind, Lightning, Earth, Dark and Light, in that order.

Cruelcumbers can either attack or flee, but they'll only try to do the latter if they're faced with an opponent far stronger than themselves.

This is the sort of damage Nine does at this point. He's attacking a Slime, though, and they're really bad. Let's take a look.

#001 Slime wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family

HP: 8          MP: 2
Attack: 10     Defence: 7    Agility: 7
Exp: 2         Gold: 4
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Slimedrop (1/16)

Common monsters that are found all over the world. Their simple yet lovable form attracts many admirers.

They're unimpressive alone, but if a few of them focus the force of friendship, they can make a miraculous metamorphosis.

Some of those numbers should look very familiar, and that's because slimes have the exact same resistances as cruelcumbers. Somehow they're even weaker, though, and do 1 damage to even Nine. They're also the mascot monsters of the series, so that's something special about them, I guess.

As for what they can actually do, they've got the exact same abilities as cruelcumbers: attacking and fleeing. Boring, yes, but what do you really expect from the first monsters in the game?

Anyway, this is the sort of damage Aquila can do. Considering that he's level 20, this is kind of awful, but it's enough to one-shot everything in this battle nonetheless.

Music: None

Soon enough, the monsters are all defeated. It's the tutorial battle, so it's impossible to lose.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

With the battle over, Nine and Aquila stand victorious over the now-gone bodies of their enemies.

Just in time, too, as Erinn and her grandfather arrive almost immediately.

The village Guardian will have been watching over us all the way. Nothing bad could ever have happened to us.

Ooh, a glowy floating thing came out of Erinn. If I know my video games, and I think I do, glowy floating things are generally good.

The crystallisation of the mortals' gratitude towards we who watch over them. As Celestrians, our cardinal duty is the offering up of this sacred substance unto mighty Yggdrasil, the Great World Tree. I almost cannot believe I have to tell you this every time we collect benevolessence from the mortals. Is your memory truly so terrible? Nevertheless, come, Nine. Let us return to the Observatory, that you may make your offering.

Music: None

Nine and Aquila launch up into the sky. What could the Observatory be like?

A massive sky castle, you say? Okay, then.

Music: Heaven's Prayer

Nine and Aquila fly in through some portal on the ground floor. There's no explanation for how these connect to the outside, or why everyone comes in and out through these and not, you know, the doors to the outside of the building. Maybe the Observatory is in a different dimension or something.

As unchanging as the North Star, you shall find him in the Great Hall. I have other matters to attend to. You must excuse me.

Video ends

Aquila departs, leaving Nine to his own devices. This is the perfect time to take a tour of the Observatory and chat to people, so let's get to it!

There's a guy over at the southwest corner who will heal Nine for free. He was hurt a bit by the slimes and cruelcumber, so it's appreciated.

(nods)

Truly? So they do not see us, even if we stand right before their eyes? What feeble beings!

Why, because it is the will of the Almighty, child. What more reason do we need?

The Celestrians here on the ground floor aren't exactly the nicest people. They're obviously far superior to those stupid humans, though, right? That makes this justified!

(In the beginning, the Almighty created mortalkind. Later came the Celestrians. Their long life span, their graceful wings, the halos above their heads - all bear testament to their vast superiority. The Celestrians are a gift from the Almighty, bestowed upon weak, foolish mortals in order to guide and protect them.)

See? It's perfectly normal to be a massive racist. I don't see the problem at all.

Aquila is your teacher, is he not? I pity you. He is unrelentingly strict.

Putting aside all that awfulness, it's nice to lean a bit about how exactly Celestrians interact with the world below. A lot of it will be made more explicit later, but we might as well get it out of the way early.

On a completely different subject, there's some treasure to loot in the Observatory! Chests, pots and barrels all have the potential to contain items. Red chests in particular have fixed contents and can be looted once, whereas pots, barrels cupboards and blue chests (which we'll see later) have random contents and refill upon saving and resetting. The range of stuff you can get out of these is pretty big, and probably deserve its own mechanics update. All you need to know right now is that each pot/barrel/cupboard has its own rank of stuff they give out. The stuff on the Observatory ranges from 1 to 3.

The chest has a chimaera wing, which is a consumable item that lets Nine warp between the towns he's visited.

Having done so, He entrusted its care to the Celestrians, and returned to the Realm of the Almighty, whence He had come.

Now that that's over with, how about some lore? The Almighty is the god of this world and is the subject of praise in the world's only religion.

Speaking of religion, the way we save the game is through confessing to a priest. Churches have a few other purposes, too; Divination tells us how many experience points Nine needs to get to the next level, while Benediction removes curses. You'll probably never use the latter.

Hm? You are returned from the Protectorate, bearing benevolessence aplenty? Then it shall not be much longer.

Oh yeah, this is the Celestrians' goal, by the way. Get benevolessence to make Yggdrasil bear fruit so that they can meet the Almighty.

Anyway, we're getting sidetracked. Apus Major is upstairs, so that's where Nine's going next.

They were gits bestowed upon us by the Almighty Himself when our realm was created.

It'd be great if Nine could simply take these treasures, but unfortunately that won't be happening. The chests are behind bars and there's no way in without unlocking the door.

Moving on, Aquila is talking to someone on the western side of the hall. Let's listen in, shall we?

You assume too much, Columba. I also believe it is too soon for him to take on a Guardianship. It was Apus Major's decision.

Indeed? How amusing! I might have known. Although I would have thought that your other apprentice would have been a far more worthy successor.

I agree. But it is no laughing matter. Nine is but a fledgling. What if something were to happen to the Protectorate? Do you forget the tragedy of Corvus so soon?

...we have been forbidden to talk of that matter here in the Observatory, have we not?

............

You have yet to make your report to Apus Major. Do you really wish to keep him waiting? Make haste. He is in the Great Hall just beside us here.

Nah, we've still got Columba to have a chat to before that. Speaking of which...

Of course, I never doubted you. You are Aquila's hand-picked apprentice after all. To be chosen by one who refused for so long to take on a pupil speaks volumes of your ability. But for him to pick two at once is unprecedented. I wonder how Apus Major decided on which of you should become Guardian.

There's much less of interest on this floor than the previous floor, unfortunately. The only thing left to do is to consult Apus Major.

My congratulations on successfully completing your first task as a Guardian, Nine. You have performed your duties well thus far, albeit under Aquila's watchful gaze.

...

...

...

...I've made a terrible mistake.

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 2:11 pm

Mechanics: Character Creation

I should go into character creation so you guys can actually make characters for me to use, shouldn't I?

The first item on the list is character gender. This is the only thing with effects on gameplay, so choose wisely! For the most part female characters get slightly better exclusive gear than male characters, but the difference is pretty much negligible.

Body type is next. These are numbered from 1 to 5, and are ordered from tallest to shortest. Technically these are just the male options, but female body types are broadly similar in this game. The differences aren't that noticeable anyway.

Hair is separated into male and female styles. These are the male ones...

...and these are the female ones. Both are numbered from 1 to 10.

And, of course, you can change the colour. They're numbered in the same way as the hairstyles.

As well as gender-exclusive hair, there are gender-exclusive faces. Again, the male ones come first.

Some of these are kind of creepy, to be honest. They've got the same numbering system as usual.

Skin colour is up next. It's exactly what you'd expect, and numbered from 1 to 8. Nothing unique or interesting about this option.

Eye colour, meanwhile, does have something mildly interesting about it. This also affects the colour the character is denoted by both in battle and in the menus. It's a shame that two of the options are missing compared to hair colour, though. Again, they're numbered 1 to 8.

And, finally, we come to names. We've got an 8 character limit to deal with. Pretty standard stuff.

So, if you want to submit a character, just use the following format:

Character name
Gender: Male/Female (delete as applicable)
Body type: (insert number here)
Hairstyle: (insert number here)
Hair colour: (insert number here)
Face: (insert number here)
Skin colour: (insert number here)
Eye colour: (insert number here)

Short description of background, personality etc.

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 2:25 pm

Part 2: Solitaire's Big Break

Music: Heaven's Prayer

Ginny. I wish to speak with you.

I keep telling you not to use that name! My name's Solitaire, got it?

If that will finally get you to listen to me, so be it. Solitaire, Apus Major has summoned you.

I bet he wants to congratulate me on how much benevolessence I collected! I deserve to be a Guardian so much more than that idiot Nine.

Whatever the case, you will find him in the Great Hall as always. He was very insistent that you see him as soon as possible.

Alright, alright. Keep your hair on.

Hey, old coot. Finally ready to make me a Guardian, are you?

Well met, Apprentice Ginny. That is indeed what I wished to speak with you about.

I keep telling you people, my name's Soli- wait, what?

It has come to light that your fellow apprentice, Nine, may not be suited to the job of Guardian. It is fortunate, then, that Aquila took on two apprentices. Are you ready to undertake your duties?

You bet! I'm going to be the best Guardian ever!

Hohoho! I see you are a confident apprentice, Ginny.

And so we come to the first of your duties. I believe you have acquired a crystal of benevolessence, have you not? The essence of mortal gratitude. You must offer it unto the Great World Tree, Yggdrasil, who shelters us with Her nurturing boughs from atop the Observatory. She will soon bear fruit at last. Go now, and do as I have instructed.

Oh, this'll be easy. Just one thing, though: would you mind calling me Solitiare? It's just, you know...

I would be happy to do so, but in return you must promise to be more polite to your fellow Celestrians. Is that satisfactory?

Fine by me. I'll be off to offer that benevolessence, then.

This is Solitaire. She'll be taking over from Nine as our protagonist, although text boxes will refer to her as Solitair because of limitations on name length. It's unfortunate, but hey, that's how things go. Just assume it's saying Solitaire and everything will be fine. Probably.

Okay, so the way out to Yggdrasil is through this door past the stairs back down. I remember having issues finding it on my first playthrough. I was something like 12 at the time, though, so I'll chalk that one up to my own idiocy.

The outside of the Observatory isn't a particularly interesting place. There are a bunch of stairs with a few Celestrians wandering about, but there are a few chests sitting in corners as a reward for exploring.

What's this, a flower? Who'd bother putting something like this in a chest?

Wakerobins are consumable items that cure sleep. Unfortunately, despite having an unlimited bag size, characters in this game can only carry eight items on-hand to use in battles. This makes a lot of items like this one considerably less useful than they would be otherwise, and sleep isn't even that common anyway.

What's this doing here? Only the mortals use this stuff.

50 gold is nothing to sneeze at right now - the starting cash is only 100 - but there's nowhere to spend it at the moment.

Oh, and some water too? No wonder nobody's taken these yet.

Holy water lowers the encounter rate in every other Dragon Quest game, and it does something similar here. I'll wait until we get to an area with monsters to explain what the main difference is, though.

There are many in the Protectorate to whom Celestrians are entirely visible. You must take care.

Why are you telling me this? I'm a Guardian now! I already know all this!

The aeons-held dream of the Celestrians is to be realised at last! Praise be to the Almighty!

Huh, really? I hadn't noticed. I guess that throws a wrench into my plans of taking over this place, then...

Oh yeah, the fyggs are the fruit of Yggdrasil. Of course it's a pun. Why wouldn't it be?

Then you may pass.

After talking to this guy, he moves out of the way of the stairs. If Solitaire had come here before talking to Apus Major, he wouldn't have let her through. Not just anyone can visit Yggdrasil, after all.

Oh, and there's Yggdrasil. I'd have thought it'd be, y'know, fancier. Whatever. That benevolessence won't offer itself.

Music: None

Is Yggdrasil, unto whom we offer the benevolessence we gather, not truly beautiful?

Eh, it's not really my thing. All that sparkly rubbish isn't for me.

Gathering and offering up benevolessence is the most sacred duty with which we Guardians are charged.

Music: Heaven's Prayer

And so ends that cutscene. It's kind of weird how abruptly it is, isn't it? Aquila's still around, though, so the conversation can sort-of continue.

To address you as "Guardian of Angel Falls" is both convoluted and inconvenient. You will henceforth allow me to use this form of address only when formality dictates, I take it?

What? No! I'm not going to let you take this away from me.

Do you forget that which I teach you so swiftly? You know that the law forbids a Celestrian to stand against his superior. Now, go to Apus Major and tell him of the successful completion of your task.

Hmph. Spoilsport.

Dialogue hasn't changed significantly on the way down, so I'll just skip ahead to the Great Hall where it has. I'm sure nobody minds, right? Right.

No, I've never heard of them. What's the story?

Tales tell of a Guardian of the Protectorate who went missing long ago. Many Celestrians were sent down from the Observatory to look for him, but he was never found.

Enough! I know not where you heard this tale, but we do not speak of such things!

Hmph! Now my master is angry with me again! But please, you must take care when you descend to the Protectorate. You might go missing too!

You needn't worry about that. I'll be the greatest Guardian the world's ever seen!

If you say so, Gin- I mean, Solitaire.

A Celestrian disappearing in the Protectorate is concerning, but obviously not a concern to Solitaire. After all, what are the odds of anything like that being important?

My place is here in the Observatory, mapping the lands below, compiling histories, recording the names of mortals... My task is to create written record of all that comes to pass in the mortal realm.

Oh, also, here's Columba's job. As you'd expect from her lack of a character model, we won't be seeing much of her, but she can probably be relied on for information in the future.

She was fiercely aglow? Ho ho ho, it seems the time may soon be upon us. As I am sure you are aware, it is we Celestrians' duty to tend mighty Yggdrasil until such time as She bears fruit. It is to this end that Guardians watch over mortalkind and gather benevolessence.

You are to return to the Protectorate and continue to gather benevolessence. ...This time without Aquila to accompany you. Make ready, and then speak with the female Celestrian who stands guard over the great portal on the floor below. May all the bodies of the heavens watch over you. I sincerely hope that you will not disappoint us, Solitaire, Guardian of Angel Falls.

Me? Never! I'll be the best Guardian the Protectorate'll ever have!

Before doing what Apus Major asked, let's pick up some more treasure. This one's even well-hidden! The wall to the south of Solitaire in that image has a door in it that was locked until now. I'm not sure why it's suddenly open, but hey, it works for me.

Ooh, nice! I've heard of these things.

Inside is a single chest with a seed of life. This is one of those ever-elusive items in RPGs that grants a permanent stat increase. Seeds of life in particular increase maximum HP by 3. All the stat-increasing items in this game can be found either in red chests or as 1/256 drops from certain monsters. I'll be saving this one for later.

Come on, open the portal up already. I haven't got all day.

Good luck, Guardian Solitaire. May the assistance you bestow upon the mortals of Angel Falls give rise to galaxies of benevolessence!

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

I think it had something like "Nine" on it for a bit, too. What kind of name is that?

Really? Well it's said "Solitaire" for as long as I can remember.

Er...I... That's funny... I, I can't say that I do.

You see? Everyone around here's weird. It's only just changed, and everyone thinks it's been like that forever.

Ah-ha! It must be the work of the village Guardian, then!

It's only Erinn who believes in that nonsense. She's such a dumb, er...brunette.

Someone already changed the name on the statue? I wonder who it was. They even put the right one on there!

Anyway, what was it I had to do? Oh right, help the mortals. I guess I'll take a look around first.

If this Guardian really exists, then why doesn't she introduce her to me, eh?

What part of "invisible" don't you understand? Whatever, it's no use trying to talk sense into someone so stupid. And it's not like you can hear me anyway.

Funnily enough, though, she doesn't seem to have realised at all. It could be a hard road ahead for poor Ivor.

And you're talking to yourself, within earshot of the person you're talking about. The stupidity of these mortals never stops being amazing.

Please, Guardian Solitaire, can you answer my prayers and teach him a lesson for us?

I'd love to play a prank on that Ivor guy, but it probably wouldn't get me any benevolessence. A shame, really.

Huh? There's something on the ground over there.

Maybe somebody lost this thing. I bet I could get a ton of benevolessence if I returned it!

I wonder if there's something in this well. It's not exactly likely, but it never hurts to check.

Every well in the game except one can be entered, and most of them have something of value in them. This one is no exception.

It's got a blue chest in it, as well as some barrels. For whatever reason, Solitaire can't smash barrels or pots in the Protectorate. In any case, this antidotal herb is the poison-curing item. Unlike wakerobins, though, this is actually useful! Not as a consumable, but for something we'll see later. The barrels down here are ranks 1 and 3, and the blue chest runs off a different rank system and is rank 1.

It doesn't look a lot like me, though. Wait, what am I thinking? This is the same statue that every Guardian gets.

This house looks pretty important. Maybe someone inside will need help.

I'm so frustrated with myself for being too weak to help her. If only my son was still alive.

So this is that Erinn girl's house? It seems a bit much for just two people. But hey, if her father's dead, she's sure to need assistance with something. And that means more benevolessence for me!

Oh, but she's not home. I'm sure she won't mind my taking some of her funds, though.

Cupboards are here to dispense even more random items. Don't worry, this is the last type of these! These go off yet another ranking system, and this one is rank 4. Weird, I know, but that's this game for you. The pots and barrels down on the ground floor are rank 1 and 2, but Solitaire still can't break them.

And what's this place? That sign looks like a wing, but it could mean anything.

Any building or stall marked with a wing is an item shop, and this is no exception. Unfortunately Solitaire, being invisible, can't buy anything. Later, weapon shops will be marked with sword signs and armour shops will be marked with shield signs. You know, standard stuff.

Come to think of it, there are rumours about a ghost prowling about the place at night. Ha ha ha! Not that I believe in all that nonsense, of course.

You just keep telling yourself that.

The cupboards in the shop are rank 4 and rank 6, by the way. Neither is very impressive.

I think this is where the mortals go to worship the Almighty, right? If benevolessence is going to be anywhere, it's here.

That ring I found probably belongs to this woman, doesn't it? Might as well slip it into her pocket.

Lord Almighty! It's, it's my Bruce's ring! Well I just don't understand it. I searched high and low for this old thing before, and I couldn't find it anywhere. It must be Solitaire's doing. Aren't we lucky to have a Guardian who watches over us so well? Thank you! Thank you, Solitaire!

Score one for Solitaire! I knew picking up that ring would help. But now what?

That's the clearest sign I've seen all day. There's probably nobody here who needs help, but it never hurts to check.

If only we had some meat. It's no good serving the same old stuff every time...

I'm sure it would be a roaring success if it was a bit bigger and in a more popular destination.

Well, crap. Everyone seems to be happy in here. Oh well, on to the next house.

This must be where the mayor lives. It's the biggest house in the village, after all.

He'll never be able to follow in my footsteps and take over as Mayor if he carries on like this.

Oh look, a terrible pun! Since this is Ivor's father, Ivor's full name is Ivor Litlun. Yep.

Oh, and there's another cupboard upstairs. This'll be the last one for a while, and it's another rank 6.

(yawn) I'm ever so sleepy, though. My body feels like it's made of...lead... Zzzzzz...

Ugh. I'm going to have to clean all this up, aren't I? Well, I'd better get this over with.

It's horrible and slimy and why am I putting it in my bag aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

You get five pieces of horse manure out of this. It doesn't do anything and can be sold for 1 gold. Yeah, we won't be finding a use for it any time soon. The pots here are rank 6, meaning that they can only contain more literal crap. Great.

Ach, no... I can't believe I fell asleep again!

Ah, that must be it! The Guardian's been helpin' me while I've been asleep! Thank you, Solitaire! I'll work harder from now on, I promise. I'll have me another horse in no time, you'll see!

Another...horse? Oh, Almighty, please no more of this...

Music: Evening in the Village

Never again. The stench'll cling for days...

Wait, what's baldy doing here?

You seem troubled. What is it? You feel that your old master does not trust you to work alone?

I...I don't want to talk about it.

It is my duty to patrol the entire Protectorate. Though you guard it well, I must sometimes revisit my old territory. And as I am here, Solitaire...there is one last lesson I must teach you.

Sometimes we must help those who have passed away, but whose souls continue to roam the land.

I don't know about a voice, but there's a guy over there glowing blue. Is that good enough for you?

Indeed. Go to him, and listen to his concerns.

Listen 'ere. Can you tell me 'ow come everyone's ignorin' me? ...'Ang on a minute... W-Wot's wiv that get-up, eh? Y-You ain't a... Oh, my days, you are! Yer a Celestrian, ain'tcha? So I've... I'm already... I've breaved me last, is it? Go on, you can tell me. I can take it! That's wot's 'appened, innit?

Yeah, you're dead as a doornail. I swear, you mortals are just useless, not knowing if you're dead or not...

Cheers for bein' straight wiv me, Miss, er...Celestrian. So basically, I've kicked the bucket, right? Well, it's a good fing you told me. When I thought everyone was jut ignorin' me, I was about ready to do meself in anyway! But now I know wot's wot, I can just get on wiv it and... Well, you know. Rest in peace an' all that.

Thanks to your intervention, a mortal soul has made its peace, and is now at rest. The benevolessence of a departed soul shines more brilliantly than any. You will be returning to the Observatory with it post-haste, no doubt?

Might as well. It's not like there's anyone else down here who'll give me benevolessence right now.

Then I shall bid you farewell for now. I have much to do here in the Protector- Hm?

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's...a train? That's a bit unusual.

The Starflight Express... Indeed, it has been unusually active of late... I have changed my mind. I shall accompany you to the Observatory after all, Solitaire.

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 2:33 pm

Mechanics: Barrels, Pots, Cupboards and Blue Chests

I've mentioned ranks a couple of times, but haven't talked about what those actually mean. Simply put, every barrel, pot, cupboard and blue chest has a rank that determines what set of items it has a chance to contain. And sometimes they'll just contain nothing! Pots and barrels share contents, and they have 10 ranks. Cupboards also have 10 ranks, but they're separate from pots and barrels. Finally, blue chests only have 5 ranks, but their items tend to be of higher quality. There's a major exception to that, but we won't be getting to it in detail until the postgame so I'll leave it until then.

Pots and barrels

Rank 1: 2G (10%), Medicinal Herb (10%), Nothing (80%)

Rank 2: 5G (10%), Medicinal Herb (15%), Antidotal Herb (5%), Nothing (70%)

Rank 3: 2G (10%), 4G (10%), 8G (5%), 12G (5%), Nothing (70%)

Rank 4: Medicinal Herb (12%), Antidotal Herb (8%), 16G (5%), Moonwort Bulb (5%), Evac-u-bell (5%), Chimaera Wing (5%), Nothing (60%)

Rank 5: Medicinal Herb (12%), Antidotal Herb (8%), Moonwort Bulb (5%), 48G (5%), Evac-u-bell (5%), Chimaera Wing (5%), Angel Bell (5%), Strong Medicine (5%), Nothing (50%)

Rank 6: Cowpat (20%), Horse Manure (20%), Nothing (60%)

Rank 7: Wing of Bat (10%), Tortoiseshell (10%), Toad Oil (10%), Lambswool (10%), Snakeskin (10%), Nothing (50%)

Rank 8: Strong Medicine (10%), Special Medicine (5%), Strong Antidote (10%), Special Antidote (5%), Magic Water (5%), Sage's Elixir (5%), Angel Bell (5%), Mini Medal (5%), Nothing (50%)

Rank 9: Gleeban Groat (10%), 120G (10%), Resurrock (10%), Mini Medal (10%), Nothing (60%)

Rank 10: Lava Lump (5%), Fresh Water (5%), Flurry Feather (5%), Royal Soil (5%), Ice Crystal (5%), Thunderball (5%), Evencloth (5%), Brighten Rock (5%), Resurrock (5%), Mini Medal (5%), Nothing (50%)

As you can see, not every rank is strictly better than the rank preceding it. Rank 4 pots and barrels, for example, only contain Cowpats and Horse Manure, which are mostly useless items. Also, the chance of finding anything isn't the same for every rank - it goes from as low as 20% to as high as 50%.

Cupboards

Rank 1: Cotton Gloves (20%), Cotton Trousers (15%), Plain Clothes (15%), Nothing (50%)

Rank 2: Sandals (15%), Pop Socks (5%), Hairband (10%), Nothing (70%)

Rank 3: Leather Shoes (15%), Boxer Shorts (15%), Bandana (20%), Nothing (50%)

Rank 4: 2G (15%), 5G (15%), 10G (10%), 15G (5%), 30G (5%), Nothing (50%)

Rank 5: Plain Clothes (10%), Wayfarer's Clothes (5%), Silk Robe (5%), Springtime Skirt (5%), Leather Hat (5%), Nothing (70%)

Rank 6: Medicinal Herb (15%), Antidotal Herb (10%), Moonwort Bulb (10%), Holy Water (5%), Chimaera Wing (10%), Nothing (50%)

Rank 7: Silver Bracelets (5%), Gold Bracer (5%), Slime Earrings (5%), Gold Ring (5%), Bunny Tail (5%), Nothing (75%)

Rank 8: Boxer Shorts (10%), Cotton Gloves (10%), Linen Gloves (5%), Leather Gloves (5%), Rubber Gloves (5%), Mini Medal (5%), Nothing (60%)

Rank 9: Leather Dress (5%), Dancer's Costume (5%), Garish Garb (5%), Feathered Cap (5%), Fur Hood (5%), Leather Kilt (5%), Nothing (70%)

Rank 10: 12G (20%), 40G (15%), 120G (5%), 240G (5%), Mini Medal (5%), Nothing (50%)

Cupboards, in contrast to pots and barrels, tend to hold equipment. They don't tend to be particularly strong past the early game, but hey, free stuff. Again, the maximum chance of finding anything is 50%, but the minimum chance is 25%! Such a huge improvement. It's much easier to see how ranks don't necessarily correlate to quality with this lot.

Blue chests

Rank 1: Medicinal Herb (25%), Antidotal Herb (20%), Moonwort Bulb (10%), Holy Water (10%), Chimaera Wing (10%), Iron Nails (5%), Sandals (5%), Cotton Gloves (5%), Plain Clothes (5%), 18G (5%)

Rank 2: Medicinal Herb (15%), Antidotal Herb (10%), Moonwort Bulb (10%), Strong Medicine (10%), Chimaera Wing (10%), Angel Bell (10%), Coagulant (10%), 52G (7%), Gleeban Groat (5%), Paring Knife (5%), Leather Shoes (5%), Magic Water (3%)

Rank 3: Iron Nails (10%), Gleeban Groat (10%), Magic Water (10%), 240G (10%), Tortoiseshell (8%), Toad Oil (8%), Mystifying Mixture (7%), Strong Medicine (5%), Evac-u-bell (5%), Strong Antidote (5%), Gold Bracer (5%), Resurrock (5%), Gleeban Guinea (5%), Mini Medal (5%), Sage's Elixir (2%)

Rank 4: Cannibox (10%), Special Medicine (10%), Mini Medal (10%), Gleeban Groat (10%), Magic Water (10%), Finessence (5%), Ultramarine Mittens (5%), Sorcerer's Stone (5%), Gold Rosary (5%), Iron Ore (5%), Gleeban Guinea (5%), Sage's Elixir (5%), 525G (5%), Silver Platter (5%), Aggressence (5%)

Rank 5: Mimic (10%), Panacea (10%), Mini Medal (10%), Gleeban Guinea (10%), Sage's Elixir (8%), Prayer Ring (5%), Einhänder (5%), 1000G (5%), Gleeban Gold Piece (5%), Agility Ring (5%), Yggdrasil Leaf (5%), Resurrock (5%), Strength Ring (5%), Hephaestus' Flame (5%), Gold Rosary (5%), Reckless Necklace (2%)

These sets of items are a bit different. Not only are blue chests guaranteed to have a payout, but sometimes the payout isn't an item. Sometimes it's...something else. Canniboxes and Mimics are exactly what you'd expect from their names: fake chests that are actually monsters. We'll see both eventually. Even so, it's worth opening them all because there's some very good stuff in them.

Finally, I've said this in the main updates, but it bears repeating: all of these restock when the world is reloaded after saving and resetting.

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 2:49 pm

Part 3: Bloom and Bust

Music: Heaven's Prayer

Right, I'd better get over to Yggdrasil. This benevolessence won't deliver itself. Maybe I should check the latest rumours on the way, though...

You must go and offer it unto mighty Yggdrasil. If rumour is to be believed, now is a most exciting time to do so.

I knew my genius would be appreciated eventually. Remind me to start up a Solitaire fan club once I'm back from Yggdrasil, won't you?

And you have seen the celestial carriage, I take it? It is aboard this hallowed craft that we will make our journey to that most sacred realm.

You can't mean that Starflight Express thing, can you? It's not exactly the most majestic transportation.

But what of Corvus? He is still not returned to us... Is he doomed never to return...? But I speak of forbidden things. Please, pretend you heard nothing. It is merely talk of matters centuries since put to rest.

Now you've caught my interest. Who's this Corvus guy?

I cannot say. Apus Major has forbidden all talk of the matter. But you have benevolessence to offer, do you not? You should go to Yggdrasil and do so.

Fine, fine. But I'm coming back to grill you after I'm done.

For both of them to go together to mighty Yggdrasil... Something momentous is afoot...

Both of them are up there? I guess running into them is going to be unavoidable. Bah.

Aaaand there they are. Let's get this over with.

Video: The Fyggs Bloom

Seriously, go and watch that video. It contains one of three animated scenes in the game, and it's kiiiinda important.

Behold Yggdrasil. She is ready to burst into bloom with all the benevolessence we have offered unto Her.

"...And lo, it shall be in the celestial carriage that we, the chosen custodians, journey unto the Realm of the Almighty."

Do so, and She will surely bear fruit at long last.

Ooh, so I get to be the last one to offer benevolessence? It's no leadership position, but getting this honour's still appreciated.

Right, here I go!

Music: Prologue

So here's the thing: the music here is impossible to separate from the sound effects during the cutscene as well as being timed specifically to follow its events. So just watch the video instead, okay? It's good.

So we're all supposed to get on that thing? How's it going to fit every-

Oh. That doesn't look good.

Got to...hold on...

Aaaaaaagh!

So the Starflight Express, Solitaire and the fyggs have all fallen off the Observatory. That's certainly a way to start off. And what better time to have the opening credits?

You might be wondering where in the world these places are. Luckily for you, I made a map of where I think these locations might be!

Based on prior knowledge of locations and a bit of guesswork, I can safely say that this route is complete nonsense and would involve Solitaire suddenly veering off course whichever route she took.

Yes, that's Angel Falls that Solitaire just crashed into. They've got a bit of a disaster on their hands. But at least the Guardian will be around to help, sort of!

Oh, and in case you didn't know what game we were playing, here it is. And it only took three updates to get here!

...The game still has a good while to go before it really gets started. This introductory sequence is somewhat lengthy.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

This is it. I've lost everything. What do I even do now? I can't even go back to the Observatory.

And now I have to listen to this moron. How could my life get any worse?

I don't know what Erinn thinks she's doing bothering with the likes of her.

I bet it's her name that's got Erinn so keen. It is the same as our village Guardian's after all.

Hey! I'm right here, you know? Stop talking about me like I'm not!

I bet she's just some no-good wandering minstrel taking on a Guardian's name to get a free lunch. Well, listen to this, oddball! I won't let you get away with any funny business on my patch!

Shut up, you idiot! Why would you say that?

Uh-oh!

Oh, hey, Erinn. Can you get these two morons to shove off for me?

Er... Hi, Erinn! Nothing's going on. Just teaching Solitaire here a few village rules. Anyway, we were just leaving. Come on, Hugo.

And good riddance!

Coming up here reminds me of when I first found you. I was so surprised.

Anyway, I'm heading home. There's nothing more to do at the inn for now. Enjoy the rest of your walk, but make sure you don't overdo it, okay? I'll see you back at the house.

Yeah, see you later, Erinn.

Video ends

Might as well take a walk around the village again. It's not like I've got anything better to do.

Before we do that, let's talk about Solitaire's stats. Every character who can be in your party (except one) has a vocation, which is their class or job or whatever you want to call it. Solitaire will be a Minstrel for the foreseeable future, although she used to be a Guardian. We don't talk about Guardians; they're a dummy vocation that caps at 500 in every stat and can equip anything, even gender-exclusive gear that a character wouldn't normally be able to equip. Speaking of which, stats are governed entirely by vocation, level and stat-up items. There's zero variance to stat growth. Minstrels are the all-rounder vocation, learning both healing and damaging magic as well as being okay at physical attacks too.

Now, onto the stats themselves. The first couple should be self-evident; Strength improves your physical attack damage, and Agility makes you move earlier in a given turn. Resilience reduces physical damage taken. Deftness governs a whole mess of things, like critical hit rate, steal rate, flee rate and preemptive strike rate. Fun times! Charm is another weird stat, and the higher it is the larger the chance of passively inflicting the Charm ailment on an enemy. Magical Mending and Magical Might increase the power of healing and damaging magic respectively, with Might also raising the ailment infliction rate on spells. Max. HP and MP should also be obvious. Finally, Attack, Defence and Style are just your Strength, Resilience and Charm but modified by equipment.

Then you've got the equipment itself. As you can see, we've got a few more equipment slots than a Dragon Quest game would normally have. Each slot tends to give out a different stat bonus although you could just go all in on Defence instead. For example, Solitaire's current outfit just boosts her Defence (and Attack with the sword, of course). There's also the matter of every piece of equipment being modelled on your character. There are surprisingly few repeats, too! As you'd expect, this results in fashion being the true endgame.

The final thing we'll be taking a look at for now is the Skills. These are weapon proficiencies or, in the case of the last one on the list, their vocation-exclusive abilities. I'll go over them more when Solitaire can actually do something with them, but for now, they're all staying at zero.

I know. It's just one thing after another, isn't it? I'll tell you what I think. You know Erinn and that strange person she's befriended, the one who looks like a minstrel? Goes by the name of Solitaire of something. Well, I think it's her that brought all this misfortune to the village.

Hello? I'm standing right here? Oh, fine, I guess you don't care. Stupid mortals.

Not that it's ever anything really amazing, of course. Probably best not to get too obsessed with looking.

This is good advice. Pots, barrels and cupboards (and blue chests, but who's counting) will contain different items when they restock. I'm not sure whether the contents is determined when they're loaded in or when they're broken/opened, but it really doesn't matter.

Maybe I should buy something for Erinn. Oh, but there's nothing here that she could use...

The shop is open now that everyone can actually see Solitaire. Medicinal herbs are the standard healing item, and they heal 30HP. This place also sells a few weapons that Solitaire can use: swords, whips and fans. Whips in particular are interesting because they hit entire enemy groups instead of a single foe, but they only hit the first in the group with full power and are generally weaker than other weapons. The armour here is pretty standard; the shields, armour and leggings just increase Defence, the bandana increases Magical Mending as well (nice for when Solitaire gets a healing spell), the gloves just increase Deftness and the shoes increase dodge chance. We'll be back for some of this stuff later, but for now we'll just ignore it.

It destroyed the village entrance and even broke the church bell! I thought my number was up then, I can tell you.

Well excuse me for falling down. I didn't plan to do it.

He went to live in Stornway for a time. He got married there and that's where Erinn was born.

What about her mother? I never see her around the place.

Apparently she was always a bit of a fragile thing, and she died young. I forget the details now.

Oh, wow, that must have been rough for her. I can't imagine being in her shoes.

But she only went and got injured in that earthquake the other day. Of all the rotten luck! And I had Solitaire on my side and everything... I don't mean you, by the way, so don't get the wrong idea.

No, I get the feeling that your Guardian wouldn't be on your side about getting a new horse. One was bad enough...

You'd do well to take a leaf out of Erinn's book. She puts in a lot of hard work at the inn, that girl.

Huh! What's Erinn got to do with it? I am trying to find something I want to do, anyway. And when I figure out what that is, I'll work my socks off! ...Probably...

Oh, you know. Just popping by. You should really keep your door locked, you know that? It's amazing how many people just let visitors waltz on in.

Huh! I didn't want anyone to see that. You'd better not tell Erinn, okay? I mean...please don't tell Erinn!

Fine, fine. She probably wouldn't be interested in the likes of you anyway.

Oh, it's getting dark. I should probably be getting back to Erinn's place.

It's not possible to move on until you see this scene at the mayor's house. Everything else is optional.

Oh, that's great! You know, I think this is the nicest anyone's ever been to me. Thanks so much for looking after me for the last couple of weeks.

I'm really happy you feel that way! It's my job to make people feel welcome, after all. Now, you look like you've had a long walk. I expect you probably just want to eat your dinner and turn in for the night, don't you?

Yeah, I'm getting a bit hungry.

Then let's eat! Can you help me lay the table? You can have a rest as soon as we've finished eating, don't worry.

Sure, I'll help out. I'm gonna go to bed straight after, okay?

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 3:04 pm

Part 4: Rocks Fall, No-one Dies

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

Come on, get up! You have a visitor. Ivor's here. He's got something or other he wants to talk to you about. He knows you're here, so I can't very well turn him away. Just give him a few minutes of your time, okay?

Ugh, if I have to. That guy's such a pain.

Right. Downstairs, was it? Might as well get this over with.

I generally only give him three chances before I strike back.

Don't worry, I can handle myself. If worse comes to worst I can just give him a good kick or something.

We can't talk about it here, though. Come outside a minute.

Sure, I'll bite. Just don't try anything funny.

Well, that pass is a lifeline for us here in Angel Falls. We're totally cut off if we can't use it. It's a real problem for Eri- A real problem for everyone, I mean. So I was thinking: what better time for Ivor to come to the rescue? I'm going to clear the landslide and make it passable again.

Are you sure you've thought this through? You do know that landslides are usually a bit big for two people to clear, right?

It'll be fine! What would someone like you know about landslides, anyway? Besides, even if I fail...

Since the earthquake, there have been lots of monsters about, and it's pretty dangerous to leave the village now. That's where you come in. I was thinking that maybe you could tag along. You minstrel types are generally pretty handy in a scrap, right? Can I count on you to help me out?

Sure, why not? It can't hurt to check it out, at least.

It's easy enough to find. You just head out of the village and follow the road east. Oh yeah, and let's keep this to ourselves, okay? We don't want anyone sticking their beaks in.

Music: Gained An Ally

Oh boy, a party member! Ivor's...interesting. You'll see. But hey, the Dragon Quest party joining fanfare plays here!

...It's never going to play again.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

Okay, let's talk about Ivor. Ivor doesn't have a vocation. This means that he has no stat growths. Yep, he's stuck at level 3 for ever! And he doesn't have a full stats screen either, so this is the best we can do. Those stats are pretty bad for his level! At least he doesn't take any experience points away from Solitaire. Essentially, he's a crutch character to use until Solitaire can fight effectively on her own. It just so happens that level 3 is where Solitaire will start getting abilities which will let her do just that, so she'll be all caught up with Ivor at that point.

Maybe I should get some gear. You can never be too prepared to fight monsters.

This is an ideal time to buy equipment. Solitaire's missing equipment in her arm and head slots, so I buy some cotton gloves and a bandana. It won't help much, but hey, those slots won't do anything if they're empty. Besides, the Deftness from those gloves is surprisingly useful. Oh, and because Ivor has "temporary party member" written all over him, he doesn't get to equip anything.

That's when the church can be your saviour. For just a small contribution, the Almighty can come to your aid.

This is something that I probably should have mentioned last update, but this seems as good a time as any. The church at the Observatory is unique in that it's actually missing features available everywhere else. Resurrection will, well, revive a character from death. What did you expect? There's also Purification, which removes the poison and envenomate ailments. Both of these cost money, as does Benediction. Said cost scales with level, with Resurrection costing much more than the other two. And if you happen to get a total party wipe, then you'll come back at the last church you visited with only your party leader alive and half your money gone.

Isn't this your friend, Ivor? Think you can get him out of the way?

W-Wait a minute! What are you doing with her, Ivor? Since when were you best mates?

You are a pain sometimes! We're just going to clear the landslide, that's all.

Oh, right... But there really are monsters about, you know.

Nothing I can't handle. Just let us by, will you? Hold us up any longer and there'll be trouble!

G-Go on, then. I'm not stopping you.

A quick rest at Erinn's house should be enough to get your strength back up again. There's no need to be a hero.

You know, I've fought some of those monsters and they were wimps. I'm surprised everyone's so scared of the things.

You've spent half the time you've been here telling us all about your exploits, Solitaire. Not everyone can be as amazing or talented or modest as you are.

Whatever. Let's just get going.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Welcome to the world map! Sort of. You see, this game doesn't have a world map per se. It's closer to a set of decently expansive areas connected by loading screens that, when put together, look kind of like a world map if you squint, maybe. This section covers the area around Angel Falls, with the landslide in the northeast.

Monsters roam around on the map, and touching one starts an encounter. To ensure that you actually fight things instead of just ignoring everything and being underleveled, these run at you. There are two types: monsters that run directly at the party and don't turn, and monsters that chase the party until they go offscreen. These ones are far more annoying, although they can be circumvented by running in a circle. They're not very good at cornering either, you see. If the party is overleveled for the area, monsters will run away instead of giving chase. However, there'a way to circumvent the chasing mechanic entirely: holy water. Using it will make the party invisible for a limited time, causing monsters to ignore them. We're not doing that, though, because we're going to be seeing all the monsters around here first. To battle!

Music: Are You A Loser

Look, there's a monster! Get it!

Sometimes, the game will have a short lead-in to battle where the party brandishes their weapons. I believe this usually happens in the first battle after loading a save, although there are other situations. Ivor's even got a unique animation for it!

Hey, this thing's pretty cute-

OH ALMIGHTY KILL IT WITH FIRE

#003 Teeny sanguini wrote:
Code: Select all
Demon Family
HP: 13         MP: 2
Attack: 12     Defence: 6    Agility: 15
Exp: 4         Gold: 7
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/16)
Rare Drop: Holy water (1/64)

Cowskin-coloured little devils who only chase after travellers because they want to play.

The cow pattern pales, and patches of pink poke through as they mature. You could say they rose as they rise!

Teeny sanguinis are almost as uninteresting as their compatriots that we've already seen. The main difference is that as well as attacking and fleeing, they have a 2% chance to dodge. They've also got the ability to waste their turn by "fluffing around". There isn't even an animation, so why bother showing it?

And now there's a monster that's a sack? That's...interesting. How is something like this even alive?

#004 Sacksquatch wrote:
Code: Select all
Material Family
HP: 15         MP: 0
Attack: 13     Defence: 8    Agility: 8
Exp: 5         Gold: 8
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 000
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Antidotal herb (1/32)
Rare Drop: Boxer shorts (1/64)

Smack them with spells before they jump at the chance to blind you by blowing sand in your eyes.

Sacks that were stacked at a factory, then left all alone. They split a bit, then split for real to live life as free and easy fiends.

Sacksquatches are also present, although unlike everything else we've seen so far they've actually got something interesting associated with them that isn't the standard actions of attacking and fleeing! Although they do those too, of course, and they're also bulky enough to die in three hits instead of two.

Aagh, there's sand in my eyes! That's just dirty!

Suck it up, Ivor. You'll be fine.

Sandstorm is an enemy-only ability that dazzles our entire party. Or attempts to, anyway; I don't have much information on what enemy abilities actually do, so I don't know what the exact chance is, but it's not very high. Thank goodness. Dazzle just makes attacks miss sometimes, which they can't normally do. There are even two types of it! I think this one makes attacks have a 5/8 hit rate.

What sort of butterfly has a mouth that big?

I can think of a few more things with big mouths around here...

#005 Batterfly wrote:
Code: Select all
Bug Family
HP: 14         MP: 5
Attack: 14     Defence: 12   Agility: 9
Exp: 7         Gold: 12
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 100 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Moonwort bulb (1/16)
Rare Drop: Butterfly wing (1/64)

Beastly butterflies who disrupt their enemies with Dazzle, then dash off at the first sign of trouble.

They're adamant that it's not their faces that look like mortals', it's mortals' faces that look like theirs.

Oh boy, more attacking and fleeing shenanigans! Batterflies can be found in the forests around Angel Falls, not the plains like everything else we've covered so far. Attacking and fleeing are standard, of course. They've got something else, though, which is alluded to in their description. They're also generally stronger than everything else in the area and have a 2% dodge rate.

Dazzle is Sandstorm, But Better. The player version has a 75% base hit rate, so it's probably safe to assume that the same goes for this one. The ailment that comes from its namesake spell is the 3/8 hit rate variation. Thankfully, since it costs 5 MP, batterflies can only use it once before running out of MP.

A monster that uses a bow? That's certainly more intelligent than most mortals I've seen.

#007 Bodkin archer wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 17         MP: 5
Attack: 16     Defence: 12   Agility: 10
Exp: 9         Gold: 16
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Plain clothes (1/16)
Rare Drop: Leather hat (1/64)

Able archers who attack from afar, use medicinal herbs when in need, and aren't too proud to flee from more formidable foes.

Their bodkin betters tease them that they're terrible shots, so they target unlucky travellers to try and prove them wrong.

Bodkin archers are also found in forests, this time mostly towards the southeast of the Angel Falls area. They're the trickiest monsters around for the time being, too, both in terms of stats and abilities. They've got attacking and fleeing as options, of course - what hasn't around here? - but they've got some annoyances all to themselves.

Buff's a right pain, because it raises the Defence of its (single) target by 50%. The way buffs work in this game (pun somewhat intended) is that there are five tiers of stat boosts: decreased a lot, decreased a little, normal, increased a little, and increased a lot. Usually these equate to 25%, 50%, 100%, 150% and 200% of the stat respectively. Thankfully these guys only have the MP to cast Buff once, so they can't boost their Defence sky-high. Only slightly high.

They also sometimes use medicinal herbs when on low HP, somehow making them even more tanky. It'll heal them for 15 HP, which is effectively all their health. Thankfully it's not too hard to take them down with Ivor around. Speaking of Ivor...

Solitaire, follow my lead!

Ugh, fine.

This is a combo. Combos are a mechanic that clearly wasn't thought out and encourages either ridiculous overspecialisation or never using anything but the regular attack command. You see, combos build up when the same target is damaged with the same attack, spell or ability on consecutive actions. This means that the combo will be interrupted if any enemy gets an action in the middle, and you can't reasonably use a magic-user and a physical attacker in the same party if you plan to make use of the mechanic because one of them won't be able to contribute. Anyway, the second hit of the combo does 1.2x damage, the third does 1.5x damage and the fourth does 2x damage. Guess when this is the most relevant? Oh, and this can work against you because monsters can combo too. It's not very common, but it still happens sometimes.

Music: None

Oh, I just had a great idea! What if I could heal myself, so I wouldn't need anyone else around? Then I could drop that idiot. I could get all the credit for checking out that landslide! Now how could I get rid of him?

Solitaire, please, you're scaring me. Can you stop muttering to yourself?

As I said before, level 3 is where Solitaire picks up Heal, an incredibly nice spell that'll see her through the early game with relatively few problems. It's the most basic single-target healing spell, but since it heals for an average of 35 HP that's going to be a full heal for pretty much the whole time until we can use a full party. It only costs 2 MP, too!

I think that's enough fighting for now. Why don't we see the sights around here?

I can't believe you're dragging me around so much. I'd never have asked you to come if I knew it would be like this...

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

What's this place? It looks very...ruin-y.

That's the Hexagon. The entrance is blocked, so you can't go in very far. Look, can we just go? Dad's going to notice I'm missing if we're out much longer.

Fine, fine. I'll hurry things up a bit.

The Hexagon is in the southeast, and there really isn't anything to do there. Obviously it'll be relevant at some point, but not right now.

There's also a medicinal herb gathering point to the southwest. Oh yeah, I should explain gathering points too, shouldn't I? They're those blue sparkles on the ground. There are a lot of spots around the overworld that have these spawn around them, with each having a fixed item they generate. There are some weird, arcane mechanics determining when and how many items spawn, but the important part is that they spawn based on time since the last reload from a church, and some spawn slower than others. There's more to it, but I'm going to leave that for when the other part of the mechanic involved becomes relevant.

Anyway, there's an antidotal herb gathering point up north...

...and one for tanglewebs just to the west of that. These are items that lowers the Agility of the entire enemy party. This is really good because the spell that reproduces this effect but worse because it only hits a group is first available at, er, level 24. On an unlockable vocation. We'll want at least one for later anyway, regardless of whether it'll get used in battle.

Solitaire. Please just go to the pass. It feels like it's been days! Please, I'm begging you!

Sure. I've looked at everything I wanted to anyway.

Why're you complaining, Ivor? This is barely an outing at all. Anyway, we're here now.

Wait, what? What's that doing here? I thought it crashed ages away!

I can't believe I've been following a crazy person around. I should have just come alone...

Just...don't follow me. Please.

Bah. It's too late to get rid of him now. Still, who'd have thought the Starflight Express was here? Maybe it falling's what caused the landslide.

Should've expected as much. Oh well. What's over here?

Oh, it's just someone's jewellery. How'd this get here? I'm sure whoever it belonged to won't miss it if they left it here.

Off to the right of the entrance is a gold ring, an accessory that increases Defence slightly. It's pretty bad in the grand scheme of things, but it's the only one we've got so it's going on Solitaire immediately.

Bored now. I know! I'll bug Ivor some more.

A mysterious glowing orb? And it talks? It looks like we've got an Important Character here. I'm sure they won't be nearly as obnoxious as the glowing orb in another well-known video game.

_{i don't actually hate navi i'm sorry}

Do I get to say that I told you so? Because I think I get to say that I told you so.

Oh no, not you again! I thought you'd gone! And even with both of us here, you and I will never be able to shift this on our own. Stupid landslide! (sniff) And I was all ready to see the look on Dad's face when I came back to the village a hero... (sniff)

Scared of a few pebbles falling? Wow, I must have really done a number on you. Maybe that was a bit much.

Huh? It sounds like there's someone on the other side! Hey! I'm over here. It's me, Ivor from Angel Falls. No doubt you've heard of me!

Jings! Someone from Angel Falls! We're soldiers sent from Stornway. King Schott sent us to clear the landslide.

I suppose that means we're not really needed here, then. Huh! Now I wish we hadn't bothered coming all this way.

Do you happen to know if a lass called Patty made her way to your village just after the earthquake? She works at the inn in Stornway, but she took off one day for Angel Falls and we've heard nothing of her since.

Patty? Nope, doesn't ring any bells. Why would she want to come to Angel Falls anyway?

The path there's been blocked too, though, so we've no way of finding out where she is.

Hey, we went there, right? You said it was blocked off. What's the deal with that place? You didn't say much about it at the time.

The Hexagon? That old ruin we used to have to go traipsing all the way through before this pass was built? No one goes there any more. It's jam-packed with monsters and falling apart so badly it might come down on your head! There's no way a woman would go there alone. The rumours must be wrong.

No problemo! Just leave it to me. You can always count on Ivor!

At least...I hope we're going home? Please?

Might as well. I'm bored with messing with you anyway.

Ivor rejoins the party here after leaving at the entrance to the pass, and that means he's fully healed! Not that it means much, of course. Healing is basically trivial right now, with free medicinal herbs and weak monsters. This is still a good opportunity to get to level 3, if that somehow hasn't happened already. Just in case. Solitaire's already up there, though, so straight back to Angel Falls it is.

There you go, Ivor. Happy now?

Not really...but at least Dad will be happy with me.

Speaking of which, why don't we both go see him right away?

Music: Evening in the Village

That's right. Everyone will be so relieved to hear the news. Ivor saves the day, eh?

Don't be ridiculous! You were foolish to go all the way out there, just the two of you. Utterly foolish!

B-But! Why are you so angry? If we hadn't gone to the landslide, you'd never have known it was about to be cleared.

Knowing a little bit sooner is hardly worth risking your life for. That's why I'm angry. That's why you're foolish.

...Gah! Fine!

If we die in battle the church'll just bring us back to life, though. No harm done. What's the problem?

Don't you know how expensive that is? Resurrection isn't something to be taken lightly.

...Oh yeah, there was something else. Something I heard from one of the soldiers.

Suddenly Erinn! Why's she here now? Convenient timing, of course.

Erinn! What are you doing here?

What do you think? I'm here because I heard you whisked Solitaire off on some silly adventure! Anyway, never mind that. Is it true that Patty from Stornway has gone missing?

Ah yes. You're from Stornway originally, aren't you, Erinn? Do you know the woman?

Oh dear! Maybe she didn't know he'd passed away and she was coming here to see him.

Hmm... Well, I can understand everyone's concerns, but we can't very well send off a search party with no lead to go on.

Actually, the soldier said something about how she might've been on her way here through the Hexagon.

But what if I went? I'm perfectly capable of something like this.

Absolutely out of the question. Erinn, why don't you take Solitaire home now? Try not to worry too much. I'd appreciate a bit of privacy so I can talk some sense into this pig-headed son of mine.

Th-There's no need for that, Dad!

And then Solitaire went back to Erinn's house. That's certainly one way to end a scene.

You seem to be unscathed, though. You're obviously a lot tougher than I thought.

Well, yeah. I keep telling you people, I'm perfectly capable.

You see, I'm quite worried about all this talk of Patty going missing. So I was wondering if you could-

All we can do is pray to the Almighty to keep her safe. Guardian Solitaire, please watch over Patty and see that she comes to no harm.

Erinn's been so nice to me...so I should do something for her. If she's asking the Guardian for help, I'd be more than happy to give it. I'll head out tomorrow.

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 3:17 pm

Part 5: Horrors of the Hexagon

That was a good night's sleep! What was I going to do today, again? Oh, right, go to the Hexagon. There's no time like the present!

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Those puddles smell worse than the stables! I can't imagine what sort of stuff's in those.

Those purple blotches to the sides of the path are poison puddles, and they'll hurt the entire party for 1 HP every step taken on them. Speaking of which, Ivor left the party at the end of last update and is never coming back. Thankfully Solitaire is at a reasonable level thanks to doing a bit of grinding beforehand, so he's not needed. Also thankfully, the poison doesn't need to be traversed.

Yet.

Ugh, this whole place is really damp. Maybe the mortals are more capable than I thought if they traipse through here all the time.

"Path ahead sealed due to enormous-beast-related fatalities."

Is that a ghost? I guess I shouldn't be surprised if that sign's right. But if he died here, maybe he has a way to get through this slab...

Wait, no, come back! I swear, mortals have no respect. May as well follow him, I suppose.

Ha! Caught you!

And he's gone. Great. Oh well, at least I got some information.

Aha, here it is! There's a button on the back of this thing's neck.

I can't say I expected that to be the way in.

Incidentally, it's impossible to enter this part of the Hexagon before now, even with knowledge of the switch in the statue. The game just won't let you find it before talking to the ghost in the statue room. Before heading down the stairs here, it's a very good idea to head over to the path on the right.

A shield? I could definitely use one of these.

There's a very good case for not buying a shield at Angel Falls, and this is it. It's only a saving of 90 gold coins, but that's quite significant right now.

Also, the left stairs are the ones to go down first. There's a blue chest down there that's rank 1. Let's try the right next.

It leads to progress, of course. It also leads to monsters and do I have some monsters for you!

Music: Are You A Loser

That's just a bag. What's it going to do, carry things for me? Oh, I'm so inconvenienced!

#008 Bag o' laughs wrote:
Code: Select all
Material Family
HP: 16         MP: 4
Attack: 19     Defence: 14   Agility: 24
Exp: 11        Gold: 26
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 050 : 000 : 200
: 100 : 000 : 050 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 075 : 075

Common Drop: Cowpat (1/8)
Rare Drop: Strong medicine (1/64)

Try to get these nuisances bagged and tagged before they can empty your MP with a Weird Dance.

They're crammed with more jokes than a cartload of Christmas crackers, but have yet to raise even a wry smile.

Bags o' laughs are dicks. They've got a couple of nasty tricks hidden inside, the least of which is their ability to dodge attacks 2% of the time. They can also, surprise surprise, attack and flee, as well as missing their turns entirely occasionally. Sounds okay so far, right?

Why do I suddenly feel so tired?

Weird Dance is only a mild annoyance, but it's an annoyance nonetheless. It'll drain a couple of MP from a single target. Later this'll be just terrible, but for now Solitaire has only 12 MP and this is a pain to deal with.

Hey, that's not fair! You can't just gang up on someone!

And this is the worst possible thing that can happen. Bags o' laughs can just call in a winkster whenever they want to. Winksters live in the region we'll be visiting after Angel Falls. How about checking out what they can do, too?

#012 Winkster wrote:
Code: Select all
Demon Family
HP: 18         MP: 3
Attack: 19     Defence: 16   Agility: 22
Exp: 22        Gold: 25
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Cotton trousers (1/32)
Rare Drop: Oak staff (1/64)

These trainee tricksters have just learnt Frizz, and will fritter away all their MP trying to use it.

Their legends tell that they can become fully fledged wizards by flattening a certain foe with Frizz, so they cast it constantly.

Winksters have two options available to them.

Aah! It burns!

Frizz is the entry-level Fire-elemental spell, and as you can see it does around 10 damage. Monsters don't have a Magical Might stat, so this will remain constant throughout the game. Not that much more will use it, of course, but this goes for all spells. This is currently about a third of Solitaire's maximum HP. Thankfully, though, they only have enough MP to cast this once.

They can also attack. No fleeing this time! Here's the catch: see that blue number? That's an MP drain. They'll only do this if they've lost any MP, but it gives some back to them so they can just turn around and cast Frizz again.

Bags o' laughs can summon as many winksters as they want. This never gets out of hand. Ever.

And now bats? They don't look too threatening, at least.

Moving on from that train wreck, we have drackies.

#006 Dracky wrote:
Code: Select all
Bird Family
HP: 15         MP: 3
Attack: 17     Defence: 12   Agility: 18
Exp: 10        Gold: 10
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/16)
Rare Drop: Chimaera wing (1/64)

These bat-like beasts like nothing better than to gang up and go gallivanting across the night skies.

They have crazy cousins called wackies and boastful brothers called brackies. They long to go freckly and be...frackies.

Warning: Listed dracky subspecies may not actually exist. Drackies have a 2% dodge rate and can...attack and flee. They're deeply boring and probably the weakest things in the Hexagon. They can also be found joining in on battles at night around Angel Falls, but are found far more consistently here.

Robot birds. Now I've seen everything.

Mecha-mynahs are last on the monster list for now.

#009 Mecha-mynah wrote:
Code: Select all
Machine Family
HP: 6          MP: 4
Attack: 20     Defence: 38   Agility: 9
Exp: 12        Gold: 20
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 000 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 000 : 000
: 000 : 050
: 075 : 075 : 075 : 075

Common Drop: Chimaera wing (1/32)
Rare Drop: Feather fan (1/64)

Rapid, robotic birds, adept at upping their work-rate with Accelerate. Mistake them for typical tweeters at your peril.

They can't deviate from pre-programmed patterns, so they're poor team players who can only plod along at a preset pace.

Mecha-mynahs have a Fun(TM) gimmick wherein they have low HP but high Defence. We'll be seeing one particular set of monsters that abuses this to hell and back later, but for now it's indistinguishable from anything else. They also start the trend of Machine monsters having great big resistances to All The Ailments(also TM), although as usual it won't matter until we actually get access to that sort of thing.

Why's that thing going so fast all of a sudden?

Accelerate is your standard single-target spell that increases a stat. This time, it's Agility! Just pretend I'm copy/pasting what I said for Buff. It helps mecha-mynahs in exactly zero ways.

Music: None

While doing all this, Solitaire hit level 5 and gained her first skill points. Skill points are a mechanic that some of you may be familiar with if you've played almost any Dragon Quest game since 8. They're gained at very specific levels; more specifically, they're gained starting here for two levels, then skip a level, then do that again ad infinitum et nauseam. Or up to level 99, at least.

Skill points are assigned to skills. Every vocation has five skills associated with it; Minstrels get skills associated with swords, whips, fans, shields and their unique skill, Litheness. Each caps at 100 points, and from level 1 to 99 a vocation accrues 200 skill points in total, so that means it's possible to cap two skills in a given vocation. Funnily enough, that's pretty much how characters should be built unless you want to invest a bit in shields!

For now, Solitaire will be building up Litheness. From now on, I'll only be talking about skill points when something notable happens, because do you really need to know what's happening for every skill point gain? I thought not.

I think I might have to head back to the village to stock up. All these monsters are tiring me out.

And now we go back to Angel Falls because encounters with bags o' laughs can be a massive drain on resources and also because Solitaire needs a new weapon to deal with things more effectively.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

This new sword's a lot better than my old one. Why did I think that toothpick was going to help?

More specifically, the soldier's sword has a whole 6 points of Attack over the Copper Sword. It's definitely worth picking up, although there's another weapon in the Hexagon for free that isn't quite as effective as this. I just thought it'd be a good idea to pick this up because, you know, it's the strongest weapon available at this point.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

And now we're back to the Hexagon. There's only one way out of here, and that's these stairs down.

This room has three exits off it - east, west and south - and we'll be heading west first.

What am I supposed to do with this? Waft air at monsters? That's just stupid.

The feather fan is a weapon that's been available to buy in Angel Falls, but now it's here for free! Fans are a defensively-oriented weapon type, although they don't actually grant any defence. It's more that their skill teaches abilities that are good at protecting the user. In contrast, swords are good at single-target damage. The other weapon type that we've seen so far, whips, are good at dealing group damage and inflicting ailments. Because Solitaire has a soldier's sword, there's no reason to equip this.

Music: Are You A Loser

Huh, I thought I'd seen all the monsters around here. There are more on other floors?

Firespirits start showing up on B2, just one room after monsters started appearing to begin with. It's a weird design decision.

#010 Firespirit wrote:
Code: Select all
Elemental Family
HP: 14         MP: 3
Attack: 9      Defence: 9    Agility: 9
Exp: 12        Gold: 15
Elemental resistances
: 050 : 150 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100

Status resistances
: 000 : 050 : 000 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 000 : 000
: 050 : 075
: 075 : 075 : 075 : 075

Common Drop: Holy water (1/32)
Rare Drop: Magic water (1/128)

These Frizz spell elementals are best beaten with spells or abilities, as weapons will often pass right through them.

"Not even kids use Frizz these days." It was these thoughtless words that forged the furious firespirit.

Firespirits cast Frizz and attack and...nothing else. They're essentially Winksters but much less dangerous because they can't drain MP and have worse stats, even down to their inability to cast Frizz more than once. They're able to dodge attacks 8% of the time, though, so that's something they have going for them.

Maybe I could copy what that monster was doing. Throwing fire can't be that hard, can it?

After that fight, Solitaire hit level 6 and learned this ability. Hot Lick does 20-ish fire damage to a single target, and will always do 20-ish fire damage to a single target. That's right, it doesn't scale, so it's absolutely useless past the first few hours! It's a necessary evil, though, since it's the first ability in the Litheness skill and obtained from investing 4 skill points.

The other thing thing obtained from investing skill points is accolades. These are basically achievements, and I may or may not be getting all of them. Probably not, though.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Wow, that's a lot of money. I bet I could buy just about anything with this!

This chest is to the south at the junction from before. Given that the most expensive item in Angel Falls costs 240 gold coins, this is a significant chunk of change.

Finally, the eastern route leads back upstairs, this time to a completely different room. And guess what? There's another new monster about!

Music: Are You A Loser

How can that thing even hold that scythe? I thought ghosts couldn't touch anything.

#011 Spirit wrote:
Code: Select all
Zombie Family
HP: 20         MP: 2
Attack: 23     Defence: 20   Agility: 14
Exp: 16        Gold: 24
Elemental resistances
: 150 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 000 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 050 : 050
: 100 : 000
: 100 : 050 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Holy water (1/32)
Rare Drop: Silk robe (1/64)

Formless phantasms who are hard to get a hold of, but are easily eradicated with a fire-based offensive.

Restless wraiths who refuse to take their rightful rest. They might look like a laugh, but they're far from frolicsome.

Spirits are the strongest monsters in the area based entirely on their stats, but they're not very impressive otherwise. They get to attack and flee. What's variety? Still, undergeared or underleveled characters should watch out. Oh, and they've got a 2% evade rate, just like almost everything that flies. They just about die to a single Hot Lick, so that might be a use for it, maybe.

Speaking of Hot Lick, this is what it looks like. We'll almost certainly not be seeing it much more, so savour it while you can.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

That carpet looks like it was really fancy. I wonder what this place used to be.

Well this is just great. I can't use this tiny thing!

Nice, a 5% drop! This chest is found by going back towards the southwest and is rank 2, and the paring knife is the weakest knife in the game. Solitaire can't equip it, because she's a Minstrel. Maybe it'll be useful when we get more party members, or maybe it'll be outdated by then. Probably the latter.

Next room! This one's accessible up through the door in the carpeted area from a couple of screenshot ago. It's also the last room of the Hexagon. Yes, this is a short dungeon.

Another seed? This one looks a bit different, though.

Before we go to the back end of this place, there's a chest in one of the side passages. seeds of deftness permanently increase Deftness. I know, it's really shocking. Unlike seeds of life, though, the stat is raised by 2.

Oh, that must be Patty. What's she doing stuck under that rubble? Don't tell me she did something stupid.

Video: Boss #1 - Hexagoon

I'm not badly hurt or anything, but I'm kinda stuck here, ya know? And I don't fancy being around when that beast comes back.

This is the last chance to turn back before the inevitable boss fight. It's an easy one, though, so this is hardly necessary.

These rocks? No problem. How'd you get like this, anyway?

Whoa, is that an earthquake? Never mind how you got like this, we need to get out of here quick!

I got trapped trying to run away from this guy and not looking where I was going. Watch your head, sweetie!

Don't you worry, I'll be fine. The great Solitaire is here to save you!

Music: Swirling Desire

This is the first boss, the hexagoon. The hexagoon is a joke, and unfortunately isn't six goons taped together.

#257 Hexagoon wrote:
Code: Select all
Beast Family
HP: 93         MP: 18
Attack: 30     Defence: 22   Agility: 11
Exp: 175       Gold: 100
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100
: 100 : 100

Status resistances
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 100
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 100
: 010 : 000
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Guaranteed Drop: Magic beast hide

Hideous hulk that once prowled the passages of the Hexagon, preying on travellers. The earth shakes with its every step.

Its diet consists mainly of rocks and boulders, and it loves dark places, so the Hexagon made a perfect home.

Just look at all those ailment immunities! Unfortunately most bosses will be doing that, although reducing stats will usually work well. Not that that'll matter for the hexagoon!

Ow! I'd better kill this thing quickly before it brings the whole ruin down.

The hexagoon likes to knock the ceiling down in battle, just like it did outside of it. It always does 5 or 6 damage and is probably Earth elemental.

Coincidentally, this is around the same damage as it'll do with its regular attack at level 6 and with a little more than baseline Defence. Unlike its rubble-dropping ability, though, this damage can be reduced.

The only strategy here is to wait to get to low health and then heal. That's it. But hey, you've got multiple options! There's Heal, and there's medicinal herbs, and...nothing else. Maybe a strong medicine from that rank 2 chest? It's essentially the same as the second option, though.

After trading blows for a bit, the hexagoon goes down. The last hit on a boss causes the screen to go white and everything to play in slow motion for a bit. It's a nice little effect, and really satisfying when you finally kill a boss after a drawn-out battle.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

I told you I was strong. What is it with nobody believing me?

Ya know, I managed to shake myself free in all the chaos. So let's get outta here, huh? Being attacked by monsters is such a drag!

So why didn't you free yourself before!?

Trade secret, sweetie.

Phew! We're safe new, I guess. Ya know, I'm just not a dark ruins kind of a gal!

And you are...?

Didn't I already tell you? I'm Solitaire. I came from Angel Falls to-

Get outta here! You're from Angel Falls?

Well, not exactly...

Ah! That reminds me... I've gotta get to Angel Falls right away.

Video ends

EMN · Wed Jul 01, 2020 3:28 pm

Vocation Overview: Minstrel

Minstrels are your standard all-rounder vocation. They've got a few damaging spells, a few healing spells, a decent enough Strength stat - you know, standard stuff for something that's designed to carry you through the early game when you only have your main character. In short, they're deeply average. Their Charm is their most outstanding stat, but even then it's not the best in the game. Minstrels can use swords, fans, whips and shields, and their unique skill, Litheness, is just as eclectic as their stats. They're not very good to use for very long after the point where you're forced to use one, but they make for an excellent vocation to pass through if you're planning on dodge tanking.

Stats

Code: Select all

          Strength  Agility  Resilience  Deftness  Charm  M. Mending  M. Might  Max. HP  Max. MP
Level 1   9         8        8           12        9      7           6         20       6
Level 20  55        76       53          69        54     43          36        109      40
Level 40  103       148      99          128       103    82          67        203      75
Level 60  152       219      146         188       151    120         99        297      110
Level 80  200       291      193         247       199    159         131       391      146
Level 99  246       359      237         304       245    195         161       480      179

Spells

Heal (level 3) - Healing targeting one ally, costs 2 MP. Scales using Magical Mending, starting at 51. Healing starts out at 35 +/- 5 and scales linearly up to 160 +/- 5 when the stat is capped.

Crack (level 8) - Ice elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 51. Damage starts out at 30 +/- 5 and scales linearly up to 119 +/- 5 when the stat is capped.

Evac (level 10) - Only usable outside battle, costs 3 MP. Teleports the party out of a dungeon.

Woosh (level 12) - Wind elemental damage targeting an enemy group, costs 3 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 51. Damage starts at 16 +/- 8 and scales linearly up to 69 +/- 8 when the stat is capped.

Crackle (level 16) - Ice elemental damage targeting an enemy group, costs 8 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 101. Damage starts at 50 +/- 8 and scales linearly up to 150 +/- 8 when the stat is capped.

Midheal (level 21) - Healing targeting one ally, costs 4 MP. Scales using Magical Mending, starting at 101. Healing starts out at 85 +/- 10 and scales linearly up to 300 +/- 10 when the stat is capped.

Zing (level 24) - Targets one ally, costs 8 MP. Has a chance to revive the target, with the chance scaling with Magical Mending starting at 181. Revival chance starts out at 50% and scales linearly up to 75%, and healing starts out at 25% of maximum HP and scales linearly up to 50% of maximum HP. Both cap at 849 Magical Mending. If the target is not dead, this spell has no effect.

Swoosh (level 30) - Wind elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 8 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 101. Damage starts at 40 +/- 15 and scales linearly up to 138 +/- 15 when the stat is capped.

Kaswoosh (level 36) - Wind elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 26 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 201. Damage starts at 130 +/- 50 and scales linearly up to 205 +/- 50 when the stat is capped.

Coup de Grâce

Minstrels get the Coup de Grâce Rough and Tumble, which increases their evasion rate to 50% and their counter rate to 25% for 6 turns.

Skills

Swords

Swords always do 1.1x damage to Dragon family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Dragon Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Dragon family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Metal Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does an extra point of damage to metal monsters, and 1x damage to everything else.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of swords by an additive 3%.

Miracle Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 1.25x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt.

Falcon Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 0.75x damage, but hits twice.

Gigaslash - Light elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 15 MP. Scales using the sum of Strength and Magical Might, starting at 500. Damage starts out at 160 +/- 20 and scales linearly up to 360 +/- 20 when both stats are capped.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped swords by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Omnivocational Swordmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip swords regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Swords are a great single-target offensive option, although they're lacking in utility. Gigaslash is actually pretty bad considering how low the MP of most sword-wielding vocations is, so that leaves Falcon Slash as the big offensive option. The main problem here is the lack of decent multi-target damage. Also, the best weapon in the game is a sword, so that's something.

Whips

Whips always do 1.1x damage to Humanoid family monsters. They also damage a group of monsters with their regular attack and any group-targeting abilities, but damage is reduced past the first - 2nd is 0.8x, 3rd is 0.7x, 4th is 0.5x, 5th is 0.3x and 6th and on is 0.2x. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Hypnowhip - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Confuse with a 12.5% base chance and a duration of 4-7 turns.

Lashings of Love - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Does 1.25x damage to Humanoid family monsters, and 1x damage to everything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.375x multiplier.

Trammel Lash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Paralysis with a 12.5% base chance and a duration of 4-7 turns.

Hit the Hay - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Sleep with a 12.5% base chance and a duration of 2-5 turns.

Schadenfreude - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 5 MP. Does 1x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt to the last enemy hit. Damage is not reduced past the first opponent, so it will do full damage to every target.

Twin Dragon Lash - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 10 MP. Does 1.25x damage and hits twice, but will damage random targets within the group. It will still hit twice if used against a single enemy.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped whips by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Omnivocational Whipmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip whips regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Whips are a decent weapon type both for group damage and single-target damage. The ailment attacks might seem good, but you're so unlikely to run into a large enemy group that the infliction rates are too low to matter in most encounters. Both Schadenfreude and Twin Dragon Lash are really good attacks, although they obviously come very late. Whips are unfortunately let down by their low attack power, which is designed to offset the fact that they attack groups by default.

Fans

Fans always do 1.1x damage to Aquatic family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Flower Power - Targets a group of enemies, costs 2 MP. Inflicts Dazzle on all targets with a 100% base chance and a duration of 5-8 turns.

Reverse Cycle - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Reflects breath targeted towards the user with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of fans by an additive 3%.

Water Slaughterer - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Aquatic family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Schizofanic - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. Ignores the next attack directed at the user as long as it can be blocked by a shield and lasts indefinitely.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped fans by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Fan Dango - Non-elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 8 MP. Does 0.5x damage and hits either 3 or 4 times on random targets. It will still hit the same number of times if used against a single enemy.

Omnivocational Fanmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip fans regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Fans are a good weapon type for defence and aren't too bad for attacking either, although they're obviously not as good as the more focused weapon types at it. If you are focusing on damage, you'll obviously want to use Fan Dango, though. Flower Power is deceptively good for how early it comes, even though Dazzle isn't the best ailment by any means. Reverse Cycle and Schizofanic are extremely useful, because they just nullify damage entirely. Handy! Fans' attack power is generally a bit lower than average since, well, they're fans. What did you expect?

Shields

Blockenspiel - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 0.5x damage at the same time as halving all damage taken for the turn.

Defending Champion - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. All damage done to the user is reduced to 1/10 of its normal value.

Immense Defence - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Doubles the user's block rate with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Magic Mirror - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Reflects all spells targeted at the user back at the caster, including beneficial magic, and has a duration of 6-9 turns.

Block Chance +2% - Passive. Increases the block rate of equipped shields by an additive 2%. Stacks three times for a total block rate bonus of 6%.

Holy Impregnable - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Increases the user's ailment and debuff resistance by 25% with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Back Atcha - Targets the user, costs 12 MP. The user will nullify all single-target blockable attacks directed at them for the rest of the turn and counter with a non-elemental attack that does 1x damage.

Omnivocational Shieldmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip shields regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Shields take up their own equipment slot and are obviously not meant for attacking, so the only offensive option they have, Blockenspiel, is designed to do small amounts of damage while defending. Other than that, they're pretty good at mitigating or preventing damage. All these abilities can be very powerful with a bit of knowledge about your opponent.

Litheness

Hot Lick - Fire elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 20 +/- 3 damage and does not scale.

Spry in a Crisis - Passive. Doubles evade rate when current HP is under 8% of maximum HP, indicated by the HP number turning red.

Pratfall - Targets a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Attempts to inflict Inaction with a 100% base chance. Can also rarely trigger a Critical Pratfall, which will inflict Inaction on anything not immune to the ailment.

Natural Charm +30 - Passive. Permanently increases Charm by 30 points regardless of vocation.

Sobering Slap - Targets one ally, costs 2 MP. Removes Sleep and Confusion from the target.

Natural Magical Might +30 - Passive. Permanently increases Magical Might by 30 points regardless of vocation.

Tap Dance - Targets the user, costs 0 MP. Doubles evade rate with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Natural Magical Mending +30 - Passive. Permanently increases Magical Mending by 30 points regardless of vocation.

Have a Ball - Non-elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 8 MP. Does 0.3x damage, but hits 6-8 times on random targets. It will still hit the same number of times if used against a single enemy.

Natural Deftness +50 - Passive. Permanently increases Deftness by 50 points regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Litheness is a mixed bag, to say the least. Hot Lick is, appropriately, hot garbage past the early game. Have a Ball's good, at least, doing somewhere in the realm of 2x damage overall, even if it is very random. Pratfall is okay, but Sobering Slap is only useful in a couple of situations. Spry in a Crisis and Tap Dance are where Litheness really shines, though, since they can be used to crank up evade rate to ludicrous levels with a bit of effort. Stack that with some block rate from shields and a smattering of Charm to stop enemies from moving and you've got an effective dodge tank. Oh, and the stat boosts are useful too, I guess.

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 3:12 pm

Part 6: Inn Intrigue

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

Phew, I finally made it back. That Patty's getting a piece of my mind for just leaving me there.

Truth be told, I've not been able to hear our Guardian's voice since the earthquake. I'm starting to worry that the earthquake may have caused untold damage in the realm of the Guardians too. But I'm worrying over nothing, of course. Such a thing could never happen...

Oh, yeah, nothing like that could possibly ever happen. Of course it couldn't. Your Guardian's absolutely fine up there and nothing went horribly wrong at all.

I didn't have any help from Solitaire this time, so I thought I'd be out of luck, to be honest.

...You know what? I'm not even going to dignify that with a witty response.

I saw a strange ball of light flying through the village just now. Actually, it looked a bit like it was flying around after you. I wonder what it could be...

Oh, really? Well I haven't seen anything like that.

She stands there behind that counter waiting for customers that never come. She's got spirit, that one. Just like her father...

Is that where she is? Maybe I'll find Patty there too.

I was so worried about you. I heard that someone called Patty had gone missing on their way here.

So...where's old Edwinn hiding, huh?

Wow, I can't believe it... So the Inncredible... That's... Gee, what does that mean for my old inn, then?

Um, well, yes.

That's very kind of you. I try my best to honour my father's memory by keeping the place running smoothly.

Hey, I wouldn't expect anything else from the daughter of the Inncredible Inntertainer, honey!

Um, about this "Inncredible" thing...?

You better believe it, honey! He was the best of the best! He was only a young guy back then, but he set up his own inn from scratch and totally put his rivals out of business!

Goodness! I can't imagine him being like that. He always seemed so unadventurous to me, and he said he was happy to run even the smallest of inns as long as we were together.

Yeah, that's the funny thing... Why would a guy like Edwinn choose to ship out to a hick town like this?

Hey, stop that! You're making Erinn feel bad.

Well, I guess that's water under the bridge. The thing is, his old place in Stornway is in real trouble right now. We were all kinda hoping that the Inncredible Inntertainer would make a comeback and get things on track again. I just can't believe I didn't know he died two whole years ago. I mean, gee! I'm so sorry, honey.

Not at all. I'm just sorry that you came all this way for nothing.

Hey, no apology needed. I mean, I got to meet you instead, right? You're coming back with me to Stornway.

And I just find it hard to believe that Dad was some kind of legendary innkeeper.

Hard to believe!? You can't argue with the facts, honey. And I can see you're a chip off the old block too. I've got a knack for seeing people's strengths, ya know.

And please... I can't go to Stornway with you, so stop trying to talk me into it!

Has anyone ever told you that you're awful, Patty? Stop trying to force Erinn into this.

Music: Evening in the Village

This cutscene gave Solitaire a full heal, because...they couldn't change the time of day in town without simulating a stay at an inn? Yeah, we'll go with that. The scene from just before going to the Hexagon didn't do this because of Reasons. It was also impossible to heal back then until leaving and coming back into the village, also because of Reasons.

Thanks again for that. ...You know, while you're in the helping mood, honey, you couldn't try to twist Erinn's arm, could you? I can't let that kind of talent go to waste. It'd be good for her too, you know?

I'm not helping you, you know. Erinn's probably really upset now. She's happy here! Just stop!

That Patty's trying to get her to take over her dad's inn or something.

No way! That Patty woman's trying to recruit her? Surely Erinn wouldn't think of leaving here and going to live in Stornway!

Yeah, she didn't seem too enthusiastic about it. I'm going around to her place to check on her.

Waaait wait wait, what? What's that ghost doing here? He disappeared at the Hexagon!

Wait a minute! You can see me!? But I'm dead! I had a feeling that you saw me back at the Hexagon too. That's quite a strange talent you've got there. Sorry, I haven't introduced myself, have I? I'm Erinn's father, Edwinn.

And you are?

Oh, I'm Solitaire. You might have heard of me.

Ah, Solitaire...? ...Really? R-Really? B-But... Solitaire... Isn't that...? Aren't you the village Guardian?

Yeah, that's me. It's nice to get a bit of respect around here, you know?

Music: Stella's Theme

Oi! Watch where you're flapping standing! I may be skinny as a rake, but I still need a bit of room for manoeuvres!

Speak for yourself! You're the one who crashed into me! You've got eyes, haven't you?

I, er... I'm not sure what you mean.

You were on about Celestrians, right? I wondered the same thing at first, but this mess of a minstrel hardly foots the bill. I don't see a halo, do you? And I don't see any wings either. Bit odd for a Celestrian that, wouldn't you say?

I suppose you're right. Though, while we're on the subject of odd, who and what are you?

You look like a regular mortal to me, so how come you can see the Starflight Express and ghosts like this old bloke?

Well if you'd actually been listening then you'd know I'm the Guardian here. You were on the Starflight Express, right? Then you'd know about the quake. Just try and guess what happened.

Hmm... Okay. So you fell off the Observatory during the earthquake, right? And when you came around to your senses, you were in this village with your wings and halo missing?

Wow, you got it in one. I might have to give you a bit more credit.

If you lost your wings and your halo, how is it that you can still see ghosts and the like? Bit neither here nor there, isn't it? I know! If you're a Celestrian, then prove it. Send someone's spirit up to the heavens. You've got nothing to lose, and this old bloke here just happens to be in need of a shove in the righteous direction.

Challenge accepted.

Let me guess, you're only a ghost because you've got some kind of unfinished business to put to sleep, right?

Then I'll believe that you're a Celestrian, and I might even give you a lift back to the Observatory on the old Starflight Express. Can't say faerier than that, right? So I'll tag along with you for a while until the job's done.

Hey, where are you going? That tickles!

Have a look if you've got a minute. What am I saying? Have a look, or I'll have your guts for a really grisly set of garters!

I do so love having video games give gameplay explanations in the middle of otherwise in-character cutscenes. Why not just leave the explanation to the end? We've already got a disembodied text box.

In any case, welcome to the Battle Records. The name's just a little bit misleading, since it's not just a record of battle-related stuff. Stella will be hanging out on the bottom screen, occasionally providing pithy comments or handing out Accolades for doing seemingly random tasks like using 50 medicinal herbs or wearing a specific combination of equipment that the game never tells you about.

The Defeated Monster List is exactly what you'd expect: a record of all the monsters we've seen. There's not that much information here, unfortunately, but we've still got the drops and some fun little descriptions that I've been putting in the monster bios.

The Wardrobe and Item List are lists of all the equipment and items we've found so far, as you might expect. I'll start listing this stuff at the end of updates soon, because some of the item descriptions have some nice wordplay.

And then there's Accolades Earnt. Guess what this does? Quest List's last, but it's not noteworthy because we haven't got any quests yet.

Music: Evening in the Village

Hmm... I wonder what unfinished business is stopping me from going up to the heavens.

I'll take a look. You'll be up in the heavens in no time.

Huh, there's a trophy here. I wonder what it's for.

It's an...Inny? Erinn's dad must've won this thing. Maybe he needs it returned or something.

The truth is, I hid it away when I came back to Angel Falls. I didn't want Erinn to know. And I didn't want to spend my whole time being reminded about Stornway...

So does this mean I should give it to Erinn? I'll take it that I should give it to Erinn.

I don't suppose you could go and check on her, could you, Solitaire? She won't confide in me, but perhaps she'd be willing to tell you what's going on.

I was just heading up to see her, actually. I've got a little present for her.

Oh, you know, just this thing. I found it behind the inn.

Here you go. Don't drop it.

I don't believe it! Patty's story was all true! I don't understand, though. Why would Dad have given up all that to come here to sleepy old Angel Falls? What in the world was he thinking of?

Edwinn made me promise not to say anything, so I've kept it a secret all these years, but I don't see that it matters now. Dear Erinn... You must remember how sickly you were as a child. Your poor mother was the same. In the normal course of things, you would have become sicker and sicker as you got older. Eventually, you would have died. We lost your mother at a young age to the same fate.

That's because you were brought up on water from the falls here in this village. Angel Falls' water is famous for making people healthy and curing their ills.

So... What you're saying is that Dad gave up his inn in Stornway and came back here for my sake?

That's right. Saving his daughter was far more important to him than his own ambitions.

He knew you'd feel that way. That's why he didn't want you to know. But you're mature enough now to be told the truth.

Now I know... He did all that for me...

I don't know if I can be of any help to Patty, but I have to at least give it a try!

Well, if you really think it's a good idea...

Oh, hey, Edwinn. What're you doing in here?

I'm here. I heard everything. I can't believe Erinn is going to follow my ambition in my place. She really has grown up. Now I have no regrets. I know that she'll succeed. She doesn't need me watching over her shoulder.

Music: None

That was easy. Now will you believe me?

You did it! So you are a Celestrian after all. Well, a promise is a promise. I'll give you a lift back to the Observatory like we agreed, so say thanks to your lucky stars.

But there's nothing there. What are you talking about?

You can flapping see it, can't you? Don't tell me you can't see benevolessence any more? Now I'm starting to wonder again... Are you really a Celestrian, or are you pulling my chain?

Well, crap. Look, maybe it's the wings or the halo or something that lets me see the stuff! Don't ask me!

Then the day arrives for Erinn to set off for Stornway.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

You too. It'll be hard work making a living in a new town. Make sure you don't go working yourself sick.

I know you're worried about your little girl, but I'm gonna be around to help her out, so you just relax, okay?

That's good to know, Patty. You've helped to set an old man's mind at ease.

I was wondering if you might take over the inn here for me. I don't have the heart to close it down, you see. You'll do it, won't you? I know I can count on you!

I suppose I'll do it, but only to get Dad off my back with his nagging about me finding a job. I'm not doing it for you! Anyway, I bet I'll be so good at innkeeping that I'll soon trump your place over in Stornway!

And I wish you luck with it. Not that I'll let you get the better of me, of course!

Oh yeah? Sounds like we've got a competition on our hands!

It's amazing how you managed to find Dad's hidden trophy like that. You really are a mystery. I wouldn't be surprised if you turned out to be our Guardian after all...

Well, I... Never mind, never mind. All in a day's work for Solitaire!

Ha ha! Listen to me and my wild imagination! I suppose you'll be heading off to your hometown now, will you? If your journey brings you through Stornway, make sure you come and stay at my new inn, won't you?

Sure, why not? I'll probably not be heading over there, but I'll keep it in mind.

Of course I do! Do you think I'm stupid or something?

No need to look so flapping pleased with yourself! I hardly expected you to forget. Come on, let's head for the pass!

Let's not do that quite yet. Why's that? Well...

There this girl standing around next to the church with a blue speech bubble above her head. Talking to people like this is Very Important.

Of course I know what quests are! ...But I'd still be interested in hearing what you have to say.

Then let me tell you all about them! A quest is a favour that you do for someone in need of help. You don't have to do it the moment they ask you, though. No, you can just fit it in when the time's right. You don't have to lose sight of your own plans at all. People with quests to give you have blue speech bubble above their heads. I, er, don't suppose I could ask you to do a quest for me now, could I? I really want a tangleweb. Can you get me one?

Why not? It can't be too hard to find a couple of those.

Thank goodness! I was hoping you'd say yes. You can find tanglewebs on the ground near big spider webs. There's a really big one just to the east of the village, but you have to go the long way round by the river to get to it. If there's a tangleweb there, you should see a twinkling spot on the ground. Look closer and you'll soon see if it's what you're after. I'll be waiting here. Just one tangleweb, that's all I need!

So, quests. There are 184 of these things, and this is a relatively good introduction. It may be a fetch quest, but it's also a motivation to explore the overworld and a tutorial on both gathering points and quests themselves. I like it. I'll be doing quests at the end of each town's story, and I'll be trying to do all of them.

Funny thing, that; I've already been to that web. Here you go.

Wow! It's a tangleweb! An actual tangleweb! No way! Thank you so much! Well, one good turn deserves another, as they say. Here, take this!

A flower? It's a fair enough trade for a bit of spiderweb, I guess...

Sleeping hibiscuses send a group of enemies to sleep. How...useful? Maybe it's better to just ignore them.

Oh, and completing a quest gives a big "CLEAR" stamp across it. You can also see that I recorded this over a month ago so, er, do with that what you will. Let's just skip ahead to the Starflight Express, shall we?

Music: Stella's Theme

I should've known I couldn't have opened it myself.

I'd like to jazz her up a bit more, actually. It's still a bit on the plain side in here, wouldn't you say? I'm thinking rhinestones with gold around them. That'd really make the place look stellar, don't you think?

It's gaudy is what it is. Gold-plated everything is excessive enough!

............

Why yes, that'd be just great. Can we get on with this and get back to the Observatory?

Fine, fine. No more hanging about. I'm pretty keen to get back to the Observatory and see how everything is myself.

Was just hitting that thing supposed to do something?

I thought it would fly if there was a Celestrian on board. I wonder what's wrong...

Hey, you couldn't see that benevolessence before, could you, even though you reckon you're a Celestrian? That must be the problem! I mean, it's a bit much to expect me to believe that Celestrians can just lose their halos and their wings, isn't it?

You know what I think? I think you're just a moron who doesn't know what they're talking about. And no, it's not too much to expect! You've seen what I can do, haven't you?

Anyway, we don't have time for this. The Almighty won't be best pleased if we hang around here when there's big stuff going on. Ooooiiiii, Almighty matey! You listening? We're in a right old gherkin here, why don't you give us a flapping hand!?

When we get there, we'll help lots of people and get loads of benevolessence. That should make that Almighty oaf prick his eyes up!

...What.

Ha! Look at your face! Not too swayed over by the idea or something? Well tough turkey! I've decided that's what we're doing, so get moving!

You know, I was planning on going to Stornway anyway. It can't hurt too much to have you follow me around.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Oh, good. The pass really was cleared.

Aaaand now I'm out the other side. I wonder how far away Stornway is.

We won't be exploring the Western Stornway area right now because this update's long enough as it is and we're almost at a good stopping point, I swear.

Music: Come to our Town

This place looks a lot fancier than Angel Falls. Not that it's a patch on the Observatory.

That boy with the dog in the penultimate screenshot there is probably the same one who saw Solitaire falling from the Observatory in the animated cutscene a few updates ago, by the way. Continuity!

What's going on over there? Wait, is that Erinn and Patty?

I'm afraid so. I just can't see how a young girl like me can suddenly take over such a big and important inn. And surely everyone else will be thinking exactly the same thing...

Sure, maybe they will. But I trust my instincts...and you should too! I know you've got what it takes, Erinn. Seriously, just quit worrying!

If you say so...

Now, time to introduce you to your new colleagues!

I don't know about a laugh, but sure, let's poke our heads in.

Music: Pub Polka

Jeez, Ginny, calm down will ya? D'you think I'd just pick any young thing off the street to run this place? Erinn here may not look much, but she's got innkeeping in her blood. She'll have us back on track before you can say "welcome"!

Didn't you say the same kind of thing about me when you brought me here? And didn't you also say you were going off to find "the one guy who can save this place for certain"? No offence, but I'm not too convinced this is the "guy" you were talking about.

You won't find anyone who'll try harder than me. And I learnt all there is to know about innkeeping from my father!

So your father was an innkeeper too, was he? And I suppose you're here to make your daddy proud, hm? Well, that's very admirable, but running an inn isn't as easy as just turning up and promising to try hard, you know. And you can talk all you like about how much your father taught you, but we don't even know who your father was.

Um...show what? Oh! You mean this?

It sure is! The Inny for Inncredible Inntertaining, awarded by none other than our very own King Schott! Well? Now tell me you doubt how good he was! And Erinn here shares the same Inncredible blood! Not bad, huh?

Um, it's okay, really. There's no need to bow and scrape or anything.

Hey, am I interrupting anything?

I'm afraid we've only just arrived ourselves, though. We're not quite ready to take any guests yet.

Hey, don't sweat it, sweetie. I'm sure Solitaire didn't come here to stay.

And you'd just love to help a girl out, but ya don't know the first thing about innkeeping! ...That about it? Yeah, well...what if I told you there was something you could do to help out here?

Well from what I've seen, young Solitaire's got a knack for encountering all kinds of people by chance. If she tried to drum up a bit of business for us, I bet we'd have a full house in no time!

Patty! We can't ask Solitaire to do something like that! The inn isn't anything to do with her!

Nah, it's fine. I'll help out if I can.

If Solitaire's got nothing better to do and feels like lending a hand, don't turn her away! You could do with the help!

Yes, I suppose you're right... Do you think you might be able to help out a little bit, Solitaire?

Of course I will, if I've got the time. I still owe you for looking after me.

I must admit, I've often noticed how people always seem drawn to you. Thank you, Solitaire. I really do appreciate it.

So Erinn and Patty are talking about a little mechanic that's absolutely awful if you live somewhere where nobody else owns this game. Like, you know, anywhere outside Japan.

That sure is risky, honey. Why don't you hang around here for a while till the inn's open. Come by later and I bet I'll be able to hook you up with some great guys who could help you out on your quest, okay?

Oh, that'd be just great! But I'd need to think about what sort of person I want...

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 3:18 pm

Vocation Overview: Warrior

Warriors are best suited to attacking and taking attacks head-on. Their best stats are, predictably, Maximum HP, Strength and Resilience. They're second overall among all the vocations in terms of the first two and first in terms of the third, in fact! It's just a shame that all their other stats are pretty awful. Everything else is in the bottom third in terms of rankings, with Agility doing the worst by far. Their complete lack of spells makes them pretty one-note too. But, on the plus side, what a note it is! Warriors make excellent attackers and tanks for basically the entire game, although they are outclassed in some aspects later on.

Stats

Code: Select all

          Strength  Agility  Resilience  Deftness  Charm  M. Mending  M. Might  Max. HP  Max. MP
Level 1   18        4        18          5         4      0           0         26       4
Level 20  93        18       92          26        20     0           0         131      20
Level 40  172       33       170         47        38     0           0         242      37
Level 60  250       48       248         69        55     0           0         353      53
Level 80  329       64       326         90        73     0           0         464      70
Level 99  404       78       400         111       89     0           0         570      86

Spells

Warriors do not learn any spells.

Coup de Grâce

Warriors get the Coup de Grâce Critical Claim, which is a single-target attack which will always be a critical hit. This does not count for quests that require critical hits.

Skills

Swords

Swords always do 1.1x damage to Dragon family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Dragon Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Dragon family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Metal Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does an extra point of damage to metal monsters, and 1x damage to everything else.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of swords by an additive 3%.

Miracle Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 1.25x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt.

Falcon Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 0.75x damage, but hits twice.

Gigaslash - Light elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 15 MP. Scales using the sum of Strength and Magical Might, starting at 500. Damage starts out at 160 +/- 20 and scales linearly up to 360 +/- 20 when both stats are capped.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped swords by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Omnivocational Swordmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip swords regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Swords are a great single-target offensive option, although they're lacking in utility. Gigaslash is actually pretty bad considering how low the MP of most sword-wielding vocations is, so that leaves Falcon Slash as the big offensive option. The main problem here is the lack of decent multi-target damage. Also, the best weapon in the game is a sword, so that's something.

Spears

Spears always do 1.1x damage to Beast family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Mercurial Thrust - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Always goes first in a turn, but does 0.75x damage.

Cattle Prod - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Beast family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Pressure Pointer - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 0.5x damage and inflicts Death with a 12.5% base chance.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of spears by an additive 3%.

Thunder Thrust - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 8 MP. Has a 50% chance to hit, but will always be a critical hit if it does. This does not count for quests that require critical hits.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped spears by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Multithrust - Non-elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 4 MP. Does 0.5x damage and hits either 3 or 4 times on random targets. It will still hit the same number of times if used against a single enemy.

Omnivocational Spearmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip spears regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Spears are another good single-target weapon. The standout abilities here are Mercurial Thrust, for getting rid of fast, frail monsters before they can move, Thunder Thrust, for killing Metal Slimes, and Multithrust, for just doing a lot of damage. Unlike swords, however, the abilities that spears teach cost more MP than would be reasonable for the non-magical vocations. This makes them better suited to vocations that get more MP, like Priest. Regardless, the usefulness of Thunder Thrust cannot be underestimated.

Knives

Knives always do 1.1x damage to Bug family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Toxic Dagger - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Envenomated with a 50% base chance and lasts indefinitely.

Fly Swat - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Bug family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of knives by an additive 3%.

Victimiser - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1.5x damage if the target is Paralysed, Poisoned or Envenomated, and does 1x damage otherwise.

Assassin's Stab - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Death with a 12.5% base chance.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped knives by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

HP Hoover - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 1x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt.

Omnivocational Knifemaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip spears regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Knives are a very gimmicky weapon type. They're fairly low in terms of Attack, but they thrive off monsters having ailments. Toxic Dagger is even the only way to inflict Envenomated! It's also very important to have it on at least one character for the purposes of questing. Other than that and Victimiser, their abilities just aren't very useful. Assassin's Stab has too low a chance of hitting to really matter, although spamming it and hoping is still an option, and HP Hoover is basically just Miracle Slash but worse. Fly Swat isn't really worth mentioning, but it can good in the right situations. Overall Knives are pretty decent if you've got support for them.

Shields

Blockenspiel - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 0.5x damage at the same time as halving all damage taken for the turn.

Defending Champion - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. All damage done to the user is reduced to 1/10 of its normal value.

Immense Defence - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Doubles the user's block rate with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Magic Mirror - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Reflects all spells targeted at the user back at the caster, including beneficial magic, and has a duration of 6-9 turns.

Block Chance +2% - Passive. Increases the block rate of equipped shields by an additive 2%. Stacks three times for a total block rate bonus of 6%.

Holy Impregnable - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Increases the user's ailment and debuff resistance by 25% with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Back Atcha - Targets the user, costs 12 MP. The user will nullify all single-target blockable attacks directed at them for the rest of the turn and counter with a non-elemental attack that does 1x damage.

Omnivocational Shieldmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip shields regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Shields take up their own equipment slot and are obviously not meant for attacking, so the only offensive option they have, Blockenspiel, is designed to do small amounts of damage while defending. Other than that, they're pretty good at mitigating or preventing damage. All these abilities can be very powerful with a bit of knowledge about your opponent.

Courage

Whipping Boy - Targets one ally, costs 0 MP. Redirects all attacks from the targeted ally to the user on the turn this is used.

Whistle - Targets a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Has a chance to enrage the targets. Chance varies between enemies, but is always one of 75%, 50% or 0%. If used anywhere there are monsters, initiates a random encounter.

Body Slam - Death elemental damage to one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does damage to the target equal to 80% of their current HP and damage to the user equal to 80% of their current HP plus 2. If this ability is successfully resisted, neither the target nor the user takes damage.

Natural Strength +x - Passive. Permanently increases Strength by the listed amount regardless of vocation. The two stack, so the total is +40 Strength.

Morale Masher - Non-elemental damage to one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and lowers the target's tension by one level.

Natural Resilience +x - Passive. Permanently increases Resilience by by the listed amount regardless of vocation. The two stack, so the total is +60 Resilience.

Natural Max. HP +60 - Passive. Permanently increases Maximum HP by 60 regardless of vocation.

Attack Attacker - Non-elemental damage to one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 1x damage and lowers the target's Attack by one stage with a 100% base chance and a duration of 6-9 turns.

??? - ???

Courage has some very nice abilities in it! Whipping Boy's great for preventing someone from dying, Whistle has basically the same effect although in a different way, but doesn't always work, and Body Slam is actually somewhat good here because it doesn't hurt the user if it misses. And those are just the decent ones! Morale Masher and Attack Attacker both drastically reduce the amount of damage enemies do, though they both come late and the former isn't as universally applicable. And, of course, more stats are always a good thing.

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 4:35 pm

Vocation Overview: Priest

Priests heal people. That's probably the best summary of this vocation out there.

Okay, fine. I'll go into more detail. Priests act as both healers and general support to a party, and they're really good at it. Their stats are very middling all around, with Magical Mending being the only really good thing they have at the highest in the game. Their Maximum MP is relatively good, too, being placed third out of all the vocations. They've not really got any outright bad stats other than Magical Might which is unfortunately what they use for their ailments. Everything else that they're not great at is below average, but not significantly so.

Code: Select all

          Strength  Agility  Resilience  Deftness  Charm  M. Mending  M. Might  Max. HP  Max. MP
Level 1   9         14       9           9         7      18          0         19       14
Level 20  46        72       47          47        34     92          0         97       72
Level 40  85        133      87          88        62     170         0         179      134
Level 60  125       193      126         128       91     248         0         260      195
Level 80  164       254      166         168       119    326         0         342      257
Level 99  201       312      204         206       146    400         0         420      315

Spells

Heal (level 1) - Healing targeting one ally, costs 2 MP. Scales using Magical Mending, starting at 51. Healing starts out at 35 +/- 5 and scales linearly up to 160 +/- 5 when the stat is capped.

Squelch (level 3) - Targets one ally, costs 2 MP. Removes the Poisoned or Envenomated ailments from the target.

Snooze (level 6) - Targets a group of enemies, costs 3 MP. Has a chance to inflict Sleep on the targets for 2-5 turns, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 51. Base hit chance starts at 50% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is capped.

Buff (level 8) - Targets one ally, costs 3 MP. Raises the Defence of the target by one stage with a duration of 7-10 turns.

Cock-a-doodle-doo (level 11) - Targets all allies, costs 2 MP. Removes the Sleep ailment from the targets.

Insulate (level 14) - Targets one ally, costs 4 MP. Raises the breath resistance of the target by one stage with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Midheal (level 16) - Healing targeting one ally, costs 4 MP. Scales using Magical Mending, starting at 101. Healing starts out at 85 +/- 10 and scales linearly up to 300 +/- 10 when the stat is capped.

Zing (level 18) - Targets one ally, costs 8 MP. Has a chance to revive the target, with the chance scaling with Magical Mending starting at 181. Revival chance starts out at 50% and scales linearly up to 75%, and healing starts out at 25% of maximum HP and scales linearly up to 50% of maximum HP. Both cap at 849 Magical Mending. If the target is not dead, this spell has no effect.

Whack (level 20) - Targets one enemy, costs 5 MP. Has a chance to inflict Death on the target, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 51. Base hit chance starts at 50% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is capped.

Tingle (level 22) - Targets all allies, costs 2 MP. Removes the Paralysis ailment from the targets.

Moreheal (level 31) - Healing targeting one ally, costs 8 MP. Scales using Magical Mending, starting at 201. Healing starts out at 185 +/- 20 and scales linearly up to 600 +/- 20 when the stat is capped.

Thwack (level 34) - Targets a group of enemies, costs 10 MP. Has a chance to inflict Death on the targets, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 101. Base hit chance starts at 50% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is capped.

Multiheal (level 38) - Healing targeting all allies, costs 16 MP. Scales using Magical Mending, starting at 201. Healing starts out at 110 +/- 10 and scales linearly up to 320 +/- 10 when the stat is capped.

Insulatle (level 43) - Targets all allies, costs 8 MP. Raises the breath resistance of the targets by one stage with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Fullheal (level 47) - Healing targeting one ally, costs 24 MP. Heals the target up to their Maximum HP.

Kathwack (level 55) - Targets all enemies, costs 20 MP. Has a chance to inflict Death on the targets, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 201. Base hit chance starts at 75% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is 799.

Omniheal (level 65) - Healing targeting all allies, costs 128 MP. Heals the targets up to their Maximum HP.

Coup de Grâce

Priests get the Coup de Grâce Choir of Angels, which heals all allies for 40% of their Maximum HP and removes all ailments from affected targets, not including Death.

Skills

Spears

Spears always do 1.1x damage to Beast family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Mercurial Thrust - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Always goes first in a turn, but does 0.75x damage.

Cattle Prod - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Beast family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Pressure Pointer - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 0.5x damage and inflicts Death with a 12.5% base chance.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of spears by an additive 3%.

Thunder Thrust - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 8 MP. Has a 50% chance to hit, but will always be a critical hit if it does. This does not count for quests that require critical hits.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped spears by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Multithrust - Non-elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 4 MP. Does 0.5x damage and hits either 3 or 4 times on random targets. It will still hit the same number of times if used against a single enemy.

Omnivocational Spearmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip spears regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Spears are another good single-target weapon. The standout abilities here are Mercurial Thrust, for getting rid of fast, frail monsters before they can move, Thunder Thrust, for killing Metal Slimes, and Multithrust, for just doing a lot of damage. Unlike swords, however, the abilities that spears teach cost more MP than would be reasonable for the non-magical vocations. This makes them better suited to vocations that get more MP, like Priest. Regardless, the usefulness of Thunder Thrust cannot be underestimated.

Wands

Wands always do 1.1x damage to Demon family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Antimagic - Targets one enemy, costs 3 MP. Attempts to inflict Fizzle on the target with a 100% chance.

Beelzefreeze - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Paralysis with a 25% base chance and a duration of 4-7 turns, but only to Demon family monsters. If the target is part of any other monster family, this does not inflict Paralysis.

Caduceus - Healing targeting one ally, costs 2 MP. Restores 85 +/- 10 HP and does not scale.

MP Absorption +x% With

- Passive. Increases the amount of MP restored when hitting an enemy with a physical attack of a wand by the listed amount, proportional to the damage dealt. The two stack, so the total is 6% extra MP absorption.

Max. MP +x With

- Passive. Increases Maximum MP by the listed amount, but only when equipped with a wand. All three stack, so the total is +100 Maximum MP.

Auto MP Recovery With

- Passive. Causes the bearer to regenerate 1-5 MP at the end of every turn when using a wand. Be aware that this may not be accurate, since I can't find exact numbers.

Omnivocational Wandmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip wands regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Wands are your standard weapon for magic-users, with most of the benefits increasing Maximum MP or MP regeneration. And now onto the non-passive abilities! Antimagic is the most accurate way to inflict Fizzle for a very long time, although it only affects one enemy. Beelzefreeze is not very good, since it only affects one monster family and is otherwise just a physical attack with a weapon not suited to such things. Finally, Caduceus is cheap, decent healing for a while but not scaling really hurts it in the long term. A few things to note about the passive abilities: you're almost never going to be doing significant damage with wands' physical attacks, so the MP absorption isn't very good, and the MP regeneration is not very much either considering later spells' MP costs. They're still a solid pick, though.

Staves

Staves always do 1.1x damage to Zombie family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Trip of a Deathtime - Targets a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Attempts to inflict Inaction with a 100% base chance. Will always fail against flying monsters.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of fans by an additive 3%.

Deliverance - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Zombie family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Party Pooper - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. The 1st target takes 1x damage, 2nd takes 0.8x, 3rd takes 0.7x, 4th takes 0.5x, 5th takes 0.3x and 6th and on take 0.2x.

Evasion Chance +4% With

- Passive. Increases the evasion chance of the user by an additive 4% when using a staff.

Crushed Ice - Ice elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 5 MP. Does 0.3x damage and hits 4 times on random targets. It will still hit the same number of times if used against a single enemy, doing 1.2x damage.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped staves by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Omnivocational Staffmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip staves regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Staves are decent enough weapons. They're good for tanking, primarily because of the big boost to evasion, but they've also got a physical Ice attack in Crushed Ice! That's good, right?

...Okay, fine, I don't have much to say about these. Trip of a Deathtime is Minstrels' Pratfall but worse, and Party Pooper just makes the weapon act like a whip instead of the single-target attacks it usually does. Consider taking them for a tanky character, especially because of that mystery ability.

Shields

Blockenspiel - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 0.5x damage at the same time as halving all damage taken for the turn.

Defending Champion - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. All damage done to the user is reduced to 1/10 of its normal value.

Immense Defence - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Doubles the user's block rate with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Magic Mirror - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Reflects all spells targeted at the user back at the caster, including beneficial magic, and has a duration of 6-9 turns.

Block Chance +2% - Passive. Increases the block rate of equipped shields by an additive 2%. Stacks three times for a total block rate bonus of 6%.

Holy Impregnable - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Increases the user's ailment and debuff resistance by 25% with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Back Atcha - Targets the user, costs 12 MP. The user will nullify all single-target blockable attacks directed at them for the rest of the turn and counter with a non-elemental attack that does 1x damage.

Omnivocational Shieldmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip shields regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Shields take up their own equipment slot and are obviously not meant for attacking, so the only offensive option they have, Blockenspiel, is designed to do small amounts of damage while defending. Other than that, they're pretty good at mitigating or preventing damage. All these abilities can be very powerful with a bit of knowledge about your opponent.

Faith

Divination - Only usable outside of battle, costs 0 MP. Shows how many experience points each party member needs to level up.

Benediction - Only usable outside of battle, costs 2 MP. Removes a curse from a single party member.

Rotstopper - Targets all allies, costs 4 MP. Reduces damage taken from Zombie family enemies by 50% with a duration of 5-8 turns.

Alma Mater - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. Stops the target from dying when affected by an instant death effect, instead being lowered to 1 HP. This has a duration of 7-10 turns.

Natural Max. MP +x - Passive. Permanently increases Maximum MP by the listed amount regardless of vocation. The two stack, so the total is +30 Maximum MP.

Care Prayer - Targets the user, costs 2 MP. Increases the target's Magical Mending by two stages.

Natural Magical Mending +x - Passive. Permanently increases Magical Mending by the listed amount regardless of vocation. All three stack, so the total is +180 Magical Mending.

??? - ???

Faith is a bit of a weird one. Divination and Benediction reproduce the effects of the same names that can be accessed from churches, with Squelch and Zing acting as Purification and Resurrection. Nothing will ever replace Confession, though. Rotstopper's incredibly good in the right situations, though they don't come up very often. Alma Mater is basically in the same boat given how few monsters use instant death. And Care Prayer doubling the user's Magical Mending is universally great for Priests along with their base stats and the passive Magical Mending boost from this very skill because it caps that particular stat at level 99. So, yeah, this is a good skill even though it takes a little while to get going.

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 4:47 pm

Vocation Overview: Mage

Mages are dedicated magical attackers, although they get some support spells too. They've got the worst Strength, Resilience and Maximum HP in the game by far, but unsurprisingly their Magical Might is the best and their Maximum MP is the second-best. Oh, and they have the third-best Agility, because why not have your walking nukes be really fast? Otherwise they're very much average.

Stats

Code: Select all

          Strength  Agility  Resilience  Deftness  Charm  M. Mending  M. Might  Max. HP  Max. MP
Level 1   4         18       7           14        7      0           18        18       16
Level 20  22        92       37          70        36     0           92        90       84
Level 40  41        170      69          129       66     0           170       166      155
Level 60  60        249      100         188       96     0           248       242      226
Level 80  78        327      132         248       126    0           326       318      297
Level 99  96        401      162         304       155    0           400       390      364

Spells

Frizz (level 1) - Fire elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 51. Damage starts out at 14 +/- 2 and scales linearly up to 99 +/- 2 when the stat is capped.

Acceleratle (level 4) - Targets all allies, costs 4 MP. Raises the Agility of the targets by one stage with a duration of 7-10 turns.

Crack (level 6) - Ice elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 51. Damage starts out at 30 +/- 5 and scales linearly up to 119 +/- 5 when the stat is capped.

Sap (level 7) - Targets one enemy, costs 4 MP. Has a chance to lower the Defence of the target by one stage for 7-10 turns, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 51. Base hit chance starts at 75% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is 499.

Evac (level 8) - Only useable outside battle, costs 3 MP. Teleports the party out of a dungeon.

Bang (level 11) - Lightning elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 5 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 66. Damage starts out at 25 +/- 5 and scales linearly up to 75 +/- 5 when the stat is capped.

Safe Passage (level 13) - Only useable outside battle, costs 2 MP. Nullifies damage taken from environmental effects for a short time.

Crackle (level 16) - Ice elemental damage targeting an enemy group, costs 8 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 101. Damage starts at 50 +/- 8 and scales linearly up to 150 +/- 8 when the stat is capped.

Fuddle (level 19) - Targets a group of enemies, costs 5 MP. Has a chance to inflict Confused on the targets for 4-7 turns, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 51. Base hit chance starts at 50% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is capped.

Bounce (level 21) - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Reflects all spells targeted at the user back at the caster, including beneficial magic, and has a duration of 6-9 turns.

Kasap (level 25) - Targets a group of enemies, costs 8 MP. Has a chance to lower the Defence of the targets by one stage for 7-10 turns, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 51. Base hit chance starts at 75% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is 499.

Boom (level 28) - Lightning elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 10 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 151. Damage starts out at 60 +/- 8 and scales linearly up to 159 +/- 8 when the stat is capped.

Frizzle (level 30) - Fire elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 6 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 101. Damage starts out at 80 +/- 10 and scales linearly up to 199 +/- 10 when the stat is capped.

Oomph (level 33) - Targets one ally, costs 8 MP. Raises the Attack of the target by two stages with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Kacrack (level 40) - Ice elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 24 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 201. Damage starts out at 92 +/- 12 and scales linearly up to 216 +/- 12 when the stat is capped.

Blunt (level 42) - Targets one enemy, costs 8 MP. Has a chance to lower the Attack of the target by two stages for 6-9 turns, with the chance scaling using Magical Might starting at 51. Base hit chance starts at 75% and scales linearly up to 100% when the stat is 799.

Kaboom (level 47) - Lightning elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 28 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 251. Damage starts out at 140 +/- 10 and scales linearly up to 228 +/- 10 when the stat is capped.

Kafrizz (level 53) - Fire elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 18 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 221. Damage starts out at 190 +/- 12 and scales linearly up to 319 +/- 12 when the stat is capped.

Kafrizzle (level 64) - Fire elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 45 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 481. Damage starts out at 292 +/- 23 and scales linearly up to 600 +/- 23 when the stat is capped.

Kacrackle (level 68) - Ice elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 50 MP. Scales using Magical Might, starting at 551. Damage starts out at 185 +/- 20 and scales linearly up to 510 +/- 20 when the stat is capped.

Coup de Grâce

Mages get the Coup de Grâce 0 Zone, which lowers the MP cost of all the user's spells and abilities to 0 for 5 turns.

Skills

Wands

Wands always do 1.1x damage to Demon family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Antimagic - Targets one enemy, costs 3 MP. Attempts to inflict Fizzle on the target with a 100% chance.

Beelzefreeze - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Paralysis with a 25% base chance and a duration of 4-7 turns, but only to Demon family monsters. If the target is part of any other monster family, this does not inflict Paralysis.

Caduceus - Healing targeting one ally, costs 2 MP. Restores 85 +/- 10 HP and does not scale.

MP Absorption +x% With

- Passive. Increases the amount of MP restored when hitting an enemy with a physical attack of a wand by the listed amount, proportional to the damage dealt. The two stack, so the total is 6% extra MP absorption.

Max. MP +x With

- Passive. Increases Maximum MP by the listed amount, but only when equipped with a wand. All three stack, so the total is +100 Maximum MP.

Auto MP Recovery With

- Passive. Causes the bearer to regenerate 1-5 MP at the end of every turn when using a wand. Be aware that this may not be accurate, since I can't find exact numbers.

Omnivocational Wandmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip wands regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Wands are your standard weapon for magic-users, with most of the benefits increasing Maximum MP or MP regeneration. And now onto the non-passive abilities! Antimagic is the most accurate way to inflict Fizzle for a very long time, although it only affects one enemy. Beelzefreeze is not very good, since it only affects one monster family and is otherwise just a physical attack with a weapon not suited to such things. Finally, Caduceus is cheap, decent healing for a while but not scaling really hurts it in the long term. A few things to note about the passive abilities: you're almost never going to be doing significant damage with wands' physical attacks, so the MP absorption isn't very good, and the MP regeneration is not very much either considering later spells' MP costs. They're still a solid pick, though.

Knives

Knives always do 1.1x damage to Bug family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Toxic Dagger - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Envenomated with a 50% base chance and lasts indefinitely.

Fly Swat - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Bug family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of knives by an additive 3%.

Victimiser - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1.5x damage if the target is Paralysed, Poisoned or Envenomated, and does 1x damage otherwise.

Assassin's Stab - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Death with a 12.5% base chance.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped knives by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

HP Hoover - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 1x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt.

Omnivocational Knifemaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip knives regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Knives are a very gimmicky weapon type. They're fairly low in terms of Attack, but they thrive off monsters having ailments. Toxic Dagger is even the only way to inflict Envenomated! It's also very important to have it on at least one character for the purposes of questing. Other than that and Victimiser, their abilities just aren't very useful. Assassin's Stab has too low a chance of hitting to really matter, although spamming it and hoping is still an option, and HP Hoover is basically just Miracle Slash but worse. Fly Swat isn't really worth mentioning, but it can good in the right situations. Overall Knives are pretty decent if you've got support for them.

Whips

Whips always do 1.1x damage to Humanoid family monsters. They also damage a group of monsters with their regular attack and any group-targeting abilities, but damage is reduced past the first - 2nd is 0.8x, 3rd is 0.7x, 4th is 0.5x, 5th is 0.3x and 6th and on is 0.2x. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Hypnowhip - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Confuse with a 12.5% base chance and a duration of 4-7 turns.

Lashings of Love - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Does 1.25x damage to Humanoid family monsters, and 1x damage to everything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.375x multiplier.

Trammel Lash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Paralysis with a 12.5% base chance and a duration of 4-7 turns.

Hit the Hay - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Sleep with a 12.5% base chance and a duration of 2-5 turns.

Schadenfreude - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 5 MP. Does 1x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt to the last enemy hit. Damage is not reduced past the first opponent, so it will do full damage to every target.

Twin Dragon Lash - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 10 MP. Does 1.25x damage and hits twice, but will damage random targets within the group. It will still hit twice if used against a single enemy.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped whips by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Omnivocational Whipmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip whips regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Whips are a decent weapon type both for group damage and single-target damage. The ailment attacks might seem good, but you're so unlikely to run into a large enemy group that the infliction rates are too low to matter in most encounters. Both Schadenfreude and Twin Dragon Lash are really good attacks, although they obviously come very late. Whips are unfortunately let down by their low attack power, which is designed to offset the fact that they attack groups by default.

Shields

Blockenspiel - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 0.5x damage at the same time as halving all damage taken for the turn.

Defending Champion - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. All damage done to the user is reduced to 1/10 of its normal value.

Immense Defence - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Doubles the user's block rate with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Magic Mirror - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Reflects all spells targeted at the user back at the caster, including beneficial magic, and has a duration of 6-9 turns.

Block Chance +2% - Passive. Increases the block rate of equipped shields by an additive 2%. Stacks three times for a total block rate bonus of 6%.

Holy Impregnable - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Increases the user's ailment and debuff resistance by 25% with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Back Atcha - Targets the user, costs 12 MP. The user will nullify all single-target blockable attacks directed at them for the rest of the turn and counter with a non-elemental attack that does 1x damage.

Omnivocational Shieldmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip shields regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Shields take up their own equipment slot and are obviously not meant for attacking, so the only offensive option they have, Blockenspiel, is designed to do small amounts of damage while defending. Other than that, they're pretty good at mitigating or preventing damage. All these abilities can be very powerful with a bit of knowledge about your opponent.

Spellcraft

Wizard Ward - Targets the user, costs 5 MP. Raises the magic resistance of the target by one stage with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Spooky Aura - Targets one enemy, costs 6 MP. Lowers the magic resistance of the target by one stage with a 100% base chance and a duration of 6-9 turns.

Focus Pocus - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. Causes the target to recover MP at the end of every turn equal to either 3 or their level/10, whichever is higher. Has a duration of 7-10 turns.

Critical Spell Rate ↑ - Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of spells by an additive 3%.

Channel Anger - Targets the user, costs 5 MP. Raises the Magical Might of the target by two stages with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Natural Max. MP +x - Passive. Permanently increases Maximum MP by the listed amount regardless of vocation. The two stack, so the total is +30 Maximum MP.

Natural Magical Might +x - Passive. Permanently increases Magical Might by the listed amount regardless of vocation. All three stack, so the total is +180 Magical Might.

??? - ???

Spellcraft is a pretty good skill. Let's start from the beginning, shall we? Wizard Ward isn't great by itself, much like most of the single-target buffs, although it's the most universally available way to do this sort of thing. Spooky Aura is the opposite in some ways but the same in others, in that it's also the most universally available way to do what it does but it's actually good for, say, boss fights. Focus Pocus would be much better if it was passive instead of taking an action, but it's still okay for more drawn-out battles or vocations that get use out of low-cost abilities. Then there's Channel Anger, which is great because it doubles the user's Magical Might and makes their spells much more effective. Nice! The passives are self-explanatory, and they're all pretty great. Especially the ones that increase Magical Might! Overall this is a good skill for, well, Mages. It's a good thing they get it, then!

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 5:02 pm

Vocation Overview: Martial Artist

Martial Artists are the other Strength-oriented starting vocation. They aren't as sturdy as Warriors but they're a lot faster and have much better Deftness, giving them a higher critical hit rate. Their main draw is Psyche Up, which they get relatively early from their unique skill. Now on to stats: their Strength is the third-highest in the game, and only 4 behind Warriors at level 99. Meanwhile they have the best Agility out there by a large margin. Despite not being quite as defensive as Warriors, they've still got above average Resilience and Maximum HP, and almost everything else is similarly average. Their only absolutely horrible stat is Maximum MP, which is the worst in the game.

Stats

Code: Select all

          Strength  Agility  Resilience  Deftness  Charm  M. Mending  M. Might  Max. HP  Max. MP
Level 1   18        23       11          11        5      0           0         24       2
Level 20  92        115      56          59        28     0           0         124      9
Level 40  170       213      104         108       51     0           0         230      16
Level 60  247       310      152         158       74     0           0         335      24
Level 80  325       407      200         208       98     0           0         440      31
Level 99  399       500      245         255       120    0           0         540      38

Spells

Martial Artists do not learn any spells.

Coup de Grâce

Warriors get the Coup de Grâce Roaring Tirade, which increases the user's tension by 1 stage and inflicts all enemies with Inaction regardless of immunity or resistance to the ailment.

Skills

Claws

Claws always do 1.1x damage to Machine family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Propeller Blade - Non-elemental damage to a single enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 1x damage. After this attack, does Wind elemental damage that scales with the user's level. This attack hits the same target for between (level x 0.8) + 4 and level + 4 damage.

Can Opener - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Machine family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of claws by an additive 3%.

Flailing Nails - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Hits the target four times, doing between 0.1x and 0.5x damage on each hit. Does a minimum of 0.4x damage, a maximum of 2x damage and an average of 1.2x damage.

Hardclaw - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Hits the target twice, doing 0.75x damage on each hit for a total of 1.5x damage.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped claws by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Rake 'n' Break - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 6 MP. Does 1x damage to the target and removes all buffs if it hits.

Omnivocational Clawmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip claws regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Claws are a good weapon if you want your attacks to be cheap and effective. Propeller Blade's quite a unique ability, but the extra damage is actually kind of worthless if you're planning on using tension since it doesn't get improved by increasing that. Otherwise the extra damage might be somewhat useful. Flailing Nails and Hardclaw are basically the same thing, with Hardclaw being slightly better on average but Flailing Nails having a higher damage multiplier at its best. Then there's Rake 'n' Break, which is great and one of two ways to remove buffs en masse. It's also by far the easier of the two to obtain. Claws are a pretty fun weapon to use overall.

Staves

Staves always do 1.1x damage to Zombie family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Trip of a Deathtime - Targets a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Attempts to inflict Inaction with a 100% base chance. Will always fail against flying monsters.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of fans by an additive 3%.

Deliverance - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Zombie family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Party Pooper - Non-elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. The 1st target takes 1x damage, 2nd takes 0.8x, 3rd takes 0.7x, 4th takes 0.5x, 5th takes 0.3x and 6th and on take 0.2x.

Evasion Chance +4% With

- Passive. Increases the evasion chance of the user by an additive 4% when using a staff.

Crushed Ice - Ice elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 5 MP. Does 0.3x damage and hits 4 times on random targets. It will still hit the same number of times if used against a single enemy, doing 1.2x damage.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped staves by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Omnivocational Staffmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip staves regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Staves are decent enough weapons. They're good for tanking, primarily because of the big boost to evasion, but they've also got a physical Ice attack in Crushed Ice! That's good, right?

...Okay, fine, I don't have much to say about these. Trip of a Deathtime is Minstrels' Pratfall but worse, and Party Pooper just makes the weapon act like a whip instead of the single-target attacks it usually does. Consider taking them for a tanky character, especially because of that mystery ability.

Fans

Fans always do 1.1x damage to Aquatic family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Flower Power - Targets a group of enemies, costs 2 MP. Inflicts Dazzle on all targets with a 100% base chance and a duration of 5-8 turns.

Reverse Cycle - Targets the user, costs 4 MP. Reflects breath targeted towards the user with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of fans by an additive 3%.

Water Slaughterer - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Aquatic family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Schizofanic - Targets the user, costs 3 MP. Ignores the next attack directed at the user as long as it can be blocked by a shield and lasts indefinitely.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped fans by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Fan Dango - Non-elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 8 MP. Does 0.5x damage and hits either 3 or 4 times on random targets. It will still hit the same number of times if used against a single enemy.

Omnivocational Fanmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip fans regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Fans are a good weapon type for defence and aren't too bad for attacking either, although they're obviously not as good as the more focused weapon types at it. If you are focusing on damage, you'll obviously want to use Fan Dango, though. Flower Power is deceptively good for how early it comes, even though Dazzle isn't the best ailment by any means. Reverse Cycle and Schizofanic are extremely useful, because they just nullify damage entirely. Handy! Fans' attack power is generally a bit lower than average since, well, they're fans. What did you expect?

Fisticuffs

Fighting without a weapon does not provide bonus damage to any monster families. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Stone's Throw - Earth elemental damage to a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Does 17 +/- 7 damage to the targets and does not scale.

Wind Sickles - Non-elemental damage to a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Elemental family monsters, and 1x damage to everything else.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate when unarmed by an additive 3%.

Knuckle Sandwich - Non-elemental damage to one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 1.5x damage to the target.

Evasion Chance +4% With

- Passive. Increases the evasion chance of the user by an additive 4% when unarmed.

Multifists - Non-elemental damage to all enemies, costs 0 MP. Hits random targets four times for 0.5x damage each. If used against a single target this ability does 2x damage.

Boulder Toss - Earth elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 8 MP. Scales using the sum of Strength and Deftness, starting at 500. Damage starts out at 110 +/- 10 and scales linearly up to 300 +/- 10 when both stats are capped.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases Attack when unarmed by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +100 Attack.

??? - ???

Fisticuffs is the skill you want to take when you can't be bothered to buy any weapons. If you pick this you'll probably be lacking for Attack for a while, although there are some powerful abilities here. Not Stone's Throw, though, because it's terrible except for chip damage. At least it hits a group. Wind Sickles is notable because it's another attack that hits a group, and it's the only monster family-hitting abilities which does so on a normally single-target weapon. Also, it's non-elemental despite the name making it look like it's Wind. Anyway, Knuckle Sandwich is just a straight damage upgrade for minimal MP cost, Multifists is the same for free but doesn't let you focus on single targets, and Boulder Toss is one of the very few ways of doing Earth elemental damage and is pretty decent to boot. So, yeah, going weaponless is surprisingly effective.

Focus

War Cry - Targets a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Attempts to inflict Inaction with a 100% base chance.

Psyche Up - Targets the user, costs 0 MP. Raises the target's tension by one stage. If tension is at 50, the chance of increasing tension to 100 is 1/2.

Natural Strength +10 - Passive. Permanently increases Strength by 10 points regardless of vocation.

Mens Sana - Targets the user, costs 2 MP. Removes all ailments and debuffs from the target.

Natural Max. HP +30 - Passive. Permanently increases Maximum HP by 30 points regardless of vocation.

Mind Over Matter - Targets the user, costs 1 MP. Increases the target's breath resistance by one stage with a duration of 6-9 turns.

Meditation - Healing targeting the user, costs 3 MP. Heals the target for 85 +/- 5 HP and does not scale.

Natural Agility +x - Passive. Permanently increases Agility by the listed amount regardless of vocation. All three stack, so the total is +100 Agility.

??? - ???

Focus has a lot more support abilities that you might expect from the Martial Artist's signature skill, doesn't it? To start off, I'd like to put something out there: Psyche Up is by far the best ability here. It's incredibly good, although it's a bit worse than it was in previous games. War Cry is good for conserving resources in battles where things aren't resistant to Inaction, but it'd be much better on a vocation that's better at support. Like, er, Minstrel, where Pratfall is just this but sometimes better. Mens Sana is nice, since there isn't a convenient ailment cure to rely on, but it can't actually remove Confused, Asleep, Paralysed, Inaction or Dead because all of those stop the user from acting. Mind Over Matter is overshadowed by Insulate and Insulatle, but if neither's available it's workable, I suppose. And then there's Meditation, which comes too late to be effective given the amount it heals for, the fact that it only affects the user and the fact that it doesn't scale. Focus probably isn't worth it for the most part past Psyche Up or maybe Mens Sana, although the stat boosts are always great.

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 5:05 pm

Vocation Overview: Thief

Thieves are a sort of fast support/attacking hybrid, although they're honestly not that great at fighting. Their main draw is their sky-high Deftness, with them being the second-best at that in the game by a wide margin. This makes them a perfect candidate for piling on Deftness-enhancing gear to improve their critical hit rate. Their Agility is also the second-highest in the game. As for their worst stat, it's...Charm? Okay, then. They've got the lowest Charm out of all the vocations, despite the usual stereotype of charming rogues. Also, their Magical Mending is the worst out of all the vocations who don't get 0 in the stat. Not that they use it for much.

Stats

Code: Select all

          Strength  Agility  Resilience  Deftness  Charm  M. Mending  M. Might  Max. HP  Max. MP
Level 1   13        18       11          18        3      4           0         23       6
Level 20  69        94       55          93        13     19          0         117      30
Level 40  127       174      102         171       25     34          0         217      56
Level 60  185       254      149         249       36     50          0         316      82
Level 80  244       334      196         328       47     66          0         416      108
Level 99  299       410      241         402       58     81          0         510      132

Spells

Squelch (level 4) - Targets one ally, costs 2 MP. Removes the Poisoned or Envenomated ailments from the target.

Heal (level 9) - Healing targeting one ally, costs 2 MP. Scales using Magical Mending, starting at 51. Healing starts out at 35 +/- 5 and scales linearly up to 160 +/- 5 when the stat is capped.

Evac (level 12) - Only usable outside battle, costs 3 MP. Teleports the party out of a dungeon.

Accelerate (level 16) - Targets one ally, costs 2 MP. Raises the Agility of the target by one stage with a duration of 7-10 turns.

Coup de Grâce

Thieves get the Coup de Grâce Itemised Kill, which targets a group of enemies and raises the common drop rate of the leftmost target to 100%.

Skills

Knives

Knives always do 1.1x damage to Bug family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Toxic Dagger - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Envenomated with a 50% base chance and lasts indefinitely.

Fly Swat - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Bug family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of knives by an additive 3%.

Victimiser - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1.5x damage if the target is Paralysed, Poisoned or Envenomated, and does 1x damage otherwise.

Assassin's Stab - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 3 MP. Does 1x damage and inflicts Death with a 12.5% base chance.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped knives by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

HP Hoover - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 1x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt.

Omnivocational Knifemaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip knives regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Knives are a very gimmicky weapon type. They're fairly low in terms of Attack, but they thrive off monsters having ailments. Toxic Dagger is even the only way to inflict Envenomated! It's also very important to have it on at least one character for the purposes of questing. Other than that and Victimiser, their abilities just aren't very useful. Assassin's Stab has too low a chance of hitting to really matter, although spamming it and hoping is still an option, and HP Hoover is basically just Miracle Slash but worse. Fly Swat isn't really worth mentioning, but it can good in the right situations. Overall Knives are pretty decent if you've got support for them.

Swords

Swords always do 1.1x damage to Dragon family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Dragon Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Dragon family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Metal Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does an extra point of damage to metal monsters, and 1x damage to everything else.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of swords by an additive 3%.

Miracle Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 4 MP. Does 1.25x damage and heals the user for 1/4 of the damage dealt.

Falcon Slash - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 0.75x damage, but hits twice.

Gigaslash - Light elemental damage targeting a group of enemies, costs 15 MP. Scales using the sum of Strength and Magical Might, starting at 500. Damage starts out at 160 +/- 20 and scales linearly up to 360 +/- 20 when both stats are capped.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped swords by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Omnivocational Swordmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip swords regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Swords are a great single-target offensive option, although they're lacking in utility. Gigaslash is actually pretty bad considering how low the MP of most sword-wielding vocations is, so that leaves Falcon Slash as the big offensive option. The main problem here is the lack of decent multi-target damage. Also, the best weapon in the game is a sword, so that's something.

Claws

Claws always do 1.1x damage to Machine family monsters. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Propeller Blade - Non-elemental damage to a single enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 1x damage. After this attack, does Wind elemental damage that scales with the user's level. This attack hits the same target for between (level x 0.8) + 4 and level + 4 damage.

Can Opener - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Machine family monsters, and 1x damage to anything else. This stacks with the 1.1x boost, so it's actually a 1.65x multiplier.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate of claws by an additive 3%.

Flailing Nails - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Hits the target four times, doing between 0.1x and 0.5x damage on each hit. Does a minimum of 0.4x damage, a maximum of 2x damage and an average of 1.2x damage.

Hardclaw - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 0 MP. Hits the target twice, doing 0.75x damage on each hit for a total of 1.5x damage.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases the Attack of all equipped claws by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +60 Attack.

Rake 'n' Break - Non-elemental damage targeting one enemy, costs 6 MP. Does 1x damage to the target and removes all buffs if it hits.

Omnivocational Clawmaster - Passive. Allows the user to equip claws regardless of vocation.

??? - ???

Claws are a good weapon if you want your attacks to be cheap and effective. Propeller Blade's quite a unique ability, but the extra damage is actually kind of worthless if you're planning on using tension since it doesn't get improved by increasing that. Otherwise the extra damage might be somewhat useful. Flailing Nails and Hardclaw are basically the same thing, with Hardclaw being slightly better on average but Flailing Nails having a higher damage multiplier at its best. Then there's Rake 'n' Break, which is great and one of two ways to remove buffs en masse. It's also by far the easier of the two to obtain. Claws are a pretty fun weapon to use overall.

Fisticuffs

Fighting without a weapon does not provide bonus damage to any monster families. All multipliers are compared to a regular attack.

Stone's Throw - Earth elemental damage to a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Does 17 +/- 7 damage to the targets and does not scale.

Wind Sickles - Non-elemental damage to a group of enemies, costs 0 MP. Does 1.5x damage to Elemental family monsters, and 1x damage to everything else.

Critical Hit Rate Up With

- Passive. Increases the critical hit rate when unarmed by an additive 3%.

Knuckle Sandwich - Non-elemental damage to one enemy, costs 2 MP. Does 1.5x damage to the target.

Evasion Chance +4% With

- Passive. Increases the evasion chance of the user by an additive 4% when unarmed.

Multifists - Non-elemental damage to all enemies, costs 0 MP. Hits random targets four times for 0.5x damage each. If used against a single target this ability does 2x damage.

Boulder Toss - Earth elemental damage targeting all enemies, costs 8 MP. Scales using the sum of Strength and Deftness, starting at 500. Damage starts out at 110 +/- 10 and scales linearly up to 300 +/- 10 when both stats are capped.

Attack +x With

- Passive. Increases Attack when unarmed by the listed amount. All three stack, so the total is +100 Attack.

??? - ???

Fisticuffs is the skill you want to take when you can't be bothered to buy any weapons. If you pick this you'll probably be lacking for Attack for a while, although there are some powerful abilities here. Not Stone's Throw, though, because it's terrible except for chip damage. At least it hits a group. Wind Sickles is notable because it's another attack that hits a group, and it's the only monster family-hitting abilities which does so on a normally single-target weapon. Also, it's non-elemental despite the name making it look like it's Wind. Anyway, Knuckle Sandwich is just a straight damage upgrade for minimal MP cost, Multifists is the same for free but doesn't let you focus on single targets, and Boulder Toss is one of the very few ways of doing Earth elemental damage and is pretty decent to boot. So, yeah, going weaponless is surprisingly effective.

Acquisitiveness

Half-Inch - Targets one enemy, costs 0 MP. Steals an item from the target. Steal chance scales using Deftness, starting at 51. The chance starts at 2 * drop rate and scales linearly up to 6 * drop rate when the stat is capped, and the actual chance is capped at 1/2. Only one item can be stolen per target in a single battle.

Pitfall - Only usable outside battle, costs 0 MP. Digs a pitfall trap that temporarily prevents the movement of monsters that fall into it. Only one pitfall may be dug at any time, and a new pitfall will replace an old one. Pitfalls will also trap the player.

Natural Max. HP +20 - Passive. Permanently increases Maximum HP by 20 points regardless of vocation.

Nose for Treasure - Only usable outside battle, costs 0 MP. Reports the number of red treasure chests left unopened on the current map.

Natural Deftness +x - Passive. Permanently increases Deftness by the listed amount regardless of vocation. The two stack, so the total is +60 Deftness.

Eye for Trouble - Targets one enemy, costs 0 MP. Adds a second page of description and rare drop information to the target's page in the Defeated Monster List.

Natural Agility +x - Passive. Permanently increases Agility by the listed amount regardless of vocation. The two stack, so the total is +60 Agility.

Treasure Eye Land - Only usable outside battle, costs 2 MP. Marks the locations of red treasure chests on the top screen map.

??? - ???

Acquisitiveness is a bit of a weird skill. It's entirely taken up by support abilities and stat boosts! Half-Inch is what you'll be using for farming enemy drops, since the chance to get an item is much higher and it's possible to just keep trying against the same monster if you fail. You will be farming enemy drops if you want to get places in the postgame, believe me. Pitfall is pretty awful. It can't be used to lose a monster chasing you, since monsters still move around the field when the menu is open and will just fight you anyway immediately when the menu closes after using Pitfall. Nose for Treasure and Treasure Eye Land are mostly just there if you don't like exploring, hence I don't care for them. There is a good use for the latter much, much later on, though, that isn't mentioned in the ability's description. And finally Eye for Trouble is one of those uniquely useless abilities that is pointless because the internet has all the information it adds and more. I've been using the descriptions in the monster bios, so at least I've found some use for it. Overall Acquisitiveness in one of those skills that you want to put a few points into (for Half-Inch) and then ignore it for the most part.

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 7:07 pm

Part 7: We Like To Party

Music: Come to our Town

What was I doing again? It feels like it's been ages. Oh, right, I wanted to get some people to help me out with finding benevolessence. I think Patty said she'd set that up.

Music: Pub Polka

So, what can I do for you, sweetie?

I need some people to possibly die for my cause. Got any takers?

Sure, there are plenty of mercenaries around. I'll just call some out. Hey, Irma! you're up!

You too, Poppy!

Zack, too! Come on out!

It's finally time to make a party! If you're not creative, the game will provide three semi-randomly generated characters for you. I've never seen any party that doesn't include a Mage and a Priest, which really tells you all you need to know about those vocations' usefulness. Obviously we won't be using this lot, but they start with equipment better than what's given to characters you make. Of note is Irma's leather dress, Poppy's leather hat and Zack's silk robe, which can all be bought at the Stornway equipment shop but which I'm looting off them anyway.

Hmm. I don't know, these guys seem a bit boring. Got anyone with a bit more personality?

If you're sure about that, hon. Some of our other patrons are a bit...odd. Hey, Slasha! Get over here!

Does somevone vish to CHALLENGE Slasha? Slasha vill fight ALL comers! Slasha is STRONKEST von zat zere is!

Slasha will be our Warrior. She's good at hitting things hard and taking hits in return.

Slasha, meet Solitaire. She's going to be your new boss. Just do what she asks, okay?

If boss vill find STRONK opponents for Slasha, Slasha vill FOLLOW! NOBODY vill defeat Slasha!

I like your moxie! Welcome to the team. Just...stand over there for now. _{Please don't hurt me...}

So you'll take Slasha? I thought I'd never get her out of the place. I'll call up the next candidate. Hey, Healie! You're up!

Nice to meet goo! I hope we have a goo slime adventuring together.

Healie's the Priest of the team, and he's going to be the primary healer. It's worth noting that new characters will have a weapon equipped that corresponds to their vocation: Minstrels get a feather fan, Warriors get a copper sword, and Priests get a bamboo lance. Every new character also starts with plain clothes, cotton trousers and sandals.

And what qualifies you to do something like that?

I've been a healer all my life, so I'm gooreat at picking people up when they're down. Heehee!

Then you're hired. Does everyone here have a speech impediment, or is it just these two?

It's just these two. I'll get the next person in, then. Freddy! It's your turn!

What is it? Does something need...burning!?

Freddy's going to be our Mage for this LP. That means he'll be doing a lot of Lightning, Ice and of course Fire elemental damage, as well as a bit of support on the side. He starts with an oak staff, which is a wand rather than a staff. A lot of wands are staff-like, actually, which can get a bit confusing.

Freddy's a bit disturbed, I'm afraid. Apparently there was some incident in his hometown, but he doesn't like to talk about it.

As long as he can contribute, he's fine. You ready to burn some monsters, Freddy?

Can I really set fire to all the monsters I want!? Count me in!

Is there anyone else, Patty?

Only two more, sweetie. Steph? Get in here!

Need something smacked with a big stick? I'm your girl! Just point me at a problem and I'll beat the crap out of it.

Steph is a Martial Artist, making her fast and powerful. Martial Artists start with laundry poles, which are a type of staff. In fact, they're the weakest staff out there! Not surprising for starting gear, really.

Finally, someone normal. I take it you'll be fine with following my instructions.

I won't make promises I can't keep!

Great, just what I need. Someone who'll just ignore me. So who's the last one?

That'd be Reona. The castle guards told me to send her off with an adventuring party, but they didn't say why. Come on, I know you're listening.

Oh, you're a perceptive one, aren't you? And you - Solitaire, was it? - you're just the sort of person I'd be willing to come along with.

Reona's our last character for today, and she's a Thief. That means she'll be more suited to non-combat situations, but she can still hold her own perfectly well. It's not like this game is particularly hard, after all! Thieves start with a paring knife.

Whoa, what happened to your eyes-

Shut. Up.

Okay, okay, I get the hint. You don't want to talk about it.

So, hon, do you know which three you'll be taking with you?

I'm thinking...Healie, Freddy and Steph. You other two can come with another time, okay? That's settled, then.

I've got an idea. I'm gonna show you a neat trick that'll help you when you're travelling with your pals.

Use that one wisely and you'll be sitting pretty wherever your travels take you! Bon voyage, honey!

I don't see how cheerleading could possibly help, but thanks, I guess.

If someone started cheering, I know I'd be really pumped up. I think I might even be able to hit things harder!

Egg On is really good. It's restricted to the main character, unfortunately, but what it does is that it increases the tension of any other party member by one stage. Just gear up the main character for support and start spamming Egg On on the character of your choice.

Oh yeah, tension. You've got five stages of tension - 0, 5, 20, 50 and 100 - and the higher your tension, the higher your damage (or healing) multiplier is. It starts at 0 and gets reset back to that point whenever anything happens that would use the multiplier or make the tension-having individual skip a turn.

Solitaire, goo you need a tour around the inn?

Me, needing your help with something like that? Not likely. I'll look around myself. Hey Erinn, what're you up to?

If you ever want to stay, or if you've got some spare time to help bring in customers, just let me know.

Sorry, but we've got other things to do right now. Maybe we'll get you some business later.

Let's talk about what Erinn can do for us. First off, she runs the inn, where the party can rest and recover their HP and MP. It's not free, though, costing 3G per character. Also, if it's daytime, it'll give us the option of sleeping until night or just until the next day. Nighttime doesn't have that option, automatically skipping to the next day.

As for canvassing for guests...let's not do that right now, since there are some things it'll open up later that aren't evident at the moment. It's best to leave it until everything opens up in the Quester's Rest, which will be some time from now. I'll just summarise this function for now, though: remember Streetpass? This is basically that, but worse. You have to go into canvassing mode by talking to Erinn, and you can only tag people who are also in canvassing mode. If you ever happen to tag someone (you won't), you'll add them to the inn, and the more people get tagged the more floors open up in the Quester's Rest.

Now, who're you?

I'm Ginny, and I run the bank around here.

...

Not got anything to say? Let's get to business, then.

Leave your money with us, and you can travel light, without the worry of losing half your fortune if a battle goes badly. We deal in units of one thousand gold coins for deposits and withdrawals alike, and we don't charge a penny in handling fees!

I...I...

Let's just goo, okay? We'll come back later.

The bank is exactly what Ginny says it is. There isn't much to say about it, really, but we can't really use it right now because 1000G is hard to come by. Besides, it's not something I tend to remember anyway.

Wait. Are you...are you a Celestrian? Finally! You have no idea how much I've wanted to see someone else down here!

You... You are able to see me? Then you are... No. Forgive me. Ignore my ramblings. This is surely the hand of fate at work.

Allow me to assist you. I have the power to open the door to other dimensions that only Celestrians may enter. Through it lies worlds that are not our own, where fresh adventures await. Do you desire to know more about the Rapportal?

What I'd really like to know about instead is how I can get back to the Observatory. And why are you down here anyway?

Well, you see-

Stop talking to nothing and get over here, Solitaire! You're holding us up.

Hey, quit dragging me, you ingrates!

Pavo is, unfortunately, useless to us. That doesn't mean I won't be talking about what she can do, though! She lets you access the multiplayer features, either opening up your world for others to visit or letting you visit others' worlds. This is only doable locally, of course. Going into someone else's world requires leaving all your party members behind and going it alone as the main character, whereas opening your world up to others has them filling in slots in your own party of four.

Music: With My Companions

On the plus side, there's some unique music that plays in this mode on the overworld. It's decent enough. Visiting players can't open red chests or activate cutscenes, but on the other hand they can get some otherwise unviewable dialogue out of bosses or characters past cutscene barriers. You can also have multiple battles going on in separate locations, although of course the party has to be spilt up for that. And if the whole party isn't participating in a fight, it's always possible to join in partway through.

The are another few things I want to talk about regarding multiplayer: the watcher's wings and Pals Past and Present. The former of these is an item you're given when you visit someone else's world, and using it lets you quit the multiplayer mode. The latter is an option on the Battle Records menu that tracks everyone you've played with in this mode and tells you some of their achievements. It's kind of neat, but nothing you'll come back to after unlocking it. And, of course, there are accolades to unlock for spending time in multiplayer: "Constant Companion", "Firm Friend", "Best Buddy", "Oldest and Goldest" and "Friend to the End". You get these from 100 hours, 250 hours, 500 hours, 750 hours and 1000 hours respectively. No, you're never getting most of these.

Anyway, that's it for the multiplayer mode. Moving on...

Music: Come to our Town

So what is it you hired us for?

Er...we're going to help people out. Is that good enough for you?

No, not really. I guess you've got your reasons, huh?

Something like that. Right, everyone, we need to look for the biggest problem we can find and solve it. Start scouting out town.

Why don't we try gooing down that well? There might be something good!

Noooo, don't make me do that! It's all damp down there.

Tough luck. You're climbing down with the rest of us.

Gloves? In a chest at the bottom of a well? I shouldn't be surprised at this point.

Linen gloves are a step up from cotton gloves in that they provide a bit more Deftness and that's it. Still, it's money saved and great for Thieves.

An underground storeroom? Get to looting, everyone.

Won't doing that just make things worse for these people?

Quiet, you.

This would be a good haul if the pots had any worthwhile contents, but they're all rank 1-3 so they've just got basic herbs or tiny amounts of money. The same goes for all the pots and barrels in the town part of Stornway, in fact! The blue chest's rank 2, and it gave me a third paring knife. How...useful?

I wonder how well wool burns...

Meanwhile, lambswool is an item that doesn't have any uses yet. At the very least it's unavailable save for enemy drops and one of the pot ranks, and nothing so far has been able to drop it. As a side note, one of the nice little touches that I like about this game is that a lot of items have their own messages when you pick them up. For example, this isn't just lambswool but a clump of it.

I'd never seen a star so close before!

Didn't Patty say Solitaire came from that direction? Solitaire, goo you know anything about that star?

I know nothing of the sort. Now stop asking stupid questions and get moving.

Why do I get the feeling that I'll be sick of seeing this by the time this is over?

Hey, it's our first mini medal! These have been around since Dragon Quest 3, and in every game they're in collecting them is a game-spanning sidequest that you can get some great rewards from. They work a bit differently here, but for the most part that's still the case.

Maybe that's what the Wight Knight was after.

Who's the Wight Knight?

Oh, him? Nasty piece of work. He keeps breaking into the castle. Nobody knows why, but all the guards keep getting injured trying to stop him. I'd like to give him a piece of my mind!

Hmm... Maybe if we stop him, that'll help me out. Right, it's settled. You lot are going to defeat this Wight Knight character.

Here in the northernmost house is the first mention of our actual objective in Stornway: the Wight Knight. What's clearly most important in here, though, is that rank 4 cupboard.

The King's issued a call for a warrior willing to fight the knight on our behalf. I wouldn't go putting my name forward if I were you, though. Not if you value your life.

Now this is perfect! I might even get a reward for taking down this knight.

The cupboard in this southernmost house is a bit of a strange one, because it's either bugged or intentionally empty. Either way, you're never getting anything out of it.

He's going on with business as usual, but I know that deep down he's absolutely gutted.

The Wight Knight's horse doesn't belong to him? Maybe we could ooze that information somehow.

Another one of these seeds. Anyone have any idea what to do with these?

I know, I know! We should cook and eat them. Over an open fire...

Inside the weapon shop is another type of stat-boosting seed, this time for Strength in case you couldn't guess. While this is a good haul, the blue chest is less so; it's only rank 1, so don't expect anything good out of it. Speaking of the weapon shop, we're giving it a miss for now. We'll check back on the shops when we actually buy something from them.

His Majesty's appeal is on the signpost in the centre of town. I suggest that you read it.

Aww, can't we just come in? We already know about all that.

I can't let you into the castle without you knowing what's on that signpost. Sorry, but them's the rules.

Hmph. Typical.

"If anyone is brave enough to fight him, come to the castle. Anyone will do." Looks like it's signed by King Schott.

We were only here a minute ago! We want to take down the Wight Knight, remember?

In that case, you'd better go inside the castle and find out more about it.

Music: The Palace Oboe

Swanky. Let's check this place out before we see King Schott.

The castle jail? Reona was telling me all about how dreadful it was being here. I hope we don't have to goo down here again...

Somewhere in Stornway Castle, there's an ancient necklace. Worth a wee bit, I'd wager. Apparently it was brought here by the princess o' some kingdom or other when she came here tae get hitched.

Er, thanks? I don't think there's anything else down here for us, guys.

By the way, the people of Stornway are supposed to have Scottish accents, and the city's name is even a bit of wordplay on the real Scottish town Stornoway. Only a few have the accent be really pronounced, though, like this prisoner.

Hey, hey, we should check outside! Maybe there'll be something good.

...Or maybe it's just pots. Aww...

More pots, more ranks to cover. One of these is rank 1, and the other is rank 2. Don't worry, we'll be seeing something a little better soon enough.

Please don't be another prison, please don't be another prison...

Oh, it's a training hall. Speaking of, we need to get in some training out in the wilds. How about it, Solitaire?

Hm? Oh, yeah, sure. You do that if you want.

It's not exactly noticeable in screenshot format, but the screen shakes every time this guard hits the training dummy.

Goo you think you could calm down? You're liable to hurt yourself like that.

Treasure, here we come!

And barrels! Mind if I take the pieces when we're done? I need them for...reasons.

This is our first rank 4 barrel! It's the one on the bottom, while the others are rank 1-3 again. Even so, there's nothing really interesting in there.

What a ripoff! A lousy medal and a locked chest?

You seriously expect people to leave their valuables out in plain sight without some sort of lock?

Look, it's worked so far. Don't knock it.

Locked chests aren't particularly common, but when they crop up it's best to remember them for later. We'll eventually be able to open them, but now isn't the time for that.

You know, this is just fine. Let's go upstairs and not talk about this.

Maybe you should-

Everything is fine.

Another room, another set of pots and barrels. One's rank 1, the other's rank 2. There's nothing up the stairs from here for us, so let's just skip that and go out the exit to the south.

I'm thinking we should smash some more barrels. It's good stress relief!

Ranks 1-2, as usual. At least they're okay for stocking up on medicinal herbs with how many of them there are. Now, back down to the ground floor.

Once I'm done with all this, I'll be glad never to see another pot or barrel ever again.

And these four are one of each rank from 1 to 4. There are also a couple of other pots in here that are rank 2 and 3, but they're scattered around the place and do you really want more pot and barrel screenshots than there are already?

I have faith, though. I know our Guardians will lead us back to days of peace.

Oh, you get more than one Guardian here? I bet they're so happy, getting to help each other out. Not like in Angel Falls...

That water down there looks freezing! We'd better be careful not to fall.

Upstairs from that room is this tower, with a rank 3 barrel and a nice view. See that area down there to the right? We can get there from the northeast tower.

He was certainly big and scary, but he didn't look like he intended to harm anyone in the castle. The only ones he hurt were the soldiers who tried to chase him off.

Wait, are we the baddies?

He still stole that guy's horse, remember? That's a good enough reason for me to beat some sense into him.

There's something down that well for us, but it's just a quest, so we'll leave it until we wrap up this Wight Knight business.

I suppose I can hardly blame her. He seems to have taken a worrying interest in her, you see.

So why is that dreadful Wight Knight so interested in her? She's such a pure, innocent wee thing... (sob)

He's threatening the princess? Now it's really on.

Sorry, Queen Schott isn't exactly the best-utilised character, so it's a bit difficult to get a good shot of her. Sorry about that. Anyway, cupboards! These are good ones, with the left one being rank 5 and the right rank 1. The big standout of rank 5 cupboards is the springtime skirt, which is a fair amount above our current paygrade and boosts Magical Might. It's only a 5% chance, though.

Ooh, that's a nice shade of blue. I might have to ooze this later.

Instead, we get a set of wayfarer's clothes, another 5% chance. Bah. Ignore the message, that's a leftover from the other cupboard. They're just a straight Defence upgrade from the starting gear that you can buy easily from even Angel Falls, but it's 70 gold coins saved and that's fine by me.

I saw underneath the Wight Knight's mask. He's a...a...corpse...

Grow a pair, will you? I've seen plenty of ghosts and you don't see me complaining.

I'd say it was probably a royal crest from some kingdom or other. I've never seen it around here, though.

That makes sense if he's undead. He probably hails from another slime.

"In Stornway's long and glorious history, it's said that our ninth ruler, King Nonus, was by far the most loved by his people. His time on the throne is rather a mystery, however. No record has been found of what life was like back in that long-ago era." Why would there be no records about someone like that?

Maybe someone destroyed them by accident! I know I could make that mistake.

This is information that won't be relevant for a bit, and even then I don't remember whether anything about it is outright stated. King Nonus just isn't relevant to anything, but hey! Worldbuilding!

His Majesty's been waiting for a brave warrior like you. You'd better hurry along to the throne room.

Oh yeah, we were supposed to be seeing the king. How'd we forget that?

Let's get on with this so you lot can fight the Wight Knight. Come on.

Wait, I think I hear something.

And how many times do I have to tell you, Father? The Wight Knight keeps coming to town because he's looking for me! Don't you see? If I go to him, then everyone in Stornway can go about their lives in peace again.

You're being ridiculous, lassie! Do I look like the kind of man who'd sacrifice his daughter to that nefarious knight?

But, Father!

Sorry, are we interrupting something, your majesty?

Did you come here because of the sign down in the town there?

Yes, and-

You did? So you're going to help us defeat that no-good Wight Knight character?

As I was saying, yes, we're here to defeat the Wight Knight. At least let me finish!

Solitaire, be respectful to his majesty! I don't want to get thrown in jail...

Me? I'm Solitaire, and these three are my lackeys.

We prefer the term "employees". Also, not being treated like slaves.

Solitaire, is it? Well then, Solitaire, you'd better listen to what I have to say. Obviously I have good reason for asking a passer-through to defeat this no-good knight.

He's had the nerve to demand that she be delivered to him at Loch Storn by a certain time. I'm convinced that it's some kind of fiendish trap. I reckon he's trying to weaken my castle's defences by having me send my soldiers to the loch with her. Then he'll attack! That's why I wanted to employ a likely lass such as your good self instead.

So we're to go over to Loch Storn and get fighting? Sounds good to me.

Och, Father! You can't possibly ask a stranger who's just passing through the place to do such a thing!

It's very sad, Father... Very sad that you won't even slightly consider my feelings on this.

No, wait, stop! Where are you gooing?

Anyway, Solitaire, I'd be much obliged if you could away to Loch Storn and make sure he's not up to any trickery. If you cross the bridge north of town and keep heading north, you'll find yourself at the loch before too long. Be sure to give him a good thrashing if you find him, won't you? Just pummel the fiend into the ground! Naturally there'll be a braw reward waiting for you when you get back. I'm putting all my hopes on you, Solitaire!

Great! Then it's settled. Let's get going, lackeys.

Can you stop that? I don't want to be a lackey!

Before that, I think we should take the slime to make sure Princess Simona is all right. I'm worried about her.

I think she oozed this door to goo out. Shall we?

You were right, Healie! Great job. Now let's get over there.

Okay, so out here there are two ways to go. Those steps to the left lead to a single barrel (rank 3, by the way) and nothing else. The steps to the right, meanwhile, lead to Simona's room, and that's where we're going.

We did, yes. We're the ones who're going to take down the Wight Knight.

I'm very grateful that someone has stepped forward to defend Stornway. It's just...I don't think the Wight Knight is really a bad person. I'm sure we could work this all out if we just spoke to him. Forgive me! I shouldn't be saying such things to someone who's about to put their life on the line to fight him off. Please, just forget I said anything. I'll be praying for your safe return.

We'll make sure to keep that in mind, your highness, but no promises. Letting our guards down would be a bad idea, what with how strong he is!

You might think the princess's cupboard would have something valuable in it, but no such luck - it's only rank 2. Pop socks are the 5% drop from this rank that's ahead of the power curve, and they're just a bit more Defence than you'd normally have right now. Also they don't look very good, unlike the springtime skirt.

I think we've done all we need around here. Let's get this Wight Knight business over with, shall we?

You go out first. I think us three need to have a private chat first. Privately.

Fine, then. I'll go on ahead.

Music: Come to our Town

The Almighty will be chuffed to pieces if we manage to make this lot thankful and get ourselves plenty of benevolessence. Everything's starting to fall into its place! Let's go and put that Wight Knight in his!

Right. Let's do this! Or make those idiots I hired do it. Either/or.

Extra: The Collection

Hello, and welcome to a new segment of the LP, where I'll be chronicling all the items and bits of equipment that we come across in our adventures for your viewing pleasure (or possibly displeasure). We've got a lot to go through, so I'll just be going over the consumables and key items today.

Medicinal herb

Antidotal herb

Holy water

Chimaera wing

Tangleweb

Sleeping hibiscus

Wakerobin

Watcher's wings

Seed of life

Seed of strength

Seed of deftness

Mini medal

Horse manure

Magic beast hide

Lambswool

Seashell

Keepsake ring

Benevolessence

Inny

EMN · Thu Jul 02, 2020 7:50 pm

Part 8: The Daily Grind

Music: Come to our Town

Are you all done with your private conversation?

Yes, and we need to-

Right, let's go, then. You lot need some training before you fight the Wight Knight.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Being out here again reminds me of when I was walking here from Angel Falls. How did it go again?

Oh yeah, I figured out that one technique. Maybe I should get a whip someday to use it.

Because I'm a bit of an idiot and wanted to rush out the last but one update, there was some stuff that happened on the way to Stornway that I had to cut at the time. Now's as good a time as any to see what happened back then, right?

First off, Solitaire's going to be specialising in whips for the time being. Hypnowhip in particular sacrifices the group targeting of whips in favour of a chance to confuse whatever it hits. It's not a particularly effective attack, but it's a source of confusion and those aren't very common.

And then I went and picked up some rubbish off the ground. I'm doing Stornway a service by doing that, you know!

Coagulant and fisticups are other items that are useless to us right now, unfortunately. It'll take a little while for them to become useful, unfortunately, but now's a good time to stock up. Both are in really obvious places if you just stick to the paths around the region.

Oh, and I found that back entrance to the Hexagon.

There's another way into the Hexagon from the southwest corner of the Western Stornway map. It's very limited, but it's got some great treasure, with that scale armour being the tip of the iceberg as well as being better than anything we could buy in Angel Falls. The two pots are secretly pretty damn good, with the one on the left being rank 7 and giving up some items that are rare or unobtainable right now, while the one on the right is rank 5 and has a chance to give up some useful consumables. I get a snakeskin (useless right now, but difficult to get) and an angel bell (cures confusion).

Why are you telling us all this? I for one don't care about what you did before you got here.

I should have known you ingrates wouldn't be interested in my exploits. If you want to start training, then fine, we'll get on with it.

Oh, but we're not fighting those things. They're trouble.

This is where winksters are supposed to show up. They're a lot easier now that we have an actual party to deal with them.

Music: Are You A Loser

Oh, a walking mushroom! Can I burn it? Please please please?

#015 Funghoul wrote:
Code: Select all
Plant Family
HP: 22         MP: 3
Attack: 25     Defence: 17   Agility: 19
Exp: 25        Gold: 20
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Sleeping hibiscus (1/128)

Flambé these foul funghi to stop them sending you to sleep with their sickly Sweet Breath.

Mushroom-like monsters who love musty, manky places, and relish rolling around in freshly fallen leaves.

Funghouls are the most valuable monsters to fight around here in terms of experience points, although not by much. They're able to do their standard attack, as well as something a little special.

What a relaxing smell! Goo you agree, Freddy?

Yes...burn...everything burn...

Stop slacking and get back to fighting this thing. I don't pay you to sit around sleeping.

What're you talking about? You haven't paid us at all yet!

Sweet Breath attempts to inflict sleep on the whole party, which makes anyone affected skip their turns until either it wears off (the duration depends on the spell or ability used to inflict it) or they're hit with a physical attack. Since you can't target your own party, this is left up to the whims of chance.

Don't worry, I'll handle this one for you! Hiiiyah!

Steph does pretty good damage compared to what Solitaire was doing at level 1, especially when you take her opponents' higher Defence into account. It comes from being a Martial Artist. In comparison, Healie is doing around 3 and Freddy is doing either 1 or 0. Sorry, Mages are just not very good at attacking.

You know, Solitaire, I think we would've learned a lot more if you weren't doing most of the work here.

Oh, really? I guess you'll be fine with fighting on your own from now on, then.

You're not gooing to get away with not fighting that easily.

Welcome to a terrible mechanic: experience scaling! Experience points are divided among the party, which is what usually happens in DQ games, but here it's not an even division. No, that would be too easy! Instead, they're allocated according to the level of the participants, with lower levelled characters getting less experience. You can probably see the problem with this: the strong get stronger and the weak...well, they don't get weaker, but they get stronger much more slowly.

I completely understand why this was done, though: multiplayer. A high levelled player could feasibly take a low levelled player along with them to a high levelled area, where (of course) the low levelled player would get way ahead of the experience curve and proceed to break their game's difficulty over their knee for a while. Of course, to defeat the high level monsters, they'd need the high level player's help, and so under this system they get much fewer experience points. I only wish this system was turned off for single-player, though.

That giant hammer reminds me...is everyone happy with their weapons? I am, but I don't know about anyone else.

I'd love a knife! This wand's kind of heavy...

Then I'll use Freddy's wand. It just oozes magical power.

#013 Hammerhood wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 20         MP: 2
Attack: 12     Defence: 18   Agility: 17
Exp: 20        Gold: 20
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 075 : 075
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Leather kilt (1/64)
Rare Drop: Oaken club (1/64)

Their huge great hammers have them hitting the dirt more often than not, but if they do score a direct hit...

They're discerning fans of good comedy, which is why they think the bag o' laughs' rubbish routine is the biggest joke going.

So, hammerhoods. Hammerhoods are one of three monsters I have no data on with regards to what their abilities are. Still, they appear to only have a couple! As a side note, this battle is when I finally remembered to switch everyone's weapons around to what they should be.

Haha, you missed! That big hammer's really weighing you down, huh?

By far the more common of the two actions hammerhoods have at their disposal is this, which is a waste of a turn. It makes hammerhoods a free fight most of the time. However...

That thing's looking daggers at Solitaire. Think it's just as tired of her as we are?

Why, you...you'll pay for that!

Hammerhoods' other attack is a critical hit. Enemy critical hits are a little different to player critical hits; player critical hits ignore Defence and do double damage, but monsters just have a damage multiplier on critical attacks. Also, they don't all get critical hit chances. Instead, specific monsters can get critical attacks that are their own thing in their AI script. Thank goodness hammerhoods have such a bad Attack stat, or these might be more dangerous than they already are. As it is they'll just do around 10-12 damage at this point, unless they're defended against like this, halving the damage. Since that's a little more than half the average HP at level 1, this could be very bad if everyone isn't healed up.

Yes! Finally! Hahahahaha!

Are you okay, Freddy? You seem a little...er...

I think maniacal is the word. We should probably back off for a bit...

Ah, Frizz. Frizz is the first spell Mages get, and they come with it already learned. It's a bit crap, but still serviceable for the moment. This is pretty average damage, and it won't start increasing until Freddy hits 51 Magical Might at level 10-ish. It's also going to be the only source of Fire-elemental damage besides Hot Lick for a while, so it'll at least be able to hit that weakness if anything has it.

If it isn't my goo friend, Gootrude! We haven't spoken in a long slime.

#014 She-slime wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family
HP: 19         MP: 4
Attack: 23     Defence: 18   Agility: 25
Exp: 20        Gold: 22
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Slimedrop (1/8)

These slimes are the result of a rare genetic mutation, and are also known as "don't-often-see-slimes".

They're bitter rivals of standard slimes, who they match for shape, size and colour, but can't beat as far as fan base goes.

A palette swap already? Shame on you, Square Enix! In all seriousness, though, she-slimes are an early game staple of the series, dating all the way back to the starting area of Dragon Quest 1. Both here and there they're just upgraded slimes, with bigger numbers and fewer weaknesses. They've even got the exact same moveset, too: attacking and fleeing. It takes a higher-levelled character to make them do the latter, though.

No! Gootrude!

It was attacking us! Besides, I only knocked it out. It'll probably get right up again later.

Bubbilly, too? It's a veritable reunion today!

#016 Bubble slime wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family
HP: 23         MP: 4
Attack: 26     Defence: 15   Agility: 8
Exp: 24        Gold: 18
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 050 : 075 : 000 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 050 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Antidotal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Slimedrop (1/8)

Everything these slithering slimes touch is poisoned, so take heed and have some antidotal herbs or a Squelch spell to hand.

After a day off spent relaxing in a poisonous pool to invigorate their venomousness, they bubble much more brightly.

Bubble slimes are another of the classic slime monsters, this time hailing from the second game. They've always had a nasty habit of...well, you'll see.

What are you doing, Bubbilly? That hurts!

As well as their regular old attack, bubble slimes like to use Poison Attack, which does normal damage with a chance to poison. Poison is actually a pretty mild ailment in this game, since it doesn't do damage in battle. Instead it hurts the afflicted for every step they take on the map, just as if they were constantly stepping in poison puddles. Still, it's a drain on resources, and those are never fun. It's best to cure it as soon as possible after a fight is done. How's that done, you might ask?

Poor Bubbilly... At least I can ooze my healing to get rid of poison now.

Good. Now stop moping and come on.

Squelch is a nice little spell, learned by Priests at level 3 and Thieves at level 4, and it cures both poison and its big brother ailment, envenomate. Another way to cure poison is by using an antidotal herb, but who wants to use items when you can use magic? Not me, that's for sure. If you're wondering why Healie hasn't learned Heal yet, by the way, it's because Priests start with it, just like Mages start with Frizz.

It looks like your friend came back, Healie! And they brought a friend of their own, too.

Hey, a group of monsters! This is the first time one has shown up, since they're not all that common around these parts. Monsters of the same species usually show up in groups, which is important because some spells and abilities target groups instead of a single enemy or everything. The only one of these we've got right now is the regular attack of whips, which hit everything in a single group with damage decreasing from left to right. Groups are a feature that's been with the series since battles with multiple monsters were added in the second game.

Something that wasn't originally present in this feature, though, is being able to target individual members of a group. In many of the previous games you were at the whims of the AI for whether you hit the monster you wanted in a group, but here it's easier to fine-tune your targeting strategy. Useful! Any attacks that were originally targeted at an enemy that's been downed will instead redirect to other members of its group, too. Of course, if the entire group is emptied out, then attacks can be redirected to just about anything.

I'm really sorry I have to ooze force, but there's no other way.

Now here's a nice little thing Healie can do with that oak staff of his. Every wand in the game has a stat attached to it called MP Absorption Rate, which is how much MP it'll siphon from whatever's hit with it relative to the damage it did. It's impossible to steal fewer than 1, and there's a good amount of variance to the amount taken. Unfortunately, since wands are such weak weapons, one or two points stolen is the usual result if the attack even does damage at all.

Hey Freddy, I got an idea. How about you put that hyperactivity of yours to good use?

Oh, that's a great idea! I bet I could get everyone to go faster!

Acceleratle is learned by Mages at level 4, and it's kind of amazing. It boosts the whole party's Agility by one stage, which is equivalent to giving it a 1.5x multiplier, or 2x if it's cast twice! It really, really helps with outspeeding things and being able to react easily to problems.

This staff's really not cutting it. Maybe if I held it like this instead it'd be more effective...

I thought it would be a good idea to get to level 5 with everyone before leaving the area, so that's what I did. It's probably a little bit too much, but it's better to be safe than sorry, right? Steph put all three skill points into Staves and got a very welcome Attack boost. Because of the way the damage formula works, that's an extra 5 points of damage to her attacks! Oh, and because this was learned by a character that isn't Solitaire we don't get an accolade for it. Bah.

Look at you lot, learning! As a reward I think we should get you some equipment.

And then I decided to go back to town to buy stuff before getting everyone to level 5. Don't ask me why, I have no idea what I was thinking at the time.

Music: Come to our Town

There's a much bigger selection here than at Angel Falls, what with the three shops and everything. I'm kind of amazed.

First stop, the weapon shop. This place has two of every type of weapon equippable by the starting vocations, plus one extra each for swords and knives. Of special note are the divine dagger, which does 1.2x damage to Zombie family monsters, the wizard's staff, which casts a non-scaling Frizz, and the claws and whips on sale, which are the only starting weapons that you can't get for free by recruiting people at the Quester's Rest. The divine dagger is especially useful since, if you couldn't guess, the Wight Knight is part of the Zombie family.

So, of course, we're not getting one. Instead we get a carrying pole for Steph, in the hopes that her damage will carry the party, as well as a thorn whip for Solitaire so she can actually use her abilities. Slasha will appreciate her soldier's sword when she gets put in the party.

Now for the armour shop. Since we've gotten to the point where multiple vocations are available, the shops have started stocking stuff that not everyone can equip. Shields can, of course, be equipped by anyone who has the Shields skill, so everyone except Martial Artists and Thieves. Scale shields are just a defensive upgrade over leather shields, so they're boring. The headgear sold here can also be worn by anyone, with the hairband boosting Magical Might and the leather hat boosting Magical Mending. The wayfarer's clothes and silk robe can also be equipped by anyone, with the latter giving a bit of Magical Might on top of its meagre Defence. The other body armour isn't so lucky, however.

Leather armour, scale armour and chain mail can't be worn by Mages or Martial Artists, and they all purely give Defence. The leather dress can be equipped by any vocation and provides a bit of Magical Mending, provided that the wearer is female, and the training top is limited to Martial Artists and Thieves but doesn't give any non-Defence bonuses. Next, both glove types are equippable by anyone, but leather gauntlets give Defence instead of the Deftness on every other glove we've seen so far. Then there are training trousers - Martial Artist and Thief only, again - and cotton trousers can be worn by anyone and in fact are since they're starting gear. Finally, leather shoes and high heels are universally equippable, although you've got to be female to wear the latter. They both give a bit of dodge chance.

I buy a hairband for Freddy and a training top for Steph, and I also equip some stuff that I found lying around or stripped off the three pre-generated recruits.

Looking snazzy! Maybe you're not such a bad leader after all.

Hey, what's that supposed to mean?

And finally there's the item shop, which only has one page and one new item to it. Evac-u-bell is a new item to this game, and I'm amazed it hasn't been in any of the previous main Dragon Quest games, because it's just such a convenient thing. These are just the spell Evac in item form, which means that using one lets you escape from a dungeon if you're in one. Oh, and I guess we can buy gold rings now, so that's something to fill accessory slots with.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

I knew using this wand was a goo idea.

And that green slime we fought earlier gave me a great idea! I can try sticking some of its gunk on my knife!

Back to levelling up. This time, both Healie and Freddy hit level 5, and get their first abilities; Healie puts his points into Wands and gets...10 extra MP. At least he'll be able to cast Heal five more times, but right now it's not all that great and it only works if he's holding a wand. Freddie's Toxic Dagger, meanwhile is notable in that it's the only way to inflict envenomate, and is gained from putting three points into Knives. Envenomate does 1/16th of the afflicted's HP in damage at the end of every turn and reverts back to poison after combat is over if the party gets hit with it. It'd be great if it worked on bosses, wouldn't it? Whatever, we're going to need it eventually anyway.

You know, I think you three are doing really well. I think we should move on to somewhere a bit further afield.

Are you sure you want to goo that way? There are some very strong monsters there, and I don't think we're ready for them.

I don't see a problem. I know I can handle anything this place can throw at me.

If you're sure...

Welcome to Eastern Stornway. It's a small area, but it's got a few new encounters to check out. Let's get started on those.

Music: Are You A Loser

Look at how big that leaf is! The tree that came from'd be great for firewood!

Is setting things on fire all you ever think about?

No...sometimes I think about cooking! Especially cake. I like cake. _{Or I used to...}

Doesn't that involve fire, too?

#023 Boppin' badger wrote:
Code: Select all
Beast Family
HP: 39         MP: 4
Attack: 38     Defence: 28   Agility: 33
Exp: 60        Gold: 30
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 075 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/16)
Rare Drop: Magic beast hide (1/32)

Badgers with large leaves and the gift of the groove. Their moves are admired by many in the monster world.

They'd rather be dancing than doing battle, so they beat their bellies like bongos to try and get travellers tapping their toes too.

Boppin' badgers are great motivation to do a bit of grinding before heading away from Stornway. That Attack stat is over 12 more than the strongest thing in the Eastern Stornway area, so they hurt a lot with their regular attack. Besides that, they've got the ability to run away, a 2% block rate (which they do with their leaf), as well as a new and semi-interesting ability.

I can't stop dancing! Help!

That doesn't sound like a real thing. Get back to hitting things!

Sultry Dance has a chance of causing this ailment, which doesn't really have a name in this game but I call it inaction because that's what it's been called when it has had an in-game name. There are several forms of inaction, but there's no difference between them outside of text, so dancing is mechanically exactly the same as, say, being shocked. It's still the best one, though.

I really hope I don't have to use this. It's so cold and boring!

Crack is learned by Mages at level 6 and is, at the very least, stronger than Frizz with a starting damage of around 30. It's also Ice elemental, and unlike Frizz it's going to be the sole source of that element for a while.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Ah, seashells. I don't see how we could ooze these, but maybe we could sell them.

I'd be up for something like that. It might be fun to set up shop somewhere.

I can see the slogan now: Steph sells seashells by the sea shore. We'll make a mint! Or I will, anyway.

The southern beach around here has a gathering point for seashells, which do nothing at the moment. Don't worry, we'll find a use for these seemingly-pointless items once we're done in Stornway. Now, what monsters are there on the beach?

Music: Are You A Loser

A sword and shield? Aww, it thinks it's people.

#017 Wooper trooper wrote:
Code: Select all
Aquatic Family
HP: 30         MP: 4
Attack: 33     Defence: 24   Agility: 28
Exp: 40        Gold: 32
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 050 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 075 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Pot lid (1/16)
Rare Drop: Soldier's sword (1/64)

Amphibious soldiers and adepts of defence who can be found patrolling around bodies of water.

They're forever scraping their soles on seashells while on beach patrol, and have been saving up to buy boots.

Wooper troopers are not very fun to fight, since they're very defensively-oriented monsters. As well as a 2% block rate, they've got a nasty habit of defending against attacks, reducing the damage they take by 50%. Oh, and I guess they can attack and flee too, but you probably expected that at this point. They've got one more trick up their sleeve, and it's incredibly irritating to deal with.

What's it trying to do? Whatever, I'm gonna hit it!

Phew, that was lucky. That's an ability that has a chance to nullify damage to the wooper trooper and hit another character at random, be it friend or foe. It only works for direct attacks, though, so casting magic like Frizz at it (which it happens to be weak to) is one possible solution to fighting these things. Oh, and make sure not to heal during fights with them, or they'll get enraged 25% of the time and start only attacking the healer.

Hmm, I think I've thought of a way to stop those monsters from dodging our attacks.

And then Healie hits level 6 and learns the spell Snooze. It sends a group of enemies to sleep, which sounds great (and it is) but unfortunately its hit chance scales along with Magical Might, which Healie will never get a single point of unless we go out of our way to get some. Still, it's great for crowd control if it does hit.

That thing's glaring at us...I'm scared...

Suck it up and get back to fighting. That oversized snake is hardly a threat.

#039 Flython wrote:
Code: Select all
Dragon Family
HP: 70         MP: 6
Attack: 60     Defence: 50   Agility: 55
Exp: 100       Gold: 70
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 125 : 100 : 125
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 050 : 000 : 100
: 050 : 000 : 100 : 050
: 075 : 100
: 075 : 075 : 075 : 100

Common Drop: Snakeskin (1/16)
Rare Drop: Wing of bat (1/32)

Snakes with sail-like gills packed with potent poison, which they puff out in a venomous vapour. They hate whistlers.

Snake-spotters say that they spread their great gills and glide across the skies and over the seas on moonlit nights.

Hahahahaha, no, don't fight these things. They only show up on the northern beach, and they're by far the strongest monsters in the area. Statwise, their non-HP or MP stats are 10 to 20 points higher than the boss of the area. Oh, and if they're hit by a critical? They get enraged 75% of the time and will attack only whoever hit them with it.

Aaaah! Not the face! Not the face! Just...take this and go away!

Yeah, flythons hurt. A lot. Crack's a good solution to beating them, although first you have to survive two turns. They can also breathe Poison Breath, which attempts to inflict poison on everyone just like Sweet Breath did with sleep. I didn't get footage of it because flythons are a massive pain to fight and I didn't want to fight them more than I had to. These things are from two towns ahead, you know!

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

See? I told you it'd be fine. With your ability and my flawless leadership, we're unstoppable! ...Now, does anyone know which way Loch Storn is?

Extra: The Collection

This time, we'll be taking a look at Solitaire's starting equipment and the stuff you can buy in the Angel Falls shop. Equipment's a bit different to items, and occasionally there's some stuff about it that's not directly stated in the stats, so I'll be adding some of my own notes after some of them when those show up.

Copper sword

Soldier's sword

Leather whip

Feather fan

Pot lid

Leather shield

Bandana

Leather armour

Plain clothes

Wayfarer's clothes

Celestial suit

Can only be worn by the main character. Cannot be sold.

Cotton gloves

Boxer shorts

Can only be worn by male characters.

Cotton trousers

Celestial stockings

Can only be worn by the main character. Cannot be sold.

Sandals

Leather shoes

Celestial shoes

Can only be worn by the main character. Cannot be sold.

EMN · Fri Jul 03, 2020 1:56 am

Part 9: Wight Knight Fight All Night, Alright?

Loch Storn's to the north of Stornway. Didn't King Schott already tell us about it?

Oh, is it? I was just testing you, that's all. Of course I already knew where it was.

Yep, this is the right way. We'll be heading straight for Loch Storn. No distractions!

Wait a minute, Solitaire! Before we go in, we need to have a talk. It's very important.

What is it now?

Goo you remember when you went on ahead back at Stornway Castle? This is about that. We think you're gooing to stand back and watch while we do all the work defeating the Wight Knight.

What, me? D-don't be ridiculous! I wouldn't do anything like that.

Just in case, we're gonna make you go in first! Then you won't double cross us! ...We hope.

That's ridiculous! I lead much better from the back.

I don't care. We're not going in until you do.

Fine, then! I swear, some people have no gratitude.

Video: Boss #2 - Wight Knight

I can't see head nor tail of him. Surely he's not going to stand us up!? What do you reckon, Solitaire? Want to give it a bit longer?

We might as well wait. It's not like we have anything better to do.

And now we wait. We have to wait for several hours in real time!

Okay, fine, not really. That would be a dick move. Instead we just get a fade out and back in.

Music: None

Why don't we head back to Stornway? We should go back and tell the King the Wight Knight didn't turn up.

No. I'm sticking with this until the Wight Knight's beaten. How else are we going to get that benevolessence? Plus those three won't listen to me if I back down now.

Y-Y-Y-Y-Yikes! I w-was only flapping j-joking!

Oh look, your prediction came true. Good for you.

Me? I'm Solitaire, and I'm here to beat you up. ...Once my lackeys get back.

I have no business with you. Where is the Princess?

Now that's just rude. You know full well she's still at the castle.

Music: Swirling Desire

EVERYONE? GET OVER HERE!

You called? ...Oh. That's the Wight Knight, isn't it?

He looks awful! That's a man in need of some proper skin care if I ever saw one.

Skin care? His face looks like it's come off!

It's just a flesh wound.

#258 Wight Knight wrote:
Code: Select all
Zombie Family
HP: 296        MP: 255
Attack: 53     Defence: 50   Agility: 45
Exp: 800       Gold: 200
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 050 : 125 : 075
: 125 : 100 : 100

Status resistances
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 100
: 000 : 025 : 000 : 000
: 005 : 000
: 050 : 100 : 075 : 100

Guaranteed Drop: Iron gauntlets

See this monster description? It's spoilers! We can't have those. I'll post it later once it's not spoilers any more.

The Wight Knight is our first enemy that actually follows a pattern! Everything before this point has had their actions picked entirely at random. Except maybe hammerhoods. I could never get the hang of those. More specifically, he has a three-turn cycle, and each turn has two actions associated with it, each with a 50% chance of being used.

Ahh! How shocking!

On the first turn, the Wight Knight will either use Bolt Cutter or his regular attack. Bolt Cutter is a Lightning elemental physical attack that does somewhere in the ballpark of 1.2x normal damage to a single target. It hurts! The element doesn't really mean anything because we can't resist it yet, and Bolt Cutter never shows up again.

He's just recovering from everything we do to him. How's that fair?

I hate to tell you this, Steph, but we ooze that tactic too.

On the second turn, the Wight Knight can either attack or cast Heal, which is exactly the same as our version. He just so happened to roll the highest amount he could heal for this time.

So fast! I could barely see that!

And on the final turn, the Wight Knight can either use Bolt Cutter or Multithrust, after which the pattern just loops back to the beginning. Multithrust here is exactly the same as it is for our spears, doing half damage and hitting 3-4 random targets. Of course, because the targets are random, it's got a chance to hit the same character every time, probably killing them. Thankfully that didn't happen this time.

So, what's the strategy?

Good thinking, Freddy. If we're going fast too, we'll be able beat him easier!

First, Mages should cast Acceleratle at the start of the fight, possibly even twice. The Wight Knight is fast, and acting before he gets the chance to helps a lot.

Hahahaha! This is so much fun!

You know, I have to agree. There's a lot of satisfaction to be gained by burning things.

After that, spam Fire attacks because he's weak to that, and don't use Ice because he's resistant. We don't have any of the other elements he's weak to in this party, but we could have had Propeller Blade from the Claws skill for Wind elemental damage and, er, nothing else. I can't believe I'm saying this, but Hot Lick is our best friend in this fight.

Heehee! This reminds me of old times.

And, of course, we heal characters when they get hurt. This one shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. At the moment we've got two people with Heal, and anyone else can chuck medicinal herbs if anyone really needs it. It's a good thing nobody did, then!

Music: None

Seriously? That's all you've got? I expected a much bigger challenge.

Now give back that horse you stole!

The Wight Knight isn't that hard of a boss, truth be told, although he requires a little bit of grinding to consistently survive his attacks.

As a result of the victory, Solitaire hits level 10 and everyone else hits level 7. I already talked about Evac back at the Stornway item shop, and its usefulness can't be understated. It's a great way to get back out of a dungeon if we really need the healing.

Sap's another great spell, lowering the Defence of a single target by one stage. This cuts Defence to 50% if it's cast once, or 25% if it's cast twice. Unlike most ailments, bosses don't tend to be immune to stat-lowering effects, so this'll let physical attackers do a lot more damage than before.

Why has my beloved Mona forsaken me? Does our promise no longer mean anything to her?

The princess in Stornway's called Simona, right? Not Mona. This knight's got a nail loose if you ask me.

Is, is that really true?

Yikes! How come you can see me? You gave me a right flapping shock there!

What're you talking about? Everyone knows the Princess is Simona.

Oh, woe is me! So she wasn't my princess after all. Now you mention is, she wasn't wearing the royal necklace of Brigadoom...

I was in a very deep sleep... Then the earthquake happened, and I woke in this strange land feeling as if I had been released from some kind of...prison... I'd completely lost my memory, so much so that I didn't even remember who I was any more. Then I saw that princess and it brought it all back to me. Memories of Mona and I.

And I remembered that Mona is the princess of my homeland of Brigadoom. Princess Mona and I had sworn undying love for each other and were to be wed.

Undying is right. Have you looked in a mirror lately?

Blimey! They must be the spitting image of each other...

Hmm... I must do the honourable thing. I must return to that castle and apologise for my mistake.

Uh-oh. I'd try and talk him down from that if I were you, Solitaire. It'll probably just make things worse.

Er, yeah, if you go to the castle they'll just attack you again. Not that it'll stop you or anything...

Make things worse? Yes, I fear you may be correct. Then perhaps you could take a message on my behalf? Tell them I won't go near the place again.

Not everyone's as stupid as you think, Solitaire. You should give more people a chance.

All I have to do now is find my way home.

Video ends

No, wait! Give that horse back! ...Oh, he's gone.

Did you guys notice anything weird about that conversation? I thought there were some gaps in it...

Yeah, you're right, Freddy. I swear I've seen Solitaire talking to nobody a few times, too. What's up with that?

Oh, that? I'm feeling generous, so I'll explain back at the inn. Not that you'll believe me...

Extra: The Collection

This time we're going to be taking a look at Stornway's weapon shop inventory or, at least, the stuff we haven't already seen elsewhere.

Rapier

Bamboo lance

Iron lance

Paring knife

Bronze knife

Divine dagger

Does 1.2x damage to monsters in the Zombie family.

Oak staff

Wizard's staff

Casts Frizz when used as an item in battle.

Thorn whip

Laundry pole

Carrying pole

Stone claws

Iron claws

Iron fan

EMN · Fri Jul 03, 2020 2:04 am

Mechanics: Battle Formulae

You might be wondering what exactly all those stats actually do. Well, wonder no more! Or you might be completely uninterested in all that, in which case, feel free to skip this update.

Pre-emptive strikes

Let's start with, well, the start of battle. Both the player's party and the enemy have a chance of getting a pre-emptive strike, which lets them take a turn at the start of combat before the other team gets to act. The formula for the chance is as follows:

This gives a percentage chance of getting a preemptive strike. Because enemies don't have Deftness, they're considered to have 0, and the player party only counts one character's Deftness - more specifically, the character with the highest Deftness.

The back attack modifier is an additive 10% boost to pre-emptive attack rate if one group runs into the back of the other in the field. The area for this is a generous 1/3 of the area around the character model! It also makes whoever got run into lose any chance of getting a pre-emptive strike. See that 999 Deftness? Get run into from the back, and your 51% pre-emptive rate doesn't mean crap.

Turn order

After the party's actions have been selected at the start of a turn (with no calculations required), the next step is to decide what order everyone's going to act in. It's a really simple calculation; every combatant is assigned a number using this formula:

For anyone who's not familiar with the notation, this means that a random number gets selected that's somewhere between half of the character's Agility and their Agility. Then combatants are ranked in descending order and turn order works down the list. The result is that it's possible and, in fact, likely to get huge differences in turn order between two consecutive turns, especially when you get to characters and monsters with high Agility.

Physical damage

Physical damage is surprisingly simple. There are only two stats that affect it: the attacker's Attack and the target's Defence. Here's the damage formula:

D is the base damage, while the variance is 1/16 on either side and the ability modifier is the damage multiplier based on the ability used. There really isn't much to say about this one. Want to do more damage? Get more Attack, with two points translating to one more point of damage. Want to take less damage? Get more Defence, with two points translating to one less point of damage. Oh, and if the result of this calculation is 0, then there's a 50% chance to do 1 damage instead.

Magic damage

Magic damage is not quite so simple. In fact, there are a lot of variables to consider, and the stats the calculation uses aren't consistent, and it's a massive pain to work things out. It's generally just better to work things out on an individual basis, but I'll include this here for completeness:

This one's a mess. I'll try to break it down step by step.

D is the base damage value. Simple enough.

V is the damage variance. This depends on the spell or ability used, with higher-damage spells or abilities generally having a higher V.

B is the base damage for the spell or ability. It's how much damage you do before it starts scaling.

A is the effective value of the stat that the spell or ability scales with. It can never be less than 0.

F is the scaling factor of the spell or ability. The higher this is, the more the damage will increase from raising the requisite stat.

M is another variable that's a composite of some others. It's another scaling factor.

S is the actual value of the stat used for scaling. Obviously you want this number to be high! It's usually Magical Might for damaging spells, but it can be all sorts of other things, like Magical Mending for healing spells or even Strength or Deftness for some abilities. There are even a few cases where this is the sum of two stats!

C is the value at which the spell or ability starts scaling. Magic damage in this game only starts scaling at a certain value of the stat the damage is based on, with higher-damage spells and abilities needing a higher stat to start increasing in damage.

Finally, N is the maximum damage of the spell or ability minus the base damage. The higher this is, the more damage you'll end up doing when the relevant stat is capped compared to the base damage.

And that's it. It's a lot to look through for what basically amounts to "raise a stat to do more damage, but this only happens when the stat is above a certain value".

Critical hits

Want to get lots of critical hits with your attacks? Then this formula is for you! Even spells can be critical in this game, which makes them "go haywire".

More variables, so let's go over them in sequence again.

N is the number of hits of the attack used. Thought you could cheat on critical hit rate with a multi-hit attack like Have A Ball? Nope, the formula accounts for that. This counts for anything that involves hitting multiple times, not just abilities, so that includes, say, the regular attacks of whips.

S is the spell or ability multiplier. Depending on the action taken, critical hit rate can change, with just attacking surprisingly producing the best results, having a 1 for this value. Most abilities have this value be 0.5, but there are a few that have a bit more or less. Spells also have a 1 for this value.

A is the critical hit rate bonus gotten from weapon skills (or the Spellcraft skill for spells). This is 3 with the relevant ability or 0 without it.

E is the critical hit rate bonus gotten from equipment. As far as I can tell there's only one piece of equipment that gives this bonus, and the amount it provides is 4. It's also postgame-only.

D is Deftness. This is the biggest factor if you want to generally increase critical hit rate.

The upshot of all this is that the maximum critical hit rate is 1 * 1 * (3 + 4 + 2 + ((999 - 150) / 100), which is equal to 17.49%. There's an item which doubles critical hit rate at low HP, so that makes a total of 34.98%! That's really good, but it's not exactly easy to get.

Meanwhile, the damage from critical hits is the same as the normal damage formula, but it ignores Defence and does double damage or just does double damage (or healing) if it's a spell since there's no defensive stat for those.

Defending

Defending halves all damage. That's all there is to say about defending.

Charm

Every time an enemy moves, they've got a chance to get charmed by the character they're targeting. This chance is affected mostly by Style and the enemy's charm resistance, but there's one exception.

This one's a bit strange. For the most part C and a character's base Charm are equal, so they cancel each other out and Style and Charm Resistance are the only factors. Charm Resistance is innate to each enemy, and it's a number from 0 to 100.

The one exception where C is different to base Charm is when Charm has been increased using the ability Extreme Makeover. This sets the Charm modifier to 2 instead of 1, although C can still never go above 999.

So what does Charm actually do? 90% of the time it just makes whatever's affected to it skip their turn. 5% of the time it inflicts paralysis, and the last 5% of the time it inflicts confusion. Of course, if the enemy is immune to one of those two effects and it's picked, it's skipped and the effect is re-rolled.

Ailments

Ailments are probably the simplest thing we're going to be seeing in this update.

This formula gives the the chance in percent of an ailment connecting. Just like with charm resistance, ailment resistance is a number that starts at 0, but unlike charm resistance it goes up to 200 (though only rarely). The base hit rate depends on the spell or ability being used to inflict the ailment, and sometimes varies using the magic damage formula for some reason.

Tension

Tension's another pretty simple concept. You've got five stages: 0, 5, 20, 50 and 100. Each provides a multiplier to non-fixed damage or healing (so it doesn't boost Fullheal, for example) and drops back down to 0 afterwards. Here are the multipliers for each:

0: 1x
5: 1.5x
20: 2.5x
50: 4x
100: 6x

What this amounts to is that you don't really start profiting in terms of damage until 50 tension, which may or may not be worth it. Tension also gets returned to 0 if the tension-having individual is afflicted with sleep, inaction, paralysis or if they die. The chance to increase from 50 to 100 tension is only 50% barring a couple of rare circumstances, so it's not always ideal to go up that high. Oh, and unlike some other games in the series, this seems to be the same for both the party and enemies.

Buffs and Debuffs

You might think that all buffs are created equal, but this is not so! Even though each stat has its own buff (except Deftness, for some reason) some of them cap at 200% of the original value and some of them cap out at 150% of the original value. No stat can go over 999, even when it's buffed.

Each buff/debuff has five stages, starting at 0 and going either up (with buffing) to stage 2 or down (with debuffing) to stage -2. I'll list the percentage that the relevant stat is multiplied by at each stage like this: -2/-1/0/1/2. Some stats don't have anything for stage -2, -1 or 1, so question marks will be put in those slots instead.

Attack - 50/75/100/125/150

Defence - 25/50/100/150/200

Agility - 25/50/100/150/200

Magical Might - ?/?/100/?/200

Magical Mending - ?/?/100/?/200

Charm - ?/?/100/?/200

Magic Resistance - 25/50/100/150/200
Magic Resistance isn't technically a stat, so this is just the multiplier for any magic damage you take.

Breath Resistance - 25/50/100/150/200
Again, this is just the multiplier for breath attack damage.

Block Rate - ?/?/100/?/200

Evade rate - ?/?/100/?/200
Evade rate has a base of 2%, even though the game tells you it's 0% in the equipment menu.

Coup de Grâces

There are two ways to get yourself a Coup de Grâce. First up, there's taking an action. The base chance for getting a Coup de Grâce from doing this is a whopping 1%! Unless you're a Martial Artist, Ranger or Luminary in which case it's 2%. There are a few pieces of equipment that can pump this up by a significant amount too, but they're all post-game loot.

The other method is to get hit by an attack. Not just any attack, however, since it has to do more than 10% of the recipient's maximum HP in damage! Here's what the chance of getting a Coup de Grâce is given an amount of HP lost in a single attack:

<10% HP: 0%
10% HP: 1%
20% HP: 2%
30% HP: 4%
40% HP: 8%
50% HP: 16%
60% HP: 32%
70% HP: 64%
>=80% HP: 90%

Once a character gets a Coup de Grâce, they have a set number of turns to use it that depends on their level. Thanks to savixeon for telling me about this!

savixeon wrote: 1-9 gives 5 turns
10-24 gives 6 turns
25-49 gives 7 turns
50-74 gives 8 turns
75-99 gives 9 turns

There's also a mechanic wherein the more characters have a Coup de Grâce ready, the higher the chances of another character getting the chance to use one. This is expressed as a multiplier to the chance after everything else has been calculated.

1 character: 2x
2 characters: 3x
3 characters: 4x

Because of this it might be worth hanging on to Coup de Grâces for a while before using them. That leads us nicely into...

Co-op de Grâces

If all four characters in a party use their Coup de Grâce in a single turn, they become a single Co-op de Grâce, chosen from a list of four that varies depending on what vocations are present. Or you could just use each individually, but why would you pass up the opportunity? The effects of these are a mixed bag, but they're usually very potent.

Quadraslash - Targets a single enemy. Does a random amount of physical damage between 0.95x and 1.5x to the target, but uses the sum of every party member's Attack for the calculation. Can be used if a Warrior or Ranger is in the party.

Omnipotense - Targets the whole party. For each character, has a 70% chance to raise tension to 100 and a 30% chance to raise tension to 50. If a character's tension is already at 50, their tension will always increase to 100. Can be used if a Martial Artist or Gladiator is in the party.

Soul Asylum - Targets the whole party. Makes the targets immune to all damage and negative effects, even if they would normally ignore resistance, for 4 turns. Cannot be removed by any means except naturally wearing off. Can be used if a Priest or Paladin is in the party.

Cast Away - Targets the whole party. Changes the MP cost of all the targets' spells and abilities to 0 for 5 turns. Can be used if a Mage or Sage is in the party.

Haulellujah - Multiplies the experience points and money obtained from battle by a random number between 1.5 and 3. There is also a 3/8 chance of making all enemies drop their common drop at the end of battle, and a 1/8 chance of making all enemies drop their rare drop at the end of battle. Can be used if a Thief or Armamentalist is in the party.

Electro Light - Replaces the current enemy configuration with a new one, consisting of only Metal Slime family monsters. The higher the party's levels, the stronger the Metal Slime variants will be. Can be used if a Minstrel or Luminary is in the party.

Fleeing

Can't handle a group of enemies? Then this is for you! The chance in percent for fleeing is Deftness / 20 with a minimum of 25%, and this minimum increases by 25% every time the party fails to run away. This makes the second attempt a 50% chance, the third a 75% chance and the fourth a 100% chance. The chance for the first attempt caps out at a tad under 50%, so every failure increases it. Again, it's the highest Deftness on the team that counts for this. Getting a pre-emptive strike automatically sets flee rate to 100%, too, but only for the first turn (thanks again to savixeon for reminding me of this). Enemies will flee 100% of the time if they make the attempt, although they will only try to do so if the following equation is satisfied:

This is checked for every character. A Slime, for example, has an Attack of 10 and a Defence of 7, meaning that a character would have to have their Attack and Defence add up to ((10 + 7) * 3) + 1, or 52, to make one flee. This is also true of how monsters act outside of battle, so they'll run away on the map if this condition is met too. Plus, if this condition is met, player flee rate is set to 100%!

EMN · Fri Jul 03, 2020 2:34 am

Part 10: Zere we go!

Music: Pub Polka

...So that's the story. Celestrians, fyggs, benevolessence, even that annoying fairy. Or was it faerie? Whatever, I don't care. Are you happy now?

I don't believe a word of it. C'mon, Freddy, Healie, let's leave her alone for a while. She's obviously crazy.

Yeah, even I don't buy that! And people call me crazy.

You know, I think I'm gooing to believe Solitaire. There's just goo much that doesn't make sense otherwise.

I tell you everything, and this is the thanks I get? I'm glad somebody's standing by me, at least.

I'm really sorry! We'll come back when you're not acting crazy any more, okay?

No, I'm not crazy! ...Great, they're gone. Now what?

Maybe we could ooze the help of Slasha and Reona. They might be willing to assist.

That's...actually a really good idea. Let's go do that.

Slasha vas VAITING for zhe day vhen she vould be called upon to FIGHT vonce again!

You really have no concept of subtlety, do you? Let's just listen to what our dear Solitaire has to say before going off on a murderous rampage.

I'm glad someone's willing to listen, at least. We need to go to the castle and tell King Schott we beat the Wight Knight.

VHAT? Slasha missed fighting zer STRONKEST opponent in Stornvay? Slasha is VERY disappointed.

Don't worry, Slasha, we may be gooing further afield this slime. There might even be someone stronger out there!

Slasha vill follow, zhen...for now.

And I don't really have a choice. The King would have my head if I didn't tag along with your ragtag bunch!

Then it's settled. You two need outfitting first, though. Let's see what we've got here...

I decided to do a bit of equipment reshuffling before heading out this time instead of after. Unfortunately we can't buy all the best stuff at the moment, but I focused on getting Slasha up to snuff before anyone else, especially with that rapier (it's the best sword we can get right now). Reona had to have those stone claws bought for her so she could actually use her abilities when she picks them up, but they meant that I couldn't really get headgear for her or a shield for Healie. Oh well, that'll just have to get done later.

Music: The Palace Oboe

Are we gonna- er, I mean, going to be here long? I'd rather not stick around for long with my...let's just say history.

Zhere are only VEAKLINGS here! Slasha does not vish to stay here eizher.

We'll be sticking around for as long as it takes, okay? It won't take long.

Hm? Why that look? Do you know the answer?

Don't you know who I am? I'm Solitaire! I defeated the Wight Knight! Of course I know. He said he was from Brigadoom, wherever that is.

Well, well... So it's a crest from Brigadoom, eh? Brigadoom... Hmm... No, I don't think I've heard that name mentioned before. Must be over the ocean somewhere.

Last update I mentioned that the Wight Knight's monster list description was spoilers, and it's not now, so what better time to say it than now?

#258 Wight Knight wrote: Black-clad knight errant who once terrorised the people of Stornway in mistaken search of his long-lost love.

He was actually once a handsome young chevalier whose fair face set hearts aflutter at the castle.

A lot of these boss descriptions are intended to be read after fighting them instead of before, which leads to a few inconsistencies. A lot of them are described in the past tense, in fact, because you can't read their descriptions until after beating them and seeing their associated cutscenes.

Solitaire's not always like this, is she?

I hate to be the bringer of bad nooze, but yes, she is.

It shows zat boss is STRONK! Zhese people vould not KNOW ozhervise!

I just wouldn't call it a winning personality, that's all. Mine, on the other hand...

How did it go? You're not telling me you succeeded in beating him, are you?

Oh, me? Yeah, I beat him. You should've seen the look on his face when he lost!

Skulls are slurprisingly expressive, as it turns out.

That's incredible! I don't understand where you get the strength from. Anyway, well done! The King will be able to sleep at night again.

This is not entirely true, as we'll see when we get to the quests in a few updates. King Schott's got a bit of an insomnia problem and it won't be resolved for some time.

We should really be getting there too, don't you think? We've spent enough time doing nothing down here.

Oh, fine. There wasn't anyone else I wanted to bother anyway.

There's nothing to be crying over, you silly besom! I'll never allow her to go! Ach, they'll be the death of me, these two...

Hi there! You'll never guess what I've done.

Ah! It's Solitaire! I've been waiting on the edge of my throne for you to come back. Hurry closer now.

Boss has DEFEATED ze Vight Knight. She is STRONKEST in all of Stornvay! Except Slasha.

He said he came from a place called Brigadoom and thought the princess was his fiancee. It's sad, but she probably died a long slime agoo...

He won't be bothering you again any time soon. He said he was going to find Brigadoom or something and wouldn't be coming back here.

Father! Why do you have such a low opinion of him? What did he ever do to you?

Hmph! I've never even heard of Brigadoom for one thing. That proves he must be lying. Here's the solution, Solitaire. I'm sure that miscreant will be back here before long after my Simona again. So until you put a stop to him once and for all, you can forget about trying to collect any reward!

Oh come on, that's not fair! How am I s'posed to get outta this job like that?

Er, what happened to your accent?

Slasha heard thief voman talk like zis sometimes vhen you vere avay. Slasha sinks she has great PASSION! ...For somezink.

Och, lassie. I'm doing all of this to protect you, you know. Do try to understand.

Why does she keep running away? This is just getting silly.

You must defeat that knight so that we can live in peace once more! (sob)

Don't worry, your Majesty, we'll goo after Princess Simona and see what the problem is. Isn't that right, everyone?

Why not? It's not like we've got any leads on Brigadoom.

There's something I need to talk to you about. I don't want anyone to overhear. My room's through that door and to the east. Could we talk there? It's about Brigadoom.

She really does run away a lot, doesn't she?

She vould make a good athlete!

I'm just wondering why she said where her room was when we've already been there.

Slasha vas not here for zat. It vas VERY helpful for Slasha.

You do know I could have just led you there, right? And another thing...

Goo you think we could stop arguing? I don't want the Princess to get a bad impression.

Fine, fine. I'll be on my best behaviour.

You see, I have actually heard of Brigadoom.

Maybe that song could give us a clue as to how we can help to fix all this!

Come on, then, tell us! We haven't got all day, you know.

I don't remember the whole thing, but the maid's gone back to live in Zere now. It's a tiny village just to the west of Loch Storn.

He needs help, Solitaire. Please do whatever you can.

Don't worry, we'll definitely sort things out this slime. You can count on it.

Music: Come to our Town

Let us go, kvickly! Slasha cannot vait to FIGHT!

I absolutely agree. We need to finish this job quickly so I can get ou- I mean, so we can get our reward!

I'm glad we're in agreement.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

We just follow the path, right?

Gooing that way should be right, I think. Does anybody else know?

Oh yes, that's the way to that little hamlet. I never really paid attention to it, honestly. Word travelled too fast there.

Good, then let's get going. I hope you two can hold your own in a fight.

Boss does not need to vorry. Slasha is STRONKER zan before! Training viz thief voman vas VERY helpful.

This is a public service announcement: do not try this at home! If you're playing along, swapping out characters is a terrible idea. It leaves characters severely underleveled and the experience point mechanics really don't help them catch up. From here on out I'm going to be getting characters up to speed with the rest of the party by using bare-faced cheating instead of legitimate grinding, otherwise Solitaire would end up grossly overlevelled. To this end, Slasha and Reona are both now level 7!

Slasha learned Dragon Slash, which is a 0 MP sword ability that does extra damage to Dragon family monsters. It won't be useful for ages, unfortunately, unless we happen to fight flythons again which is admittedly entirely possible. It's not a great idea to spam it instead of the normal attack, though, because it along with all other abilities actually has a lower critical hit rate. Crazy, I know.

Reona's Propeller Blade is a claw ability that hits twice for non-elemental and then Wind elemental damage. The first hit is just your standard physical damage, but the second is based solely on level for some reason. It's very nice to have an attack like this on Reona, since her Attack isn't as high as Steph and Slasha's and she could use the boost to stay competitive. She also got the spell Squelch at level 4, so now we have another character who can cure poison without using up antidotal herbs. Hooray?

Music: Are You A Loser

Aw, look at that cat holding a wand! It might make a good replacement for Healie.

You're not gooing to get rid of me that easily.

#019 Meowgician wrote:
Code: Select all
Beast Family
HP: 29         MP: 5
Attack: 25     Defence: 20   Agility: 32
Exp: 40        Gold: 28
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 050 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 075 : 075 : 100 : 075

Common Drop: Oak staff (1/16)
Rare Drop: Silk robe (1/32)

Fierce felines also known as Frizzcats because they fire off frequent blasts of Frizz - sometimes to unexpected effect.

Before becoming mages, they were extremely aristocratic cats, and can't be seen in public without cleanly washed faces.

Let's move on to the monsters that can be found around here, shall we? Meowgicians are the first of the lot, and they're mostly just upgraded winksters - Frizz, fleeing, an MP-draining attack, you know the drill. They've got a couple of things that set them apart from their floating cyclopean bretheren, though.

The first is that they can wash their faces, which shows that self-grooming is very important, or something. It does nothing other than instil a sense of shame into unkempt adventurers. There are 10 or so of this sort of ability in the game, and I think they add a lot of flavour to monsters.

Then there's this thing. Spells going haywire is accompanied by the screen shaking a bit, a different casting animation, and greater damage. They're just magical critical hits, so they're usable by the party, too, with the normal critical hit rate. Meowgicians specifically have a 3/17 critical hit rate with Frizz, and have the MP to cast it an amazing two times! Wow!

This is for consortin' with those damn slimes! Grrr, I hate those things!

Um..._{I don't think I like Reona much any more...}

It occurred to me that I hadn't shown off some of the abilities yet, so I'm getting that out of the way immediately this time. As you can see, Propeller Blade is surprisingly good right now, almost doubling damage as well as being our only source of Wind damage for the moment.

It has been too long! Slasha has missed zis FEELING! DEATH OR GLORY!

Unless licking is somehow lethal, I don't think that thing's going to be causing much death around here.

#021 Gastropog wrote:
Code: Select all
Bug Family
HP: 28         MP: 0
Attack: 36     Defence: 48   Agility: 32
Exp: 48        Gold: 36
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 125 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 050 : 100 : 000
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 075 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Antidotal herb (1/16)
Rare Drop: Toad oil (1/32)

They slap their sickeningly long tongues across enemies' faces, and eject 'orrible ooze to slow their foes.

The size of their shells dictates their status, and the competition for cool carapaces is fairly fierce.

Gastropogs are one of those high-Defence monsters that are a pain to kill. They're best taken out by magic or abilities that aren't affected by Defence, like the second hit of Propeller Blade. Mages especially rip through them with Crack. Their rare drop, Toad Oil, is actually really important, but it's not going to be useful until we can get it as a much more common drop.

UGH! Slasha does not zink she vill find glory here EIZHER!

As for what gastropogs can actually do, they've got the standard suite of attacking and fleeing, plus this ability which inflicts inaction by grossing the target out.

VORST. FIGHT. EVER.

They've also got this thing, which...exists, I guess? They can't really capitalise on it very well.

I got a great idea! Watch this!

Er...what did that do?

I...I don't know. I definitely feel a lot lighter, though. How did I even do that...?

Would you look at that? A Coup de Grâce! These are abilities that show up at random when someone takes an action or gets hit, and they're generally very powerful, ranging from dealing an automatic critical hit to increasing tension to the maximum. They're locked to specific vocations, just like spells. This is the Minstrel one, and it increases dodge chance and counterattack rate dramatically for a few turns. It's pretty great. Using a Coup de Grâce makes the action unavailable until it comes up again at random, and they don't carry over between battles.

I know exactly what I'm doing with this, though. Watch and be amazed!

That looked like it did exactly the same thing as when you normally ooze your whip. Are you sure you don't need healing?

Here's what Hypnowhip looks like. It's not very good, sadly, because the chance of infliction is low and it does the same damage as a normal attack otherwise. It even has the drawback of only hitting one enemy, which usually means less overall damage! It's best just to ignore it and stick to attacking.

DIE, CAT. NONE ARE AS STRONK AS SLASHA.

I'm just glad it wasn't me getting licked back there. All that gunk would mess up my appearance, and I really need that, you know?

You? With your face? Don't make me laugh.

I'll have you know I was quite the charmer before...well, you know.

Look, I'm working on disguising it. Soon monsters won't be able to resist!

Reona hits level 8 and picks up the first reward from her Acquisitiveness skill. More Deftness will be good for when she can steal stuff (at level 11, based on my plans) but for now I guess everything else Deftness affects could use a small boost.

Healie does the same and learns Buff. We've seen it before, but it bears repeating: it's a Defence buff (see what they did there?), so it's going to be pretty useful for boss fights.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Progressing along the path a bit leads to some farmland. The enemy variety changes a bit here, but there's something I want to check out before that.

Oh, this is gooreat! Did you know people used to call these warp wings?

Hmm. I've never heard of that one. Where did you hear it?

It was where I used to live. You know, the first time I came here I was really surprised by the architecture. Back home we oozed a lot of blocks, but here things are just so much smoother.

There's a gathering point that gives out chimaera wings right in the middle of the field. It's pretty great to have just in case we want to go somewhere fast, because even though they're cheap and buyable pretty much everywhere I have a massive aversion to buying consumables. It's an incurable illness, I'm afraid.

Music: Are You A Loser

Woah, that thing snuck up on us quickly. I thought it was just a scarecrow!

It is zer DEADLIEST scarecrow. Slasha RESPECTS vantink to be STRONK!

#020 Ragged reaper wrote:
Code: Select all
Material Family
HP: 34         MP: 4
Attack: 38     Defence: 24   Agility: 36
Exp: 56        Gold: 28
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 200

Status resistances
: 075 : 000 : 000 : 200
: 075 : 100 : 000 : 050
: 100 : 000
: 075 : 075 : 100 : 075

Common Drop: Evencloth (1/16)
Rare Drop: Linen gloves (1/32)

Their scythes, robbed from real reapers, ward off Whack, and they can upset enemies with Weird Dance and Snooze.

They take out travellers and fellow fiends to use as fertiliser for fields that have fallen fallow.

Wow, look at that Light weakness! Just make sure to exploit that and these guys are fine.

...Wait, what do you mean you can't get Light attacks until endgame?

Okay, but really, these guys are basically just slugfests, albeit not particularly difficult ones. They can't flee, which is something we haven't seen for a while, but they can still attack! And they cast Snooze and Weird Dance, too, both of which aren't much fun to get hit by. At least anyone with a wand can just drain their lost MP back again if they get danced at with how big that MP drain resistance number is. They've also got the best drop rate for evencloth in the game, so if you want that (it's useless right now, surprise surprise) then these are the monsters for you.

These things again? This'll be a walk in the park.

Be careful, Solitaire! I've heard that these monsters are better.

Better than what?

I don't know, just better. In a very non-specific way.

#018 Betterfly wrote:
Code: Select all
Bug Family
HP: 37         MP: 5
Attack: 30     Defence: 16   Agility: 44
Exp: 36        Gold: 28
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 100 : 075 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 050 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Coagulant (1/8)
Rare Drop: Butterfly wing (1/16)

Brutal butterflies that dizzy with Dazzle, then pounce upon their victims with venomous fangs.

They've been worried about their weight of late, and are trying to balance their mortal-heavy diet by devouring more fish.

Betterflies are exactly what they say on the tin: batterflies, but better. Shocking, I know. They have a 2% evade rate, get two different attack types (normal and poison-inflicting), have the spell Dazzle and can flee, just never when you want them to. You'll see. They're also very fast and fold like wet tissue, so they really need to rely on that Dazzle to survive for very long.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Past the fields is a set of stairs that transitions us to a new area, despite staying on the same top screen map. No, I don't know why that is either.

Are we nearly there yet?

It's not very far now, as long as we don't get distracted by any-

Slasha still vants to FIGHT! How else vill Slasha prove how STRONK she is? TO BATTLE!

Hey, stop provoking the monsters and get back here!

Music: Are You A Loser

#022 Brownie wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 40         MP: 255
Attack: 29     Defence: 26   Agility: 40
Exp: 56        Gold: 32
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 075 : 100 : 075
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 075
: 100 : 050
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Leather kilt (1/32)
Rare Drop: Seed of strength (1/256)

Erratic enemies that can attain an instant state of high tension, only to topple over and go off the boil.

Bodkin bowyers often take them on camping trips and trick them into tapping in their tent pegs for them.

So you know how the palette swaps we've seen so far have been a straight improvement over their predecessors? That's absolutely not true of brownies. Contrary to their description, they will always hit with their attacks, making them more dangerous already. Plus they get a couple of nifty tricks to use that with.

As well as their regular attack they've got Heart Breaker, which does damage with a chance of inflicting inaction. It's also the only thing they can spend their massive MP pool on, costing 2 MP. Don't expect them to run out any time soon.

Slasha, I think you made it angry. I don't like that look it's giving us...

They've also got Psyche Up, which can be very nasty if they're left alone for too long. It raises their tension by one stage, which gives them a multiplier on their damage for a single attack. Of course, that's not the worst thing they can do...

...Slasha does not like ze look of zis.

Brownies have a special version of Psyche Up that raises their tension to 50 automatically. If they're at 0 tension, that's the equivalent of three uses of the normal version! Needless to say this is incredibly dangerous.

Oh, my everything! Slasha, why did you have to goo and do this?

That knocked Healie down to 1 HP. Admittedly he was at half of his maximum to start with, but the point is, don't mess with brownies! Despite how dangerous they can be if they get lucky, though, they're definitely worth fighting because they're the easier of two monsters that can drop a Seed of Strength.

Hmm...I wonder why that bat's carrying an extra pair of wings around.

Slasha zinks it is best not to zink about zat too hard.

#024 Drackmage wrote:
Code: Select all
Bird Family
HP: 35         MP: 9
Attack: 34     Defence: 28   Agility: 47
Exp: 60        Gold: 30
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Chimaera wing (1/16)
Rare Drop: Wing of bat (1/16)

Green, forest-dwelling drackies who deftly dodge attacks, then strike back with Kasap.

They're quite short-sighted, and often shower shrubs and other similarly sized green things with greetings and good cheer.

Drackmages are simple creatures. They see an adventurer, they cast Kasap (or attack, which is much more likely). They also like to spawn in the forests around Zere, which makes them a little tricky to see when they're camouflaged against the green trees.

Kasap is not a particularly fun thing to be hit by, since it lowers the Defence of everyone to 50%, or 25% if it's cast twice. Mages won't get this useful little toy until level 25, which is quite a long way away.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Are you finished yet?

Slasha is satisfied. For now.

Hey, what's that over there? I think I see something goolowing.

Oh, no...don't tell me...

It is! I hate you all so much.

But I didn't even do anything!

Cowpats are basically the same as horse manure except they come from cows. This here's a gathering point for them, though it probably won't get much use. What kind of thing could cowpats possibly be used for, after all?

Right, that's it. We're all going into town. Never again...

Extra: The Collection

This time, we'll be talking armour. This is all the stuff from Stornway, plus a couple of pieces from red chests and guaranteed drops.

Scale shield

Hairband

Leather hat

Scale armour

Chain mail

Leather dress

Can only be worn by female characters.

Training top

Silk robe

Leather gauntlets

Iron gauntlets

Linen gloves

Training trousers

High heels

Can only be worn by female characters.

LadyScarlet · Fri Jul 03, 2020 7:19 pm

Aww, yeah, this game. It's one of my favorites, and underrated as heck.

How do you record and encode your videos and screenshots? They look really good!

EMN · Sat Jul 04, 2020 1:00 pm

LadyScarlet wrote: ↑
Fri Jul 03, 2020 7:19 pm
How do you record and encode your videos and screenshots? They look really good!

Desmume's internal recording tool, then screenshotting the recording and resizing with Irfanview without interpolation. For the videos I futz around with Avisynth and, to be quite honest, I have very little idea of what I'm doing there.

EMN · Sat Jul 04, 2020 5:39 pm

Part 11: Doom and Gloom

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

The sunset over the tree here really is gootiful. Don't you all agree?

I'd really prefer to get in and out of here as fast as possible over thinking about the view. I might not be exactly welcome here if I was recognised. I don't know whether the arrest warrant got sent out this far from Stornway...

You, being recognised? With that face? That's a surprise!

Do not. Mention. That. Let's just 'ear that lullaby and get out.

Welcome to Zere! Our beloved tree is in bloom at the minute, so you've come at a good time. Just make yourself at home, eh?

Maybe people really don't recognise you. You must've gotten caught really quickly!

O-of course I didn't! Don't be daft.

...

Does statue make boss SAD? Do not be sad, boss!

I just...don't know if I'll ever even get home. Will I just be forgotten, like the Guardian here?

Don't vorry! If boss is STRONK, she vill find a vay. ...Vhere is boss's home?

That...doesn't matter right now.

But then a great rain came, causing many of its mighty boughs to wither and droop. Such a shame...

And I wasn't disappointed. It's incredible! This is the kind of sight you see only once in a lifetime.

It's a little slurprising how much the people here talk about the tree. I can't say I blame them with how impressive it is, though.

Since we're back in a town now, there's all sorts of stuff to be searched. Case in point: the inn's cupboards. This one's rank 3 (useless) and the one in the other room is rank 5 (another chance at a springtime skirt). I get nothing from either. There's also that red chest down there, but there's no way to get to it from indoors.

Damn, I thought I could get in through the back. And asking someone to unlock it would be too dangerous...

Luckily, the inn has a back entrance. Unluckily, it's locked, and will be until we get a hold of the key. Weirdly, the only way we could see the door was through the wall inside the inn, since the camera can't rotate outside for whatever reason.

Just look at all those pots. What sort of idiot stores their pots down a well?

One who doesn't want them all broken by adventurers, maybe? I'd be goorateful if we just left them alone-

Slasha vill SMASH pots! It is good practice for monsters!

Well, well, well, what do we have here? More pots, of course! They're not particularly interesting - ranks 1-4 with a rank 6 (horse manure or cowpat) mixed in for good measure. At least the odds of getting something are good with how many there are.

Is this a house in the tree roots? I have to admit, it's surprisingly cosy for a cave. I might take some cues from this place next time I go into hiding...

It's hard not having any money, but I do my best not to let being poor get me down. But I'm starting to lose hope... You couldn't give me a bit of support, could you? Just to get me out of this rut I'm in? I don't mean financial support. All I need is you to cheer me on a bit. Inspire me to keep going, you know?

Who, me? If you insist... _{Almighty, this is so degrading...}

Hooray, a party trick! I haven't mentioned these yet because they're mostly pointless. Remember how this game has a multiplayer mode? Well, party tricks are emotes. Not that they're particularly useful for communication, since it's local only, but they're fun to mess around with and used occasionally in single-player too. We start with about half the list unlocked, and more become accessible through sidequests, events like this or even the main plot.

Also, this cheer is just the animation for Egg On. It's different between male and female characters - males are boring and just raise their arms in the air a couple of times instead of jumping and spinning around.

I'll be alright now. I feel on top of the world!

That was a really nice thing you did, Solitaire! I'm sure you'll be gooing home really soon at this rate.

Ve are lookink for PRINCESS NURSE VOMAN! Tell us vhere she is!

You're looking for the lady who looked after Princess Simona as a child? That'd be my mum! Alanna, she's called. Everyone knows her. She's famous since she came back from working for the royals. I think she's gone to see her friend Petra. Call in there and you should find her.

Thank goo very much, ma'am.

In this house is a woman who tells us to go to another house. Helpful, that. And what else do we find in houses? Cupboards - just one this time, though. Plus there's a barrel. The cupboard is rank 3, the barrel is rank 1, and their rewards are crap. There's also a bookcase, but it doesn't have anything interesting to provide. Just like most of them up to this point, then, which is why I haven't been mentioning them!

You couldn't give us a discount, could you? I'd be ever so grateful...

Sorry, I can't sell for less than I am already. I've got a wife and kids to feed.

The shop in Zere has some decent stuff in it, even if we've seen most of it before. Moonwort bulbs cure paralysis, and we'll definitely want a few of those at some point. Bronze shields are the best shield available right now, and they even give a little bit of block rate. Hardwood headwear is a very un-stylish bit of headwear that boosts Magical Might by 2 and can't be equipped by Minstrels and Martial Artists for whatever reason. Leather capes are an okay defensive upgrade for any character not wearing at least scale armour, but doesn't give any other stats so the only vocation that would get much use out of it is Martial Artists (it's 1 Defence better than the training top!).

We can buy linen gloves now outside of that one pair down the well, and they can be slapped on for a decent Deftness boost. The two pieces of leg gear both give the same stat boost - just Defence, and they're both better than anything so far - but the leather kilt is male-only and the blue knickers are female-only. It may sound tempting, but equipping the latter would mean characters going around in just knickers which is...no thanks. Leather boots are our first instance of a foot item that increase Defence instead of evade rate and are equippable on the whole party! ...They're terrible and have the same Defence stat as the celestial shoes that we started the game with. Clogs are really good, though, with a 1.5% evasion boost (on top of the innate 2% that everyone gets) that won't be improved on for absolutely ages. And then there's the bunny tail, which is an accessory that boosts Agility. It's especially good for Warriors to fix their speed issues. We'll buy stuff later, when we have a bit more money.

Music: Healed by a Hymn (VIII)

Wow, this church is really spacious. The one in Angel Falls wasn't a patch on this.

It's a lot bigger than the one in Stornway, even.

You know the drill: there are more cupboards in here. One rank 1, one 3, one 4 and one 5, with two on each side of the building. On a less mechanical note, churches have their own music in this game, as long as they have their own building. It's very organ-y and is originally from DQ8. You can usually tell what game any legacy tracks come from because they've got a Roman numeral after their names.

We've been able to survive for so many centuries here thanks to the sacred tree at the centre of the village.

"Once upon a time, there was a terrible storm, and so much rain fell on the village of Zere that it began to flood with water. Then, something amazing happened: the tree in the middle of the village spread its branches and sheltered the lucky villagers. From that day forth, the people of Zere began to worship the tree, and still treat it with the utmost respect to this very day." What a load of rubbish. A tree, protecting a village? Don't make me laugh!

I thought goo would be the first to accept something like this, Solitaire, given who you claim to be.

Beink STRONK does not alvays mean destroying opponents! Zis tree vanted to be STRONK too. Zat is how zis happened!

I've heard a lot of stupid things, but that's the most stupid thing I've ever heard.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

This is the last house in the village, isn't it? I'm sure nobody will mind if I take a look in the basement...

Great, there's nothing down here but a big pile of dirt.

Stairs down in a not 100% obvious location? That just reeks of cool gear or items! Shame about that not being the case. The pots are ranks 1-3 so there isn't even anything interesting in them, either. Still, it might be worth remembering this place for later.

I was actually a wee bit jealous of you back then, Petra.

Er, excooze me? Is one of you Alanna?

Great. I need to know about that nursery rhyme you used to sing to the Princess.

Well, I can't deny a request like that now, can I?

The Right Knight ditty? Aye, I could sing that in my sleep.

The Right Knight? But that's not-

♪ The Right Knight sets off on his steed, / In search of evil he rides. / If he can defeat the terrible beast, / He'll be home to wed his bride. ♪

Och! But then disaster! ♪ / The Right Knight's nowhere to be seen!

♪ Bird, north, Brigadoomward on, / Tell her that her knight is gone,

♪ Bird, north, Brigadoomward on, / Tell her that her knight is goooone!

I hope you don't mind me asking, but why would you come all this way just to hear an old nursery rhyme?

Well, we were asked to goo to Brigadoom, and Her Highness didn't remember the rhyme, so here we are. I hope you don't mind.

Och, so you you want to find Brigadoom, do you? In that case, I'd pay attention to the part about the bird flying north. Why don't you try heading north yourself and see what you can find?

Okay, now we've got that information we need. There are some potential treasures in here as well as that information, as well - three pots (ranks 1-3) and a cupboard (rank 6). Nothing we haven't seen before.

"A stone-cold classic of a 29th edition! We visit the world's quarries and reveal the top 100 rocks that knock the others stone-dead!" Do...do you think all that wordplay was intentional? That's some dedication to a load of rocks.

I'm more concerned about why this is here in the first place. I know what people are like, and there's nobody in this little village that looks remotely like a stonemason.

Oh, really? There's no reason to worry about something as pointless as this, though. Let's just go.

Music: None

Aargh! We're done for!

Dinnae gie me that! I saw that witch in the woods out lookin' for ye, so I did! A real piece o' work, she was, red eyes a-blazin' an' all! Asked me if I'd seen her slave, the Wight Knight, so she did! That's you, I'd wager. Ye're her slave, are ye not?

Do I look like a witch's slave to you? I've never heard anything so ridiculous!

You wanted to know where Brigadoom is, didn't you? Well, I might have a bit of information for you.

You really didn't need to go to such trouble on my account. So...were you able to learn anything?

Oh, we learned something, all right. The question is, how much would you be willing to give for it? I'm sure you'd be willing to part with something precious for me. You know, you must have been very handsome indeed when you were alive, and-

Zhe nurse voman talked about zhe RIGHT KNIGHT! It vas most inspiring.

We heard a lullaby about Brigadoom from Her Highness Princess Simona's old nursemaid. "Bird, north, Brigdoomward on", I think it was? Maybe if you goo north you'll find Brigadoom.

Surely not! There's a song about me? That is all very odd. Surely I'm not just the figment of a storyteller's imagination? "Bird, north, Brigadoomward on"? That's the only clue there was in the song?

Oh no, I forgot to ask him to give back that horse!

Why don't you just let that go? It's not like it affects us at all.

I refooze to let it go! That horse was an innocent man's property.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

I told her I knew nothin' aboot him, and she awayed an' flew off intae the sky! Ye hae tae believe me!

I really didn't get the impression that the Wight Knight was a bad person from our little conversation. This witch or whoever they were sounds a lot less pleasant, wouldn't you say?

Wait a minute. Woods? I didn't see any of those on the way here. Wouldn't that mean they're to the north?

Why, yes, they are. Shouldn't we be getting over there? We can't get rid of the Wight Knight if we don't follow him, and I'm sure you want to get that reward from the King.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Right, then, it's settled. We're heading north. That's...er...

We have to turn right before we can go that way.

Goo I see some herbs over there? I suggest crossing that swamp to get them. Don't worry, I'll heal us, like always! Heehee!

...Not worth it.

This is a mean place to put an antidotal herb gathering point. They're not even worth it! You can buy them for a pittance or get them from the gathering point near Angel Falls! At least the poison puddles don't do much damage.

Hey, what happened to the weather? Everything's suddenly a lot gloomier.

Maybe that witch is oozing her magic to make everything darker.

Welcome to scenic Doomingale Forest. Enjoy your stay! This is one of those places that isn't mentioned by name by anyone, as far as I recall, but it's right up there on the top screen map. It's basically just a transition area between Zere and the next dungeon.

Look at how much swamp there is over there. This is quite the wasteland, isn't it?

Should ve not be concentratink on zhe MONSTERS?

Monsters? Ha! I'm far too perceptive to get surprised by one of-

Music: Are You A Loser

Where did that thing come from!?

#028 Skeleton wrote:
Code: Select all
Zombie Family
HP: 42         MP: 6
Attack: 48     Defence: 40   Agility: 54
Exp: 81        Gold: 60
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 075 : 125 : 100
: 125 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 050 : 050 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 050 : 075
: 050 : 000
: 100 : 075 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Cotton gloves (1/32)
Rare Drop: Copper sword (1/128)

The remains of robust warriors. They hit hard with Helm Splitter, and cannot be defeated with death spells.

Deceased soldiers who faithfully patrol the ruins of Brigadoom, though their king is long dead, and his kingdom a mere memory.

Oh no, an ambush! These are a 2% chance, so this is just unlucky. They essentially give enemies a free turn to wail on the party, which is not very nice at the best of times. There's a version of this where the party can ambush enemies, but the chance there is based on Deftness and it can go much, much higher than 2%.

As for skeletons, they're big slabs of Attack and Defence who hate you. They do a lot of damage compared to what we've seen so far, although if you're really, really strong they'll just run away.

Hey, watch it! This armour doesn't come cheap, you know.

They've also got the ability Helm Splitter, which does damage with a high chance of lowering the target's Defence. I would very much like to have this ability! Alas, it's not possible to learn it any time soon.

I don't see why you're having problems. This is easy!

From unlucky to lucky! Reona gets a critical hit, doing massive damage. Reona's going to be the best person for critical hits, with her naturally high Deftness. Killing skeletons as opposed to other Doomingale monsters is a good idea, since they give out more money and experience than everything else. Don't bother with the drops, though, because they're really bad. There's a bit of a problem with doing this, though: if a Skeleton gets below half its HP, it has a 1 in 4 chance of getting enraged at the character who brought it below the health threshold. We won't be seeing that in this update, because these guys didn't seem to want to do it. Rest assured, though, that there's a guaranteed enrage coming up soon and I'll explain the mechanic then.

Aah! Another, already?

#026 Ram raider wrote:
Code: Select all
Beast Family
HP: 57         MP: 4
Attack: 46     Defence: 28    Agility: 40
Exp: 70        Gold: 30
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 075 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 075 : 075
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 075 : 100

Common Drop: Sleeping hibiscus (1/16)
Rare Drop: Lambswool (1/32)

These rampant rams will do nothing but nut you, but you'd do well to defend yourself when their tension is high.

They faithfully follow their fathers' advice to get their heads down and charge headlong into all that life hurls at them.

Ram raiders are just as dangerous as skeletons (admittedly not very), but probably a bit nastier. They've got about the same bulk and do similar damage, but they're a lot more susceptible to ailments and have very different attacks. They can flee against tougher parties, and they've got an enrage trigger (critical hits 75% of the time).

Psyche Up is the number one reason why they can be trickier than skeletons. If they set up, they can do a lot of damage! Pair them with skeletons and their Helm Splitter and you can have someone die very quickly, or at least lose a lot of HP. The solution? Make 'em priority targets. Of course, they might just decide to do your job for you...

Gah, that smarts. Why's everything attacking me today?

It gave its life to show us zat it vas STRONK. Slasha vill not let zis NOBLE SACRIFICE go to vaste!

You're a real nutjob, you know that? If you weren't useful, I swear...

Body Slam is...different. If anyone read my last LP, they'll know my absolute disdain for this ability because it just. Never. Hit. And it always damaged the user because of course it did. It's very much improved here, thankfully; it does damage to the target equal to 80% of their current HP, and then does the same to the user with their HP. And if it doesn't hit, it doesn't cripple the user! It seems to have a lower limit of 3 or 4 damage, so that's why the Ram Raider killed itself here. Solitaire halved the damage by defending, but it's still a big chunk of HP.

Oh no, two of them!

Don't worry, these guys are easy. I've beaten them before.

Look, if you're talking about those weaklings around Angel Falls, then you're sorely mistaken. I hear these ones are a fair bit stronger.

#025 Bodkin fletcher wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 36         MP: 4
Attack: 42     Defence: 30   Agility: 53
Exp: 62        Gold: 44
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 075 : 000 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Antidotal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Leather gauntlets (1/64)

Forest hunters who can call on more of their kind in a pinch to pepper foes with poisoned arrows.

Their arrowheads are doused in the bubble slime's deadly dribble, and they have to take great care not to get it on their hands.

We've seen two somewhat dangerous monsters, so here, have another one, for similar reasons to ram raiders - they've got Psyche Up again, even if they are a bit weaker in terms of stats. They've got something else that can be problematic, too.

They can just call for more of themselves any time they want. And then those can call for more, and the ones they call can call for more, et cetera, et cetera. Thankfully due to their terrible defensive stats they're easily dispatched, so this probably won't happen, and we have tools to handle that eventuality unlike in the Hexagon.

Vas zat supposed to HURT?

They also occasionally try to poison with their attacks. Poison's pretty bad. I guess it can make you waste Squelch MP?

Ha! Didn't think you could actually hit me, did you?

Oh look, a dodge! I got another Rough and Tumble on Solitaire, so this is a good time to show it off! Dodging's pretty rare, although there are a few ways to make it far more common, and it nullifies all damage to whoever dodges. Blocking with a shield does exactly the same, but there are fewer attacks that allow for it, probably. I've never been able to find a list, unfortunately.

That's...a cloud with a face. That's something you don't see every day.

#027 Cumaulus wrote:
Code: Select all
Elemental Family
HP: 30         MP: 10
Attack: 28     Defence: 30   Agility: 72
Exp: 62        Gold: 42
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 125 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 050 : 050 : 000 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 050 : 000
: 050 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Tangleweb (1/32)
Rare Drop: Coagulant (1/64)

Companionable clouds who crowd around their victims and clobber them with constant facefuls of Frizz.

Amalgamations of the ominous air that amasses in the upper atmosphere, forming foul, ferocious clouds.

On to the last one, and it's got basically the same strategy as the other monsters: Psyche Up again. Bleh. They're horribly frail, even more so than Bodkin Bowyers, but they have a 4% dodge chance to offset that a bit (it doesn't help much). So what do they use it on?

Frizz, of course! With that Attack stat, of course their physical attacks aren't up to snuff. They've got a 1 in 5 chance of getting a critical hit with it, which is more than a little irritating if it gets combined with high tension. It's not very likely for things to get to that point, but hey, the possibility exists. Oh, and they can run away. Eventually.

Music: None

Zat tree gave Slasha an IDEA! Vat if Slasha could PROTECT as vell as ATTACK?

Slasha learns Whipping Boy from the Warrior skill at level 9. It's okay - you take damage in place of one other party member for the turn. It might be useful more, but with Warriors you really want to be doing damage a lot of the time. I don't really use it unless someone's at really low health, because a character dying is a massive loss of resources in this game early on.

Healie does the same and gets Divination, which is exactly the same as the service of the same name at churches. Now we can tell how close to levelling up people are! Hooray...? Speaking of experience points, all the vocations need different amounts of experience to level up - Warriors, Martial Artists and Thieves take the least, while Mages take the most, at least out of the starting vocations.

Next, Reona gets Heal. She'll be a decent backup healer for a while, but since Thieves don't get any better healing than this that's not going to stay that way for long. Oh well!

And Solitaire hits level 11, picking up the next ability from the whip skill. Everyone gets something! Lashings of Love hits for more damage on Humanoid monsters like, say, bodkin bowyers. It also still hits a group. Why couldn't the other whip abilities do that? It would have made them much better.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

For a forest, this place doesn't have many trees. Are you sure we're even heading in the right direction?

I'm absolutely sure. You've got to have a good sense of direction when you have to move around as much as I have. We just have to keep heading in the same direction!

This is just a dead end. You're an idiot.

Manky mud: it's an item that doesn't do anything yet. It's still good to pick some up since we can, though!

Do we really have to go through this swamp?

It's fine, I can just ooze my healing magic to fix everything it does. It'll be fine!

All that for a lousy medal? I hate this place so much.

A mini medal!? I've heard of these things! They're actually very valuable to the right buyer. I know someone who'd be willing to take those off your hands.

Did somebody ask for renewable mini medals? This gathering point is hilariously out of the way, and by the time we can access it more easily there'll be much better ways to get the things, so this is pretty pointless. We can't even trade them in yet!

Finally. How did you lot miss this?

Slasha is VERY SORRY!

Let's just go in and get this over with.

Extra: The Collection

Okay, we're almost caught up. We've just got some consumable items, stuff we've picked up along the way and the gear buyable in Zere to go.

Bronze shield

Hardwood headwear

Leather cape

Leather kilt

Can only be worn by male characters.

Blue knickers

Can only be worn by female characters.

Leather boots

Clogs

Gold ring

Bunny tail

Moonwort bulb

Evac-u-bell

Coagulant

Cowpat

Manky mud

Fisticup

EMN · Sat Jul 04, 2020 5:49 pm

Part 12: Thrown in the Brig(adoom)

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

I don't understand. How can I have been away for so long that it's fallen into such disrepair? And where is my beloved Mona?

Is it even worth asking him to come back again?

I don't think he'll listen even if you ask a million times. It's not worth the effort.

Now, which way should we be going first? I vote left.

Slasha ALSO votes left!

What are you doing, voting? This isn't a democracy! Besides, I was going to go left anyway.

Welcome to Brigadoom. It's a bit more complex than the Hexagon, with plenty of side areas in this outside bit. Before going off and exploring, though, let's get the encounters out of the way.

Music: Are You A Loser

Oh! It's so goo to see you both!

#029 Healslime wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family
HP: 30         MP: 10
Attack: 30     Defence: 26   Agility: 33
Exp: 56        Gold: 30
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 200 : 100

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 075 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 075 : 075
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Slimedrop (1/8)

Unselfish slimes that are always on standby to step in and save others. Often summoned by their monster mates for support.

They greet friends with their right tentacles, foes with their left, and everyone else with the others.

It's everyone's best healing friend, the healslime! Guess what spell they get?

I 'ate these things, always healin' everythin'! 'Ey, 'Ealie, you're not related to 'em at all, are ya?

W-what? No, n-not at all! What did slimes ever goo to you, anyway?

It's Heal, of course. Was there every any doubt? They've also got a 2% evade rate and can choose to flee if they're really outmatched. They're priority targets, both because they're so easy to take out and because they drag things out if they keep healing another monster.

Oh no, not these things again.

Do not vorry! Slasha vill TAKE CARE of zese monsters!

#030 Blinkster wrote:
Code: Select all
Demon Family
HP: 33         MP: 5
Attack: 26     Defence: 26   Agility: 50
Exp: 64        Gold: 40
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 050 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 050 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Leather shoes (1/32)
Rare Drop: Wizard's staff (1/128)

Wait for these witless wizards to waste their MP on snowy spells, then whack them back!

On days off, they don top hats and set out to work the magic circuit. They're available for birthdays and other bashes.

Ah, blinksters. They're winksters, but better! In other words, they like to cast a spell until they run out of MP, then attack to drain MP so they can cast again.

This time their spell is Crack, and it hits hard. Really hard. That's 20 damage without defending, about 1/3 of Reona's HP! Again, taking them down quickly is a good idea. They've got a couple of other things to differentiate them from winksters: a 2% evade chance and an ability to flee. It makes barely any difference.

Aah! What's that thing!?

Don't worry, Solitaire, it's only a shield. But the fact that it scared you is proof that it's working gooreat!

Scared? Me? Of course not! I was just surprised for a moment, that's all. I could have sworn I saw that face moving...

#031 Leery lout wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 36         MP: 255
Attack: 48     Defence: 40   Agility: 54
Exp: 68        Gold: 34
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 075 : 075 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 075 : 100
: 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Leather shield (1/16)
Rare Drop: Bronze shield (1/128)

Mostly found cowering behind cover, even when countering, but, interestingly, the originator of the Blockenspiel ability.

Their shields are their best buddies, and they spend many a happy hour chatting away to them when not busy battling.

Leery louts are the most defensive of the monsters in Brigadoom, and so they're kind of boring. As well as their 4% block rate that they have because of their massive shields, they have the ability to run away as well as defend, halving all damage as usual.

It DEFENDS, but it also ATTACKS? Zis is a BRILLIANT idea!

Here's their other ability, Blockenspiel. It's early on the shield skill, so we could have it by now, and it just does a low-damage attack while also halving damage taken for the turn, just like the defend command. It's decent. It costs MP but, like with brownies, leery louts aren't going to run out any time soon.

Also, yes, that shield is bigger than their entire body. It's a bit silly. Just leave leery louts until the end of battles; they're a bit crap and spend a lot of time doing very little, and everything else around here is just more competent than them.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Right, now onto the actual exploration. Similarly to the Hexagon's back entrance, there are pots here that have some rare or valuable items in them. In fact, there are far more here than there were there! Brigadoom is quite a good place to go to get rare items, as it turns out. From here on out I'll be numbering ranks on the screenshots so that things don't get constantly bogged down by mechanics talk.

Useless rubbish, again. I don't know why I even check these any more.

The northwest tower's got a blue chest in with some okay potential loot. We can't buy angel bells for a while, so I guess this is worth it, maybe, but I was hoping for something better. Nothing can inflict confusion for a while, so it's not very useful.

It looks like there's an entrance to the main building upstairs. Perhaps we can get in through this door?

Oh, the door's locked. It looks like we'll just have to goo around another way.

I just knew there was nothing over here. Why'd you two have to go and say there was?

VHAT? But boss said she vanted to go left too...

Must have been your imagination.

See? This way's going to be much better, I can just feel it.

A dungeon? I can't see why you'd think this was any better.

Would you two be quiet? I think those monsters heard us!

Music: Are You A Loser

Slasha is fine viz zis. TO BATTLE!

#032 Lunatick wrote:
Code: Select all
Bug Family
HP: 36         MP: 8
Attack: 35     Defence: 40   Agility: 41
Exp: 70        Gold: 32
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 050 : 050 : 075 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 000 : 000
: 050 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Leather whip (1/32)
Rare Drop: Magic water (1/64)

They distract enemies by tickling them with their teeming tentacles, then punish them with a paralysing ray.

Their enormous eyes evolved to allow them to lurk in long grasses, then pounce when prey passes.

See that thing about lurking in long grasses? Yeah, no, that's stupid. Nowhere in any of the games have lunaticks (formerly called druins) ever been encountered anywhere but inside caves or ruins, which aren't exactly known for their grasses. Anyway, because they're flying they get a 2% evade rate, and they can run away as well because why wouldn't you give a monster that ability?

Hahahahahaha!

Looks like Healie's gone off the deep end.

I...heehee! I swear it's just that I'm ticklish! Hahaha!

Lunaticks like to tickle characters and attempt to inflict inaction. It's a unique animation, at least!

They've also got this little gem, which very rarely gets used and when it does doesn't seem to have a high hit rate for the ailment it presumably inflicts (paralysis, in case it wasn't obvious from the name). It's generally more damage than their regular attack, at least. Incidentally, see those drops? We'll want a magic water sooner rather than later, and these are the quickest way to get one. Given that it's a 1/64 chance for one to drop, I'm not going to be sticking around for one.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Slasha is not STRONK enough to break bars yet. So Slasha must get STRONKER!

This is a dead end, Solitaire. At least admit you made a mistake.

What are you talking about? I'm not wrong, you're wrong!

We can't make any progress this way, unfortunately. Those cell doors are the same as the ones in the Stornway dungeon, so we can't open them. We won't be able to open them until just before the final dungeon, in fact. It's time to back out and check out a different area, then!

Oh, and on the way out, we get into a fight with a drackmage and it drops a wing of bat. We'll be wanting one of those in a bit, so it's nice to get it out of the way now.

Okay, for sure this time. This tower's got to be the way in.

I don't think I've seen one of these before. Doesn't it look a lot like your headgear, Solitaire?

You're right, it does. Mine's much more stylish, though.

Trailblazing bandanas are pretty good and can't be bought at the moment. It's a straight upgrade to the bandana, providing Magical Mending as well as the usual Defence, so it goes on Healie and his old leather hat goes to Reona because she doesn't have anything equipped.

I'm not usually one to complain about treasure, but whoever put that in the chest wasn't even trying. Shame on them.

This is a dead-end too!? How many of the things are there?

Oh, a gravestone! "Here lies the gooreat alchemist, Neachdainn".

If he was so great, why didn't he live for ever? I thought that's what alchemy was supposed to do.

No, that's not what alchemy is! Alchemy is all about mixing things together to make other things. I'm not sure where you got eternal life from all that.

This gravestone won't be important until the postgame. Even then it's for one quest, so let's just forget about it until then.

Slasha cannot read ZESE!

Can you even read? I took you for the kind of person who couldn't.

Slasha actually had a VERY GOOD education!

Come on, this is the last place I haven't checked yet. If there isn't a way in, I swear...

I've got a feeling that's the Wight Knight. Wouldn't you agree?

I think you're right! That armour he oozes looks just like what's on that wall carving.

Shoes and another one of those stupid medals. Of course.

Slasha zinks zose shoes are VERY STYLISH. And VERY USEFUL!

Nice, free clogs. They go on Healie, bumping up his evade rate. The Mini Medal is a bit less useful right know, but who knows how many we'll need in the future?

And a nearby healslime drops a slimedrop. We'll want one of these soon, just like the wing of bat. In fact, we'll want a few of them, just not immediately.

Is this around the other side of that cell door from before? If I was better at lockpicking, we could have come straight here and avoided all that fuss.

Belle caps are another item we can't make use of yet, unfortunately. They'll become somewhat useful Soon(TM), though.

"An envoy arrived today from a kingdom called Stornway. I hope this is the beginning of a long and prosperous relationship." That's...not nearly as juicy as I thought it'd be.

Top screen? Slasha is VERY CONFUSED!

I think I've heard of that. It's some kind of ancient map.

"The main event at a wedding in Brigadoom is the bride and groom's first dance. A polished performance is imperative!"

Oh, a dance! That must have been fun to watch. It's a shame that nobody's ever gooing to see a Brigadoom wedding ever again...

That's enough reading. We're moving on.

I wonder what this room was. Some kind of bedroom, maybe?

With all that poison around it definitely wouldn't work as one any more! That bed is still in pretty good condition, though...but it'd be too difficult to carry it out of here.

Aha! This is that door from before! Now we can get through here.

Slasha could have EASILY broken down door! Look, it is ROTTINK viz AGE!

Then why didn't you? You could've saved us a lot of time and effort!

It is IMPORTANT to FIGHT! Takink ze long vay makes us STRONKER!

Unlocking this door is very helpful, because it's going to let us ignore the entire underground section on repeat visits. Just in case, for example, I decide to leave, heal and buy equipment before the boss fight.

Speaking of things rotting, those barrels are in great condition. And who keeps replacing them when we leave? So many questions...

Never mind that now. We have to get after the Wight Knight! I'm pretty sure he went down here.

Maybe he vent DOWNSTAIRS! Let us go ZAT VAY!

Doesn't that old picture look a bit like Princess Simona? Oh, I know! This must be Princess Mona. Wouldn't goo say that's a good deduction?

For once, I think you're right. Good on you!

I...I think this might be solid gold. Just think of what I could do with something as valuable as this...

Okay, I'm going to have to take issue with this one. The description for the gold bracer says it's made of pure gold. Except it can only be sold for 175G, which is a pittance. Anyway, it's an accessory that adds a little bit of Defence. It goes on Reona because she probably needs it.

"I am honoured to have a place in your affections, Princess, but I must defeat the wicked hag as I have given my oath to do. I can only ask you to be patient, my love. Remember my heart is always with you. Your loving knight."

Ze Vight Knight sounds VERY CHIVALROUS! But zis vill get him novhere if he is not STRONK! Like Slasha is!

I've got a feeling that going through this door isn't going to go well.

I feel it goo! There's this malevolence coming from there that I can't describe...

Alright, then. Let's leave, regroup, and prepare for the worst.

Extra: The Collection

We're all caught up now, so this is just going to be new stuff we picked up in Brigadoom.

Trailblazing bandana

Gold bracer

Angel bell

Wing of bat

Slimedrop

Belle cap

EMN · Sat Jul 04, 2020 6:00 pm

Part 13: Less Is Morag

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Right, are you lot all ready to go in? I'm not going to help you if you end up getting killed, you know.

I'm glad you got us this new equipment and everything - really glad, actually - but how do you know if there's anything dangerous through here?

It's just a hunch, okay? I don't ask you about every little thing you think of.

Slasha sinks it makes PERFECT SENSE! Stronk monsters ALVAYS live in dead ends behind imposing doors. It shows everyvon zat zey are STRONK. But Slasha is STRONKER!

Besides, we haven't seen that witch we heard about or the Wight Knight yet. They're probably gooing to be here if they're anywhere. Maybe they even know each other!

I went back to Stornway and Zere and bought some new stuff. Healie got a wizard's staff, a scale shield and some chain mail, while Reona got iron claws. I didn't think Solitaire or Slasha needed anything, because they're already defensively sound either due to levels or high base stats, plus they have the best weapons available at this point.

Video: Boss #3 - Morag

Music: None

Look, it's the Wight Knight! I was right this slime!

Is that the witch with him? I can't get a good view...

Now I understand. Now I remember everything. I left Brigadoom in search of you, so that I could destroy you.

Ye're all mine, an' dinnae forget it. Ye're my Wight Knight in shinin' armour...

This is all your doing! What have you done with her? Where is my Mona?

Oh no! Do you need healing?

I don't think your healing's going to help much. Besides, I'm not letting you waste your magic on something like this. We need it!

I'll put another spell on ye, and we'll be all alone together in the darkness again before ye know it. Just the two of us...

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Even if we can't heal him, can't we help by beating that witch?

I guess we're going to have to if we want to get rid of the Wight Knight...fine, let's go.

He's really in a bad way, isn't he? Quick, help me take his things while he can't move.

VHAT? Ve have much better zings to do. Like fighting ze VITCH!

We've got to talk to Morag to advance. Boss fights tend to be well-telegraphed in this game, which is a big plus, since being unprepared can be deadly. Not too deadly - this game is still pretty easy overall - but being worn down or having bad equipment is entirely possible.

I'm Solitaire, actually, and how did you guess we were here to get rid of the Wight Knight?

Ha! Well, ye're a fool if ye are! Can ye no fell the strenth of the curse I've put on my poor wee darling? It's pure dead powerful.

Get out of the way! I'm pretty sure she's planning something!

Don't be ridiculous. She wouldn't dare to-

Hey, that's not fair! Don't hit me when I'm talking!

Are you sure that was a curse? It seemed pretty weak to me.

Just what exactly are ye? If ye were mortal, my curse couldnae have failed. ...Wait, ye're not...one of them, are ye? Ach, no! We cannae be havin' this!

Guardians aren't affected by curses? That's a slurprising development!

WHAT!? A Guardian? You've got a lot of explaining to do later...

Music: Swirling Desire

FINALLY! A truly STRONK enemy for Slasha to fight.

Are you jokin'? You're not seriously ignorin' the fact that Solitaire isn't 'uman!?

No. Slasha only vants to fight STRONK ENEMIES! And zhere is von here, so ve must fight it!

#259 Morag wrote:
Code: Select all
Demon Family
HP: 456        MP: 255
Attack: 56     Defence: 58   Agility: 54
Exp: 1600      Gold: 350
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 050 : 125 : 100
: 125 : 075 : 125

Status resistances
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 100
: 000 : 025 : 000 : 025
: 010 : 000
: 050 : 100 : 075 : 100

Guaranteed Drop: High heels

Came to bring destruction to Brigadoom, but was rather taken with the Wight Knight, so sealed herself away with him instead.

She chose to bring gloom to Brigadoom for reasons related to the darkest parts of her heart.

Oh, Morag. Morag is a very silly, inconsistent boss fight. Basically she's got a few things she can do, picked entirely at random and each with a vaguely equal probability, and only one is actually dangerous. If she doesn't use it, the fight's a cakewalk. If she does, things can and probably will go downhill fast. She also likes to dodge with a 2% rate, which only very rarely matters.

Be careful, Slasha! I think she's slurping up your life force!

First up is HP Hoover, a really late-game knife ability that's okay. It does normal damage and restores the user's HP equal to about a quarter of that. I guess here it'll make the battle take slightly longer while working off Morag's high Attack.

That's...er...what? How do I even react to this?

Slasha is ALSO very confused!

Puff-Puff is what we probably want to see the most. It's just a single-target inaction inflictor, but it's also got a long and storied past! Puff-Puffs are a series staple, more's the pity. If you want to know what they are, look it up, because I'm definitely not explaining this one. Here it's a Morag-exclusive ability. Lovely.

She has Crack, too. It's the only thing she has that's affected by her being affected by Fizzle and does a bit more than most of her other attacks, so it might be worth trying to disable her with Antimagic from the staff skill. We don't have that ability yet, though.

C-can't...move...

T-this is...all y-your fault...s-somehow...

And here it is. The very worst thing Morag can do. This unnamed attack does damage to the whole party and attempts to paralyse them with a seemingly high chance. As you can see, it may not be a lot of damage (although this is filtered through everyone defending), but that paralysis chance is particularly horrible. Incidentally, paralysis stops anyone affected from taking any action until it wears off.

Other than that, Morag's got the usual attack, plus Victimiser, which does 50% extra damage if the target's paralysed, poisoned or envenomated. Of course, only paralysis matters for this fight (outside of the frankly idiotic decision of bringing a poisoned character into it), but it only serves to make that paralysing attack even more dangerous. She also never used it despite me fighting her twice, but it's not like it has a unique animation or anything.

See? You made her angry. This really is your fault.

Then there's this little mechanic. Monsters have been able to become enraged before, but this is the first time it's guaranteed. Morag will become enraged when she drops below half of her maximum HP, making her only attack the character who brought her below the threshold for 2-4 turns. There are quite a few different conditions for monsters becoming enraged - HP thresholds, healing, reviving from death, critical hits, you know the sort of thing. It's also possible to deliberately enrage something using one of two skills, although of course they won't always work.

This is going to...not hurt? I think that's goorrect.

Now onto strategy. Healie's going to be casting Buff a lot to reduce the damage Morag's doing with her physical attacks, and healing when necessary. I like Buff, it's pretty great, although it's a bit better in other games in the series. I only wish the multi-target version was easier to get.

And the other three are just using their strongest attacks. Solitaire has Hot Lick (I still can't believe I'm finding it useful), Slasha has just attacking and Reona has Propeller Blade. As it turns out, Propeller Blade is incredibly good against Morag because of her Wind weakness, making her take a bit of extra damage. It hits for about 30 each turn, in fact. Of course, if Freddy were in this party, he'd be able to Sap away Morag's Defence so everyone could do 10-11 more damage each.

Slasha feels EVEN STRONKER zan usual!

Slasha was lucky enough to get a Coup de Grâce during the fight. Might as well see what it does!

And zat is vhy Slasha is the STRONKEST!

And that's a wrap. The Warrior Coup de Grâce, Critical Claim, is simply an automatic critical hit. It's pretty good, much like all the other Coup de Grâces, but lacks utility. It's just a big chunk of damage.

Music: None

Slasha VINNED zat fight!

It's won, not winned. I though you said you got a good education! I swear, I'm surrounded by idiots...but that gives me an idea.

Morag's nice enough to give out a great big chunk of experience, which is enough to get everyone but Healie up a level. Solitaire's new spell at level 12 is Woosh, a group-targeting Wind attack with a lot of damage variance - 8 to 24 at base, to be exact.

She also gets Spry in a Crisis from putting points into Litheness. It does exactly what it says on the tin, doubling evade rate at low health. It's situational, but it's passive so I won't complain.

After all that fighting, I feel like I'm finally back up to speed. Stealing should be easy now!

Reona and Slasha are a bit behind, so they only hit level 11. Reona's reward from this level is Half-Inch from the Acquisitiveness skill. It's the stealing ability, being Cockney Rhyming Slang for "pinch", which itself is slang for "steal". Was a double slang filter really necessary? Yes, yes it was. Stealing uses drop rate as a base and the chance of success increases with Deftness, and stealing is incredibly helpful in this game, so we'll want to stack as much of that on Reona as possible.

SLASHA CAN BE EVEN STRONKER!

This much shouting can't be healthy. Goo you need help?

Slasha gets some more points in the sword skill and gets an extra 10 Attack, which translates to 5 extra damage from regular attacks. It'll be good for a while then fall off in usefulness, but that's to be expected from something like this.

And, of course, Morag drops high heels. Right now they're not as good as clogs, so they're underwhelming, but it's nice to have a pair and the team's shoes need updating anyway. They don't go on anyone yet.

No... Ma Wight Knight... Our eternal world together...no more...

Yer beloved Mona is no more... Ka...ha ha... Now ye're doomed tae walk alone in eternal despair... Ka ha ha ha ha...!

Well, that was simple enough. Now what? Oh right, the Wight Knight. I think he's got to resolve his lingering problems...oh.

What is it?

That Mona's been dead for years, and I bet he'd need to see her. So I can't get rid of him...

Wait, does this mean that I'm not getting freed? This is an outrage! A rip-off!

This is another point where we have to talk to someone to progress, with the lucky talkee being the Wight Knight. I have no idea why, because that cutscene could easily flow into the next one. Maybe it's a technical limitation or something!

The passing of time has destroyed my homeland. And my beloved Mona is no longer here to welcome me.

I came home at last... But alas, I was too late...

You can say that again. How many hundreds of years was it?

Isn't that Princess Si-

Be quiet, Healie. I think I can see where this is going, and I'll be damned if you ruin it.

Princess Mona! I don't... Aren't you...?

Princess Mona... You forgive me?

Music: Cave Waltz

This music only plays for this one scene, as far as I know, and it's a nice little rearrangement of Dark Den of Thieves. Go listen to it, it's good! In fact, go watch the boss video too. It's got this dance in it, and it'll do a much better job expressing all this than I can in screenshots.

I never thought I'd see a Brigadoom wedding dance! I'm so goorateful...

Hey, don't tear up on me!

Without you, I would have been doomed to wander forever in eternal despair.

I knew you were the Right Knight from the old stories. I just knew it. I knew there was a connection between us the moment you appeared.

It is not so unbelievable that you, who inherited the memories of my beloved Mona, would have felt so...

So I am Princess Mona's...!

Now I have no regrets. Only gratitude...

Yes, it was all my doing, wasn't it? At least somebody appreciates me.

Music: None

I can't believe that worked.

He vill be missed. He vas truly stronk.

Okay, now that's all done and dusted, Solitaire can tell us all about what she's been hiding from everyone.

Actually she already told everyone except you and Slasha, but the others didn't believe her.

WHAT!? This is an outrage!

Sorry, you just weren't around at the slime.

Yet another bit where we have to talk to someone to proceed. This time it's Simona, which should be pretty obvious since she's the only one here.

............... It's really very odd. When I was dancing with him, I heard a voice... A woman's voice... She was saying "thank you"... Anyway, I must hurry back to the castle and tell everyone the news. I'll be sure to have your reward ready for you, Solitaire, so do stop by the castle as soon as you can.

Look, Reona, if you really want to know everything, I'll tell you on the way back to Stornway. This is going to be a long walk...

Video ends

EMN · Sat Jul 04, 2020 6:27 pm

Part 14: Failure To Launch

Music: Come to our Town

...And that's everything. Are you satisfied? I'm not going to explain it again.

Yes, that's...that's fine. It's quite a story you've got there. I never would have thought that Guardians were even real, seeing as they've certainly never done anything to help me.

I don't think helping a petty thief is gooing to make other people goorateful.

What did you call me? I'm better than just a petty thief, I'll have you know. Why, in my heyday I stole things you wouldn't believe!

You haven't even stolen anything the whole time you've been here!

Look, I'm just out of practice, alright? That jail time didn't do me any favours.

You let prison BREAK you? Slasha is disappointed.

Now we're back in town, it's time for everyone's favourite JRPG pastime: talking to NPCs. Most of the people in Stornway have had their dialogue updated, so let's take a look.

The whole town's talking about you, you know.

And so they should be! After all, I'm the one who bested the Wight Knight and saved the kingdom singlehandedly!

That's not right. What about us? We did most of the work.

Oh, you don't count.

But then I suppose that's only natural, them being friends of the hero of Stornway and all.

YES! RECOGNITION! Finally von who appreciates Slasha!

Oh look, it's a mention of there being party members in this game. It's exceedingly rare to see something like this, since it's entirely possible to go through the game without recruiting a single character from Patty. That's why all the cutscenes just assume only Solitaire is there and never even mention her entourage.

Wait...did the Wight Knight really listen to me?

He did! I never thought I'd see the day! All that armour's still stuck to it, but I'm sure it's fine.

"The threat of the Wight Knight has passed. Subjects of Stornway, you may now live your lives in peace once more! As you enjoy the celebrations, raise your glasses to the brave traveller, Solitaire, who has saved us all."

It looks like they're really bigging you up. Can you please just make sure you don't draw too much attention? While it may be good to get into people's good graces, I'd rather not have my face plastered all over the place again.

You're goin' off travellin' from here, right? If you find anythin' out, can you come back an' let me know?

Oh! Slasha knows! Vhat if zat earthqvake vas related to vhen boss fell off home?

That...actually makes a bit of sense. The time frame lines up...but I doubt I'll be sticking around to find out whether that's right or not.

The rarer an item, the more stars it has. Just imagine finding a five-star item... That's as rare as rare gets!

Oh boy, it's item rarity. Item rarity is completely pointless, which is why I've been leaving it out of all the item descriptions. It goes from 0 to 5 stars, with basic consumables being at 0 and the ultimate equipment (and only the ultimate equipment) being at 5. I'll just keep ignoring it in future, if that's alright. It's not like it affects anything mechanically.

I'd forgotten how much better she looks when she's happy.

I'm so glad that Princess Simona is feeling happier! We should check up on her.

Aren't we going to report to the King anyway? I, for one, refuse to give up that promised reward. You can check up on her while we do that.

Och, ye're an inspiration. I've decided tae follow in yer footsteps an' set off on some travels of ma own. I want tae travel around helpin' people, just like you.

Just like me? Like that's ever going to happen! You might as well give up now.

Music: The Palace Oboe

I can wait, though. It's only a matter of time before he gets injured again, and we're back being neighbours!

How could goo? Wishing harm on someone completely innocent for your own gain. Frankly, I'm ashamed.

I knew that right from the start, of course. Ha ha ha!

It was a frightening expedition at times, but the memories I have of all the strange goings-on will stay with me forever.

Oh? Well, I don't remember you.

SLASHA remembers you! Ve must ZANK you for your help!

Oh dear, are you okay?

Oh, don't worry. These are happy tears. It's thanks to you that the three of us can live in peace again. Thank you so much! (sob)

He and Mother both cried with relief when they saw I was back safely though, so I suppose I'm lucky really. You've done so much for us, Solitaire. I really can't thank you enough. We'll never forget about you, even when you're far away on your travels.

We've got to talk to the king to continue with the plot, which is why I've been holding off on it until now. Ever notice how much talking to people to progress this game involves? Because it involves a lot of talking to people to progress. It's rude to start cutscenes without the player's explicit consent, you know.

Actually, that reminds me of something: more details on multiplayer! Because guest players can't start cutscenes, there's actually pieces of dialogue that only they get to see instead of that when talking to plot-critical characters. It's not particularly relevant most of the time and usually amounts to "go away".

Oh, good! That means I won't have to explain anything myself.

Sounds like that Wight Knight was having a tough old time of it. I feel a wee bit guilty in hindsight. Still, all's well as ends well. You did a braw job there. I'm impressed, lassie! Aye, and you more than deserve that reward I promised. I'll have them open up the treasure chamber. You just help yourself. Take it all if you want to!

I've opened up the eastern checkpoint again. It was closed while all that stramash with the knight was going on.

Stramash is my new favourite word, by the way. Apparently it's a Scottish dialect word (of course) meaning commotion or uproar. Also it just sounds good to say.

There's a big town beyond the checkpoint. Could be an interesting place for you to visit on your travels.

That's all well and good, but what about my freedom? I thought I was going to be released after all this!

Aye, that's right. The paperwork will all be sorted out in a wee bit. It'll all be sent to the inn in town when it's done, alright, lassie?

And maybe you'll stop in Stornway again sometime? You'll always be welcome here, Solitaire! And your friends too, of course.

They're more like colleagues, actually. Let's not get into hyperbole.

So, Reona, what are you gooing to do now?

I'm not really sure, to be honest. Solitaire's story made me remember that I haven't been home for a while, so I thought I'd go back.

Zat sounds like a GOOD IDEA! But vhat vill ve do vizout you?

Oh, you needn't worry about that. I think I'll stick around with all of you until I can actually get back there. It's across the sea, and getting a boat isn't cheap, you know!

Oh, okay...

What do you mean, stick around? I'm going to be leaving soon.

Slasha vas planning on adventuring even vizout boss around. Slasha invited everyone already!

What!? You can't do that! I'm the most important part of this party!

You know what? Do what you want. See if I care.

You can have all the stuff here, though. Aren't I generous? It's not like I'd need it, anyway.

The first two chests contain a nice, straightforward 1000G and an aggressence. It's another one of those items that's going to become useful eventually but isn't quite yet. The blue chests had an Evac-u-bell and a moonwort bulb, which aren't very useful, all things considered.

Isn't that the same shape as the sign on churches? It looks like it'd sell for a pretty penny...

Absolutely not! It'd be rude to sell a gift from King Schott, and besides, these things have gooreat healing powers! I'm sure it'd be useful.

This is a very nice find! Gold rosaries are accessories that boost both Defence and Magical Mending, and they'll never become purchasable, although they are relatively common drops from an enemy or two in the far future. Equipping it on Healie is a no-brainer.

Music: Come to our Town

See! Check it out!

You know full well I can't see any of it. You're mocking me, aren't you?

Oops! I forgot you can't see it! What a flapping idiot! I'm sure the Almighty will notice what we've been up to now, anyway. We'll be back in the Observatory in no time, you'll see. We'd best flat-foot it back to the Starflight Express, then. Ready to rumble and roll, Solitaire?

Yeah, let's get back there as soon as possible. You know, I've even kind of missed everyone.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Hang on a minute!

If the Almighty had noticed all our good work and decided to help out, it'd be glowing... I can't have got the wrong end of the gearstick for this one, can I?

Oh no, don't tell me this isn't going to work. I worked hard for this!

No, of course not! What am I saying? Come on, I'm sure it'll perk up once we get inside.

Right, give me ten minutes. If I'm not out by then, I'm probably not coming back and you lot can leave.

Out of where...? Oh, right, it's that Starflight Express you mentioned, isn't it? I'd have liked to be able to see it.

Well, you're mortal, so you can't. Those are the rules. I didn't make them, so don't go complaining to me!

Music: Stella's Theme

Has the Almighty decided to turn a blind ear on us or something?

When Solitaire walks in, the screen shakes and flashes a bit.

When you came in! That's it! That's it, Solitaire! The benevolessence you got from helping that knight has given you back some of your Celestrian powers!

Oh, really? Well, I don't feel any different. I guess that means more benevolessence-gathering, then. What fun...

But first you need to help people so you can get your powers back... Get back all of your powers, and we'll have the old girl flying like a dream again! We'd better flat-foot it over to that town beyond the checkpoint. I bet it's cram-packed with people in need of our help!

Fine, I'll do it. But only because I don't have a choice!

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Oh? Boss is back! Did boss not do enough to leave?

Sadly, no. Let's get going to the next town over and get this over with...

What about helping more people in Stornway first? I wouldn't be slurprised if there were still people there who weren't satisfied with their lot.

You know, that's not such a bad idea. Let's head back to Stornway, then!

I think we should go back to the Quester's Rest first. I still need to make sure I'm getting released, if you'll remember.

Music: Come to our Town

It's time to go back to Stornway for side stuff that's not actually relevant to the plot! Not sidequests yet, but give it time. The first order of business is to go to the inn, because Erinn's got something incredibly important.

Music: Pub Polka

Everyone's talking about how the wandering minstrel Solitaire saved Stornway! You should hear them! You've become quite the celebrity, I must say, I'm getting quite a lot of attention just because I'm friends with you! Oh yes, before I forget, I found this when I was cleaning out the cellar.

What is that? It looks like a pot.

I'm not sure how you use it, but it's a nice-looking old thing, so I thought I'd pop it up here to brighten the place up a bit. ...Oh, yes. Very tasteful. It's beautifully made as well. Yep, I've got a good feeling about this old thing.

Oh, I've heard of these. We can mix some of our things together using these. Should we use it?

If ve can mix VEAPONS, zis vould be a qvick path to becoming STRONK!

Why not use it? I'd hate to turn down an offer from Erinn, anyway.

............Ah-phew... Ah-phew...

Is that pot...snoring? I've never seen a sleeping pot before.

...Hm!? Wha- Asleep? Goodness gracious, what an absurd suggestion! Absolutely not!

It talks!?

Oh! And you are able to hear my dulcet tones, it seems. How fortunate for you. Meet the master of metamorphosis, the magical monarch of mutation, the tin-pot king of alchemy himself, Krak Pot! Alchemy, my girl, is the ancient art of mixing items together to create something that exceeds the sum of its parts! And I offer this splendid service at little or no cost. No, no! Thank me later! That is, er...you do want to use me, I take it?

I...yes? Maybe? I'm so confused...

You do? Excellent! Oh, ah...not that I had any doubt you would say yes, of course. You're clearly aching to get alchemising. Which means it's high time we started cooking something up! Oh, but I must give you this first, naturally...

The Alchenomicon is an indispensible tome that allows the alchemist to record and replicate recipes for oodles of exciting items!

Thanks...? Let's see here...herbs...some more herbs...this is just herbs, isn't it? What a rip-off.

You only have a meagre repertoire of recipes at the moment, but scour the bookshelves of the world, and that will soon change. Therein lie the true treasures of alchemy. The juicy secrets of the occult art! But we mustn't let ourselves get carried away. No, no. Even the most eminent alchemists started from humble beginnings... So, the first item on the agenda is to select your method of alchemy. If I may, I would recommend alchemising from a recipe.

Music: Alchemy Pot (VIII)

Hey, remember all those items that were useless? Now they're useful! Well, some of them are useful. Using a recipe basically just opens the Alchenomicon and lets you make stuff from the recipes therein. Obviously. There are 448 recipes in total (sort of, there are duplicates and it's stupid), so there are a lot of the things to sort through to find stuff we can even do at any point. But, of course, we don't have the recipes to make the best stuff, so we can't make it. Or can we?

Well, yes, we can. The second option on that list, Try Your Luck, allows the creation of items not on the recipe list yet. It's really useful! Of course, you'd need to know the recipes in advance...but this is the internet, so those are easy to find. And some of them are even intuitive!

Now, let's check out our recipes. Stuff that we haven't made yet is denoted by a question mark and a lack of a useful description. So, what have we got? Strong medicine heals 40 HP to a single ally and is made from two medicinal herbs. If you played Dragon Quest 8, you might think these are a good way to make money by buying medicinal herbs, making these, and selling them. Well, you'd be wrong. Square Enix picked up on that and gave this trick a 2G profit. Not worth it.

Next is special medicine, made from two strong medicines. It's a 90 HP heal to one, so it's going to be a full heal for some time. They're actually a step down from strong medicine in terms of profit (by a whole 1G total), so don't even bother with that. In fact, don't bother with any of these recipes if you want to cheat the economy.

Superior medicine is a midpoint of sorts between the strong and special varieties. They heal 60 HP and require a medicinal herb and a strong medicine. No, I don't know why they're placed in this order. Strong and special antidotes are heal the same amount as the medicines they share names with as well as curing the two poison ailments, and need a medicinal herb and an antidotal herb for the first, and two strong antidotes for the second. Simple enough, and they only cost a pittance more than their non-poison-healing counterparts. It can't hurt to keep one or two on hand.

Then, finally, there's softwort. It's a paralysis cure that heals 60 HP, which is pretty decent if situational, and it needs a strong medicine and a moonwort bulb to make. I can't really recommend it with moonwort bulbs being three times more expensive than the other basic curatives, but if going up against something that can paralyse, it might come in handy. If only these were available for Morag...

Music: Stella's Theme

While we're on the subject of the Battle Records (that's where the Alchenomicon can be viewed outside of the Krak Pot), I realised that we haven't been looking at Stella's dialogue. Let's fix that and see what she has to say right now. First, though, there are some accolades to get out of the way. This one is called Victor for male characters, by the way.

This one's another accolade with an unsurprising male counterpart: Huntsman. Both of these have higher-tier versions, by the way, capping at 10000 fights for Victor/Victoria and 100% monster list completion for Huntsman/Huntswoman.

You know that HP stands for "health points", right? Lose them all, and you'll be dead as a flapping doorstop!

MP stands for "magic points". You need them to use spells and abilities and that. Use them wisely or you won't live to regret it.

Simona must be tough as boots, coming through all those monsters to get here. She should give up princessing and help us out!

Do you hate walking? Is that why you can't go past a monster without diving head, body and both feet first into battle with it?

This is all I got her to say before she started repeating that last line over and over again. As well as commenting on story beats and game mechanics, she occasionally talks about my playstyle (fight new stuff and anything blatantly in my way). I have no idea how this is generated, and there are a lot of possible comments she can make. She also dodges out of the way if you try to poke her, since she's on the touch screen.

Music: Healed by a Hymn (VIII)

Right, we'll check the church first. There's sure to be someone who needs something from the Almighty there, and I'm going to be the one to help.

I don't suppose you could spur me on with a nice air punch, could you?

What did the air ever goo to you?

Zis does not need to be an AGGRESSIVE punch. Zink of ze air as a FRIENDLY RIVAL! Slasha accepts zis reqvest.

Brilliant. My name's Ricki, by the way.

Pleased as Punch is a very easy quest. Air Punch is already set to the party trick menu, so it's a simple matter of holding down the B button and pressing up. We probably should have taken care of this when first arriving in Stornway, but I have a format and I'm sticking to it, dammit!

Was that good enough for you?

Aye, that's the stuff! That's the kind of air punch that could really get a person fired up for a good old pray! Thanks ever so much. Och, but how can I repay you...? Oh, I know. Here, I'll teach you a jazzy new move...

Oh, you look so so embarrassed! I haven't seen anything this funny in a while.

If you ever talk to anyone about this, I swear I will get revenge. You don't want to know how bad you're going to have it.

Ach, but it's no good. I'm still not quite fired up enough to get down on my knees and give the old prayin' a really good go...

That's the end of that quest. Yes, the only reward was a party trick. No, it wasn't really worth it outside of the satisfaction from completing it. But if we leave the church and come back in...

D'you fancy showing me some more of your best party tricks to help me along?

...Fine. Might as well see this through to the end.

Right then. This time, I want you to do a pirouette, a clap, a jump and then an air punch! Think you can manage that?

Oh, I'm sure she can manage this! I have faith in our fearless leader to cheer you up with her amazing skills. Go on, Solitaire, she's waiting!

I hate you so much right now.

We Like to Party is a bit trickier (but still trivial) because of actually having to configure party tricks in the menu instead of relying on the default. For some reason it's possible to perform up to four in a row, but only by setting them to down on the D-pad, and that's what has to be done for this quest.

We've already seen the pirouette and air punch, so there's no reason to show them again.

Oh aye, that's the stuff! Pumps the heart full of passion, so it does! I'm primed for a proper prayer session now! Let's see now, how can I say thanks...? Oh aye, this should do nicely. Just do as I do...

Again, this is the only reward. It's nothing interesting, but for something this easy it's not exactly unexpected. There isn't even a third quest in this line. On to the next quest!

Music: Come to our Town

I came to Stornway in search of a panacea that's said to cure all kinds of ills and ailments. I don't suppose you feel up to making some, do you? You know, with the old alchemy? I'd give you a Gleeban guinea in return.

Is it okay if I goo this one, Solitaire?

That's fine with me. Saves me the trouble of doing it myself.

Then I'd be happy to help.

You'll give it a go? Nice one! Let me jot down the recipe for you, then.

Hold on, I'll make one for you. I'll be right back!

This quest's another easy one, but with a reward that actually means something. Panaceas need a special medicine, a superior medicine and a moonwort bulb. They heal 90 HP and heal the two poisoning ailments and paralysis, so they're the best healing item right now. Not that they're at all necessary, of course, and buying all the ingredients costs a total of 86G, so it's probably not worth picking up over, say, special medicine, which only costs 32G.

You know, I think Healie is far too nice for his own good. I get the feeling that he doesn't like me much, though...

Oh, really? Can't say I've noticed. I suppose he's decent enough. I think-

I'm back! I made the panacea for you.

So you managed to make some! Will you swap if for a Gleeban guinea like we agreed?

Absogootely! Here you go.

Thanks ever so much! This'll be a huge help, that's for sure.

Gleeban guineas exist solely to be vendor trash. They're never used in alchemy, so they're safe to sell off whenever. Watch as I forget to sell them for ages, even though they're worth 500G each and would really be useful right now.

Hmm. Maybe that's not quite enough, considering all you've done. I know! Here, have a look at my recipe book.

This book teaches accessory recipes: strength ring, slime earrings, bow tie, agility ring, prayer ring and life ring. Let's go through them.

Strength rings boost Attack by 4, so that's an extra 2 points of physical damage. They're okay and pretty much the best accessory for physical attackers available right now. They're made from a gold ring (easily bought in the Stornway item shop) and an aggressence (we have one, but it can't be bought or gathered and the recipe's a bit tricky right now).

Slime earrings give the same boost to Defence, which is one point of physical damage reduction. That's double the Defence of gold rings! Still not really worth it, though. They're easy to make, at least, requiring a slimedrop (dropped commonly from multiple Slime family monsters) and a gold ring. If nothing else, they're the best Defence accessory available right now.

Bow ties give 3 Defence, but more Style than slime earrings. The Style is all they're good for, since they're actually pretty hard to make - they need two butterfly wings (drops from batterflies and betterflies) and a grubby bandage (drops from an enemy that hasn't even shown up yet). Not worth it.

As for the other three...well, we can't make them any time soon. Agility rings are the best of the bunch, giving 20 Agility, while prayer rings can be used to heal MP in battle with a 1/3 chance to be destroyed, and life rings heal the HP of the character they're equipped to while they walk around.

Anyway, that's all of those done. On to the next quest!

Music: The Palace Oboe

I'm glad you came along, actually. I need a little favour, you see. Could I get you to bring me a medicinal herb, an antidotal herb and a moonwort bulb as soon as you can?

Oh, that one's simple. We've already got all those.

Brilliant! Let's have it then!

Here, just take them. It's not like I've got much use for them.

Thanks ever so much! You've really helped me out here. Have this for your troubles.

This is another simple quest, with another simple reward. Gleeban groats aren't quite as good as Gleeban guineas, only selling for 100G. Still worth it, though.

Sorry, but I can't tell you what I'm planning to use it all for. I might need to ask you for a favour again some time. I hope you'll be able to help me out.

You really can't tell us? Pretty please? I promise I won't tell anyone.

Look, if he doesn't want to say, then don't pry. Isn't that the polite thing to do?

Angus actually has another quest available immediately, but it's not possible to complete at the moment. Let's ignore it until it's doable and move on.

It's a bit too narrow to get through, though. Hmm... I don't suppose you could bring me a slimedrop, could you? The name's Hamish, by the way.

Don't tell me you're going to rub that all over yourself. Do you even know where it's been? Do you have any idea how utterly disgusting those...those things are?

Slasha zinks thief voman is overreacting. Slimes are adorable, even if zey are not stronk.

How could you be so horrible to those poor, innocent slimes, Reona? Have a heart!

Slimedrops are very, very easy to come by. They're 1/8 drops from she-slimes, bubble slimes and healslimes, so just fighting any of those for a bit is an easy way to get one. Or just steal one from one of them. That works too. We already got lucky and had one drop from a healslime in Brigadoom, so that's not necessary. Convenient!

Slasha hates to give up spoils of battle, but Slasha vill trust you viz zis.

Thanks ever so much! Here, have this for your trouble.

Great! Now then, if I just rub myself all over with it like this... Ugh! It's ever so cold and clammy!

I told you so.

There we go. Now I should be able to just slide my way through, easy as you like...

............ Och, it's no good. It's too narrow. ...Or am I too wide? Bah, either way, I'm not going to make it through. No, what am I saying? Come on, pull yourself together, man. Here goes... Nnnnnnnngggggggghhhh!

No good, eh? I see, I see... So a slimedrop's not going to cut it... Hm... Looks like it's back to the drawing board...

Well that was completely pointless. I just hope I'm getting a load of benevolessence out of this.

Believe it or not, this quest is actually a prerequisite to another one all the way in the postgame. A seed of strength is nice in the meantime, though, even if I have no idea who to give it to.

Music: Come to our Town

You see, I'm desperate for one of those evencloths the ragged reapers around there sometimes drop. If you happen to get hold of one on your travels, I don't suppose I could have it, could I? I'd give you something in exchange.

I'll help, I suppose. I just hope for your sake that whatever you're giving out is worth it.

Thank you so much! You've no idea what this means to me. I'm Julia, by the way. I'm trying to make myself look like a bit of a temptress, you see, and an outfit made of evencloth will really help me on my way. My boyfriend, Romeo, works at the checkpoint. When he sees my new outfit, he'll love me all the more!

As Julia says, ragged reapers are the only monster that drops evencloth right now, so that's what we're going to fight. But first, since that involves going out and fighting stuff, let's see about those new spells and abilities we haven't seen yet.

Music: Are You A Loser

Look at this and be amazed!

That's just an attack with your whip again, Solitaire. Maybe you should stop trying to impress us.

Here's Lashings of Love. Winksters are Demons instead of Humanoids, so unfortunately there's no damage bonus here, but at least it looks nice!

How about this, then?

Oh, I'd love to be able to goo that. I just can't seem to visualise it...

And here's Woosh. You can see the big damage variance here, with 9 damage versus 15 damage on the same enemy species. Here's something interesting: before this game, Woosh was the signature offensive spell for Priests and healer characters in general. Now it's Minstrels that get it instead for some reason. I guess they needed something for their own even though they're supposed to be jacks-of-all-trades.

AHA! Here is ze monster ve are lookink for. To battle!

Wait a second, Slasha. I'm thinking I can get that evencloth a bit more easily.

You wouldn't mind giving that to me, would you? I'd make it worth your while...

How did that even work?

I'm just well-practised at this sort of thing. It only works on monsters, though, what with...well, I'm sure you know.

Stealing! I love stealing. Stealing is great and my friend. Steal rate starts out at two times drop rate and only gets better. Want to get alchemy ingredients? Steal. Want stat-boosting items? Steal. But they're still awful to grind up because of 1/256 drop rates. Want equipment? Alchemise it, because monsters don't tend to drop the best stuff. But occasionally steal.

Music: Come to our Town

Here, take your cloth. Make sure you treat your boyfriend well, okay?

Slasha never knew thief voman vas so sensitive.

This is a matter of the heart, you know? It's right up my alley, so to speak.

Thank you so much! Now I'll be able to make a lovely outfit, and Romeo won't be able to take his eyes off me! Oh yes, I promised I'd give you something in return, didn't I? Here you are!

Pretty betsies are another of the stat-boosting items. This time, they increase Charm permanently! They're also the only one that isn't a seed for some reason. Weird.

I think that's everyone who's been having problems. I'll be heading back to the Starflight now.

Would you mind visiting the checkpoint first? I have a feeling there's gooing to be something there too.

I suppose, if you insist.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

The place was in a terrible state, though! I got myself out of there as fast as my feet would carry me, I can tell you. If you're headed north, I'd advise you to be very, very careful up there.

Thanks for the advice, I guess. I hope I never have to go there.

Don't worry, Solitaire, we're all rooting for you to get back home. _{So you can get out of our hair...}

I really need to get my hands on a wing of bat. Apparently, the drackmages over near Zere drop them all the time. There's no great rush or anything, but do you think you could bring me one next time you're passing? Please? Please!

Did ve not already find zis ving? Zis is an EASY reqvest!

R-Really? Thank you so much! I suppose I'd better introduce myself. I'm Romeo. I work as a guard here. The thing is, it's all the rage with the girls at the moment to add a bit of pizazz to an outfit with a wing of bat. So my girlfriend's been pestering me to get hold of one for her. Girls can be so demanding sometimes!

That would be Julia, wouldn't it? Ah, young love...

This is going to be our last quest for the day, and it's another one for which we've already got the item. An alternative option for this quest, though, is to fight flythons instead of drackmages, since they drop wings of bat (at half the rate, but still!) even if they are tougher to take out.

Here, you can have it. I hope your little romance goes well.

Thank you so much! Now Julia will be happy with me...for a while, at least! Of course! I should give you something as a reward. Will this do?

Why do I get the feeling that this relationship isn't entirely healthy? I really hope things work out for those two...

Whatever, I don't care. I'm going back to the Starflight to see if it's working again. I suggest that you lot go back to Stornway while I do the really important thing. See you later! Or, hopefully, not.

Music: Stella's Theme

Hmm. Nothing so far. Let's see if pushing buttons does anything...

Great. Back to the drawing board...

Extra: The Collection

From here on, I'll be putting in stuff we could make through alchemy and have recipes for, even if we haven't. That means stuff like the various herbs will be here, but prayer rings won't be until sage's elixirs become readily available.

Strength ring

Slime earrings

Gold rosary

Strong medicine

Special medicine

Superior medicine

Strong antidote

Special antidote

Softwort

Panacea

Gleeban groat

Gleeban guinea

Pretty betsy

Evencloth

Aggressence

EMN · Sat Jul 04, 2020 6:45 pm

Part 15: An Alchemical Adventure

Music: Pub Polka

I'm back. Unfortunately...

Oh, it's Solitaire. Things didn't work out for you, huh?

Yeah, it's a real pain. Looks like I'm going to have to go to that Coffinwell place. Where are the other two, by the way?

Slasha said she was going to train, I think! She said something about not being strong enough yet. And Healie went with her!

I think he just needed a break. Goodness knows he needed it, what with...well, you know.

I agree. It's all so tiring dealing with that.

I couldn't have said it better myself! It really is a pain to have to help all these idiots.

That's not... You know what, forget it. It's not worth it.

Music: Our Dreaming Town

Oh, oh, can we wait? I have some ideas for things to do with alchemy!

Instead of going straight to Coffinwell, we're going to stick around for a bit and do some alchemy. With Reona, it'll be a breeze to get some of the ingredients we'll need. Some stuff still needs to be bought, though, such as...

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

...bunny tails! Yes, really. They're good in and of themselves, but they're part of a really great alchemy recipe too. We'll get to it in a bit. I also bought a bronze knife and some holy water in Stornway for use in another recipe.

Music: Are You A Loser

You said you needed some of these, didn't you, Freddy?

Yeah, that's it! Thanks, Reona!

Butterfly wings are an item used for alchemy that we haven't seen yet. If you'll remember, they're used in bow ties, but there are some other things they're useful for too.

And a gastropog drops a jar of toad oil. This is something I didn't expect to get, but it's nice to have one! It's yet another alchemy item, and I think it might be the last one it's possible to get from the Stornway area.

Music: None

Ha! Those butterfly things were fast, but I'm faster now.

Steph catches up with Solitaire and Reona by reaching level 11. Putting points into the Focus skill gets her a nice little stat buff as well as War Cry, an ability that tries to inflict inaction on an enemy group. I mostly use it for stunlocking stuff that's vulnerable to it, especially in tandem with someone else using Half-Inch.

Freddy also gets to level 11, and gets a smorgasbord of new spells and abilities. He learns Evac at level 8, Bang at level 11 and Wizard Ward through the Spellcraft skill, as well as a bit of extra Attack. We've seen Evac before, but Bang is new. It's a spell that does damage to the entire enemy party, and is Lightning-elemental for some reason. It's really good although at 5 MP it's the most expensive spell we have access to at the moment.

Then there's Wizard Ward. This is an okay ability that increases the user's magic defence by one stage. The big problem with it is the targeting; only being able to affect the user is an issue, but Mages are squishy enough that it might help occasionally. It'll get used for something else eventually, but that's for another time.

Music: Alchemy Pot (VIII)

Er...what are these?

They're bunny ears!

They're stupid-looking, is what they are.

Let's do some alchemy! Bunny ears are amazing for how easy they are to brew up. Two bunny tails and a hairband make one of these, which makes some logical sense. They bestow more Defence than any other headgear at the moment, plus more Magical Might and Magical Mending than anything so far too. And they're very stylish, too! Statwise, anyway.

Hey, Freddy? That knife looks exactly the same as the one you put in. Is that supposed to happen?

Er...maybe? It's probably fine!

Stick a bronze knife and three phials of holy water in the pot, and you get a divine dagger. It's entirely possible to just buy one of these in the local weapon shop, but this method happens to cost exactly half the money.

Aha! Success!

This is a poison moth knife. It's pretty good. Made from that divine dagger we just cooked up, two pouches of coagulant and a piece of manky mud, this is a knife that has a chance to paralyse whatever it hits.

Did you mess up? You messed up, didn't you?

No, this is all according to plan, I promise. This knife's a lot stronger than before!

And, finally, here's the batterfly knife. This thing's pretty damn good, having double the Attack of any weapon up to this point (the rapier's 19 compared to the batterfly knife's 38), plus it still has the paralysis effect of its lesser knife cousin, as well as a 20% damage buff against Insect family monsters. That's a lot of good stuff on one knife.

So...who's going to be using these?

I've got no idea how to use a knife, and I'm certainly not wearing those...things.

Hey, why don't we give them to Freddy? He made them, so it only makes sense.

I think that's enough alchemy for now, since most other recipes are either not very good, use items I really don't want to give up or can't be used by this party. Freddy gets both new pieces of equipment, since he was wearing the hairband and doesn't have any headgear any more.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

So this is Coffinwell? It's a bit cooler here than Stornway was. D'you think it's 'cause it's further north?

I've heard that the climate's very strange here. Apparently things are a few months ahead of everywhere else.

Welcome to Eastern Coffinwell. The palette's a bit browner than it was in Stornway, since it's autumn here. Eternally. What, you expected actual seasonal changes? Anyway, with a new area comes new monsters, so let's get to that!

Music: Are You A Loser

These monsters are...leaves? Oh, this is perfect!

#033 Leafy larrikin wrote:
Code: Select all
Plant Family
HP: 36         MP: 6
Attack: 40     Defence: 28   Agility: 66
Exp: 42        Gold: 28
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 075
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Moonwort bulb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Strong medicine (1/32)

They flutter their leafy bodies to evade attack, and sometimes summon their buddies, the badger magers.

"Cross the breezy autumn's eve,
Through the dells of Coffinwell,
Lo, how the larrikin larks!"
L. Larrikin

Until I saw the art for these things, I never knew they were wearing sandals. That probably says something about DS model quality. Anyway, leafy larrikins are really irritating monsters if you just spam attacks. Why? Well...

More! More fuel for the fire!

They like to call for more of themselves. They like to do this a lot. In fact, calling for help is the only thing they can do besides attacking and fleeing. Oh, and they have an 8% evade chance, just so they can occasionally not die from a stiff breeze.

Hey, that's not the same as the others. How'd it get here?

Occasionally, when a leafy larrikin calls for help, it'll summon a badger mager instead. The chance is slightly more than 1 in 3, so it happens decently often. It's also probably what we want to see, since badger magers can't call more monsters.

#040 Badger mager wrote:
Code: Select all
Beast Family
HP: 56         MP: 12
Attack: 53     Defence: 48   Agility: 54
Exp: 105       Gold: 60
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 075 : 075
: 075 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Moonwort bulb (1/16)
Rare Drop: Magic beast hide (1/32)

Badgers who have begun the long journey on the Way of the Badja, but have only learnt one spell so far: Woosh.

They undergo harsh, hundred-year apprenticeships with cobra cardinals, starting with wood-cutting and working their way up.

Badger magers are simple. They've got a 2% block chance, just like boppin' badgers, and they either attack...

...or they cast Woosh. Woosh is the current spell of choice for pretty much any caster enemy in Coffinwell, and it can hurt quite a lot. It's mostly dangerous because we don't have multi-target healing yet, so we can't really wipe the damage off easily. One thing of note about these guys is that they're the first repeatable monster to drop magic beast hides, although that 1/32 chance isn't worth trying in my opinion.

Hahahahahaha!

Do you know how distracting that laughing is? Just stop.

Whoa, that's quite the explosion! Where'd you learn something like that?

Well, I thought it'd be fun if I could burn lots of monsters at once instead of just one...

The best way to deal with leafy larrikins is to use multi-target attacks like Bang or Woosh. Freddy's starting to come into his own in terms of offense, with Bang being the best option for any situation involving multiple monsters right now. Plus he recently got more than 50 Magical Might, meaning that all his previous spells have started to scale in damage or hit chance.

Hey, you! Yeah, I'm looking at you! Stop attacking us, or you'll regret it!

War Cry's another good way to deal with them. Since any new leafy larrikins that join the battle are added to the group of whoever called them, you can end up targeting lots of them at once. There's only a 75% chance to actually hit one with it, but those are pretty good odds.

Hmm... Are the carts or the things riding them the real monsters here?

Aren't these kinda like those shield things you said you saw in Brigadoom? Maybe they're just two monsters working together!

#036 Chariot chappie wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 55         MP: 5
Attack: 55     Defence: 55   Agility: 46
Exp: 90        Gold: 60
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 125 : 100
: 125 : 100 : 100

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 075 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 075 : 100
: 075 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Angel bell (1/32)
Rare Drop: Iron lance (1/64)

These crazy carters career into combat, crashing into the competition and occasionally causing them to cramp up.

Nihilistic nutjobs, they wander the wilds with their chattering chariot chums, laying to waste all who get in their way.

Chariot chappies are the physical powerhouses of the region. As well as a 2% evade chance and the ability to attack or run (which has an excellent animation of the charioteer jumping out and pushing their cart away), they've got a couple of other abilities.

Charging at full pelt is a bit boring and just seems to be a stronger attack than their normal one, probably 1.2x or 1.3x damage. It's also used about twice as often.

They can also gore a character, which does the same damage as their regular attack but also inflicts inaction. It's not too bad.

Ugh, that thing hurts. I'm just going to heal myself, alright? It's not like I can trust any of you lot to do it...

Why do monsters keep getting so angry with Solitaire? Oh, wait, don't answer that question.

Chariot chappies also have an enrage condition, that being healing, but it only activates 25% of the time.

...And now it's staring at Freddy. This seems...different, somehow.

I...I think it likes him.

I think this is the first time we've seen this. Every time a monster tries to take an action, it has to roll the dice to see if it's even allowed to. If they get unlucky, then they can't do anything! It's very useful. The chance of the monster being unable do act is based on their target's Style and their charm resistance, the higher the better. Also, this effect is only a 90% chance of what happens. There's also a 5% chance of making te monster confused, and another 5% chance of making them paralysed, even if they'd normally be immune to those! Very helpful, if unlikely.

Hmm... I think I've come up with a new technique.

Reona's lucky enough to get her Coup de Grâce during this fight, too! It's situational, to say the least.

I think I know where it's hiding its treasure now. If we can just kill it, it'll be a breeze to just pick that loot up.

It just guarantees that the targeted enemy will drop an item. That's it. Useless in boss fights with guaranteed drops, but nice for farming, say, alchemy materials. It's important to remember, though, that this only raises the common drop rate to 100%, so it doesn't affect, say, any of the seeds or pretty betsies.

Who's making these metal birds? I want to smack whoever it was in the face.

Who'd use metal? It doesn't burn well at all...

Maybe that's the point.

I'm more concerned with those pink things. What exactly are they?

#034 Clockwork cuckoo wrote:
Code: Select all
Machine Family
HP: 27         MP: 0
Attack: 46     Defence: 80   Agility: 40
Exp: 72        Gold: 41
Elemental resistances
: 050 : 050 : 100 : 150
: 100 : 100 : 100

Status resistances
: 050 : 050 : 000 : 000
: 075 : 000 : 000 : 000
: 000 : 050
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Chimaera wing (1/32)
Rare Drop: Iron nails (1/64)

Mechanical birds that are neither moved by beauty nor motivated by revenge. Fry their circuits with lightning spells.

They're proudest when pounding all their enemies at once with weapon-like wings by busting out Birdcutter.

Clockwork cuckoos have very similar attributes to their predecessors, mecha-mynahs: high Defence, resistances or immunities to most ailments, a bit of evasion (4% in this case)...yeah, they're not very nice. However, that point is invalidated by Mages, who can casually one-shot them with Bang. It's Lightning-elemental, after all.

How do these things hit this hard!?

The power of teamwork, I think. Maybe we'd be this strong if we worked together better.

Birdcutter here is their only non-standard ability. It's an all-targeting attack, and since the damage doesn't get reduced by having high Defence, it's probably elemental. If I had to guess, I'd say Wind, since it's a bit difficult to tell. Here's the thing, though: this isn't the normal damage it'll do. This is with a smidgeon of tension. Speaking of which...

#035 Slugger wrote:
Code: Select all
Bug Family
HP: 8          MP: 2
Attack: 10     Defence: 7    Agility: 7
Exp: 2         Gold: 4
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 000 : 050 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 050 : 100
: 075 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal Herb (1/16)
Rare Drop: Garish garb (1/128)

They know a dazzling array of dastardly dances, but run out of steam rather quickly.

They're moving every moment, beating bare feet against the ground in time with the unremitting rhythm of the earth.

Sluggers aren't particularly dangerous...on their own. They specialise in supporting other monsters, and they're incredibly good at it thanks to one of their abilities. You might even have already guessed what is.

Hey, that thing's stealing my moves! How dare it!

That's right, it's Egg On. Paired with something that can actually do damage, sluggers can be fairly threatening.

Sultry Dance is less so. It's something of a reprieve, in fact. That's really all they get that's significant. Because they're so light on their feet they have the same 4% evade chance as clockwork cuckoos, and they're also similar to them in that they can both attack and flee. So nothing new, then.

Come on, those monsters are made of fire! I can't burn this!

#038 Lost soul wrote:
Code: Select all
Elemental Family
HP: 62         MP: 10
Attack: 32     Defence: 32   Agility: 70
Exp: 96        Gold: 40
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 200

Status resistances
: 050 : 050 : 000 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 000 : 000
: 050 : 050
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Holy water (1/8)
Rare Drop: Angel bell (1/64)

Self-destructive miseries of the monster realm who shy away from reality, only to implode self-importantly.

These wandering wretches would readily renounce their roaming and undo their disrepute. They long to happen upon happiness.

Wow, I didn't expect to run into a lost soul so soon. They don't show up on the overworld, instead only joining in on battles with other monsters at night. It's a weird quirk and only really shows up one more time, coincidentally also in the Coffinwell area. Anyway, they're kind of bad.

They mostly just ponder the mysteries of life and death, rendering them unable to act. They can also attack (but not flee), for piddling damage. There is one small thing that sets them aside from most other monsters, though.

Did that monster just explode? I can't say I understand its logic...

Lost souls can straight up explode and kill themselves doing it. It doesn't do much damage, and killing themselves is a hefty price to pay for what, in all honesty, is a bit crap.

I think I'm falling asleep just looking at them. So bored...

#037 Morphean mushroom wrote:
Code: Select all
Plant Family
HP: 50         MP: 5
Attack: 50     Defence: 42   Agility: 40
Exp: 75        Gold: 45
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 050 : 075 : 050 : 100
: 050 : 000 : 075 : 075
: 075 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Belle cap (1/16)
Rare Drop: Fisticup (1/16)

Tawdry toadstools that spew forth Sweet Breath, and are slathered in spores that can send foes to sleep.

They're so small because they're always mistaken for seats and sat on by fellow beasts every year at the monster AGM.

The last monsters from Eastern Coffinwell, Morphean mushrooms, are sadly another pushover. They're basically just funghouls but better, even down to their abilities.

As well as the Sweet Breath they share with funghouls, they've got this, which is just a normal attack that can make those it hits fall asleep. Underwhelming. Another way they're just like funghouls is that they'll never try to run away. They're still worth fighting, though, since they drop both types of mushrooms, which are very useful in alchemy, at a decent rate. Not the best rates in the game, of course, but they'll do for now.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Hey, look at all those flowers. D'you think we should take some as a souvenir?

And if we dry them, I can-

Yes, we know, Freddy. But dried flowers do make a good gift.

This field is a bit special. For whatever reason, it's where Morphean mushrooms start showing up, even though it's pretty close to the entrance to the area. Leafy larrikins and sluggers don't seem to spawn at all in the flowers, as well, even though they do closer to town.

Huh? What's that in that puddle? It looks like a plant...

Oh! I think this is slipweed. Freddy, would you care to elucidate? You've been studying up on alchemy, after all.

I think it's used to make things all slippery. Sorry I can't help much...

The other thing this flower patch is notable for is having a gathering point for slipweed. It's actually surprisingly useful immediately, but we'll get into that when we officially find some new recipes. Can't reveal them all immediately, after all!

Aren't these just those herbs we can make with alchemy? What's the point of making them, then?

And the other gathering point in the area is over to the far northeast, providing free superior medicines. It's relatively convenient for the nearby town, too, so it's trivial to fly there using a chimaera wing and pick some up. Still, there's something satisfying about brewing a batch of these up yourself.

I'm bored now. Wasn't there a town we passed by a bit ago? Well, I'm heading off there.

That seems like a good idea. It looks like we've exhausted all the sights around here anyway.

Extra: The Collection

Poison moth knife

Sometimes inflicts paralysis on its target.

Batterfly knife

Sometimes inflicts paralysis on its target.
Inflicts 20% more damage to Insect family monsters.

Bunny ears

Toad oil

Butterfly wing

Slipweed

EMN · Sun Jul 05, 2020 4:33 pm

Part 16: The Lethal Cough Epidemic of '09

Music: Painful Feelings

So this is Coffinwell, is it? It's very quiet.

This place feels weird. I don't like it...

I think you're right. Something seems...off about this town.

Why don't we ask that guy?

Coffinwell's days are numbered, you mark my words. If you don't want to perish along with the rest of us, be on your way.

And hello to you too! Fortunately for you, I'm here to help solve your problems. ...And my associates, of course.

I thought you said we were lackeys.

You got a promotion.

I imagine mine will be- (cough cough)

Hm, that's a bad cough. Where's Healie when you need him?

"High, high above the sky, further than the eye can see, lives a very important person called the Almighty. He is always looking down on everyone from His home above the clouds."

That's a children's book, right? Why're you reading something like that?

Everything else looked really boring, okay? Besides, I wanted to know how accurate it was.

How close is it, then?

It's technically right, I suppose, just really vague.

Er...did I space out or something? Who are you talking about?

I'm talking about that scholar - what is he, an archaeologist? - holing himself up in that tiny laboratory just there. He's got his whole life ahead of him. And yet he shuts himself away in that dusty little room and refuses to come out. The only one he'll open the door to is his wife. He must have a screw loose or something.

Maybe we should pay this archaeologist a visit sometime. I'm sure he'll have some valuable artefacts we can purloin- I mean, peruse.

Or the door could just be locked. I can't say I expected anything different.

Sadly this door's locked, and will be until we progress the plot a bit. There's no getting at what's inside quite yet.

How about the well, then? There's been something down there the last three times I went down one.

...Let's just leave. I'd rather not be reminded of prison any further, thank you very much.

Down the well there's a locked door and nothing else. Unlike most of the other cell doors we've seen so far, there's something notable behind it, so we'll want to come back later once we can actually open it.

I wonder how they managed to get the better of it back then. I wish there was something I could do to help my old man.

Ugh. I've had a fair few illnesses in my time, but none so bad as this one. I feel like I'm at death's door, so I do. (cough COUGH)

I think I'll just stand over there. _{Please don't be too contagious...}

I dunno! How am I supposed to figure out which one of 'em to go and visit first?

Sorry! I thought you were someone else. Tee hee! How embarrassing!

How did you mistake us for someone else? We look very...let's just say distinct. And there are four of us, too!

Martial arts? I'll take this one! Ahem: "Finessence, whose ingredients can be found on this very contenent, is the first thing any fledgling fist fighter should fabricate."

Aww, it's only alchemy stuff. I was hoping for some tips on hitting things.

These are some decent bits of equipment for Martial Artists and occasionally Thieves. Tracksuit tops and tracky bottoms are flat upgrades to training tops and training trousers respectively, and can be made by combining each with finessence. The tussler's top and tussler's trousers are better still, each requiring the corresponding bit of tracksuit equipment as well as a vial of finessence and two magic beast hides. Sadly the only magic beast hide it's been possible to get so far was from the hexagoon's drop, so these can't be made right now. Also, the tussler's top is only wearable by male Martial Artists for whatever reason, so it wouldn't be worth it to this party anyway.

Then there's finessence. It's an item that's only used in alchemy, needing two fisticups, a sprig of slipweed and a superior medicine. All of them can be gathered around the Stornway and Coffinwell areas, so it's quite easy to make, and probably worth it too. Plus it can be sold for 850G, which is a pretty good haul right now. Definitely recommended for anyone using a Martial Artist.

The item shop doesn't have anything we haven't seen before, but now it's all in one place instead of being split between Stornway and Zere.

The armour shop's got a decent selection, at least. Shell shields are a slight upgrade to bronze shields, with 8 Defence instead of 6. Turbans are a cheap and cheerful hat, equippable by everyone except Martial Artists, that boost both Magical Might and Magical Mending but are overshadowed by the bunny ears. Bronze armour and iron cuirasses are upgrades to anyone who likes the chain mail, but Minstrels can't equip the former for whatever reason as well as the usual Mages and Martial Artists. Garish garbs and white t-shirts are more Style-oriented that Defence-oriented, with the garish garb only being equippable by male characters.

Leather gloves are a new bit of Deftness armwear. They're alright. Red skirts are female-only and give a bit of Magical Might, while iron kneecaps just give Defence, are better at it, and can't be equipped by Mages or Martial Artists. And finally there are iron sabatons, which have the same equip requirements and also just give Defence. Not a very interesting shop, overall.

The weapon shop's right here, so we'll take a quick look at that too. Poison moth knives are buyable now, which is nice, but Freddy's got a better model. Staves of sentencing cast a non-scaling Woosh when used in battle and have better Attack and MP Absorption Rate than the other two wands so far. And everything else just has the highest Attack of its weapon type up to this point. I ended up not buying anything from any of the shops yet.

I suppose I just have to take good care of them and pray they get better soon. Not that I'm complaining. I'll do whatever it takes to make them more comfortable. Whatever it takes!

I have to get better soon so I can get everything back under control! (cough)

Maybe you should consider teaching your husband to handle this sort of thing, just so this doesn't happen again. It can't hurt to try, can it?

"It goes without saying that you'll need snakeskins to make the things in this book. Take out a flython or two to get some."

Oh, that could be interesting. I could do with a new whip...

Flythons? Weren't those the monsters we saw on the beach?

Oh yeah, we did fight those things, didn't we? Now you've reminded me I don't feel like going back there quite so much.

We're strong enough now that flythons are much more manageable, but it's still probably not worth going back to Eastern Stornway for them since they're far more common in an upcoming area. The first three recipes we got were for whips, each of which uses the previous one; snakeskin whips need a leather whip and three snakeskins, serpentine whips need five snakeskins and a magic beast horn added on to that, and sidewinders need six snakeskins and a tough guy tattoo on top of that. We're not getting anything better than a snakeskin whip for some time.

We also can't make one of the other two yet. Cobra fans require a war fan, two snakeskins and a dragon scale, and it's that last one that's the sticking point. They're our first elemental weapon, doing Lightning damage. Large-scale armour, at least, is easy: one piece of scale armour, one scale shield and one snakeskin. It's better than all the buyable armour here in Coffinwell, even! Definitely recommended.

In fact, that's why Dr Phlegming came here in the first place, to investigate what it was all about.

Wait a minute. Phlegm...Phlegming...archaeologist...that's it! That woman who mistook us for someone else must have been the archaeologist's wife we heard about!

"Make use of the recipes in this book once you've found a magic beast hide or two. Bash badboons to bag them."

Is it just me or have we not seen anything like that before? I'd know if there were any magic beasts around! Probably!

I have no idea why this book is placed here, or why so many early-game alchemy recipes seem to use magic beast hides. Anyway, on to what we could make if we had the ingredients! Fur ponchos need a leather cape and three magic beast hides. If we could it would be a decent bit of body armour that could be equipped by anyone and give a 12% resistance to Fire and Ice-elemental damage. Fur vests are made from a fur poncho and three more magic beast hides, and they're actually really good! But they're only for male characters. As well as their frankly silly 36 Defence, they upgrade their 12% resistance to 15%. They're stupidly effective, even if they require a bit of grinding in an upcoming area.

Fur hoods are a bit less good. They need a leather hat, a magic beast hide and a clump of lambswool, so they can actually be made using the one that the hexagoon dropped, and they provide a 10% Ice resistance, as well as okay boosts in Defence and both magic stats. Equipment resistances stack additively, by the way, so equipping both this and a fur vest will reduce Ice damage by a quarter. Unfortunately the stats are just plain inferior to the bunny ears, so they'll be left behind.

Then there are leather gloves. They need one pair of cotton gloves and one magic beast hide. Not worth it, especially when they can be bought in the local armour shop. Something similar can be said for leather kilts: they need one pair of boxer shorts and one magic beast hide, and they're actually a little bit behind the curve right now. Absolutely do not waste magic beast hide on these two. They're terrible.

Mayor Laria lives in the mansion up on the high bit at the back of the town. You can't miss it.

Didn't we walk past that house on the way to the shops? We should go back there at some point. We are supposed to be saving this town, aren't we?

I'll get to it in a bit. We haven't checked the inn yet, you know.

If only we'd gone to Angel Falls for our honeymoon instead.

You know, I think you're right. At least you'd have a competent Guardian there! I can't imagine the one here's been doing their job properly.

Wow, this place is built really weirdly. The inn's halfway into the wall! And all those houses with flat roofs...

Isn't that door the same as the one in Zere? Somehow I doubt this one will open either.

More locked doors. They're everywhere! This one's especially annoying, because you can see the treasure right there. And a bookcase too, but we don't really need those with the power of the internet at our disposal.

I thought our ancestors got rid of it once and for all. I can't understand why it's back.

That earthquake again? Sounds like it's really done a number on...well, everywhere.

I know! What if I try burning the ground to get revenge?

I don't think that'll work, somehow. Are you sure this isn't just an excuse to burn something?

I'm sorry...

Did we just come out right next to mayor's house?

Why yes, we did. I said exploring the inn would be a good idea, didn't I? There's no need to thank me.

This house has long been the most distinguished in Coffinwell, so there are many old manuscripts and the like. That's what brought Dr Phlegming to Coffinwell, in fact. He wanted to read through the manuscripts for his research. The master was happy to accommodate him at first, but then all that business with Miss Catarrhina happened and- Oh dear! I really shouldn't be gossiping like this.

I suppose this means that if Steph's theory is right, then that young lady we talked to was named Catarrhina? That's...quite an unfortunate name.

If it wasn't obvious by now, Coffinwell's wordplay is all about diseases. As well as the obvious catarrh and phlegm wordplay (bonus points go to Dr Phlegming for being named after the inventor of penicillin, by the way), we've also got Mayor Laria (malaria).

I've no idea what she sees in him. He's such a pale-faced nobody. I can well understand why the master was so against the whole idea.

I'm hoping that it might help to forge a better relationship between them, you see. It's such a shame for Catarrhina that her father and husband don't get along. I felt I had to do something to help.

And this Catarrhina is the mayor's daughter? The plot thickens...

Huh? What's what what says?

...Oh, it's no use. I don't understand a word of it. I'll have to rely on his help after all. I have no choice. I must do something before any more people suffer needlessly.

Hellooooo? Can you hear me?

Oh! I beg your pardon. I didn't realise I had a guest. I'm Mayor Laria. May I assist you with something?

Yes, actually. I'm Solitaire, these are my associates, and we're here to help with whatever the problem is.

...Have you not been paying attention at all, Solitaire?

Very well. I'll tell you all I know. I'm sure you're already aware that Coffinwell has been hit by a contagious disease. The fact is, the very same disease attacked the town a century ago. I started looking the ancient manuscripts for a solution, but I'm afraid I barely understood a word. I won't be beaten, though! I passed them on to Phlegming in the hope that he might be able to make some sense of them. I imagine it won't be long before he turns something up, but I'm afraid I'm rather loath to go and ask him in person.

You care about what's been going on here, don't you?

I suppose I do, don't I?

Why so grudging? Of course we care!

In that case, perhaps you could pop along to Phlegming's place for me and see how he's getting on? His house is just to the west of my mansion. Sorry to trouble you, but I really would appreciate it if you paid him a visit.

I really think you should try to mend relations before anything bad happens. With this disease going around you never know what's going to happen.

A book on knives!? I bet I could use this! Let's see... "Coagulant and manky mud are major knife-making ingredients, but everything begins with the poison moth knife."

Aww, I already made most of these...

We've already made divine daggers, poison moth knives and batterfly knives, so let's not concern ourselves with those. Poison needles are a bit of a gimmick weapon, and need a magic beast horn and three masses of manky mud. They'll always do 1 damage, but have a decent chance to instantly kill whatever they hit. They apparently can't be blocked by shields, too. Assassin's daggers are basically just this but better, needing a deadly nightblade, a poison needle and two bolts of evencloth. They can also instantly kill their target, but do appreciable damage if they don't instead of just 1. Unfortunately we can't make either right now.

"Lambswool is essential for any clothesmaking endeavour, and can be harvested from ram raiders, among others."

We're getting a lot of alchemy recipes today, aren't we? Let's get through these, starting with what we can actually make right now. Gooey gear is made from garish garb and three slimedrops, and provides a surprisingly big chunk of Defence. It also looks ridiculous. That's it for what it's possible to get from this list right now!

Cloaks of concealment need a cloak of evasion, two sprigs of slipweed and a clump of lambswool. Their Defence is better than average for when they can be made, but the real treasure is the 4% evade rate they give. Majestic mantles need a velvet cape, a bow tie and three brighten rocks. We can currently get exactly zero of these, and majestic mantles lose their lustre around the time they become available via alchemy anyway. Robes of sweet dreams need a robe of serenity, three sleeping hibiscuses, and three clumps of lambswool. They're really good gear for magic users, giving bonuses to both Magical Might and Magical Mending as well as a massive 40% sleep resistance.

Sloods are the second part of the outfit that includes gooey gear. Their recipe is a pointy hat and three slimedrops, and they provide both Defence and the two magic stats. They're a bit better than bunny ears in that regard. And, finally, there are blessed bottoms, a Mage-only bit of gear that boosts Magical Might by 18. Wizard's trousers, a sorcerer's stone and two clumps of lambswool are needed to make a pair, so they'll be out of reach for some time.

The door to Phlegming's lab was locked, wasn't it? Perhaps we should ask his wife about letting us in.

Aww, she's sleeping! Maybe we should come back later.

I don't feel like waiting. Let's wake her up now.

...Oh! Ahem, are you looking for Phlegmy, by any chance? Oops! I mean Dr Phlegming, my husband.

Do excuse my waffling! I'm afraid Phlegmy's at work now in his laboratory.

Er...yeah, we're looking for him. The Mayor asked us to.

Really? Da- Um, the Mayor asked you to go and see him, did he? Well, in that case, I'll go along with you and let you into the laboratory. Phlegmy's a bit shy around strangers, you see. Oops! Where are my manners? I haven't introduced myself, have I? I'm Phlegmy's wife, Catarrhina. I'll go on ahead!

Well, that was uncomfortable.

She's certainly unique, I'll tell you that much. I don't think I've ever met someone so sickeningly sweet. Although it must work for some, I suppose...

Oh! You're here already. I'll get him to open up, then.

Catarrhina knocks on the door in a specific rhythm. Presumably it's to identify herself.

Sorry to disturb you, Phlegmy. You have a visitor. Daddy's sent a messenger to find out how you're getting on with deciphering the old manuscripts.

Look at all these books! The things I could do with these... Heeheehee!

No, Freddy, you can't! These belong to Dr Phlegming. And think of all the knowledge that would go up in smoke!

Huh? But I just wanted to read them, not set them on fire! Although I could do that too...

When I try to tidy up, I'm afraid I get very irritated. Silly of me, isn't it?

You're forgetting something, Phlegmy! You haven't introduced yourself yet.

I don't see how that matters. Silly, time-consuming formality, in my opinion.

And you are...?

Do I really have to explain myself again? I'm Solitaire, et cetera, et cetera, here to help.

Solitaire? Well, I'll try to remember your name, but I can't guarantee I'll be successful. Anyway, never mind that. I think I've found a clue in the old manuscripts as to the nature of the illness that's been going round.

Oh Phlegmy! I knew you could do it!

Around a hundred years ago, some old ruins were discovered to the west of town. The people who discovered them rather rashly decided that it would be a good idea to venture inside. Little did they know that terrible misfortune lay in wait in the form of a deadly contagion. It's this contagion that lies behind our current epidemic.

The townspeople were able to break the curse by sealing the contagion away in the ruins and blocking up the entrance.

But for some reason the disease has managed to escape again?

It's possible that the recent earthquake may have caused some damage to the seal that was keeping it contained.

That sounds easy enough! Let's get going to those ruins and get this over with.

Hold it, Solitaire! Dr Phlegming hasn't finished speaking.

Indeed. Although it's not quite as simple as it sounds. I'm probably the only one who'd be able to do it, in fact.

Ooh! So you're going to fix the seal and save us all, Phlegmy?

Well, I suppose it couldn't hurt. It might even encourage your father to finally think me worthy of you. It would also be a good opportunity for me to explore the ruins, so I'm certainly not averse to the idea. The only problem is that monster activity is reportedly rather heavy, and I don't want to get hurt...

Does anyone else get the feeling that this Phlegming has a low opinion of us? And most of the townsfolk, for that matter.

Yeah, I got that too. It almost reminds me of someone else.

Oh, I know exactly what you mean. Keep going like this, and he might end up like her. And I don't think anybody wants to deal with that.

I'm sure I could seal the contagion up again, but the shrine is just too dangerous for me to go to alone. I'd dearly love to visit the reserach purposes too, but there's no sense in me going all the way there and getting hurt.

Now we know what's causing the disease, that's a huge step forward. You really are amazing, Phlegmy! Oh- (cough cough) Sorry, I must have (cough) got something caught in my throat in all the excitement.

That doesn't sound like just any old cough. You sure you're alright?

It's not our problem.

But she might be dying! We-

You're overreacting. It's probably just a cough, like she says.

While you're arguing, I'll just go over there...

"These are the first recipes for any fledgling alchemist. Particular focus should be placed on Hephaestus' flame and aggressence."

This recipe book's a little different from the others so far in that it's just got consumables and alchemy items in it. A lunaria needs three moonwort bulbs, and it can be used to heal for 90 HP and cure paralysis. Just use a panacea, since those are cheaper and heal poison too. Plus there are gathering points for the ingredients. Magic water is sadly not possible to make right now; it needs a phial of holy water, a clump of royal soil and a jar of nectar. It's a 30 MP recover on whoever it's used on, and just so happens to be the basic MP recovery item. Normally they'd cost 500G a pop, so this recipe will be a steal once we have access to the ingredients. Then there are mystifying mixtures: one belle cap, one mass of manky mud, and three cowpats each. They can confuse a single enemy when used. Not worth it, except for use in other alchemy recipes.

The other two recipes from Beginner's Alchemy are, well, items used in alchemy. Hephaestus' flame is made from a lava lump, a clump of royal soil and a jar of toad oil, all of which are difficult or impossible to get at the moment. And aggressence needs two fisticups, a wakerobin and a softwort. We've seen all these before, so it seems simple, but there's currently no renewable wakerobin source so we can only make one.

"Kitty litter is a key ingredient in many cat-based recipes. Get hold of some and go wild with the alchemy pot!"

We can't even try to get renewable kitty litter for a while, so all of these are impossible to make. Oh well, let's talk about them anyway. Feline fans are basically like cobra fans except Ice-elemental and requiring two kitty litters and two seashells instead of snakeskins and dragon scales. They still need a war fan, though. Kitty shields need a light shield and a kitty litter, while catty shields need a kitty shield and two kitty litters. Even if we had kitty litter, we still don't have light shields, so this is a bust. Cat ears are a headband and two kitty litters, and are just bunny ears with a different flavour and the Magical Might and Magical Mending stats swapped. If only they were available earlier.

"Curses can and do exist, and medical practitioners should keep a vigilant eye out for their offurence." Aww, looks like I ran out of alchemy books.

Hey, Freddy. We sorted out our argument and agreed to disagree. Not that I'm happy about what that might mean for Catarrhina...

Hey, what's that book there?

"When facin' a fella you're none too fond of, brandishin' yer behind's a guaranteed way to get their goat. The cheek of it'll 'ave 'em so ravin' mad, their battle tactics'll go right down the pan, you mark my words! Give it a go if you don't believe me! A little bit of rear-end wrigglin's a sure-fire way to start a fight in your favour!"

What.

Hahahahaha!

The book made me do it! I couldn't help myself! And what's the deal with writing with an accent, anyway!?

You really brought that one on yourself! Serves you right!

The last bookcase in Coffinwell teaches a new party trick. It's another one that changes a decent amount between male and female characters! The men will slap their rears a couple of times instead of waving them around a bit. Now let us never speak of this again.

Dr Phlegming told us that-

Excuse me? Who said you could say anything?

Grr...

Dr Phlegming told us that he needed to go to the ruins to stop the disease or curse or whatever. He also said he was the only one who could do it, but I could totally manage it too.

Mm-hmm, mm-hmm... Goodness! The disease is being caused by some kind of contagious curse? And the way to contain it is to fix some kind of seal in the shrine to the west of town? And you say that Phlegming is the only one capable of this? Very well. The situation is clear to me now.

I don't suppose I could interest you in going along with Phlegming? Safety in numbers and all that. If he thinks that the shrine is hazardous, then I'm sure he'd appreciate a bodyguard.

Of course! I'm not going to let him show me up.

You'll do it? Excellent, excellent! Much obliged and all that. Well, we'd better not waste any time. Take this key to Phlegming, won't you?

That's the key to the shrine to the west of town. You should be able to open it up with that.

Imagine how grateful they'll all be if we succeed! We'll have barnloads of benevolessence! You'll be a fully fledged Celestrian again in the wink of an eye!

Better to be safe than sorry. I'm getting all that benevolessence for myself! Right, let's head to those ruins now. We don't need to tell that archaeologist about it.

But don't you want to gloat? I think we should go to his lab anyway.

That's not a bad idea, actually.

_{Why are you backing her up, Reona?}

_{Don't worry. I have a plan.}

Hey, Phlegming! Look at what I've got here!

Oh, this? It's the key to the western ruins. And you can't have it. Wait, where is it...?

Oh, that? I took it. Here you go, doctor. The Mayor asked us to protect you while you're there.

WHAT!? You're all demoted! Lackeys again, the lot of you!

I didn't even do anything...

Really? Father-in-law has asked you to be my bodyguard?

Goodness! He did that for you!?

So he's managed to rope you into helping out, has he? Well, I suppose I have no choice, then. I'd better go, hadn't I? I don't want the old man to think I'm all mouth and no trousers.

Um, I'm not sure it's quite like that, Phlegmy...

It's off to the west of town. I'm heading there now. Don't keep me waiting.

And he left with it! How could you do this to me?

You really shouldn't hog all the attention. Leave this sort of thing to the experts.

Anyway, you're really good at adventuring, Solitaire! You'd make a great bodyguard!

...Fine. I'll do it, and show up the rest of you. And when I don't get back home because of you, you don't even want to know what I'm going to do.

Can't we all just be friends...?

No.

Extra: The Collection

It'll just be items and weapons today, since there's a lot of new stuff to cover overall. Hopefully we don't end up missing anything.

Lunaria

Mystifying mixture

Finessence

Quarantomb key

Iron broadsword

Long spear

Staff of sentencing

Casts Woosh when used as an item in battle.

Battle whip

Oaken pole

Razor claws

War fan

EMN · Sun Jul 05, 2020 5:30 pm

Part 17: Quarantomb Quarrels

Music: Painful Feelings

...

Um...do I have to mediate? I guess I'll try, but I'm not very good at it...

Phlegmy seemed rather het up. I do hope everything is okay. You will be sure to look after him, won't you? I'm begging you! (cough cough)

I'm really sorry for all this arguing...but I'm sure he'll be fine! And we're really good at fighting monsters, so he'll be safe with us around!

...Yes. I am good at that. The best, in fact.

See? Everything is fine! We're going to sort this out! Yes!

I suppose it's not surprising. The reason he came to Coffinwell was to investigate those ruins after all. The master would never let him go near them up to now, though. Against town regulations, you see.

Oh, um, is that why he had the key? It makes sense to stop people getting in if there are strong monsters there.

It's at times like these when you're glad to have an intellectual living in your midst. It's just a shame he doesn't have a better way with people. It would be a lot easier on Catarrhina if he did.

That's right. I think it was called the Quarantomb or something similar.

Oh, really? That's very interesting! Does anyone else want to say anything? ...No? Okay, then...

Wot can a wimp like 'im do about it, though? I dunno if I'll be puttin' too much 'ope in 'im meself.

Huh! If only I hadn't always left the cooking to my wife. If only I'd learnt how to make a few things!

I wonder how many plates he's broken in the process, though. More than I'd like to think about, that's for sure.

...Someone say something, please! I can't stand this silence!

I would, but our fair and just leader would just shoot me down. Again.

You're not wrong...

It's not like him to venture out like that. I hope nothing awful's going on... (cough cough cough)

Oh, of course he's already gone! There was absolutely no point in looking around town!

Please don't get too angry...

Oh! I know! We can try retail therapy! That'll work, right? Right?

Sorry, Freddy, but I don't think shopping is going to fix this mess.

Since we're going to the Quarantomb, it's probably a good idea to update equipment. Steph gets an oaken pole, Reona gets razor claws, and I also buy a turban for some alchemy I plan to do later, not equipping it on anyone for some reason. It probably would have been useful.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

The shrine we're supposed to go to is west of here, right? Let's go!

Hmm... How do I get everyone to make up...

Music: Are You A Loser

Where did these come from!?

In a throwaway battle on the way to western Coffinwell, Freddy gets his Coup de Grâce.

Aaaaaaah! I've had it with all of you! Stop being so selfish, and stop sulking! Do you know how worried I am!?

You're right, Freddy. I've been no better than Solitaire on this one.

I...I'm sorry too. I really should've thought about how you were feeling.

Hmph. You're overreacting. People never talked to me much, and do you see me complaining? Of course not. Anyway, if you want me to talk to those two, forget it.

Something something Super Saiyan. Wait, Freddy's hair's already gold and spiky, so that doesn't work... Anyway, 0 Zone reduces all MP costs for the user to 0 for 5 turns. It's more useful later, when MP costs become prohibitively expensive, but even then it's just not very good. It's probably best for boss fights, where it lets Mages spam their most damaging spells to their hearts' content. When they're not busy being supports, anyway.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

I can't help but feel like something changed when we went up those steps.

This is Western Coffinwell, and while it's not a huge map, it's still got a few important landmarks. First off, that area enclosed by mountains in the northeast; it's completely inaccessible, and will be for some time. Let's not dwell on it.

What are these things doing here? I thought I left them behind in Stornway! It's just one thing after another today, isn't it?

Flythons are the same as ever. They're much easier now we're actually on-level for them, thankfully, but they do have something new for us. Sort of.

Music: Are You A Loser

For one thing, I never got a screenshot of Poison Breath, so here it is now. Not exactly impressive.

I don't feel so good...

Here, Freddy, take this. Hopefully it'll help as an apology.

It does give me an excuse to show off what Squelch looks like in battle, at least. It's not impressive either.

Did you say you had trouble with these before? Well, they don't seem too difficult now. I can run circles around them!

The main draw of flythons from here on is that they're the only source of snakeskins for some time. We'll eventually encounter monsters that drop them at a higher rate, but for now this is the only option. I pick up a few for later, since you can never have enough alchemy ingredients.

And while doing that, Reona hit level 12 and learned both Evac and a new passive from the Claws skill. Steph also reached level 12 and Solitaire reached level 13, but neither of them learned anything.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Hey, look, mushrooms! These ones don't look like fists, though. That's a shame.

There's a handy gathering point for belle caps close to the main path. It's useful, but I prefer fighting Morphean mushrooms to get the things.

Oh, there's a beach down here! It's a shame about all the monsters, otherwise this might be a good tourist spot.

Music: Are You A Loser

Mmm, boiled crab...

You're not thinking of eating that thing, are you? It's foaming at the mouth!

Huh? No, I just wanted to boil it! Eating it after's not important.

#041 Crabid wrote:
Code: Select all
Bug Family
HP: 72         MP: 0
Attack: 72     Defence: 83   Agility: 15
Exp: 220       Gold: 96
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 150 : 150

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 000
: 100 : 000 : 075 : 100
: 075 : 100
: 075 : 075 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Tortoiseshell (1/16)
Rare Drop: Crimson coral (1/64)

They may look creepy, but these crabs are kind of cowardly, and will call companions or cut and run quite quickly.

People think that clusters of crabids crawl the shores prowling for prey, but they're just pals out on a seaside stroll.

Crabids are a bit boring, and the only new monster in this area. Their description kind of gives away everything they can do: attack, flee, and call for help.

That's it. Their main draw is their generally high stats, except Agility, which they're abysmal at.

Hey, you can't do that! That hurt, a lot!

You're feeling very crabby today, aren't you, Solitaire?

Grrrr...

That Attack, especially, can be very dangerous. That 11 damage is being halved by Solitaire defending! Granted, her equipment needs updating, but it's still a bit scary. It's best to take 'em out with magic due to that high Defence, too.

Oh, and the tortoiseshells they drop are alchemy items. The crimson coral, too, but I'm not going to rely on a 1/64 rare drop, thank you very much. Besides, it's not even useful yet.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Why's there a basin here? There's plenty of water all around us.

This place feels...nice. It's so peaceful.

On the beach with the crabids (and only crabids) there's this basin, which is a holy water gathering point. It's handy, but just buying holy water is more convenient if it's needed.

And the final thing of note in this area is an iron ore gathering point. It's another alchemy item, but we can't actually do anything with these right now even if we wanted to. They'll truly come into play soon-ish.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Oh, are we here already? That was fast.

There's something in the air here that just feels wrong. It almost reminds me of my time at His Majesty's leisure.

Well, Dr Phlegming did say this place was for locking away a curse...

...Yes. And don't forget it.

See here? It's just as I said. The shrine wall collapsed in the earthquake, and the entrance has been left wide open. It doesn't bode well for the seal that was supposed to be keeping the contagion contained. We'd better head inside. Make sure you do what Father-in-law employed you for. I can't afford to get injured.

Urgh. It's so oppressive in here. Let's just get in and out as quickly as possible.

The Quarantomb is...well, it's a bit weird. For one thing, it's non-linear. It's laid out as a 5x5 grid of rooms, with adjacent rooms connected by corridors. Mostly. The room one down from the centre is our destination, and only has one entrance.

Read it yourself. I refuse to help.

Um, okay, then. "When the sages reawaken, / Comes crimson light and blue, / Travel right, oh guiding light, / And make the doors swing to."

I have no idea what that means. Should we just move on?

Hmm. I could try knocking these down. D'you think that'll help?

This is just a theory, but I think we need to shine red and blue light on these doors. They look a bit too sturdy to simply break down.

I can help with that! Fire makes red light, right? If I light a fire-

Somehow I don't think that's going to work out. Let's just explore the shrine, okay?

Aah! A ghost!

You're not scared of ghosts, are you, Freddy?

Just this sort. They're so cold...

Then it's your job to warm them up. Right?

#042 Mean spirit wrote:
Code: Select all
Zombie Family
HP: 65         MP: 8
Attack: 55     Defence: 40   Agility: 62
Exp: 99        Gold: 66
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 075 : 200

Status resistances
: 050 : 050 : 000 : 100
: 050 : 000 : 050 : 050
: 050 : 000
: 100 : 050 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Silk robe (1/16)
Rare Drop: Pointy hat (1/128)

These soul-stealing minions of evil may be menacing, but their low defence lets them down.

Beware lone lights in the middle of the night. Smells like mean spirits fishing for friends to ferry to the realm of the dead...

Mean spirits are kind of boring, honestly. Because they're flying, they've got a 2% evade rate, and the standard high undead status resistances. Like the description says, they die pretty quickly to physical attacks, but what if they were allowed to stick around?

They can slash twice, which spreads damage around a bit more, I guess? And I think it does a bit more overall? It's two hits to random targets and isn't very good. Next.

Attack Attacker at least could have some utility for them in larger fights - it does damage with a chance of lowering the target's Attack - but it's a bit of a damp squib when they're solo. This is the last ability obtained from the Warrior skill, by the way, so that's something to look forward to.

Oh, and regarding drops, that pointy hat is very good and, if you'll remember, needed for a slood, which is even better and far ahead of the curve right now. It's nice to know the option's there, but the chances of getting one are abysmal.

Are these the remains of people who died from the curse? I wonder how they got all wrapped up in those bandages.

Best not to think about it too much. But hey, maybe we could use some of it!

#044 Mummy boy wrote:
Code: Select all
Zombie Family
HP: 91         MP: 8
Attack: 60     Defence: 30   Agility: 22
Exp: 105       Gold: 60
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 075 : 200

Status resistances
: 100 : 075 : 075 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 050 : 050
: 050 : 075
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Grubby bandage (1/16)
Rare Drop: Turban (1/64)

Talented tacticians who focus on their more formidable foes first, and are reinforced againast wind and darkness.

They always bring some spare bandages to bind any beauties they might bump into and want to bring back with them.

Mummy boys are big sacks of HP with little Defence...and that's all they are. They attack, they flee, and they stand there taking hits.

They have the courtesy, at least, to do a decent amount of damage so as to be slightly threatening.

Why does everything seem to like me so much!?

I think it's the ears. I'm almost jealous...

At least one interesting thing happened in this battle: Freddy got another charm activation. This time it's paralysis instead of inaction, though, so we get to see different text.

But I have to admit, having someone around who can charm these monsters is certainly helpful. You wouldn't consider becoming my partner in crime, would you, Freddy?

Huh? No! I'm not helping you steal from people!

Mummy boys drop grubby bandages, at least, which are a new alchemy item. They're useful immediately, though we won't be going back to Stornway just yet.

With how many pots we've smashed so far, a few more'll be easy!

#045 Earthenwarrior wrote:
Code: Select all
Material Family
HP: 55         MP: 6
Attack: 58     Defence: 65   Agility: 48
Exp: 110       Gold: 66
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 200 : 100
: 075 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 100 : 000 : 000
: 100 : 100 : 000 : 050
: 025 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Scale shield (1/32)
Rare Drop: Soldier's sword (1/64)

Fiery-breathed pieces of highly protected pottery which fortify themselves even further with Kabuff.

Pottery paladins put in the graves of the great and good to guard them in the beyond, but which grow bored and go AWOL.

Finally, something interesting! Earthenwarriors have a 4% block chance, which is not very nice, and a crippling Wind weakness. 200% still doesn't get them one-shot by a Woosh at base power, but it'll do a big chunk of damage even with a bad damage roll.

Kabuff's a spell I don't think we've seen before. It's Buff, but on a group. That's it. Spells destroy them anyway, and sticking to those bypasses this. The second hit of Propeller Blade, too, since it's based entirely on level.

I'm really not interested in bondage, thank you very much.

This would have inflicted inaction if it hit by tying up its target. It's not very good, but what do you really expect out of a single-target, non-guaranteed inaction inflictor? There's a reason why all the player versions target groups.

Aaah! Too much fire! It burns!

And there's also Fire Breath, the first of the elemental breath attacks. It's Fire-elemental (obviously), and will always do around 10 damage as long as it's not resisted or defended against.

And that's all they can do. But that's not all there was in this particular battle! Steph got her Coup de Grâce, and I intend to show it off. Unlike the last couple, it's useful in pretty much any situation.

Hey, you! Stop hitting us, and go away!

That's really the best one-liner you could come up with?

I never said I was good at that kind of thing. Besides, it worked, didn't it?

Roaring Tirade's pretty good, as it turns out! It's basically a mix of War Cry and Psyche Up, but better because it's a guaranteed inaction infliction on the entire enemy party instead of just a chance on a group. It even bypasses inaction resistance and immunity, so it's a free turn whatever the enemy!

Slime. Kill it.

Um, Reona? Aren't you overreacting a bit? In a way, it's even kind of cute!

I 'ate these fings. They're 'orrible! All that squirmin's why I'm in this mess!

#046 Metal slime wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family
HP: 4          MP: 255
Attack: 35     Defence: 256  Agility: 89
Exp: 4096      Gold: 20
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100

Status resistances
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 100
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 000
: 005 : 000
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 000

Common Drop: Strong medicine (1/64)
Rare Drop: Seed of life (1/256)

Those lucky enough to meet one of these and defeat it before it dashes off will find it a very rewarding experience.

Warning: Ordinary oozes have recently been wrapping themselves in aluminium foil and masquerading as metal slimes.

Oh boy, both of the rare encounters here in one battle. Let's look at metal slimes first, shall we? First off, see those elemental resistance numbers? They're lies. Metal slimes have a special property that makes them immune to all elemental damage.

Eh? It 'ardly looks 'urt!

That Defence value is a lie, too; the very same property lowers the damage they take from physical attacks to 0 (or 1, 50% of the time, but that's the case for anything that does 0 damage). And they've even got a relatively big 8% evade chance! They've the lowest HP in the game to compensate, at least.

They can cast Frizz if they feel like it, and believe it or not that's the most dangerous thing they can do. Yes, their Attack is so incredibly bad that even Frizz is better than it at this point.

What!? You can't escape! I'll kill you all!

And, of course, they can flee. This one's a little different, though, and here's where that special property rears its head again. You see, normally the Defence of metal slimes would be enough to stop them from running for a very long time after they're first encountered. Except because they have that property, they always have a chance to run.

So, why bother fighting such an annoying monster? Well, to answer that question, just look at the experience reward for taking one down. It's more than the next two bosses will drop, and only about 100 less than the two after that! Plus they drop seeds, but that's beside the point. These are the definitive level grinding monster, and have been ever since the start of the series.

What about those magicians, then? Try concentrating on those, and you might be less angry! ...Although you should still be a bit angry. We've still got to fight them.

#043 Magus wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 58         MP: 18
Attack: 48     Defence: 38   Agility: 70
Exp: 90        Gold: 80
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 150

Status resistances
: 075 : 050 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 075 : 050 : 075
: 075 : 050
: 100 : 075 : 075 : 075

Common Drop: Wizard's staff (1/64)
Rare Drop: Magic water (1/128)

Attacks exclusively with spells, including Fizzle, Woosh and Magic Barrier, and lives in fear of light-based attacks.

Mortals who made a pledge of allegiance to a dastardly demon, and had their souls stolen by way of thanks.

Kill 'em first. No, really, these guys are dangerous. You know the drill, attack and flee, blah blah blah, contradicts the description, but they've got a bit more to offer. A lot more, in fact.

Incidentally, guess which monster I didn't decide to kill first.

Mmph! Mmmmph!

Ha! As soon as she wants to speak, she-

Mmmmmmmph!

Oh no! Am I the only one who can lead, now? I don't know what to do!

The first thing they can do is cast Fizzle. This tries to inflict, er, fizzle on the party. It does exactly what it says on screen and silences whoever's hit by it, although they can still use abilities. And Solitaire got hit with it, so Reona's the only healer now...

They can make themselves more resistant to magic with Wizard Ward, too. It's the thing you want them to do, because the best way to deal with them is physical attacks and this doesn't affect those. It's kind of the opposite of the earthenwarriors from earlier.

Aaaaaaaa it hurts! Why did we do this?

The last thing they can do is cast Woosh, which can really sting if they get lucky with the variance.

Oh, and their attacks steal MP, too. Just to make them more obnoxious. They never show up on the field either, so they have to turn up randomly in unrelated battles.

There was so much more...I wanted to burn...

I blame...the slime...

Gah! I can finally speak again. Is everyone okay?

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Oh, crap. No pulse on all of them. That's...not good. I, er...I don't think I should stay here. Sorry, doctor, but we're gonna have to leave for now. We'll be back later, I promise!

Extra: The Collection

Iron ore

Tortoiseshell

Snakeskin

Grubby bandage

Snakeskin whip

Shell shield

Turban

Fur hood

Gives 10% Ice resistance.

Large-scale armour

Bronze armour

Iron cuirass

Tracksuit top

Garish garb

Can only be worn by male characters.

White t-shirt

Gooey gear

Leather gloves

Red skirt

Tracky bottoms

Iron kneecaps

Iron sabatons

Bow tie

EMN · Sun Jul 05, 2020 5:37 pm

Mechanics: Style

Style seems simple enough: every piece of equipment has a Style score, and it's added to your Charm for the purposes of charming monsters. But what if I told you it's not so simple?

Instead of a system that merely assigns a single Style score to any given piece of equipment, each one instead has a total of six: Nonchalant, Vain, Alluring, Aloof, Naive, and Chic. There technically aren't any official names for these, and the internet can't seem to agree on what they're actually called because a lot of this stuff is hidden away in the code, but these are the closest I could figure out based on accolades associated with each. They're all added up individually, and only the highest of the totals is added to Charm. Yes, that's right, coordinating an outfit actually gives mechanical benefits!

So, what are these accolades that have to do with the individual Style scores? Well, each requires 250 in the corresponding Style score and for that to be the dominant Style type, and are obtained by checking the Battle Records menu when the condition is met. Without further ado, here are the accolades!

Laid-back Lad/Laid-back Lady - Nonchalant

Prince of Posers/Princess of Posers - Vain

Ladykiller/Man Magnet - Alluring

Cool Customer/Haughty Beauty - Aloof

Simple Simon/Simple Simone - Naive

Distinguished Gentleman/Society Lady - Chic

For some reason, the Aloof and Chic accolades for male and female characters are coded to be different, as opposed to every other accolade, which are considered to be the same but with a different name and occasionally a slightly altered description. If, say, a female protagonist were to acquire the Distinguished Gentleman accolade through modifying a save file, it would show up as a blank entry on the list, and nothing below it would be selectable on the touch screen despite it being possible to navigate to those with the D-pad. Weird.

I've been a bit remiss about listing Style stats on equipment up to this point, so why not start now? Or, if you don't care, this is the rest of the mechanics update, so just skip to the end. For anyone reading on the archive later, this'll cover up to and including part 17.

Copper sword
3 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 1 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 4 Naive, 0 Chic

Soldier's sword
5 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 3 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 3 Naive, 6 Chic

Rapier
12 Nonchalant, 25 Vain, 17 Alluring, 22 Aloof, 14 Naive, 35 Chic

Iron broadsword
22 Nonchalant, 18 Vain, 8 Alluring, 15 Aloof, 10 Naive, 17 Chic

Bamboo lance
4 Nonchalant, -5 Vain, 4 Alluring, -8 Aloof, 8 Naive, -8 Chic

Iron lance
5 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 2 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 4 Naive, 7 Chic

Long spear
12 Nonchalant, 20 Vain, 10 Alluring, 17 Aloof, 12 Naive, 15 Chic

Paring knife
5 Nonchalant, 1 Vain, 6 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 5 Naive, 0 Chic

Bronze knife
7 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 12 Alluring, 1 Aloof, 4 Naive, 1 Chic

Divine dagger
11 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 17 Alluring, 8 Aloof, 10 Naive, 25 Chic

Poison moth knife
23 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 23 Alluring, 15 Aloof, 15 Naive, 16 Chic

Batterfly knife
28 Nonchalant, 10 Vain, 34 Alluring, 22 Aloof, 22 Naive, 23 Chic

Oak staff
3 Nonchalant, 1 Vain, 2 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 4 Naive, 0 Chic

Wizard's staff
4 Nonchalant, 1 Vain, 4 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 3 Naive, 5 Chic

Staff of sentencing
7 Nonchalant, 6 Vain, 8 Alluring, 6 Aloof, 6 Naive, 9 Chic

Leather whip
4 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 3 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 1 Naive, 3 Chic

Thorn whip
6 Nonchalant, 7 Vain, 3 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 2 Naive, 5 Chic

Battle whip
20 Nonchalant, 9 Vain, 24 Alluring, 15 Aloof, 5 Naive, 8 Chic

Snakeskin whip
14 Nonchalant, 12 Vain, 8 Alluring, 11 Aloof, 8 Naive, 12 Chic

Laundry pole
2 Nonchalant, 1 Vain, 0 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 4 Naive, 0 Chic

Carrying pole
6 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 2 Alluring, 1 Aloof, 11 Naive, 0 Chic

Oaken pole
10 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 4 Alluring, 6 Aloof, 19 Naive, 9 Chic

Stone claws
2 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 1 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 4 Naive, 0 Chic

Iron claws
6 Nonchalant, 7 Vain, 3 Alluring, 7 Aloof, 5 Naive, 5 Chic

Razor claws
17 Nonchalant, 28 Vain, 8 Alluring, 13 Aloof, 18 Naive, 12 Chic

Feather fan
5 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 7 Alluring, 8 Aloof, 0 Naive, 2 Chic

Iron fan
6 Nonchalant, 10 Vain, 5 Alluring, 12 Aloof, 3 Naive, 9 Chic

War fan
22 Nonchalant, 20 Vain, 15 Alluring, 30 Aloof, 15 Naive, 18 Chic

Pot lid
0 Nonchalant, -15 Vain, 3 Alluring, -8 Aloof, 4 Naive, -10 Chic

Leather shield
1 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 1 Alluring, 2 Aloof, 5 Naive, 1 Chic

Scale shield
2 Nonchalant, 3 Vain, 2 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 5 Naive, 2 Chic

Bronze shield
3 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 2 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 4 Naive, 6 Chic

Shell shield
7 Nonchalant, -5 Vain, 5 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 9 Naive, -5 Chic

Bandana
8 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 3 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 4 Naive, 0 Chic

Trailblazing bandana
24 Nonchalant, 19 Vain, 15 Alluring, 18 Aloof, 13 Naive, 9 Chic

Hairband
15 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 6 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 4 Naive, 2 Chic

Leather hat
4 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 3 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 5 Naive, 3 Chic

Hardwood headwear
2 Nonchalant, -2 Vain, -2 Alluring, -2 Aloof, 12 Naive, -2 Chic

Turban
10 Nonchalant, 6 Vain, 5 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 8 Naive, 3 Chic

Fur hood
12 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 9 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 16 Naive, 5 Chic

Bunny ears
17 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 25 Alluring, 12 Aloof, 4 Naive, 5 Chic

Leather armour
8 Nonchalant, 6 Vain, 6 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 10 Naive, 2 Chic

Scale armour
3 Nonchalant, -5 Vain, 4 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 6 Naive, -5 Chic

Large-scale armour
4 Nonchalant, 0 Vain, 5 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 8 Naive, -5 Chic

Chain mail
3 Nonchalant, 17 Vain, 15 Alluring, 11 Aloof, 9 Naive, 17 Chic

Bronze armour
5 Nonchalant, 15 Vain, 13 Alluring, 12 Aloof, 12 Naive, 11 Chic

Iron cuirass
7 Nonchalant, 14 Vain, 9 Alluring, 14 Aloof, 13 Naive, 15 Chic

Plain clothes
2 Nonchalant, 1 Vain, 2 Alluring, 1 Aloof, 3 Naive, 0 Chic

Wayfarer's clothes
4 Nonchalant, 3 Vain, 3 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 3 Naive, 2 Chic

Leather dress
6 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 10 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 7 Naive, 3 Chic

Training top
3 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 5 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 6 Naive, 4 Chic

Tracksuit top
5 Nonchalant, 11 Vain, 7 Alluring, 8 Aloof, 7 Naive, 6 Chic

Leather cape
6 Nonchalant, 7 Vain, 4 Alluring, 2 Aloof, 10 Naive, 8 Chic

Garish garb
14 Nonchalant, 12 Vain, 13 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 9 Naive, 11 Chic

White t-shirt
18 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 6 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 12 Naive, -2 Chic

Gooey gear
25 Nonchalant, 0 Vain, 28 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 20 Naive, 7 Chic

Silk robe
4 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 9 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 8 Naive, 7 Chic

Celestial suit
3 Nonchalant, 7 Vain, 8 Alluring, 2 Aloof, 5 Naive, 5 Chic

Leather gauntlets
1 Nonchalant, 3 Vain, 1 Alluring, 1 Aloof, 3 Naive, 0 Chic

Iron gauntlets
1 Nonchalant, 6 Vain, 2 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 2 Naive, 4 Chic

Cotton gloves
2 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 2 Alluring, 1 Aloof, 2 Naive, 6 Chic

Linen gloves
1 Nonchalant, -3 Vain, 1 Alluring, -2 Aloof, 4 Naive, -2 Chic

Leather gloves
3 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 4 Alluring, 2 Aloof, 3 Naive, 3 Chic

Boxer shorts
2 Nonchalant, -5 Vain, -5 Alluring, -10 Aloof, 3 Naive, -10 Chic

Leather kilt
4 Nonchalant, -2 Vain, 0 Alluring, -5 Aloof, 4 Naive, -10 Chic

Cotton trousers
3 Nonchalant, 2 Vain, 1 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 2 Naive, 1 Chic

Red skirt
18 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 25 Alluring, 12 Aloof, 8 Naive, 9 Chic

Training trousers
6 Nonchalant, 3 Vain, 1 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 5 Naive, 2 Chic

Tracky bottoms
9 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 3 Alluring, 7 Aloof, 8 Naive, 3 Chic

Blue knickers
16 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 21 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 9 Naive, 8 Chic

Iron kneecaps
8 Nonchalant, 13 Vain, 6 Alluring, 14 Aloof, 11 Naive, 11 Chic

Celestial stockings
3 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 6 Alluring, 1 Aloof, 5 Naive, 3 Chic

Leather boots
1 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 1 Alluring, 2 Aloof, 3 Naive, 4 Chic

Iron sabatons
3 Nonchalant, 12 Vain, 6 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 4 Naive, 5 Chic

Sandals
2 Nonchalant, 1 Vain, 2 Alluring, 0 Aloof, 5 Naive, 0 Chic

Leather shoes
4 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 3 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 2 Naive, 6 Chic

High heels
5 Nonchalant, 6 Vain, 14 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 3 Naive, 12 Chic

Clogs
5 Nonchalant, 3 Vain, 8 Alluring, 2 Aloof, 9 Naive, -2 Chic

Celestial shoes
4 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 6 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 7 Naive, 4 Chic

Strength ring
6 Nonchalant, 6 Vain, 3 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 5 Naive, 4 Chic

Slime earrings
9 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 10 Alluring, 6 Aloof, 4 Naive, 7 Chic

Gold ring
4 Nonchalant, 4 Vain, 6 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 0 Naive, 5 Chic

Gold bracer
5 Nonchalant, 7 Vain, 8 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 1 Naive, 6 Chic

Bunny tail
7 Nonchalant, 3 Vain, 12 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 6 Naive, 1 Chic

Gold rosary
5 Nonchalant, 10 Vain, 11 Alluring, 5 Aloof, 5 Naive, 7 Chic

Bow tie
5 Nonchalant, 12 Vain, 3 Alluring, 3 Aloof, 3 Naive, 20 Chic

EMN · Sun Jul 05, 2020 6:22 pm

Part 18: The End of Ragin' Contagion

Music: Healed by a Hymn (VIII)

So, yeah, I kinda need to bring some people back from the dead. You can help with that, right?

I guess I should've expected it to be expensive. Oh well, it's not like there's anything else I can really do like this.

I've said it before, but it bears repeating: to revive a character at a church costs money that scales with their level. This is the only way to resurrect dead characters right now, and it's more than a little inconvenient! And I made a graph to show off just how inconvenient it is!

The cost doesn't scale linearly either, so it's going to get ridiculous after a while. Thankfully it isn't the only way to revive dead party members, so it can be safely ignored after we unlock other methods.

Ugh, my head hurts...huh? Why am I here?

Aaaaaaaaaaa wait, this isn't the Quarantomb! Where are we?

I think we're back at the church in Stornway. The real question is, how did we get here?

Well...you were kinda dead, see? So I had to bring your bodies back here to make you less dead.

What? Me, the great Solitiare, dead? You must be mistaken.

Well, if you weren't, it was very convincing. There was a coffin and everything!

I think we owe Steph thanks for taking us all back here. Who knows what could have happened if we hadn't had her around?

Oh, yeah, thanks Steph!

...Thanks. I suppose.

Solitaire, being grateful? This is a first.

It'll be the last time, too!

Music: Our Dreaming Town

I had an idea! You know how we sort of died? Well, what if it's because our equipment wasn't good enough?

I think we've got a few other problems there...like teamwork...but sure, we probably need something more sturdy too.

Well, I thought of some new things to make with some of the material we found!

Since we're back in town, now's the perfect time to improve everyone's equipment. The best way to do this, as usual, is with alchemy! Let's get down to it.

Music: Alchemy Pot (VIII)

The first thing we're making is a tricky turban, made from a turban, a jar of toad oil and a snakeskin. These things are actually really good, giving a huge 18 Magical Might as well as a sizeable chunk of Defence and even a bit of MP drain resistance! They're Mage-only, but well worth it if you've got a spare jar of toad oil. Sadly, this means that Freddy won't be wearing his bunny ears any more. They're going to Steph instead!

I'll take that. Maybe you lot aren't so bad after all.

Next up, a snakeskin whip for Solitaire. It's a decent upgrade over her current weapon.

And this shell shield goes to her, too, made from a scale shield and a tortoiseshell. We could buy these, but money's a bit tight and we had all the ingredients anyway. She also finally equips that turban we bought in the Coffinwell armour shop, since we have a spare from a random drop, as well as the scale armour from the Hexagon's back entrance.

Some trousers? I guess we never got any new ones...

Steph gets some tracky bottoms from a recipe we already know. I realised that we'd never actually upgraded anyone's leggings, so what better time than now?

Freddy...please don't do this.

I just followed one of those recipes we got! What's the prob- oh, I see.

Ah, gooey gear. I said it looked ridiculous, and I meant it.

Freddy...are you sure about this? It looks really uncomfortable for you, and Reona too.

It's fine! All this bulk's great for protection! Anyway, she needs to get over her aversion at some point, right? I'm sure this'll help!

Well, if you say so...

I'll try to manage. I just need to keep telling myself it's not a real slime.

Besides the whole ridiculous thing, gooey gear is actually pretty good. Its Defence is better than any buyable armour at the moment, plus the Style it gives is surprisingly high with certain types of outfit.

In any case, that's pretty much all the preparation we need. Everyone's got decent gear and at full health, so we might as well just skip straight back to the Quarantomb.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

I wonder if Dr Phlegming's okay. I kinda just left him here...

Serves him right for trying to take credit for all this.

Solitaire, you should really stop being so childish about all this. Why are you so concerned with who gets the glory here?

You see, it's all about that benevolessence. If that stupid doctor does all the work, I don't get any!

I was thinking about that, actually. You said something about that stuff coming from gratefulness towards Guardians, right? Well, nobody knew you were one of those in Stornway, and you still got a bunch. Maybe it'll work out whoever does the good deed.

...That actually makes a lot of sense. But I still want the credit for sealing the curse. This is hard work, you know!

Now, we're going to head back into the shrine, so I'll need you to keep a close eye on me.

Just don't get in my way, okay?

I was wondering...you guys died, right? So is there an afterlife?

Um...I don't know about anyone else, but I can't remember anything...

Hmm...neither can I, it seems. Personally, I don't think such a thing exists.

Of course it exists! We just can't remember it.

I picked up that chest on the first visit here - it's one grid square west and one north from the entrance. It only had some money in it, unfortunately, but since it's blue that's not set in stone.

Prepare the giant mirror!

Huh?

Oh, sorry. It just felt right to say that.

There are a bunch of mirrors all around the Quarantomb, and they all show the same message when they're checked. They're part of this dungeon's puzzle. Or "puzzle", since it's insultingly simple.

Hey, there's a button on this.

Don't press it! It could be a trap.

Too late, it's pressed.

Whoa, what's that light?

Oh, I see. These mirrors are here to reflect the light. The question is, where is it going?

Aww, fire wasn't the answer to this one. That's disappointing...

So this is the puzzle of the Quarantomb: pressing buttons on statues to shoot beams of light at mirrors to open this door. Unfortunately there are only two statues, one in each back corner, and there's no way to move any of the mirrors, and as a result it's so simple that it's by far the shortest dungeon in the game as well as one of the most disappointing. At least its non-linearity makes searching for metal slimes easier.

There are some red chests dotted around the place, too. Only the seed of skill is particularly noteable; it permanently increases the number of skill points on the character it's used on by 3. Like the other seeds, it's mostly useful in large quantities.

Hey, this is the red light. That's both of them, right?

Doing this makes the door near the entrance open. I did say it was insultingly simple.

Um, Reona? Can you not shout too much at this one? I think that's what made it run away last time.

On the way back to the entrance we ran into another metal slime, in a much more favourable formation than last time.

YES! One down!

This time, though, we actually manage to take it down. And now to reap the rewards!

Yeah, that experience point payout is slightly ridiculous. It's enough to push everyone to the next level.

Solitaire in particular reaches level 14, so she'll start getting 4 skill points per level. It doesn't get her any new abilities quite yet, but it's the thought that counts.

And Freddy learns Safe Passage, which prevents damage from environmental hazards like poison puddles for a while. It's cheap, too, so it's well worth using when that sort of thing turns up.

Oh, the door's open. I suggest you prepare for the worst.

We should prepare? What about you?

I'm always prepared for anything.

It should be pretty obvious, but there's a boss fight right inside that door. As usual, now's an excellent time to go back to town and prepare. On the other hand, we sort of already did that because of the whole almost having a party wipe thing. Let's just go in.

Video: Boss #4 - Ragin' Contagion

I could've sworn I thought there was something here, but it's just a pot! What a letdown. Oh, and someone's already smashed it.

Ah, we're in luck! The section with the seal drawn on it is still intact. Patching this up should be a piece of cake for a top archaeologist like myself.

I just need to get all the pieces together...

Well I ain't gonna let y'all, y'hear? Uh-uh, no siree! The Ragin' Contagion's gonna keep a-ragin'! Ragin', ragin', ragin'!

What's that thing!? It came out of nowhere!

Didn't you hear? It said it's called the Ragin' Contagion or something. I expected better from you.

S-so this is the contagion that's been troubling the town? Drat! I haven't finished f-fixing the jar yet.

I need more time! Go on, keep it occupied while I get this jar back together!

Oh good, I get to beat up something. It's not like I've been doing that all day. And all yesterday.

I don't really see the problem. Hitting things with this stick never gets old!

As usual, we get plenty of notice before the boss fight. We could leave right now and nothing would change, but why would we do that? That'd undermine the whole thing.

Sakes alive, ya pesky critter! I'm gonna have to send yer sorry hide to the bone orchard once and for all!

Music: Swirling Desire

I never thought I'd be fighting a sentient disease. I have to say, I'm sort of glad of this experience.

#260 Ragin' Contagion wrote:
Code: Select all
Elemental Family
HP: 696        MP: 255
Attack: 68     Defence: 68   Agility: 50
Exp: 2295      Gold: 600
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 100 : 075 : 100
: 075 : 075 : 125

Status resistances
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 100
: 000 : 000 : 000 : 025
: 000 : 000
: 000 : 075 : 050 : 050

Guaranteed Drop: Royal soil

The very essence of illness, it was sealed up in the Quarantomb for a century, but came back to curse Coffinwell once more.

This toxic pox was created to ensure that the nameless terror that slept in the Quarantomb stayed sealed inside forever.

Boss fight time! The Ragin' Contagion is kind of tricky, especially without a Priest. It's probably not for the reason you're thinking of, though, since we've already got plenty of healing to go around.

What!?

It looked like it just hit both of you. How does that work?

Well, actually, I think-

Sorry, Freddy, that was rhetorical. We haven't got time to talk right now. But you can tell me later, okay?

The first thing to note about the Ragin' Contagion is that it gets to move twice a turn. Most bosses from now on will use this trick, and it's a pain and a half. Some will even get three actions!

Nice, the extra effect on that attack didn't land. If it had, it'd have envenomated Steph. Otherwise, it's just the same as any other attack the Ragin' Contagion can throw out. Speaking of which, these are its only two attacks. What else can it do? Well...

Why me!?

Here's Kasap. Remember, all of the Ragin' Contagion's attacks are physical, so anyone this hits is going to take more damage from everything it can do. And without Healie, there's no way to dispel it besides waiting out the timer!

It's also got Deceleratle to help with its somewhat lacking speed. It's the opposite of Acceleratle and the multi-target form of Decelerate (which no monsters have for some reason), attempting to lower our entire party's Agility. It's not much of a problem, although it makes reactive play trickier. Freddy's been keeping Acceleratle up, so it's not too bad.

What's that smell? I think I recognise it!

Hold your nose, Freddy, otherwise you'll fall asleep. I don't think any of us want that.

Its final ability is Sweet Breath, which we've seen before. It's definitely not very nice to have a character taken out of commission by sleep.

The main thing to watch out for in this fight is Kasap. Once again, Priests are great for this because they can cast Buff to remove its effects.

Huh? That usually works!

There's that Sap resistance coming into play. 75% isn't too bad, but it makes it miss an annoying amount, especially with Sap's less-than-perfect accuracy on its own. Combine that with the Ragin' Contagion's multiple moves per turn making the debuff wear off faster and you get Sap not being all that useful. It's still a pretty good damage increase, though, so I'm sticking to it. There's also the option of spamming Bang, since it's not resisted. Frizz just doesn't do enough damage to be worth using, even with the weakness.

Other than that, we're just hitting it until it dies. Even sentient diseases break apart if they're hit a lot, apparently.

No, really, it breaks apart. I love this death animation so much.

Music: None

Well, that was certainly an experience.

I kinda don't want to have another experience like this, thanks very much. It felt weird, hitting something like that.

And I was so busy helping out, I never got to burn it! How's that fair?

Oh, stop complaining. Do you ever see me do that?

Yes. A lot.

Steph hits level 14 and finally learns Psyche Up from the Focus skill. It's been hit by a bit of a nerf compared to previous games in the series, but it's still decent enough and will help out immensely in boss fights. Reona also got to level 14, but didn't learn anything.

The Ragin' Contagion's drop, the royal soil, is an alchemy item. We'll be able to pick up more very soon, but right now that's not important.

I've done it! It's fixed! And not a moment too soon.

Well...I can't argue with that. But I still did most of the work!

Ha ha! Now Father-in-law will have to change his tune and show me some respect at last! Well, we've done what we came to do. Now I can finally explore the ruins at my leisure. You can head off now, Solitaire. I'd rather not be distracted, if it's all the same to you. I'll have a look around and see what's what. Perhaps you could report back to Coffinwell and let them know how it all went.

Hmph. I haven't seen the full extent of this place either, so I'm sticking around.

I suppose there isn't any rush now that the contagion has been sealed away again, so why not? You never know, there might be treasure here too.

Video ends

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Right, what's downstairs?

But if that's the case, then what was the Contagion put here for...? Hmm... (mumble mumble)

I'm going to stay here and continue my investigations. Tell Catarrhina I'll be home soon.

Sure, we can do that.

I'm a little bit curious as to what's written on that tablet before we head back. Shall we read it?

Yeah, okay. I want to chat to that guy over there, too.

What guy? I don't see anyone else...

Oh, right, you can't see ghosts.

Well that was unhelpful.

I think that's that unknown king or whoever over there. I wonder what he's got to say.

That wasn't helpful either! People are so inconsiderate.

This area, like the grave in Brigadoom, is one that has no purpose until the postgame. Just remember it for later.

You know what? This has ruined my mood. Let's just get out of here.

Extra: The Collection

Seed of skill

Royal soil

Tricky turban

Gives 25% MP drain resistance.
Style: 13 Nonchalant, 12 Vain, 18 Alluring, 9 Aloof, 12 Naive, 9 Chic

EMN · Sun Jul 05, 2020 6:27 pm

Mechanics: Status Effects

So, hey, how about an update on what all the status effects I've been putting in the monster bios actually do? Hopefully this'll clear some things up.

Dazzle
Dazzle gives anyone afflicted with it either a 3/8 or 5/8 chance of missing with their physical attacks, depending on which spell or ability inflicted it. Magic is unaffected. It wears off naturally over time.

Sleep
Sleeping characters are unable to act until they're hit with a physical attack or it wears off naturally over time.

Poison/Envenomate
Poisoned characters take damage every few steps on the map. Enemies cannot be afflicted with poison, but they can be envenomated. Envenomated characters also take damage every turn in battle equal to 1/16 of their maximum HP. Resistance to both of these is shared, and at the end of battle envenomate changes to poison.

MP Drain
MP drain isn't a status effect as such. It's treated as damage, but to MP, and the resistance modifier changes the damage just like other elements.

Confuse
Confused enemies and party members act slightly differently. Both both have a chance to become too flustered to move, inflicting paralysis even through immunity. Both also have a chance to attack at random within their own party, although if they try to attack themselves nothing will happen. Both will also try to flee, unsuccessfully in the case of party members, but successfully in the case of enemies. The final action both share is simply skipping a turn. Enemies can also try to call for help, but this will do nothing. Confuse has a chance to be cured by being attacked physically, and it also wears off naturally over time.

Fizzle
Fizzled characters cannot cast spells. It wears off naturally over time.

Paralyse
Paralysed characters cannot act. It wears off naturally over time.

Inaction
Characters inflicted with inaction cannot act on their next turn. It wears off after that and cannot be cured by any other means.

Charm
I've already gone over this in the battle mechanics update. It can only be inflicted on enemies and is essentially inaction, but passive and rolled for on every enemy turn. There is a 5% chance that instead of inaction the enemy will be confused, and another 5% chance that they will be paralysed.

Instant Death
Kills whoever is affected instantly. Body Slam also uses this resistance to tell whether it hits or not, despite doing percentage damage.

Attack Down
The afflicted character's Attack stat is lowered. Wears off naturally over time.

Defence Down
The afflicted character's Defence stat is lowered. Wears off naturally over time.

Agility Down
The afflicted character's Agility stat is lowered. Wears off naturally over time.

Magic Defence Down
The afflicted character takes more damage from magic attacks. Wears off naturally over time.

EMN · Sun Jul 05, 2020 7:09 pm

Part 19: Saviours of Coffinwell

Music: Painful Feelings

Oh, it feels so nice to get out of that stuffy old tomb and back to civilisation. The air is feeling a lot clearer now, too.

See? I told you it'd be fine. Everyone's going about their business as usual.

I'm gonna wait on that one, thanks. I've got a bad feeling about something.

If I say it's fine, it's fine.

Oh no, please don't argue again! I don't think I could deal with the fallout this time...

Just after you left town, the people who were ill suddenly recovered. This is the great Dr Phlegming's work, isn't it? I had no idea he was so clever!

He's not that clever, you know. I'm far better!

Look, Solitaire, I know you want all the glory for this particular job, but we really couldn't have done it without Dr Phlegming. Can't you accept that much?

I have our honoured Guardian to thank for that, no doubt.

Someone gets it, at least. ...Hey, wait, the Guardian here's someone else! They didn't even do anything!

I may only be able to make the odd dish here and there, but I'm going to take care of them properly from now on.

The thing is, his cooking has suddenly become a lot better than mine, so I feel a bit put out, if I'm honest.

Oh, maybe I could set up a cooking contest sometime! I can invite this guy, and...um...maybe Erinn! It'll be fun! We could do flambé, and well-done steak, and crème brûlée, and all sorts of things! I could use magic!

You just want to set a load of fires again, don't you? But hey, if it's tasty, I'd be up for it.

I want to go and play!

When I see 'im, I'll 'ave to give 'im a big ol' bear 'ug to show 'im 'ow 'appy I am!

I would advise against doing something like that. In my experience, people like him don't like being hugged by anyone they aren't familiar with. Although that does give me an idea for a pickpocketing technique...

That's good news, obviously, but now I'm worried they all think I'm a bit heartless.

Ha! I bet you feel really stupid now. You should've seen those people while you had the chance!

I can't say you're wrong about that one, Solitaire, but you're right for all the wrong reasons.

The silly old fool started to feel better, so he slept with no covers on. It's no wonder he's gone and caught another cold.

I'm not gonna lie, that's actually pretty funny. It's a shame there's no cold-causing monster we can go and beat up to solve this one.

I can't tell you what a relief it is. I don't think I've been this happy since our wedding day!

Honey Bunny!

Snugglelump!

I think I'm going to be sick.

What? Have you caught something? But we got rid of the contagion!

Not sick like that, you idiot.

I must admit, I'm pleasantly surprised that Phlegming managed to seal the contagion away. Where is the hero of the day, anyway? I thought he'd be with you.

Yeah, well, he said he wanted to stick around the ruins and have a look at them. He was very insistent.

No! He's still at the ruins? The silly fool! And there I was, starting to think he might not be so bad after all. Hmph. Never mind. When he finally does show his face, we'll hold a banquet to celebrate. You'll pass the news on to Catarrhina, won't you? No doubt she'll be thrilled to hear of his success.

Really? You're not giving me my reward yet? Fine, I guess I'll go see Catarrhina or whoever it is.

This is the right house, isn't it? I can't believe she's sleeping at a time like this. Hey, wake up! Hello!?

You do know how rude it is to barge into somebody's house while they're asleep and start shouting at them, don't you?

I don't care.

Huh? She's not breathing...that's bad, isn't it?

Oh no. Is she...is she really...?

It's fine, she'll have a pulse. See?

...There's no pulse.

What!? No, that can't be right! She can't be dead! This wasn't supposed to happen!

Solitaire...this is all your fault! It's 'cause we took so long waitin' around an' not doin' anyfin'!

But...but...it can't have been! I never did anything wrong! Everything should be fixed, shouldn't it? Shouldn't it!?

If ya keep going on like that, I swear I'll sock ya one!

But...but it's not my fault! It can't be my fault. It's...it's not...

Music: None

Dr Phlegming!? What'll he say? What'll he do!?

...Catarrhina? You're very quiet...

You're not...?

I'm so, so sorry. She was like this when we got here...

It doesn't make sense. I sealed it away. Everyone's better now! I was too late, wasn't I? Even as I sealed it away, you were already gone. Why? Why didn't you tell me you were ill? If I'd known, I would have worked harder, faster. Perhaps I could have saved you... Oh, Catarrhina!

Music: Verse of Prayer

Her loss weighs heavily upon us all. Nonetheless, we should be grateful to her for teaching us the true meaning of forebearance. Those of us left behind must try to emulate her stoicism in overcoming our sadness at her death. Now, let us pray that she will ascend untroubled to the heavens and rest in peace.

Oh Catarrhina! (sob) Ohhhh...

What I'd like to know is where the devil Phlegming has got to. How he could neglect to turn up is beyond me.

So much for all the guts we busted trying to save the town! We haven't even had a word of thanks, let alone a reward. Well I don't think we should stand for this, or take it lying down! I say we go to Mayor Laria and make him thank us properly.

Shut up! I just...I was thinking about what Reona said, okay? Maybe this really is my fault... I mean, if I'd realised Catarrhina'd been ill in the first place, then that argument wouldn't have happened and we'd have gotten rid of that disease so much quicker! But no, I had to be selfish about it, and now she's...she's...

Look, Solitaire, you can't go on like this. How many days has it been? You've got to move on and learn from this!

I suppose...

Music: Painful Feelings

"Here lies our beloved daughter Catarrhina. May she rest in eternal peace."

Look, Solitaire, I'm sorry for threatening you.

No, I'm sorry too. I think I deserved that.

I just can't come to terms with her dying! What is the world coming to?

Just the thought of it is so upsetting that I can't seem to bring myself to tackle any housework.

I never realised how much everyone here liked Catarrhina. I'm sorry I couldn't do anything for her too...

He may have mastered the odd thing when it comes to housework, but he's still incompetent when it comes down to it.

It's just too much. I can understand why Phlegmin's gone an' lost the plot a bit.

Can you really have been happy to have married such a man, my dear Catarrhina?

Hello? I thought I'd come visit and...and say sorry.

How can I assist you? Ah, of course! I still haven't given you your reward. I'm afraid I'm not really in the right frame of mind at the moment. I'm sorry to trouble you, but perhaps you could pay a visit to the house this evening instead. I'll be sure to have your reward ready for you then.

...Okay, then.

You're not going to provide a retort, Solitaire? You must really be in a bad way.

You know what I think? I think we should all go to the inn and have a lie down. Besides, we need to wait for the evening anyway.

We don't necessarily need to sleep at the inn to progress the plot, but we might as well, since it needs to be nighttime. This particular inn costs 5G per character, whereas Angel Falls' inn also costs 5, Stornway's costs 3, and Zere's costs 4. They're all incredibly cheap, and that's not going to change throughout the rest of the game.

If only I'd taken more notice, maybe things would've turned out better.

I feel so stupid. How did I not notice?

I suppose it does need to be said, doesn't it? You were far too wrapped up in your own glory-seeking ways. Perhaps it would be best if you toned that sort of thing down a bit.

Well, you told us to come here.

Oh, of course, your reward for accompanying young Phlegming. It completely slipped my mind. I hope this hairband will suffice.

I know you're in mourning for Catarrhina and all, and probably not thinking straight, but isn't this a weird reward? I dunno, though, it might just be me.

Feather headbands are a nice bit of equipment for Minstrels. The Defence bonus is better than anything we could get right now, and they even give some Magical Might and Magical Mending! It's definitely worth equipping it on Solitaire, even if I don't do that quite yet.

Is that it? That's all we get after bending over backwards, forwards and sideways for these people? If only that Catarrhina hadn't gone and kicked a bucket, everyone would be happy and there'd be benevolessence aplenty. Gah... There's got to be some way of sorting out this mess...

It's probably more than I deserve. Why would I deserve anything, in fact? It's all my fault she died...

I suppose I can't blame Phlegming for shutting himself away.

I know! Maybe we should pay him a visit, to make him feel better!

With Solitaire being like this at the moment, I get the feeling that we would make him feel worse.

Maybe I should just leave. I've caused enough damage here...but I'd like to say sorry at Catarrhina's grave one more time.

Wait, is that...? It is! Catarrhina!

What? Where? Are you going off the deep end, Solitaire?

No, she's right there! She's a ghost, sure, but...

Yes, I can, but that's beside the point!

That's amazing! I sensed you were different, Solitaire, but I never would have guessed you were one of them. What a stroke of luck! That means you'll probably be able to help me out. You see, I need to try and jolly Phlegmy up a bit.

You're...not angry with me? Even though I'm to blame for...well...this?

Look, Solitaire, you can't go on like this. I know I said that you were the only one at fault, but I promise you that that's not the truth! We're all concerned about you, even if you aren't usually the nicest of people.

Really? I don't know if I can believe that just yet. But maybe...maybe if I help, that'll make up for things a bit! Yeah, that's it!

Thank you, thank you! I suppose the first thing is to get him to come out of his laboratory. I'm sure I'll be able to figure out a way of doing that, so you just head down there and we'll take it from there.

Is that all you need? I'll get on it right away. I'm not going to let you down this time!

I think the rest of us need to know what you're agreeing to. We can't see ghosts, y'know!

Oh, right, that. We're going to Dr Phlegming's place to cheer him up. Of course, with what I've been like, you don't have an obligation to help...

What're you talking about? I'd be happy to! I'll even smack him out of his funk if it comes down to it.

Wouldn't that make things worse? It sounds like a bad idea...

Or the door could be locked. I feel so useless...

Phlegmy will only come out if you use our secret knock.

Oh, right, that. I completely forgot.

Entering under false pretences, Solitaire? Oh dear.

Don't give me that. I'm sure you've done it plenty of times.

Well...kind of. But it's for a good cause!

Of all the tasteless jokes, mimicking Catarrhina's special knock like that! Don't you dare ever do that again!

Oi, Phlegmin'! Glad I caught ya. I've got a message for ya, as it 'appens. Thanks for gettin' rid of that 'orrible disease. Everyone in Coffinwell says thanks, an' all. We owe ya big time! Oh yeah, an' we're all 'opin' you'll be back to normal soon. Everyone's worried sick about ya.

Solitaire, I'd like you to pass on a final message to Phlegmy for me. Can you tell him that I want him to meet with the people he saved by sealing away the contagion?

...Yeah. Come on, Phlegming, come with me. We're going to go see everyone we cured. Catarrhina said she wanted you to see how they were before she died.

What? But that's not-

_{Just go with it.}

Catarrhina said that? But I wouldn't know where to start. I don't even know who was ill. All I was worried about was trying to get the better of Father-in-law...

I know the moment has somewhat passed, but I'd like to know who suffered from the disease and how they felt. Then perhaps I'll be able to understand what it was like for my Catarrhina.

Please agree to what he asks, Solitaire. I think this is just what he needs.

Sadly there's no joining jingle like there was for Ivor back in Angel Falls, but that's probably because Dr Phlegming won't be helping us in battle. He's just going to be following everyone else and commenting on NPC dialogue. Why he didn't do this in the Quarantomb is a mystery, though.

Okay, let's go. To...er...somewhere.

We can't enter the Mayor's house because of Reasons, but there's nobody in there who needs to be talked to anyway so it's not important. I still would've liked to see an interaction between Phlegming and the Mayor.

Not really, I, er... It was nothing.

Nah, mate. You should be chuffed! I'll bet Catarrhina's good an' proud o' ya, wherever she's lookin' down from.

None of us were ill, but I was petrified the whole time that my son or even my wife might come down with it.

Hey! Do you know how insensitive you're being?

.........! I... I'm so sorry. What a stupid thing to say. I wasn't thinking. I'm so sorry...

Planning on visiting all the other poor unhappy people of Coffinwell and trying to cheer them up, are you?

Um, well, I, er...wouldn't go that far...

It's okay. You don't have to explain yourself to me. Catarrhina chose you, after all, so you can't be all bad.

You mustn't shut yourself away like that, you know, no matter how depressed you are. We were all worried about you.

............

Er, I, er... Yes, it is. Good day to you.

I'm so sorry for your loss. Catarrhina was such a lovely young woman. I expect you're on your way to visit her grave, are you?

............

I'm terribly sorry about Catarrhina, Dr Phlegming. But you must try to keep your chin up.

............

Solitaire, do you really know where to go? You're just talking to random people, aren't you? I think you're upsetting Dr Phlegming.

Okay, you got me, I'm sorry. I wasn't really paying attention to where all the sick people were before.

It's a good thing I remember, then. Something like this is too important to just keep guessing.

This can't be right! The contagion has been sealed away. How can he still be ill?

It's fine, he's just got a cold. Nothing to worry about.

I can warm him up, then!

Not that kind of cold, Freddy.

Ah...yes, I see. Well, that's a relief.

Your wife...and your daughter? They were both ill?

Oh yes, I had many a sleepless night, I can tell you. I honestly thought I might lose them both. I owe you everything, and that's a fact.

............

A child this small was suffering from the disease? How can I not have realised who was affected?

Er, yes, that's right. Were you suffering from it too?

Thanks ever so much. I was this far away from having to kiss my Snugglelump goodbye for good. Now I have all the time for kissing in the world thanks to you. Would you like a litle smooch to say thank you?

Stay away from my Phlegmy with your funny outfit and your strange suggestions!

That's everyone who needs visiting now.

Why did you remember everyone who was sick, Reona?

You tend to need to remember details in my old line of work.

Didn't you end up getting caught?

Let's never talk about that. Ever.

Oh, okay, then. I know where that one is, at least.

Music: None

Everything I've done has always been for myself, and I haven't given much thought to the people around me. That's why I didn't notice Catarrhina was ill. Unforgivable, I know...

I...kind of feel the same way. Like I'm a moron for not seeing it.

Walking around town today, I realised for the irst time how many people there are around me. From now on, I'm going to try to be more of a part of the community.

Music: Verse of Prayer

You've allowed me to fulfil my dream, even though I'm no longer alive.

And for him to grow to love the place. That's exactly what I've always wanted.

Wait, no! You can't just leave! What about me? I need more time to make things up to you.

Solitaire...Catarrhina's dead. You've got to let her move on, and you've got to move on yourself. You can be a better person on your own.

And you're not even on your own. We're here!

Yeah...yeah, you're right. From here on, I'll be like a new person!

Music: Painful Feelings

I'm terribly sorry. I shouldn't have kept you up so late. You should rest, Solitaire. I have a few things I need to mull over, so I'll stay here for a little while longer.

So...I suppose this is it, then? Coffinwell's rescued and everyone's happy? Well, almost everyone.

All that's left now is to collect the benevolessence. But first, I'm tired. It's been a long night...

Music: None

Music: Come to our Town

And what a lovely afternoon it is too! Everyone's spirits seem to have suddenly lifted again.

Ah, I feel so refreshed. Time to get a move on, everyone.

Now that Coffinwell's all fixed up, the music's changed in town, and it'll stay like this for the rest of the game. I really liked Painful Feelings, but it was a bit gloomy, so the change is probably for the best.

You probably can't see it, but there's benevolessence as far as the eyes can see! You must be due some kind of promotion for making so many people happy! You're a high flyer, and no mistake. ...Oh, no offence.

Huh? Oh, I didn't notice. None taken.

Hey! This means we can get the Starflight Express moving again! All abord the groovy train! Come on! Let's hurry back there. Full steam ahead!

Not quite yet. First, I'm going to take a look around and see how everyone's doing. It'll be nice to have closure.

It's not at all like him to be sociable like that. It just goes to show how people change in the face of adversity.

I guess we've seen a change like that too.

Hey, what are you talking about, Steph? I haven't changed all that much.

It's not that I'm trying to keep secrets from him or anything, it's just that some things are best left unsaid.

Oh, I see how it is. Don't worry, you're secret's safe with us. _{Or at least until I can use it for some good old-fashioned blackmail...}

If he can get back on his feet after everything he's been through, then there's hope for all of us.

One minute he seems miles away, and the next he's working so hard that he's putting me out of a job again.

It's really great that this is a happy family again. It might even be better than before the disease!

Now we just have to hope that the passing of time will slowly but surely start to heal all our wounds.

Ugh, it's so strange. I'm supposed to have recovered from that disease now, so why am I still feeling so feverish?

I put them back on, but the minute I turn my back, he throws them off again. There's no helping some people.

Hey, what're you doing here? Only Dr Phlegming should be in here! ...And us.

Come now, Solitaire, none of us are strangers to breaking and entering. Let's hear him out.

Well, would ya believe it, I've decided to become one o' Phlegmin's pupils! Not that 'e's agreed to it yet, mind, but it's only a matter of time. I'll just 'elp 'im out a bit for now, and try to talk 'im round to the idea gradually, like.

Really? Huh, I'd have thought subtlety wasn't this guy's strong point. It's the clothes that give a bad impression.

He was so down in the dumps before, but when Dr Phlegming paid a visit, he came to life again. All that shouting about how he was rude and useless. It really brought the colour back to his cheeks.

Well, at least they're bonding!

Guardians!? Hey, give me that! I need to see it! ...Wait, I can't read this.

Oh! I, er, just thought I may as well try reading one of these old things, seeing as I have shelves and shelves full of them. You know, Phlegming showed his face here a little while back. He blurted out some nonsense about regretting his actions to date and the like. And as if that wasn't enough, he then asked if he could borrow all of my old manuscripts! I was speechless, so I was! The nerve of the man!

If you can't read them, aren't they useless to you? Why not just give them to him?

Sentimental or monetary value, or so I'd imagine. You don't have to be able to use something for it to be valuable to you, after all.

Until now, I've only ever regarded learning as something for my own pleasure. Yet now I can put my academic skills to good use for the whole town. Nay, the whole world! I know I would never have found myself on this path had you not cajoled me out of hiding, so I really am grateful.

You shouldn't thank me, you should thank Catarrhina. She's the one who told me to help. And I've got her to thank too!

There's no place like home. You must have a hometown too, eh? I'd go back and pay a visit every once in a while if I were you.

You know what? You're right. I think it's past time I went back to the Observatory.

Extra: The Collection

Feather headband

Style: 13 Nonchalant, 10 Vain, 13 Alluring, 9 Aloof, 15 Naive, 9 Chic

EMN · Mon Jul 06, 2020 12:21 am

Part 20: Back to Base

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

You're really leaving now, Solitaire? But you were just starting to be nice! Well, nicer than usual.

Yeah, I am. I can't just waste this chance to get back home, you know!

Perhaps you'll actually make it this time, too.

Well, I'll never know unless I try, will I? Besides, I'll come back! At some point. Probably.

Well, while you're gone, I guess we'll be doing some more adventuring. But there isn't really anywhere new to go from here, and there aren't any boats running...

Then I'll know where to find you if I get back. Oh, and say bye to Healie and Slasha for me, will you? And Erinn, too.

I went ahead and equipped Solitaire with that feather headband from earlier. It won't factor into anything statwise this update, but it should be said nonetheless.

So...bye for now. If I come back, I'll probably be a Guardian again.

Huh? What's that?

Hey Solitaire, she must be a ghost. Why don't you ask her what's wrong? She looks like she could use an ear to cry into.

Hey, are you-

What?

He's not here either...

Charming! Talk about cold shoulders! Some people are so flapping rude!

Yeah, they are. Just ignoring me- I mean, us like that? I'd like to give her a piece of my mind! ...Wherever she is.

Huh, never mind. We've got better things to be doing. All aboard the Starflight Express!

Video: Return to the Observatory

Music: Stella's Theme

An earthquake!?

This is it! Now all I have to do is... Er...fly us home... No problem for the dab-handed driver of the Starflight Express, of course! I'll just, er...programulate the...co-ordinators into that control panel over there and we'll be up, up and away before you can wink!

Oh, right, this thing just does that. I forgot. You sure you can fly this?

Whatever. I'm sure it'll be fine. Just don't do anything too stupid.

But, um...we're not in that much of a hurry, so if you've got any, er...unfinished business here, I don't mind waiting... What's it to be?

Stella makes it sound like we've got a big point of no return coming up. That's not quite true. Yes, we're going to be locked into plot for a while, but we don't lose anything from it (except character dialogue). There is some missable stuff in this game, but we'll talk about that when we get there.

Just hurry up and go already! I haven't seen the Observatory in ages!

Really? Oh, er...alright then... Um, aye, aye, Captain! Full stream ahead! No time for second thoughts now!

Music: None

Don't just hit the controls! Are you sure you know how to fly this thing?

Ahem, I mean, obviously. I did it. After all, I'm the cucumber-cool captain of the Starflight Express!

Riiiiiight. Sure you are.

The Starflight Express blows its whistle...

Music: Riding in the Ark

...And off it goes!

Music: None

It has to travel through some less-than-nice-looking clouds on the way, though. Not pictured: occasional purple flashes as well as the lightning you can see here.

The Observatory's looking ever so slightly the worse for wear.

Music: Heaven's Prayer

We fear for the safety of the Observato-

C-Can it be...?

Apus Major! Someone is emerging from within!

Hm?

Wow, this really is a warm welcome. Did you miss me?

Solitaire? Is it truly you? What are you doing aboard the...?

It's a long story, so I'm not going to bore you with it right now, but it was pretty great. Well, mostly. There were a couple of hiccups...

What is this? Your wings... Your halo... What horrors have you suffered, child?

Well, I kind of lost them. I dunno how, but I guess falling from up here helped. And then I found this thing and got back up here, to cut a long story short.

But what of the other Celestrians who are gone to the realm beneath? Why are you alone returned to us?

Oh. I kind of didn't see anyone. ...Wait, I did see someone! Pavo, I think? She was just fine, though.

Come now. Tell us of the events unfolding in the Protectorate.

Okay, but it'll take a while. You see...

Music: None

Music: Heaven's Prayer

I remember it vividly, as I am sure do you, Solitaire. The day that Yggdrasil bore fruit at long last... The iniquitous light from the world below carved its way through our hallowed realm and the Starflight Express. And the fyggs... Yggdrasil's saced fruits... They tumbled from our grasp... As did you, of course, Solitaire.

Yeah, I know. I was there. Get to the point, already!

Many of our number later descended to the Protectorate to search for those who had fallen and seek out the source of the attack. But alas... As yet, you are the only one to return.

You must give thanks to Yggdrasil for your safe return. Go to Her and offer up a prayer of gratitude for your deliverance. She may even restore you to your true Celestrian form. There is no time like the present, Guardian Solitaire. Go now, and may the blessings of the Almighty go with you.

You really think that'll work? Well...thanks anyway. I hope I'm not wasting my time with this.

Well, you know what they say... Time and tide wait for Norman. And I'm not Norman, so I'd best be off! Good luck and that. It was nice knowing you, Solitaire. Short but sweet! See you, then!

Video ends

I suppose she's gone for good, then. I think I'll miss her, even if she is really annoying. And loud.

That just about wraps up that cutscene. We could just head straight to Yggdrasil, but why do that when we can catch up with the Celestrians? They've got a lot of things to say, some of it plot-important.

Hm. Perhaps it was my aged eyes playing tricks on me...

Oh, that's just, er, Stella? Yeah, that's it, Stella. Don't mind her.

And all because of the accursed light that was sent to ravage our realm. What manner of being would do such a thing?

Apus Major has since ordered us not to venture outside, for the danger is too great.

Come on, it's not that dangerous. I only died the one time.

But so much time has passed... No, I must not think so. Surely, they will all be returned to us safely, just as you were.

Huh, this looks interesting. Let's see... "Ginny: Continuing he guardianship of Angel Falls in the place of her master, Aquila." Hmph. At least everyone else is using the right name. "Aquila: Requested his guardianship of the mortals be terminated. Current location unknown. Columba: Works in the library, managing records of the Observatory and world history."

This book's really weirdly placed because it's possible to read it way back at the beginning of the game. You know, that time when Aquila's not missing.

...Aquila is not with you? But, when you fell to the Protectorate that day, he...

Wait, baldy- I mean, Aquila's missing? I guess I should've expected that, though...

It matters not. You should meet with Columba. She will be relieved to see you safe and well. She is usually to be found just below us.

We could totally just go straight to Yggdrasil, and that'd progress the plot just fine, but it's in our best interests to go and talk to Columba first. So let's head downstairs so we can do that.

Right, the memorial stone. ...Wait, where is the memorial stone? I suppose I'll just have to look around for it.

...Is it in here? No, this is just a chest. Didn't I empty this out before...?

Because the damaged Observatory is technically a new area, all the chests have refilled. They've even got the same contents! Of course, most of them are of little consequence, but I'll take another seed of life, and since we still can't get more of them, another wakerobin is nice too.

Mortals are foolish beings. The Almighty only knows what will happen if they find them...

I think you should give the mortals a bit more credit! I got to know some pretty good ones while I was down there, you know?

One cannot help but think of when Corvus was so cruelly taken from us...

No! I must not think so! They have merely been delayed, that is all...

Which means the aggressor was somewhere in the Protectorate...

Well, yeah, obviously. Where else would it have come from? The Almighty?

Recently, she has been returning often to pray before Corvus' memorial stone.

Right, that's where the stone is. Good to know.

Hey, Columba, I'm back!

Oh- Solitaire! Praise the stars! You are safe! And what of Aquila? Has he returned with you?

Well, here's the thing. I...kind of didn't see him. At all.

...Oh, I see. I was sure you would be together... Did you not know? Aquila descended to the Protectorate in search of you, but he...is yet to return.

It is a monument to Corvus. Erected so that no Celestrian would ever forget him.

Well, obviously it's not working. I'd never even heard of this Corvus before today!

Come, allow me to read the inscription to you...

"Let this monument be a reminder of our promise to guard the Protectorate until our return to the Realm of the Almighty."

He descended to the Protectorate to become Guardian of a village and... ...He disappeared. We knew not what became of him, and were powerless to do anything but pray for his return. That is why Aquila was so concerned. He feared he would lose you as he lost his master. No doubt he is even now scouring the Protectorate in search of you.

See that he returns unharmed to the Observatory.

I never knew how much Aquila cared. Maybe I should've been nicer to him...

I know, I know! I just wanted to catch up with everyone, okay? You don't have to jump down my throat about it!

The sky is fallen dark, and the very foundations of our realm crumble. The Observatory's end is surely nigh.

How am I supposed to take over if this place isn't going to last much longer? Hmph.

"And the ripening of the fyggs shall herald the return of the Celestrians to the Realm of the Almighty." So it is written. Yet the Observatory suffers, and the Almighty does nothing to deliver us from the evil that besets our realm. Could it be that... Has the Realm of the Almighty also...?

But if he truly wished the return of my powers, why would he not instruct me to go and pray at the foot of mighty Yggdrasil?

How come you didn't lose your wings and halo too? I feel so ripped off!

Huh, the Starflight Express is still over there. Did Stella not leave yet?

She's not even here! Where is she?

Stella's kind of just disappeared from the face of the earth for the moment. She's not even around to provide her pithy comments in the Battle Records screen! She'll come back soon enough, but for now we'll have to do without. In any case, with the Starflight Express's carriages now attached, we can take a look at them.

The first one's just a passenger car. I somehow doubt it'll fit all the Celestrians on.

This one is a kitchen, I guess. It's probably for the use of Stella and whoever she's looking for. I don't have any information on what's inside the pots, unfortunately, but one of them game me a mini medal so they must be fairly high rank.

Why's this door locked? Maybe Stella wants some privacy or something. Oh well, I've spent too long wasting time anyway. Back to Yggdrasil it is.

I hope this works...

Video: Dreaming at Yggdrasil

Music: None

From dust they came...and to dust I shall return them.

Wherefore do you defy me?

You cannot - you must not - lay waste to their realm... I beg of thee...

SILENCE! ...You shall not sway me. ...The mortals will be eradicated!

I assume this form that the mortals and their realm might be shielded from your wrath. I will- I must protect them...

Music: Heaven's Prayer

Ugh...did I fall asleep? That was such a weird dream. Was it even a dream...?

Wait a second! Praying to that tree didn't do anything! What a waste of time.

Who's there? You'd better not be playing a trick on me, or you'll be sorry!

...That you were able to return without wings or halo, this is surely a sign that fate has chosen you... ...Solitaire... I shall open the way before you...

...And, precious Solitaire... ...I bestow upon you this spell, that you may travel in an instant to any domain that you have heretofore visited...

Music: None

Zoom is almost certainly my most-used spell in this game. You know how chimaera wings let you warp to any previously-visited town? Well, that's exactly what Zoom does. And it costs no MP. Chimaera wings are now totally useless unless Solitaire dies.

That's convenient and all, but you still haven't said who you are!

...Solitaire, Celestrian and Guardian... Return once more to the mortal realm... ...Journey aboard the Starflight Express to the lands below and gather the fyggs that lie scattered there... ...Do this, Solitaire, for all mortalkind. For their salvation...

Music: Heaven's Prayer

Hey, stop being mysterious and get out here! .........Not saying anything else? Fine. I'll just get on with my life, then.

What does it look like?

I... My sympathies, Solitaire. It would seem that you must endure this divested state for some time yet.

All I got out of all that time was that lousy dream.

Tell me of this vision! Every last detail!

You really want to know about that? Well, if you insist...

One who would destroy the world...and one who would save it... I fear that, unbeknownst to us, a terrible conflict may be brewing...

After all, you are now able to ride the Starflight Express.

Well, that voice did sound like it was coming from above me. That's the direction the Almighty's supposed to be in, isn't it?

If the voice of the Almighty instructed you to gather fyggs, then gather fyggs you must! Fyggs harbour the power of Yggdrasil. They may indeed hold the key to the salvation of the Protectorate and the Observatory alike.

Bring the fyggs safely back to us. Our destinies are in your hands!

I have to go already? But I only just got back here! I still need to catch up with everyone! ...But I suppose if the world does turn out to be in danger, it won't save itself. Maybe it'll even get me some brownie points with the Almighty!

Video ends

You must do as the voice in your dream bade, and descend to the Protectorate to seek out the fallen fyggs. There are seven in total. Find them all, and return them unto us. May the Almighty go with you, Guardian Solitaire.

Right, seven of them, got it. I'll get those fyggs and be back in a jiffy!

Or perhaps my eyes deceived me...

Stella's back? I was kind of hoping she'd be a bit longer, but this is fine too.

Music: Stella's Theme

He must've fallen down to the Protectorate when those light beams struck. Am I gonna have to go and hunt the old codger down? Can I really be bothered to go and look for him...? I don't suppose I've got much choice if I want my wages.

You get paid for this job? And who's "old fatguts", anyway?

No time for pleasantry, I'm afraid. I've got an annoying errand to run. Got to go and look for someone, as it happens.

Oh, really? Well, that's convenient. I need to look around the Protectorate as well.

What's that? You need to get back to the Protectorate too?

And with that we've got Stella back in the Battle Records menu.

Oh, hang on. What's that blue tree thing? If I just plop her down on top of that, we should have a softish landing... Softish...

You're not planning on crashing, are you!? Are you trying to get us killed?

Well, I don't have any better ideas, so unless your brain's waving at you with something amazing, it's my plan or nothing.

I feel like I've made a horrible mistake.

The Starflight Express's whistle blows. Again.

Music: Riding in the Ark

EMN · Mon Jul 06, 2020 3:18 pm

Part 21: The Big Backtrack

Music: Riding in the Ark

Wow, I'm surprised you didn't crash this thing. Maybe I should've had more faith in you.

Music: Stella's Theme

If you want to get back aboard the Starflight, I'm sure you'll find a way if you go rolling around at the root of the tree.

What Stella means is that she'll let us travel between here and the Observatory at any time...and nowhere else. There's no reason to go back there until the plot tells us to (besides NPC dialogue, which won't change much), so this tree might as well not exist for a while. It's pretty, at least.

It's always chock-to-the-block with people, and where there's people, there's bound to be someting going on.

...That was awful. I'm ashamed of you.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Okay, no, this is dumb. How did they get to this island? By boat? No, none of the towns we've seen so far are ports, and there haven't been any ships mentioned either. This is purely a gameplay contrivance to stop the player from accidentally fighting things with just the main character. The party never really split up from a mechanical perspective.

So I'm just...not going to deal with that gaping plot hole. The game's definitely willing to take party members away - we'll see that much, much later - so it's baffling why that doesn't happen now.

I know I should really get to finding the fyggs right now, and I could totally do it all by myself, but...I dunno, it wouldn't be any fun without anyone to show off to. I should go find everyone else. I can probably just come back here whenever.

In any case, this is Zoom. As I said last update, Zoom is stupidly good. It's even got somewhere on its list that we haven't been to yet! This is another thing that's here for gameplay, because we couldn't come back to Alltrades Abbey otherwise. And we're going to need to, because today we're revisiting old areas! We'll start with Stornway.

Music: Come to our Town

Hey, watch it!

Oh! I'm sorry! ...Wait, Solitaire? You're back!

What a surprise this is! Could you not wait to get back to us?

That's ridiculous! Why would I miss any of you?

Really?

Okay, fine, I did. A bit. Happy now? Oh, but I also have a job to do, and that's picking up some fyggs that fell down here. I told you about those, right? Anyway, the Almighty told me to do it. Probably.

I just wanna know why we should believe you. You sound like you're off your rocker!

Look, I have no idea whether it really was the Almighty, okay? All I did was hear a voice from the sky. Who else could it have been?

You're really not helping your case.

Even so, wouldn't you say this is an excellent opportunity to continue our adventures, Steph? You yourself said you wanted to travel the world, and I, for one, would be very interested in going to places where I'm less recognised.

I guess I'll come...but I still don't believe you, y'know.

Um, can I say something? I don't want to be left behind...

That means you're all in, then? Great! Now let's go and check out everywhere we've been so far. Maybe someone will know something. Remember, we're looking for golden fruit!

Hey, um, do you know anything about fruit falling from the sky? ...No? Okay, then...

Hang on, aren't we famous around here? What's she doing not recognising us? This is a disgrace!

I'm frettin' so much about what caused it that I can barely swallow my dinner!

What do you mean, the whole world? How does that even work?

I wouldn't question this sort of thing, if I were you, Steph. You don't want to know how deep the rabbit hole goes.

Just look at how happy he is. I can't help smiling when I see him like that.

And it's all thanks to those two warriors!

Aww, how lovely! And on a more practical note, those warriors may well be unaware of my methods. Perhaps I should pay them a visit sometime.

Not while you're with us, you won't. We're supposed to be keeping you on the straight and narrow! ...Aren't we?

The warriors have, indeed, taken over the armour shop. The man's got the same inventory as the thug did before, and no dialogue to speak of, but the woman has nothing for us despite being behind the counter. I wonder if that'll come into play later.

Maybe we could bring in a bit of cash by putting it on display as the famous horse, "as ridden by the Wight Knight"...

This horse really is causing a lot of trouble, isn't it? Maybe it would be for the best if it just went missing...

Are...are you okay? What are you pushing that house for?

Eh? What am I doin'? What does it look like? I'm movin' house. Movin' it over a wee bit so's I can have me a bigger garden. An' I got me this strength ring to help wi' the pushin', but the stubborn old pile o' bricks willnae budge!

This is... I don't... What?

Will ye give it a whirl for me? I'm no skinflint - I'll give ye a life ring for your trouble.

This quest is weird. We can't complete it yet, much like a lot of the quests that just unlocked (quest design is not this game's forte), but it's still worth taking.

All right, I'll take your request. I want to see what happens.

Ye will? Och, ye're a pal! Here, ye'll need this.

Ye'll no lose it, even if ye get the recipe wrong. Cheers then. I'll be waitin' here.

Hey Freddy, d'you think you can make one of those things?

Yeah, I do! We need...um...a ruby! But we don't have any.

The real reason we want to take this quest is this strength ring, which we get for free just for accepting. It boosts Strength (who'd have thought?), and Steph's missing an accessory anyway, so it goes to her. We'll deal with the actual quest part of this quest later when we have access to the item we need to finish it.

Incidentally, we can't just abandon this and accept it again for more strength rings. The game remembers that we took one and refuses to give out any more.

He's right, you know. We're leaving. Now.

Haah... Now I really miss being laid up in bed with the Colonel as my celebrity neighbour...

Is the Colonel really all you ever think about? There's wanting your boss to notice you, and then there's this! Tone it down!

Our Guardians must be pleased to see such a one as you in our midst.

You...well...I mean...you could say that? I don't know about faith, though.

You've got your place in our history books now. No one will ever forget you.

...

Are you alright, Solitaire? Silence isn't like you.

...Oh! Right. I'm just a bit shocked by the enormity of what I did. ...Sorry, what we did. And right now we're doing something that might be even more important.

Oh dear. I can't explain it but...(sob)...seeing you always makes me cry. (sob) You...(sob)...helped us out of a tight spot...(sob)...that time. (sob)

If there's ever anything I can help you with, just say the word. You've always got an ally in me!

And how nice it is of you to take the time out of your travels to stop by! You're a very dear friend of Stornway. Please feel free to stay as long as you wish.

While you may relish meeting with the royals again, Solitaire, I for one do not. And since nobody seems to have seen these fruits you're looking for, perhaps it's time to move on.

Fine. Where to next, then?

Why don't we head to Angel Falls? I want to see what it's like there.

Technically there's more we could do here in Stornway, but it would require buying some expensive items from a town we haven't been to yet. Let's not do that. Instead, Angel Falls's updated stuff is much more accessible.

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

Why are you telling me that? I lived here, you know!

Oh, I didn't realise it was you, Solitaire! Long time no see. How are you? Ivor's doing fine too. Same as ever, really. You should go and drop in on him.

Maybe I should go see him. I kind of feel bad for tormenting him, now that I think about it.

Oh no! What happened?

I sort of dragged him around outside the village for a few days. It was hilarious! Or it was at the time, anyway.

The village entrance is mended now too. Angel Falls is back on its feet again!

I wonder how those were destroyed. The earthquake, perhaps?

Yeah, that's it. Nothing to do with my landing at all.

It was even bigger than I thought. Erinn really is amazing to be able to look after a huge place like that.

I knew I'd forgotten something in Stornway! How could I miss out Erinn and the others?

We can still go back, right? Let's check up on them later.

Aww, a horse! Is this a farm?

I...I don't want to talk about it.

Hey, let's go in! I wonder what other animals are in there.

No, you can't make me! Stop dragging me!

Consider this as payback for going to the castle dungeon earlier.

I suppose you never can tell when a male and a female will click, no matter what the species, eh?

He got another one. Why did he get another one?

That boy of mine really is the limit. I just don't understand who he takes after.

He's really clever, so working at the inn was too easy for him and he got bored.

Ivor's still messing everyone around? I'm going to give him a piece of my mind!

There's no food, the cleaning is economical to say the least, and the bed is riddled with fleas. I think I'd rather just travel straight to Stornway in future. It may be a longer journey, but that's a small price to pay.

I'm starting to think that your treatment of this Ivor might have been somewhat justified, Solitaire. He sounds like quite an unpleasant individual.

But he can't be all bad, 'cause he's nice to his sister!

Perhaps he could extend a similar courtesy to his customers.

Ivor! What's this about messing up Erinn's old inn?

Hang on! If it isn't old Solitaire! Why didn't you tell me you were coming? So much for us being mates! Well, I suppose I'll have to get a room ready, then. Only because it's you, though.

Where are you even getting that from? Are you piggybacking off my achievments or something? That's pretty low. And no, I won't stay here. Not after the mess you've made.

Ivor's taken over the inn since Erinn isn't here any more, and he's not doing a very good job of it. As well as the low quality of accommodation (which doesn't have any gameplay effect), it's also more expensive than Erinn's new place at 5 coins a person. And if we leave without staying there...

You know what? I was going to apologise to you, but now...screw you, Ivor. Just screw you.

I don't want angry customers coming after me if it doesn't do what it says on the label. I need a guinea pig to try it out on.

Oh, oh, I know what those are! Isn't that what the water's called here? I heard it's great for healing!

Huh, really? Maybe we should remember this guy for if someone needs a cure for something.

I know! Well, we live here, so we don't have to stay there, but it's no good for the village, is it, dear? No good at all, dear. Once people start talking, the few visitors we do have will dry up in no time, and then where will we be?

Ooh, that boy! Nothing he turns his hand to ever works out right. He's always been the same...

Hm? Oh, it's you, Solitaire. I haven't seen you in a while. The village inn is a real worry. Ivor's being far too laid-back with it, and it's starting to get a terrible reputation. I have to try and fix this somehow. Perhaps I'll have to start working there myself.

Did he really not care about Erinn after all? I could've sworn he did...but now look at what's happened! He's betrayed her trust! And even worse, he's betrayed my trust!

Hello, Chanterelle! Nice to meet you!

You want something, don't you? I know how this works. Come on, spit it out.

My papa's a researcher. The problem is, he's so absorbed in his work that he forgets to eat. I'm starting to get worried about him, so I've decided to make him his favourite mushroom dish to get him eating again. I don't suppose you could help me collect some mushrooms, could you?

Fine, fine, we'll do it. I need something to blow off steam after Ivor's nonsense anyway.

For some reason, Chanterelle seems to have a uniquely coloured sprite. Weird. Anyway, this is a simple enough quest, although it's a little bit more involved than it might first appear even if it is still just a fairly basic fetch quest.

I need five belle caps and five fisticups. That should do nicely. I'll be getting everything ready here, so come back as soon as you've found them, okay?

Wait, five of each? We barely found any, though! How're we supposed to find any more?

I believe I have an idea for this one. Would you mind transporting us to Coffinwell, Solitaire? I've got some stealing to do.

Music: Are You A Loser

Aha! I thought these mushrooms had other mushrooms growing on them. Now I just need to pick them. The rest of you can sit tight and wait for me to be done, alright?

But...but can't I just burn it? Chantrelle's cooking the mushrooms anyway!

You can burn it after I've finished with it. But for now, just wait.

There we go. You can deal with it if you want now, Freddy.

Hooray! Mmm, fried mushrooms sounds nice...

We're short on the items we need, so it's time to do a bit of stealing. Morphean mushrooms drop both the mushrooms we need at a 1/16 rate, so pinching them isn't particularly difficult, just a little time-consuming. Alternatively we could collect the 'shrooms from the gathering points we've already seen, but they just wouldn't spawn for me. There's a very good reason for that, and I'll get into it next update.

There, I think that should be enough with the amount we already had. Are you happy with your burning session, Freddy?

Yeah, I am! Thanks a lot!

Now that we have the items we need, it's time to head back to Angel Falls and give the mushrooms to Chanterelle (which, incidentally, is the name of a type of fungus).

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

Here you go, have your mushrooms. I hope this is worth it.

Thank you! Now I'll be able to make my papa's favourite dish! Oh yes! I almost forgot.

Fiiine, I'll do it. I mean, we've started, so I guess we'll finish.

Great! I'll have it made in a jiffy and you can be on your way with it.

There we are! My special mushroom dish all cooked up and ready to go! Thanks again.

But...but...that's not how you prepare mushrooms! You didn't even clean them! And they're no good if they're not all crispy...

Perhaps I should have let you cook those mushrooms after all.

Where is this person we're delivering to, anyway?

He's a researcher, right? Anywhere around here good for researching?

There's the Hexagon, maybe. Let's try there. I can't believe I convinced myself that this was a good idea...

This is the part where you're supposed to talk to Chanterelle again because she doesn't tell you were to go the first time. Unfortuntely I forgot, because I already knew where to go for this. There aren't many places to go to, anyway.

Music: Dark Den of Thieves

Hey, that looks like a researcher. Looks like you got it right first time!

Was there ever any doubt?

What do you want? I'm really very busy. I don't have time to just chatter with strangers. Busy, busy, busy. I say! What's that lunch box you have there? Oh golly, it's not...

I'm sorry, I couldn't do anything about the food...

Oh... Chanterelle's made me some, er...delicious food has she...?

Oh, she really shouldn't have. And er, what is i- Oh. Lovely. Well, food's not just for looking at, I suppose. Here goes nothing... Mmm... (gag) Delicious! Oh golly... Y-Yes, this is definitely one of Chanterelle's dishes. It has that...raw taste that she, er...specialises in...

Um...are you okay? What if we killed him!? I could've done something about the food! Why didn't I do something about the food!?

He's still breathing. Probably.

I think I've become too focused on my research. I've lost sight of what's really important. My poor daughter must be ever so lonely... And if I go home, I won't have to eat any more of these packed lunches... Tell Chanterelle that her papa is very pleased with her, and he'll be home soon. And don't send any more packed lunches.

And now we can go back to Chanterelle and get our reward. But if we talk to this guy again...

Are you sure you're fine?

Oh, er...it's not what you think. I'm all churned up with emotion because of my daughter's concern for me. Honestly...

Just tell her you don't like this stuff! Sure, she'll be sad, but d'you really want this to keep happening?

I know, it's infuriating.

I think this situation will require a little more tact than you two can manage. I'll take charge when we get back, alright?

Music: The Sun Gathering Village

Yes, we delivered the lunch.

Oh good! Papa was happy was he?

You could say something like that, yes.

That's a relief. It just goes to show, the most important ingredient in a recipe is love. I read that in a book somewhere. This is for you, to say thanks. You really helped me out.

Ooh, a prayer ring. These are components in some great alchemy recipes, even if they're not so good themselves, so this is very welcome.

Speaking of those alchemy recipes, I don't think I ever went over them. Prayer rings themselves are made from a gold ring and two sage's elixirs each. We can't get the latter for a while, so we can't make them. This one is our only option.

Agility rings, meanwhile, need a prayer ring and two flurry feathers. Again, we can't get flurry feathers for a while. And finally, life rings need a prayer ring and three resurrocks. They're impractical for the same reason as the other two: we just can't get resurrocks.

B-but...cooking doesn't just need love! You need ingredients, and seasoning, and...and...

Let's just get out of here. Feels like this place just got more stupid after I left...

Next place we're going is Zere. There's not much to see there, though, since most of the dialogue hasn't changed since we first visited it.

They've been friends ever since they were wee lasses, you know. Come to think of it, there used to be another one in their little group o' friends. The name slips my mind now, though.

I'm perfectly happy, though. I love Zere, and I've got Petra here to keep me company as well.

My husband is ever such a picky eater. I have to try to disguise everything, just like you would for a child.

Zere hasn't changed much, huh? Still no leads on those fygg things, either! D'you think we should just skip Coffinwell?

No. We've made it this far, so let's go all the way.

There really isn't much to Zere, unfortunately. There are another couple of quests hanging around, but we can't do them yet for one reason or another - one needs something from alchemy we can't make yet, and the other's the only level-locked quest in the game.

In any case, Coffinwell's our last destination for today. Looks like we're alternating interesting and uninteresting areas!

Music: Come to our Town

It's thanks to you and Dr Phlegming that the town still exists at all.

I never thought being thanked would be so...heartwarming. Not a patch on the satisfaction from stealing something challenging, but...

He recovered from his cold, but then he got himself so excited about it that he ended up slipping over and hurting his back. I'm at my wit's end with him, so I am.

Ha, It happened again! It'd be funnier if it wasn't so tragic...but it's still pretty funny.

If only poor old Catarrhina could be here to see how far he's come.

Phlegming's got a bit more outgoing, huh? That's great! Hey, let's go see him.

It hasn't been that long, has it? It feels like I only just left!

I realised that the best way to put my knowledge to good use would be to teach the children of the town. But teaching people things - particularly teaching children things - is much harder than I thought. No sooner have you figured out what you're doing wrong than something else rears its head. It's one challenge after another.

It ain't fair! I'm just as brainy as that lot, I know I am!

Um...not to be rude or anything, but...is that really something to be proud of?

People just learn at different speeds, I guess. At least he's trying. Just because you're not good at something, it doesn't mean you can't get better, right?

Yeah, you're right! And Dr Phlegming's sure to get better at teaching, too!

This recipe needs constant supervision, so I can't afford to be distracted, even for a second.

Maybe I'll have to take up a new hobby to try to fill up the time...

Mmm, that cooking smells delicious. I'd wager that it may be almost as good as Freddy's.

You think my cooking's really that good? Thanks a lot!

It's really quite overwhelming, with her always asking if there's anything I need or anything that's not quite right. Trust my luck. If anyone was going to be infatuated with me, why couldn't it have been someone a bit younger?

Taking advantage of someone's affections? Ah, this reminds me of my glory days. Truly a shame that those had to come to an end.

SPIT is the Sinndicate of Pubs, Inns and Taverns. They judge the Innys, and decide who gets crowned Inncredible Inntertainer. Apparently, they send their members to stay in inns all over the world so that they can assess which one is the best.

...Oh. Or it could just be a misunderstanding. Although this does give me some ideas to try out later...

I have no idea, and I'm not sure I want to know. But you're probably going to tell me anyway.

"Grandpa Doug," she said, "you look just like a slugger!" Well! I look nothing like one of those horrible slimy characters!

Maybe? You're both all pink and wrinkly and-

Solitaire! Please, show some tact!

I don't suppose you could go and beat a few of them up to make me feel better, could you? About ten should do the trick.

Oh, of course we will! But I do hope you'll compensate us well for the incredible risks we're taking.

You will? Oh, you are kind! Off you go then, chop chop! An old man's broken heart needs healing here!

Another simple enough quest. Just kill some sluggers and get a reward! They're everywhere outside Coffinwell, just like they've always been.

Music: Are You A Loser

Hey, I found some! That means I get first hit!

Wait, it's down already? Nice!

Steph's crit is enough to beat a slugger in one hit. Or, you know, any other regular monster we've seen so far. Crits are good. Also, that's one down. Nine to go!

The next two go down to a combination of Solitaire's whip and Freddy's Bang. Reona's just trying to steal - sluggers don't have anything I really want, but free items are nice and they die to the rest of the team anyway.

And the game's nice enough to say how many sluggers we've beaten at the end of each battle we make progress in. This will be a running theme for every battle-related quest we encounter.

You know, the more I look at these slugger things, the more they remind me of that Doug guy. Know what I mean?

As much as I hate to admit it...you're kinda right.

These two go down with the same attacks as the last two, but in the opposite order - Freddy first, then Solitaire. That makes five sluggers, so we're halfway done. It also makes a level for Freddy! ...But he doesn't learn anything from it.

We appear to be seeing fewer and fewer of these monsters. Perhaps we're scaring them away.

This time Reona and Solitaire get the finishing blows. Solitaire even gets a level from it!

I thought of something, but...no. It's too demeaning.

At least try it! What's the worst that could happen?

I'd look ridiculous, that's what! But fine, if you really want to see it, I'll do it once. Just don't laugh.

Pratfall is probably the best non-Coup de Grâce Inaction inflictor in the game. It targets a group, and has a chance to get a critical hit, increasing the chance of it working significantly. And it has a base chance of 100% anyway! It also doesn't cost MP. It's very good.

Pfffffaahahahahaha oh no, sorry! I didn't mean to laugh!

I don't blame you. That was comedy gold!

Hey, watch it!

This was a solo slugger, unfortunately, so there are still two to go. Steph gets this one.

These are the last two we need, right? Looks like this wasn't so bad after all! I dunno why you said it'd be so dangerous, Reona.

Oh, you don't know? It's a classic trick. Tell someone how dangerous what you're doing is, and they'll probably compensate you more. We might as well get all we can out of this, wouldn't you agree?

I kinda see your point, but...isn't lying about that a bit, y'know, dishonest? I know I'd be happy just to fight these things!

Steph, I'm a thief. Dishonesty is what I do.

There, that's all of them. Let's get back and get that reward.

Music: Come to our Town

Why yes, we did. And it was very difficult, let me tell you!

Have this as a little thank-you. It's rather precious, actually, but you deserve it.

Oh yes, I feel much better about the whole thing now. You've really cheered me up.

And that's it for this quest. It's repeatable, so we could arguably get multiple easy mini medals, but we're not doing that because it'd be really boring. Sure, some of the rewards we'll eventually get from collecting them are good, but is it worth the tedium? I don't think so.

Right, next is...we've already gone everywhere, haven't we? And there's been no news of any fyggs! Might as well just move on...

Weren't you going to see Erinn and Patty again? ...Did you forget?

Oh. Right. We should do that.

Extra: The Collection

Packed lunch

Prayer ring

Style: 3 Nonchalant, 5 Vain, 7 Alluring, 4 Aloof, 6 Naive, 3 Chic
Recovers around 30 MP when used as an item in battle.

EMN · Mon Jul 06, 2020 3:29 pm

Part 22: A Rest from the Quest

Music: Pub Polka

Home, sweet home! Well, sorta.

We do spend a lot of time here, don't we? This really is something of a home away from home.

It's better than my old place, that's for sure. D'you know how strict they were there? They didn't even let me fight anything!

Wow, that's just what happened to me! Everyone said burning things was dangerous, but there's nothing wrong with it! They even made me leave because of it...but I'll show them!

I think they might've been right on that one, actually.

Today we'll be taking a look at all the stuff we can do at the Quester's Rest at this point. Coming back from the Observatory is the best place to show this off, since it's the last time in the main story that things change here. There's some more stuff here that gets unlocked in the postgame, but it's just a bit of equipment and some items, so we can see all of the inn's facilities right now! Let's get to it, starting with talking to Erinn.

What is it, Erinn? You sound excited.

Someone from the Sinndicate of Pubs, Inns and Taverns is here to set up some kind of shopping service or something! The lady's name is Sellma. You should go and have a chat with her if you're interested.

Here's the big thing that got unlocked recently: Sellma. She's that woman in green over on the right, and as well as running a shop (more on that later) she also enables the Wi-Fi features. Again, we'll be looking at that later. For now, we'll do some publicity work and get to inviting people to the inn.

You know what? I never took you up on that offer to help drum up business. Let's do that.

You're going to go and canvass for guests? Wonderful! That'll be such a help. You don't seem to have completed your profile yet, though, Solitaire.

You know I have no idea what those things are, right?

I'm afraid I have no clue either.

It probably doesn't matter anyway.

Oh, right, this exists. Believe it or not, this will actually have an effect even though nobody will ever see this outside of this save file. Let's see what options there are, shall we?

Location's first. It can be set to any real world continent or country, plus anywhere you can Zoom to. No, you can't pick the Observatory for some reason. The default option, ???, makes the profile say that we're from "somewhere nice".

Then there's birthday. It's the only option that matters to us.

This was the original release date of DQ Monsters Joker, so I thought it'd fit Solitaire. Plus it makes her birthday around this time of year, which is important for Reasons. It's possible to keep birth year a secret, but the rest is visible for all to see.

Title is next. We can pick between every accolade we've earned, Solitaire's current vocation, and some extras. Some of them are very silly, and there's a list here.

Finally there's speech style and greeting. Both are said by inn guests when talking to them, and each gender has eight speech styles; choosing one produces a pre-baked phrase that uses all the other information entered so far. For example, this is Solitaire's phrase using the Grumpy Woman speech style:

Who are you? Me? I'm Solitaire the minstrel, okay? I'm from Angel Falls. Satisfied?

If I hadn't chosen to keep age a secret, it'd show that too. Greeting comes after this, but it's manually entered and has a 57 character limit and profanity filter. We're not editing it, because there'd be no point.

The rest of Erinn's dialogue is about how canvassing to guests actually works, but it's fairly simple: someone who's canvassing can communicate with anyone else doing the same, adding the other person to their inn and vice versa. At certain thresholds the inn improves, adding new areas and/or changing its appearance. So, of course, we're going to be fully upgrading the inn right now.

The game forces a save before canvassing, because it's DS wireless and every game seems to do that. That means we can just reset ~~and fiddle with the save editor to generate some guests~~ after connecting with some other copies of the game.

This is just what I was hoping for. Keep up the good work, won't you? The more the merrier!

All that running around and asking people to come here was very tiring, you know.

Hey, we all had to do it! Don't think you're the only one who's tired here. ...But thanks, anyway.

The first upgrade comes at seven visitors, which coincidentally is the same as the number of characters that got submitted for this stuff. It'll let us go upstairs, but first, there's the room over to the left to take care of.

Um...is it just me, or everyone here a guy? What happened?

I think this one might be on Reona. Even looking like that, she's still good at attracting people.

Never talk about how I look again. Ever.

There's a lot of stuff you don't want to talk about, huh?

I rule over the realm of somewhere nice with an iron fist!

...Is he serious? Really?

He seemed very insistent about being evil. I believe he said that he was going to take over the inn and use it for his own nefarious purposes, in fact.

I think he's trying too hard to look like a bad guy. He's probably nice, really!

This is just stupid. Is everyone else going to be like this?

Damien here is using the Demon King speech style, because of course he is. I tried to put him in as edgy a costume as possible, including a cursed helmet. Also I sort of neglected to change everyone's birthday and window colour, so they're all orange and born right at the beginning of the year (specifically 2000). Oops.

I'm from somewhere nice. Pleased to meet you!

Hey, Steph? Why's he dressed the same as you?

I think I've seen this guy around. He keeps following me around and try to copy me.

Really? Why's that?

I dunno. Never talked to him.

Fizz here has the Macho Man speech style and was described to me as "Bizzaro Steph". So of course I had to give him her current outfit.

I'm from somewhere nice.

Oh, Almighty, he's huge! ...And he's also fallen asleep. Why can't someone normal show up for once?

It's no fun if they're normal, though!

Julian's got the Serious Man speech style. He's bigger than the game normally allows, but that's fine. Surprisingly, the game will not crash if stupidly small or large characters are hacked in. Anyway, he's got a nice red and gold ensemble on, centred around a robe of sweet dreams. I think it turned out well.

I'm from somewhere nice. Nice to meet you!

See, this person looks normal. This is much better.

Nim's got the default Chirpy Boy speech style. He's also got a set of equipment that was requested in full, so there isn't much to say about picking anything out. It looks neat and has some stuff in that we'll get later this update.

I'm from, um...somewhere nice.

First I get a copycat, and now Freddy? What's going on?

Is it the slime gear? But he's got so much more than me!

I can see it. It's the whole way he talks, too. The slime costume's just a bonus.

Would you please stop talking about that? It's hard enough trying to ignore it as it is without you yammering on about it! I swear, this is truly the worst day I've had in a while...

Oh, right. Sorry about that!

This speech style is called Timid Boy. Given the slime theme that was requested for Wrex, I thought the slood and gooey gear were the best options here, even if they are a little overplayed. He's also wearing blue gear outside of those two pieces, but it's difficult to see because of the small sprite and body-covering nature of the slime stack stuff.

I'm from somewhere nice.

And now we're back to normal people. Maybe this one's a bit too normal, though.

I'm glad to get back to normalcy after that...that...

...Should I take this thing off? I don't want to be a burden.

It's fine. Just...don't bring attention to it.

Back to Serious Man for Berkeley. He's a Priest. He does Priest things. He has a full set of Priest-exclusive gear (that I quite like the look of). In fact, a lot of the vocation-exclusive equipment looks very nice.

This place has a lot more space than I thought. Is that three floors?

Heading on up to the recently-opened first floor, there's only one guest here right now. Let's have a look.

I'm from somewhere nice. Pleased to meet you!

First a giant, and now a midget? Where did you find these people?

I'm not entirely sure about that, I'm afraid. They just showed up.

Our last guest, Pissant, is using the Macho Man speech style again. I'm very glad that the thug outfit is in this game, since thugs are some of my favourite NPCs in the series, and I thought it'd be a good fit for Pissant here.

Oh, and also, I don't actually know what the cupboards in the Quester's Rest contain. There are a few in the upper floors, but they probably don't have anything much in them anyway. They never do, after all. And now, time to get more guests!

Huh? Oh, right! It's very...wooden? It's a nice look, though!

You don't sound that convinced.

I'm sorry, okay? I'm used to stone in the Observatory! And very nice stone it is, too.

I thought it might help improve our guests' experience a bit. Anything to make people feel more comfortable!

Tier 3 of the inn shows up at 13 unique guests. There's a new area that's opened up, but it's part of the first floor again so might as well see who's new up there.

Based in somewhere nice. Let's do lunch sometime.

Nine!? But...what? Why are you here?

Do you know him, Solitaire?

Yeah, he's an apprentice Guardian. But why's he here now, and why's he talking?

Because I'm creatively bankrupt and terminally lazy, it's time to fall back on the Nine brigade. The next few will be showcases of the last few speech styles we haven't seen, with this one being a Smarmy Guy.

I spend my days pottering about in somewhere nice!

I'm from somewhere nice. Ever such a lovely place.

These two are a Doddery Old Man and a Nice Old Man respectively. I quite like these two.

Hee hee! I'm from, um...somewhere nice.

What.

There are so many of him! And...her? I'm so confused...

Moving on to female-exclusive speech styles, this one's the default: Cute Girl. We've got the default female protagonist showing these off, just like we had the default male protagonist for the last lot.

I'm from, um...somewhere nice...

This one's Shy Girl. Also the last one in this room, so let's see what the new one's like.

Wow, what a big room! Can we use it as a dining room? Can we?

What are you asking me for? Erinn's the one in charge here!

I'm from somewhere nice.

Prim Woman. Also the last guest in this bunch. Let's get some more in.

We have so many guests now, I hardly know where to put myself! I had to open up a while new floor of rooms! I'm not complaining, you understand. It's thanks to all your hard work that I'm lucky enough to have so much custom. Thank you!

Nice! Is that all the floors open now?

Actually, I'd say it's a little early to make that statement. I couldn't help but notice some stairs leading down over there that appear to still be blocked off.

Spoilsport.

The next inn upgrade comes at 19 unique guests. It's basically just a copy of the first floor rooms, but this time it's up two sets of stairs instead of one! Exciting.

Come and see me sometime!

This is Temptress.

I'm from somewhere nice. Satisfied?

This one sounds familiar. Ring any bells for anyone?

Hmm... I'd say she sounds just like Solitaire. Wouldn't you agree?

What? We sound nothing alike!

Back to Grumpy Woman! We already saw this as part of the example profile earlier, but it can't hurt to see again.

It's ever so lovely to meet you.

My gingerbread house is in somewhere nice! Hee hee hee!

I'm from somewhere nice.

Kind Old Woman, Witch and Bored Teenager respectively. That's all the speech styles covered! Now to ignore all guest dialogue going forwards.

Another one of these? What's it doing here?

I don't know, but I want to leave. All those women are really creepy...

Yeah, they are, aren't they? Let's go somewhere else and come back later.

Seconded!

We'd be seeing the second floor now, but it wouldn't be much good if we saw it without anyone there, would it?

You know the library upstairs that we were using as a storeroom? Well, I've given it a bit of a makeover. You should take a look.

A library? Can we go there?

We were going anyway.

Next upgrade is at 25 guests. It might not seem like a lot, but you just try finding that many people who have this game, even at release. This thing's a bad mechanic.

Even I'm starting to get creeped out by all these copies. I vote to ignore them from now on.

Seconded! Again!

There's a chest right here in the second floor guest rooms with a shipmate's shirt, a bit of body armour that's a little bit more defensive than even the gooey gear. We won't be using it because it's clearly not something that's fully intended to be obtained this early. It looks nice, though; just like the icon suggests, it's a stripy jumper. It's very much my aesthetic. Additionally, come the next inn upgrade, this chest will get refilled with sturdy slacks, some incredibly good trousers that are way, way ahead of the current power curve.

Over to the right, as on the floor below, there's a new room that just unlocked. It's a library! We'll be coming back when it's populated, once again. In fact, let's do that now.

Is this...carpet? This is new.

Carpeting the whole floor would be awfully expensive. This is all thanks to our publicity work, yes? I would hope that Erinn hands over a cut of her ample profits.

What is it? Is this about the remodelling?

I had a letter from the Sinndicate of Pubs, Inns and Taverns yesterday, and do you know what it said? It said that the Quester's Rest came top in a poll of inns people would most like to revisit!

Wow, that's really impressive! D'you think anyone we talked to was spying for SPIT?

Perhaps that Berkeley fellow? He seemed like he was trying a little too hard to be stereotypical.

They must have told Patty that they don't come to Stornway so they could check the place out without us knowing. And we scored so highly thanks to you and all the work you've put in! Thanks so much!

And a rumour has sprung up that if you throw something in the fountain, you'll end up coming back here to stay again. Obviously, it's great for the inn, so I'm not going to tell people to stop, but would you mind clearing it out now and again? You never know, you might find some really good treasures in there...

Treasures, you say?

I wonder if there'll be anything for alchemy down there...

Oh boy, the fountain. The fountain is home to one of my least favourite mechanics in the game, and it's unlocked by another one of the worst mechanics in the game. A total of 30 guests are needed, which coincidentally matches up with the maximum number that the inn can hold. So that means we're done with bringing in guests! Hooray!

Whoa. That's some big money.

Anyway, back to the library. This chest's nice enough to give up just a little less than our current money. It's a lot! I'm certainly not complaining.

Other than the bit where the inn needs upgrading to even get it. I'm definitely complaining about that.

"You won't get far with these recipes without butterfly wings. Destroy dread admirals to get them."

Recipe books abound in the library. This one tells us about dread daggers, papillon masks and phantom masks. Did you know that papillon masks are required for a quest later? It's true! And you'd never know the recipe without finding this book!

Anyway, dread daggers need a batterfly knife plus a disturbin' turban, plus five butterfly wings. As much as it would be great to have one right now, disturbin' turbans are ages away.

Papillon masks have a recipe that requires a dread dagger, plus a malleable mask and three clumps of narspicious. We can't get any of those for ages, and again, this is a recipe we'll need to follow if we're to do all the quests. Oh, and we'd need a papillon mask, a dark robe and three sprigs of slipweed if we wanted a phantom mask. Obviously we can't make any.

"I thought I had finally gathered all the recipes there were, but I soon realised that was just wishful thinking. It turns out there are lots of combinations without written recipes that can only be discovered by trial and error. I'm sorry, but I can't be bothered. I don't have it in me. It's time I moved on to other things. Sorry, Krak Pot, I'll see you round."

He gave up!? But alchemy's so fascinating!

"Evencloth is essential for these items, and can allegedly be acquired in the desert surrounding Gleeba."

Recipes for dark robes, macabre mantles, gloomy gloves and murky mittens. For a dark robe, we'd need a velvet cape, three bolts of evencloth and three sprigs of slipweed. Of course, the velvet cape is the hardest item to get a hold of, since we need a boat to even think about buying one. Macabre mantles are an upgraded version, and need a dark robe, four wings of bat and three terrible tattoos. The last of those is tricky to get at the best of times, so we'll be waiting even longer.

And now, the gloves. Gloomy gloves are a set of heavy handwear and three bolts of evencloth, so it's another one we don't have the base equipment for. Murky mittens need gloomy gloves, one malicite and three bolts of evencloth. Again, impossible for ages.

"If you come across a piece of cursed equipment, don't have a cow, try alchemising it with some saint's ashes. Before you can say 'cowabunga', you'll have a cracking bit of kit on your hands. And if one lot of saint's ashes doesn't do it, just try three. Perseverance always pays!"

Who's burning all these saints? And what's with all the cows?

"All four fans have their own particular characteristics, but none lacks the potential for performing powerful attacks."

More recipes? Don't mind if I do. This book tells us about killer pillars, Azure Dragon fans, Vermilion Bird fans, White Tiger fans, Black Tortoise fans and wu shoes. That's a lot of fans, all themed after the Chinese Four Symbols. But first, killer pillars: one driller pillar and one mighty armlet are needed. On the other end of the new unlocks, wu shoes need kung fu shoes and two phials of finessence. Both need equipment we can't get yet. Noticing a pattern yet?

Anyway, the fans. Azure Dragon needs a cobra fan, three thunderballs and two dragon scales. Vermilion Bird needs a fowl fan, three lava lumps and a razor-wing boomerang (yes, boomerangs are a thing and nobody can equip them yet). White Tiger needs a feline fan, three ice crystals and a kitty shield. And, finally, Black Tortoise needs a tortoiseshell fan, three clumps of royal soil and a tortoise shell. Wait, what? We can get all the components of that last one? That's ridiculous, nothing here can be made right now! I must be imagining things. All four fans have similar attack power, but they're all different elements.

"Looking for pop socks to start turning into tights? Well, look no further than the Porth Llaffan shop!"

Last set of recipes for today. Red, green and white and transparent varieties of tights are all here, plus chainmail socks for some reason. The first three tight types need pop socks plus four of another item; crimson coral for red tights, emerald moss for green tights and seashells for white tights. Transparent tights are just a combination of all three, and all four of them have different sets of resistances. We can technically get pop socks right now, but that'd be breaking the intended sequence of towns and I'm not doing that.

Chainmail socks need pop socks, two sets of chain mail and two iron nails. Again, we can technically make these, but iron nails are a massive pain to get and are only found in blue chests right now.

Wow, that was a lot of books. I don't think I've ever seen so many in one place.

I doubt anyone would notice if just one or two went missing.

No, please don't do that! We can come back to read them any time, can't we? Please? So there's no need to take any!

Reading them wasn't really my intention.

Oh, I know! I can study them and figure out how to make some money with alchemy! If I do that, will you promise not to steal anything?

I agree to your terms, then.

This is the fountain Erinn said she put in, right?

Looks like it. I wonder where all the water comes from...

And here we are at the final inn reward: the fountain. This place is great! Shame about the hell you have to go through to get here. It's a gathering point, and the items here spawn pretty quickly, but unlike every other gathering point the items here are random. Which stuff you can get here is based on a hidden variable called fountain group which I'll go over in a mechanics update, but for now just know that I hate that variable with every fibre of my being. I got some neat stuff here, though: emerald moss and a thunderball, neither of which we could normally get at this point.

We've helped Erinn out all we can, so what now?

Well, she did mention that new shopkeeper. Sellma, was it? I need somewhere to offload- I mean, it might be nice to do some retail therapy after that traumatising incident earlier.

The one with the sli-

Yes, that one.

I'm here today to tell you all about DQVC, the fantastic shopping service we're now offering. First, you'll need to be able to connect with Nintendo Wi-Fi connection, then it's just a matter of...

Slow down! What even are those things?

Don't bother. It can't be that complicated.

DQVC's simple enough, so I'll explain it instead of Sellma. For a while after this game's release, you could connect to the internet buy talking to Sellma and buy items from her (with in-game money, of course). The items were on a weekly rotation, and occasionally there were special holiday-themed items or even some rare finds like ultimate weapon ingredients. The service was sadly discontinued a while even before Nintendo Wi-Fi shut down, leaving everyone without a way to obtain any of the exclusive items. I'll start putting those in the Collection, but won't actually obtain any.

There's really nothing? How very disappointing.

Maybe they're still setting up.

This is mostly because I couldn't get the thing to work, even when I edited in a product lineup. Oh well. Another thing DQVC does that I actually can show off is that it unlocks extra quests and special inn guests if you connect to it. The quests are all relegated to the post-game, unfortunately, so it'll be a while before we even get to see one.

The guests, however, show up right now and can be visited by taking the lift in the top left of the Quester's Rest ground floor. Royal suites aren't important; they're just a way to stop a guest you like from being pushed out when new guests arrive. New guests will never arrive. Let's go to Prince Princeton's room first, and then the rest in order.

I wonder who this really is. The sign on the door said Prince Princeton, but that sounds like an assumed name if I ever heard one.

Not at all, actually.

Ah, yes. My father asked that I present you with this little offering from our homeland.

O...kay?

I was taught that one should always give a present when paying somebody a visit. So...I've done my duty!

The special guests, in case you weren't already aware, are characters from previous DQ games. Prince Princeton here is one of the party members in DQ2, and in that game his name changed depending on the hero's name. Anyway, the mechanical benefit of having special guests is that they give out equipment. More specifically, the stuff we can get from them is their own outfit!

Well, who could resist the pull of your advertising? Yes, this really is a very fine inn indeed.

As well as the dialogue for when they're giving away their equipment, every guest also has a line that they say every time they're talked to after the first. This is Princeton's.

A little bird told me that today is your birthday, Solitaire. Many happy returns, my lady!

It's nothing much, really. Just a little something to mark the occasion.

Who told you that?

Well, you did write it down for Erinn...

I just wrote down some rubbish! I don't even know when my real birthday is!

As well as just talking to them, there are some more conditions under which special guests will give out more items. One that's shared between all of them is that it has to be your birthday (or, rather, whatever got entered as your birthday in the profile settings, so it's very easy to cheat your way to gear like what I'm doing). Party poppers are a normally DQVC-exclusive item that tries to inflict inaciton on the entire enemy party. They're good, but in limited supply, and there are abilities that duplicate their effects anyway. We'll either get these or birthday cakes (healing items) from the special guests.

Well, this is a surprise. The inn's totally transformed! I think someone deserves a reward!

I've no doubt that the inn's improvements are largely a result of all the effort you've put into attracting guests.

The third (and final) guaranteed condition for gear is a fully upgraded inn. Sadly, unlike birthdays, this one doesn't give anything beyond the piece of gear. Princeton's other equipment can't be obtained yet - his gloves are gotten after a postgame quest, and his shoes are from talking to him as one of the unlockable vocations.

I should like to give you this as a small memento of our encounter. It is the traditional dress of Moonbrooke royalty.

I look forward to many more encounters with you, Solitaire.

Princessa? Another assumed name, no doubt.

Princess Princessa is another party member in DQ2 - in fact, she's the second of two (not including the main character). Just like the prince of Cannock, her name is indeterminate. Also just like the prince of Cannock, she doesn't have much of a personality in her own game. NES limitations meant that party member dialogue wasn't a huge thing.

Greeting:

Thanks to your invitation, I have had the pleasure of staying at this wonderful inn. I am most grateful.

Birthday:

Oh my! It's your birthday today. Allow me to congratulate you, Solitaire. Please, accept this.

A little birthday present from me. May the coming year bring you everything you wish for.

Inn fully upgraded:

It's amazing, Solitaire. The inn has really blossomed. You deserve congratulating. Here.

After all, it's largely thanks to your tireless promotional work that the inn is thriving as it is. Now I've given you an entire set of Moonbrooke royal attire. I hope it serves you well on your travels.

The game's nice enough to say when a special guest's given out all their unique gear. Princessa's only got three pieces, since she has no gloves and her robe covers up any potential leggings she might have. And now, onto the next guest.

It is pleasure to meet, Solitaire. I know! I give present for to remember our encounter, no?

It is same as dress like I use. Very easy for the movement. Perhaps one day we meet again, Solitaire!

We're skipping DQ3, with its lack of fixed characters, and moving on to 4. Alena was the princess (or tsarevna, since everything there is Russian-flavoured) of Zamoksva, and ran away from home to participate in the tournament in the nearby town of Endor. And then everyone in Zamoksva disappeared and she went off to join her game's hero.

Greeting:

Now I travel for to make stronger in preparation of next tournament. Look! I become more stronger every day!

Oh! She sounds a bit like Slasha!

It's the strength thing, right? The accent's a bit different, though.

Birthday:

It is for you the birthday today, Solitaire? Then we must to celebrate!

Happy birthday for you...! ♪ You like the present?

Fully upgraded inn:

This inn becomes strong in an instant! I am impressive! You work very well, Solitaire.

I give gift to best advertiser of best inn! You always are making the big effort for Erinn.

No more gifts from Alena right now, sadly. Solitaire would need to be a Martial Artist to get her leggings, and her shoes are from that same quest that Princeton's gloves require. Next!

I must to bestow you with a gift, Solitaire.

You will observe they are identical with mine. Oy! I am with a little embarrassment.

Kiryl is one of Alena's retainers in DQ4, and mechanically he's a Priest. He's known for casting instant death spells. A lot. And they never work. DQ Heroes (the musou-like game, not Rocket Slime) even made fun of this particular trait, and it was hilarious.

Greeting:

I am residing here because of your attraction. If you are needing assistance, I am for your disposal.

Birthday:

So this is the day of your birth, Solitaire? This is matter for many congratulations.

It is diminutive gift from myself. I wish you much happy returns, Solitaire.

That's...definitely a hat. You must get stuck on doors a lot.

Inn fully upgraded:

It is due to your endeavours why Erinn's inn becomes of such size, Solitaire.

They are congratulatory gift from myself for you. Almighty on high, bestow luck upon your servant, Solitaire!

We'd have to have Solitaire as a Priest to get Kiryl's shoes, sadly. Like Princeton and Alena, we'll be coming back here later. At least we can finish his gear set before the postgame this time.

Perhaps I give you gift, for to represent kindness of people of Zamoksva.

Undoubtedly it is no rival for inn at Zalenagrad, but this Erinn's inn is also very well.

Borya's the second of Alena's retainers, just like he says. He's a Mage, essentially, specialising in ice spells. His story, and Kiryl's, are so tied up with Alena's as to be the same.

Greeting:

I am now travelling for to recuperate myself after trials and tribulations with safeguarding the Tsarevna Alena.

Birthday:

Today is the day of your birth, Solitaire? Then I must to give you a bestowal.

Ugh, is that a fake beard? Why would you give me that?

Now you are with one more year. You must to try to excess your achievements until yesterday, and grow more stronger still.

Characters without headgear will often hand over a copy of their hairstyle. It usually makes anyone who wears it look very silly.

Inn fully upgraded:

This inn becomes very grand. You have worked hardly for bringing clientele, Solitaire. I must to congratulate.

I am impressive with your endeavours, Solitaire. Many extollations!

Received everything:

Hmm. I have bestowed with you much generosity to date. Now I have nothing more for to give.

I can barely understand what you're saying, but okay.

Hey, that's really rude!

Well? Can you understand him?

Just a little... But I'm not saying that to his face!

Arey! Oh no, Solitaire... You will surely be... If you don't quickly... Please, you must be taking this small gift, please!

If I don't what? Stop being so vague!

This robe that I am giving to you now will protect your soul from the bad-bad karma I am reading in my silver tarot cards.

Meena's another character from DQ4, and like Kiryl, she's basically a Priest. That game's got a lot of representation here, hasn't it? It has one of the largest main casts of all the DQ games, so that's probably the reason why. Anyway, Meena's a fortune teller from Laissez Fayre who went with her sister to get revenge for their murdered dad. She's also one of the first characters to meet up with DQ4's hero.

Greeting:

My silver tarot cards were guiding me to this most lovely-lovely lodge.

Birthday:

Waah! Today is for you a day of great fortune. It would not be right if I did not congratulate you.

Happy-happy birthday. My cards are showing me that this age will be a lucky-lucky age for you.

Inn fully upgraded:

I am consulting my silver tarot cards like a travel guide now, and they are teaching me that this is the best lodge in the world.

I am giving you these to thank you for making my stay here so super, please. I am sure they will be bringing you luck.

Sadly we can't get Meena's shoes quite yet. We'd need Solitaire to be one of the unlockable vocations.

EMN · Mon Jul 06, 2020 3:29 pm

Arey! I am forgetting myself! I haven't given you a tip! Er...is this okay?

I don't have any small change now, but it's a pretty-pretty outfit, no?

It's... Well, it's a bit skimpy. You're not cold?

Sometimes you have to make sacrifices for the sake of allure.

Maya is Meena's sister, so basically everything that applies to her plot fits here too. The main difference is that instead of being a Priest fortune teller Maya is a Mage dancer. She's got fire spells as opposed to Borya's ice.

Greeting:

Oof. Nooo. There are no pretty boys and no casino. Oh well, I suppose this lodge is okay for timepass.

Birthday:

Waah! It's your birthday! Congrats! Now, what can I be giving you...? Oh! This. This is for you.

So, spill those beans! How old are you, eh?

Me!? Well...I...er... Y-you'll have to tell me your age, first!

...Hm? How old am I!? Arey! No. I'm not telling!

Inn fully upgraded:

Waah! This lodge is sparkling like a whopping big diamond! It's aces. Here, these are for you...

I feel like a super-superstar celeb now I am staying in a place like this! Thank you, Solitaire!

Hero is a Minstrel:

Oooh, you're a minstrel, no? Let me give you something to help make you shiny-shiny, eh.

Those are my favourite ones. You will be pulling in the crowds left, right and centre with them. Good luck, innit!

They're definitely going to draw attention. I'm not sure if I want that kind, though...

Received everything:

Oof... Now I'm feeling all empty. But if you're liking all the things I gave you, Solitaire, then I'm happy-happy!

Hooray, we've got all the pieces of Maya's outfit! I don't care for it, though. Too skimpy.

I don't like to blow me own trumpet, so I don't, but I've been dealin' in some fairly fine articles lately. What d'ye think?

Now, I don't want no gold fer them, y'understand? 'Tis my way of showin' me admiration fer yer fine hard sell.

Are you selling those? They're very big...so there's a lot of material there...

Are you really thinking of burning that stuff? You can't just do that to a gift!

Torneko is from, you guessed it, DQ4. He's a merchant whose story is all about, well, being a merchant, and in battle he has all sorts of random effects he can use. He also starred in three Mystery Dungeon spin-off games, although only the second one ever got localised (Torneko: The Last Hope). The first of these was actually the first Mystery Dungeon game ever!

Greeting:

I headed over here to Stornway after hearin' all these rumours about a grand inn hereabouts from me tradin' partners.

Birthday:

Janey Mac, if it isn't yer birthday, Solitaire! Congratulations! And here's a little sometin' for ye.

No, no. I'd be a desperate down an' out before I asked ye to pay fer a present! I hope ye find it useful now.

Inn fully upgraded:

I've been sellin' a few things around the inn, like, ye know. 'Tis thanks to you there's so many guests to go at.

I take me hat off to ye, so I do, Solitaire. 'Tis a grand example of bringin' in the customers altogether.

That's all we can do with Torneko for now since, again, we'd need one of the unlockable vocations to get his shoes.

This inn's really quite bonnie. I'm glad I listened tae ye, Solitaire. I'd like tae gie ye this by way o' thanks.

The beds an' the chairs are a wee bit different from the ones at the inn in Strathbaile Burrow, let me tell ye!

Ragnar...? Oh! Healie told me about someone called that! I wonder if they're the same person...

Ragnar's yet another character from DQ4 - the last one, in fact. Yes, the entire original party is here for whatever reason, not counting the hero, with Ragnar being the Warrior of the group. In any case, Ragnar's a soldier from Burland who was sent to find some missing children and discovered a plan to kill the hero. Notably, he was joined by a friendly healslime called Healie who wanted to become a human, and even succeeded later in the game. Somehow.

Greeting:

Ye certainly caused quite a stir wi' yer toutin' o' the inn, Solitaire! Och, ye managed tae get ma attention, anyhoo!

Birthday:

Och, it's yer birthday today, is it, Solitaire?

It's nothin' special, just a wee gift from me. Take it, it's yours.

I've seen this helmet before, but where...? Was it on one of the other guests?

Yeah, you're right! Maybe someone came up here before us.

Inn fully upgraded:

Och, this place is certainly doin' alright for itself, eh? I'd say your efforts hae gone a long way here, Solitaire.

Just by way o' thanks for lettin' me stay here at your lovely inn. It's a wee bit luxurious for the likes o' me, eh?

Ragnar's last piece of gear is another vocation-specific one, this time being Warrior. Once again, not being able to switch vocations, we can't get those shoes.

This place en't bad! Maybe it's 'cos of all that work you're doin' bringin' in the customers. You deserve a reward, eh?

Keep up the good work, eh? I reckon you could turn this place into the best inn in the world if you put your mind to it.

Bianca's our first DQ5 character! She's the hero's childhood friend. She's also one of the marriage options in that game, and the "correct" choice in the original SNES version - the other option, who we'll be seeing later, capped at level 10 and wasn't controllable in battle. That got taken out sharpish for the remakes.

Greeting:

My family used to run an inn when I was little, y'know. So if you ever need any advice, you know where I am!

I think this place is gonna be as successful as it'll ever be, but thanks anyway!

Birthday:

Hey, Solitaire! I heard that it's your birthday today. I got a present for you and everythin'!

I bet you're pretty surprised, eh? Ha!

Not really. You people keep giving me stuff, so one more isn't much of a surprise.

Erinn told me, y'see, so I managed to get it ready for you all secret, like.

Inn fully upgraded:

Blimey! This place looks amazin'! You and Erinn must've bin workin' your socks off!

They're nothin' special, just a little gift from me to recognise all your hard work, that's all.

Bianca's yet another character we won't be done with for a while. We'd need a Mage in the first party slot to get her shoes. It's funny how most of the vocation-specific stuff is shoes, isn't it?

You won't tell Papa I'm here, will you, Solitaire?

It's just a gift. I'm not trying to pay you for keeping my secret or anything. He he he!

I have no idea where he'd be, anyway. And why would I bother to go and look for him?

Nera's the aforementioned other bridal candidate from DQ5. Instead of being the hero's childhood friend like Bianca, she's only met once or twice before the whole marriage thing, and it's very brief. Her father is a very wealthy merchant, so the original benefit to marrying her was that you would get a large amount of money as a tradeoff for her uncontrollability and low level cap. Something something biting social commentary.

Greeting:

I'm being rather daring and taking this trip without telling Papa or my sister Debora anything about it. He he! It's very exciting!

Birthday:

Goodness! It's your birthday today? ...Many happy returns!

It's really quite a coincidence. It's my dog, Bingo's, birthday today as well. He he he.

Inn fully upgraded:

This inn is really lovely. Just the kind of place I like. Perhaps you'll accept this small token of my appreciation?

You've really done a marvellous job of bringing in the customers. Just look! They're swarming all over the place!

This is a private room. We can't see anyone else.

Shoes. Unlockable vocation. Next.

Briscoletti...? Oh! That'd make you Nera's sister.

This inn's nothing special really, is it? Oh yes... I don't need this any more. Get rid of it for me.

That's it, you're dismissed. ...Go on, off you go! You're not very good at this servant business, are you?

What!? I'm not a servant! How dare you!

Perhaps dealing with her will give you a little taste of how we felt before, Solitaire. It doesn't feel good, does it?

Debora's the third and final potential bride in DQ5, added for the DS version. She's more than a little bit abrasive, as you can see, and she's the only physical-oriented character out of her, Nera and Bianca to match up with her attitude.

Greeting:

A girl of my standing deserves only the best service. You must do everything I say, and don't even think of refusing!

Birthday:

I didn't realise servants had birthdays too. It's a little selfish of you, but I suppose you must have your little distractions.

Consider this your lucky day. Receiving a gift from me will probably end up being the highlight of your mundane little life.

Inn fully upgraded:

It's rather cheeky of you, redecorating the place without my permission. Luckily for you, I actually quite like it.

Just a little reward, but don't let it go to your head. Still, you have done rather well for a wimp.

Hey! I bet I'm much braver than you!

Okay, this is a weird one. Highness heels are the only one of these gifts (not including the birthday cakes/party poppers) that can be obtained without meeting any special guests. We'll eventually be able to upgrade high heels into them through alchemy.

Received everything:

I've nothing else to give you, do you hear? You really are pushy for a lowly servant, you know!

We've got all of Debora's equipment now! She's technically the only special guest to have two unique pieces, since the highness heels don't really count. Everyone else has somewhere between three and five.

It is fate that has brought us together, Solitaire. I would like you to have this as little memento of our meeting.

Wear those and remember this encounter. Remember all of the friendships you were fated to have.

Friendships we were fated to have? What rubbish. You can't just stumble into something like that.

Milly's our first DQ6 representative! She's a fortune teller who's the sister of Terry, the protagonist of the first DQ Monsters game. Terry's also in DQ6, although both are considerably older there. Anyway, Milly is a magic-focused character, but with DQ6's vocation system being what it is she can do basically anything in the end.

Greeting:

The Quester's Rest is destined to become the world's leading inn. I'm sure of it.

Birthday:

I'm so happy to be able to share this special day with you, Solitaire. Happy birthday to you! ♪

That's just a little birthday present from me. I hope you enjoy it, and remember how fate brought us together on this day.

Inn fully upgraded:

It's wonderful how the inn has blossomed. You've worked very hard for this, I know, Solitaire.

That's just a small gift in recognition of all the effort you've put into attracting guests to the inn.

That's all Milly's got at the moment. Yet again, we need an unlockable vocation to get one of her other bits of gear, but this time it's her leggings! Her shoes are locked behind that same postgame quest that we've seen these things locked behind before.

So many muscles...

'Ey, this is a right nice inn you've got. I feel I should give you somethin' to say thanks for 'avin' me. 'Ere you go!

Aw, don't make a fuss! It ain't nothin' much. Just somethin' I 'ad on me!

More DQ6? Don't mind if I do. Carver's the first non-hero party member you find in that game, and he is, as he says, a carpenter's son. Well, sort of, anyway; it's actually the dream version of him, who doesn't remember anything about his real past. DQ6's plot is weird. He's very much a Martial Artist-type character, naturally learning attacks like Knuckle Sandwich (which is an unarmed attack in this game).

Greeting:

Crackin' sales pitch you've got! It's the reason I ended up stayin'!

Birthday:

'Ere, it's your birthday, is it? Many 'appy returns, Solitaire!

Aw, keep your 'air on, eh? Ha ha! It's nothin' special, just a little somethin' to mark the occasion, ya see.

Inn fully upgraded:

I ain't never seen an inn this big before. It's got to be the biggest in the world, surely. You deserve a prize!

Yeah, I can see meself tellin' the grandkids some day that I once stayed at the legendary Quester's Rest.

I like Carver quite a lot. He seems like the kind of guy who'd be a good friend. Anyway, once again, we're not done with him; it's an unlockable vocation and that one postgame quest again.

Thanks for introducing me to this inn, Solitaire! Most places I stay are bedbug-ridden dumps. Here, take this.

It's what everyone who's anyone is wearing in Sorceria right now. I wouldn't be caught dead in anything else!

Sorceria? I've never heard of anywhere with that name, nor any of the other places these people have mentioned.

Really? That sounds incredibly suspicious.

The thing is, I don't think any of them are lying. It's all very strange.

Ashlynn's also from DQ6. She really doesn't figure into the story much, but she lives in a very magical city and ends up inheriting the so-called ultimate magic, Magic Burst. Shame about that ability being bad in most of the games it's in. She joins the party because they're the only ones who can see her (don't ask, it's complicated). Also, she's the only human party member in her game who only exists in the dream world.

Greeting:

You know, sometimes a little trip on your own can lead to big things! I'm glad I let you talk me into staying here.

Birthday:

Today's your birthday, isn't it, Solitaire? Happy birthday! I got a present for you.

Lucky thing I ran into you on your birthday, Solitaire! Hope you enjoy it!

Inn fully upgraded:

Wow! This inn was amazing to begin with, but now look at it! This is just crazy!

That's a little present for letting me stay in the greatest inn in the world! It's just magic; there's no other word for it!

Wait a minute. If they're not lying, and they come from somewhere that doesn't exist, maybe they come from another world. Pavo did say that I could go to other worlds, so it's not out of the question...

Other worlds, huh? Maybe there's another version of us out there somewhere!

Heaven forbid we ever see another version of Solitaire. One is more than enough for me.

Hey, watch it!

We'd need to talk to Ashlynn as a Mage to get her last piece of gear (shoes, of course) so we'll be back once that's possible. For now, though, it's time to move away from the DQ6 guests and go on to the DQ7 ones.

Ah, yes. I have a gift for you, Solitaire.

I was torn between the caviar and the lobster, but in the end I settled on this. We each have different tastes, after all.

Wow, this guy's really stuck-up. He's nothing like that other prince.

Kiefer's a friend of the hero in DQ7, and he's always sneaking out of Estard castle and looking for adventure. He's also a bit of an idiot. He's the only temporary party member; he leaves after deciding that he's found a new home with a group of nomads and ends up as the ancestor of one of the later party members (again, don't ask). As well as this, he's the protagonist of DQ Monsters: Caravan Heart, a GBA game that never got localised. It wins the award for most ridiculously named game in the series, though, at least in my opinion.

Greeting:

Please do not let on to the other guests that I am the Prince of Estard. I would prefer that it remains a secret.

Birthday:

... Ahem. Today's my birthday. Every other guest got me a gift.

Really? Today is your birthday? I must apologise. I had no idea. I don't have a present or anything. Unless...

I, I hope you like it!

It's a wig. A wig that looks like your hair. Do you really think I like it?

...What? Well, quite frankly, you shouldn't have sprung the news on me like that!

Inn fully upgraded:

Well, well! All of a sudden the inn has become a palace! This is most exceptional! Well done!

No doubt you had a lot to do with all these improvements? You certainly know how to drum up business.

And that's Kiefer done for now. I'm sure you already know how to get his leggings and shoes - it's the same two conditions we've been able to fulfil thus far.

This inn is shabby, and you're terrible company. I mean, you never say a word! But anyway, you may as well have this.

You should know that I'm not in the habit of giving presents to anyone. So consider yourself lucky.

Never say a word!? You never even let me say anything!

I think that's the only reference to the silent protagonist in the game. Weird. Anyway, Maribel's the mayor's daughter in the DQ7 hero's hometown. She's a bit abrasive, but isn't usually too obnoxious about it. She, along with Kiefer, is in the starting party, and she primarily uses magic while Kiefer has his physical attacks.

Greeting:

I only came here because you were so insistent. I didn't really want to.

Birthday:

Spit it out! If it's your birthday, just say so!

There you go. Happy birthday. I know, it's very moving to get a present from someone like me. Cry if you want.

Inn fully upgraded:

I suppose it was a lot of work for you to build up the inn this much, was it? Hmph. Not bad for you, Solitaire.

You obviously need some sort of reward to keep your spirits up after all the effort you've put in. What's better than shoes?

Received everything:

Don't look at me with that greedy expression on your face! I'm not giving you anything else. You've had enough!

Maribel's another guest who only has three bits of gear. That makes one more that we won't have to come back to later.

Anyway, like I said, it's good to meet you. I, er...brought you this if you want it.

It doesn't really fit me any more, so... I mean, I haven't put on weight or anything, but... Well anyway, you're welcome to it.

You mean your clothes don't fit everyone...? Are all ours magic, then?

Jessica's one of the party members in DQ8. She becomes the heir to the Albert family after her brother is killed by one of the game's villains, Dhoulmagus, and ends up journeying with the hero so that she can get revenge. She's basically a Mage in terms of what she can do in battle, although her physical abilities aren't entirely lacking - her whip skills, especially, are surprisingly strong. Of course, what she's probably most known for is her, er, sex appeal. She's even got a skill that capitalises on it.

Greeting:

Isn't this inn supposed to have been run by a legendary innkeeper or something once? It seems pretty ordinary if you ask me.

Birthday:

Hm? Today's your birthday? Congratulations, Solitaire. I'd better give you a present, hadn't I?

My brother Alistair's birthday was around about now as well. I-I'll have to put something for him on his grave.

Inn fully upgraded:

You must've been working really hard here, Solitaire. The inn's looking great! I brought you this to congratulate you.

It's becoming quite exciting to see how the inn's improving. Good for you, Solitaire!

Received everything:

I've given you all my favourite clothes and things now. Make sure you treat them well!

And now that's Jessica finished with too. I don't think she's all that interesting as a character, but she does have her moments. Now, who's next?

Anyway, will you take these for me?

What's this? Do you need someone to dispose of your evidence?

I'm carrying a bit too much baggage at the moment. I really need to shed some weight. If you don't want them, just throw them away.

O-oh. I suggest you forget I said anything, then, for your own sake.

Angelo is a bit of a charmer, also hailing from DQ8. He's a templar with a very lackadaisical and flirtatious attitude which gets him into trouble a lot, not helped by his half-brother, who hates him, quickly rising in the ranks of the church. He eventually breaks the hero out of prison after the party is suspected of murdering the abbot of the abbey where he lives. Being a member of the church, he's the healer of the party.

Greeting:

So, your friend Patty from the pub... Perhaps you could introduce us? I'm sure she'd find me...irresistible!

Birthday:

Hm? It's your birthday, is it? Lucky you! Let me give you something to mark the occasion, then.

Oh, come now. Why the long face? There are people out there who'd kill to have the Angelo look!

Why? It's hair! Again! Everyone keeps giving me hair and I don't understand why! Is it a custom or something?

I don't think so. Maybe it is where all these people are from, though! That'd explain it.

I know, I know! They might all be bald and only have wigs and clothes on them!

...I need to get that image out of my head now. Thanks a lot, Freddy.

Inn fully upgraded:

I certainly never imagined the Quester's Rest would grow like it has. You're a very capable lady, it seems.

That's a little congratulatory gift from me. You've impressed me, and that's not easy.

Angelo is, as is usual after three gifts, done for now. We'd want Solitaire as a Priest and that postgame quest completed before we get any more from him - his leggings and shoes respectively in this case.

So, anyways... I gotcha this little pressie. It ain't much, I know, but...

Right, I reckon I'm gonna put me feet up, then. Nuffin' like a good night's kip at an inn.

Hey, it's Yangus! He is, as he says, an ex-bandit whose life is saved by the hero of DQ8 and follows him everywhere because of it. While his demeanour is a bit rough, he seems to be a pretty nice guy. He does have a habit of shouting "cor blimey" a lot, though. Did you know he starred in his own game? It's called Young Yangus and was never localised.

Greeting:

Blimey, this place is well snazzy! You was tryin' so 'ard to get us to come an' stay, I thought it was gonna be a bit dodge.

Birthday:

Strike a light! It's yer birthday!? Oh no, I forgot again! I ain't got nuffin' to- 'Ere, 'ang on...

Are you sure that thing's yours to give away? I don't want to be caught with stolen stuff!

No! It ain't knocked off! I've washed me 'ands of all them crim'nal activities. That's a kosher 'at.

Frankly I'm hurt, Freddy. Are you suggesting that you don't appreciate my help in finding those alchemy ingredients??

Well...stealing from monsters is different...

Inn fully upgraded:

Cor blimey! This place looks more like Grandad's castle than an inn! I mean, wivout all them creepers, o' course. Nice one.

I know they ain't much to look at, but I ain't a man o' means. Mum told me never to be mean. So, that's fer all yer 'ard graft.

Wait, you're not a man of means, but your grandad has a castle? I feel like there's a disconnect here.

Guess what? We're not done yet! We need a Thief in the first party slot to get Yangus's gloves and that postgame quest completed to get his shoes.

They have a terrible habit of deserting me. Aaah, never mind... Well, young woman, this is a most splendid establishment indeed.

A little something to reward your good taste. No, no. You can thank me later! I'm too busy to spare an hour or two just now!

Hold on, there's something wrong here too. Who let this goblin in, and why's he saying he's a king? These people are getting weirder and weirder!

Now, now, Solitaire, you shouldn't judge by appearances. Perhaps this fellow really is a king. King of the goblins, perhaps?

It's Trode! He's also from DQ8, but he's the first non-party member character here at the inn. He does stick around the party for the whole game, though, even if he's not playable! He got cursed to look like, well, this, his daughter Medea got cursed to be a horse, and all the other residents of his castle got turned into vines. So, yeah, not much fun for anyone. He and the 'orse-princess, as Yangus calls her, are the main driving forces of DQ8's plot, with the party trying to get them uncursed.

Greeting:

They say this young maid Erinn is even younger than my dear Medea. And with her own inn already! Marvellous!

Birthday:

Your birthday? Splendid! Is there a party? I do love a good party! I could dress up! I- Ahem! I mean, here is your birthday gift...

I always have a marvellous party when my birthday comes around. My dear Medea plays the piano for me, you know.

This is...this is a mask. Of your face. Why are you giving me a mask of your face? The hair was bad enough.

Inn fully upgraded:

What a marvellous job you have done in supporting this young Erinn girl. The inn is vast! A veritable palace!

You're doing a splendid job of attracting guests. Splendid! Yes, you're a fine young lackey indeed. Keep up the good work.

Hahaha! Solitaire got called a lackey! Serves you right!

Received everything:

Good gracious! No, I have no more gifts to give. I've parted with more than enough of my royal regalia already. Treat it with care!

We're done with Trode now, too. Unfortunately, he's the last character we can get all the equipment for at the moment, but on the other hand there are only two more to go!

I no stay here before in my life, but the smell in the air... It is a smell I know well! Si, si... I like it! Mmm, magnifico!

These clotheses, they will make you come alive, ay! Ah ha ha! I looking forward to you wearing them, lady!

Morrie! Morrie is great. Apparently the team deciding which characters were to appear as guests thought so too, because he's here even though he's a pretty minor character in DQ8. He runs the monster arena...and that's really it in the PS2 version of the game. In the 3DS port he got made into a proper party member! ...Albeit an optional one who contributes nothing to the plot. He's all about PASSION and GUSTO and is extremely bombastic. Also there's a slime version of him in some of the spin-off DQ games for some reason.

Greeting:

Ah ha ha! Si, you are good at pulling the guys, ay, lady? You get me here just where you want me!

Ah. I believe he may be referring to me.

Hey, he could mean any of us! Except Freddy. Probably.

I feel so excluded...

Birthday:

Your birthday, ay, lady? Congratulazioni!

This is a part of me for you. Part of my body, and my SOUL! Buono birthday!

Inn fully upgraded:

Ah ha ha! This inn, it is... It is fantastico! It, ah... How do you say it? It knocks your sockses off, ay?

No, that's not how anyone says that.

I believe in you from the start, lady. I say to myself, "Morrie, this ragazza will make this inn the numero uno in the world!"

And that's all of Morrie's stuff for the moment. We'll come back once we've got one of the unlockable vocations and/or finished that postgame quest that's such a common prerequisite. So, who's the very last special guest?

Oh, oui. I 'ave bought zis dress wiz me, but I do not really need it. You will take it for me, Chevalier?

Merci, ma chérie. You 'ave saved me ze trouble of throwing it away.

Iiiiiiiit's... Wait, who is this again? Fleurette is from DQ Swords, a Wii spin-off game that's probably best described as a first-person slasher. I know basically nothing about it! Apparently Fleurette is a Priest-like character who trained to be a nun. She's also the love interest in her game or something, I don't know. I don't think many people cared about DQ Swords.

Greeting:

Oui, zis place is not so bad. I will be able to relax 'ere, I think. Bon.

Birthday:

It is ze day of your birth, non? Bon. It is lucky, because I 'appen to 'ave something good for you.

Zis is ze 'eight of fashion in Avalonia. You should be very 'appy zat you 'ave it.

Well, flowers are definitely more fashionable than a stupid-looking wig, that's for sure. This is probably the best headgear I've seen all day...

Inn fully upgraded:

Oh là là! To make ze inn so big, it must take a lot of work, non? Your feet, zey must be very tired.

It is because of all your 'ard work attracting ze guests zat ze inn is so successful. Well done, Chevalier.

Once again, we can't get everything from Fleurette. Once we've unlocked vocation changing, we'll switch Solitaire to a Priest and come back for her shoes, along with all the others we can do. But for now, we're finally done with special guests!

Is that all of them? Are we finished?

I don't see any more names on the list...

Ugh, finally! Why did I agree to greet all of them?

I'd like to think it was out of the goodness of your heart! But if not, that's fine too.

You know what? I need a rest.

Extra: The Collection

Party popper

Festive feast

Heals for around 400 HP.
Bought on DQVC for 2500G.

Block o' choc

Heals for around 70 HP.
Bought on DQVC for 500G.

Choice chocolate

Heals for around 400 HP.
Bought on DQVC for 3000G.

Basic biscuits

Heals for around 70 HP.
Bought on DQVC for 500G.

Posh biscuits

Heals for around 400 HP.
Bought on DQVC for 3000G.

Christmas cake

Heals for around 400 HP.
Bought on DQVC for 4800G.

Birthday cake

Heals for around 400 HP.

White bouquet

Since it's not obvious, this is a fan.
Style: 32 Nonchalant, 38 Vain, 68 Alluring, 45 Aloof, 35 Naive, 70 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 50000G.

Tip-top topper

Style: 19 Nonchalant, 32 Vain, 16 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 30 Naive, 48 Chic
Can only be worn by male characters.
Bought on DQVC for 20000G.

Proper topper

Style: 19 Nonchalant, 32 Vain, 16 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 30 Naive, 48 Chic
Can only be worn by male characters.
Bought on DQVC for 20000G.

Silken veil

Style: 16 Nonchalant, 15 Vain, 37 Alluring, 27 Aloof, 32 Naive, 34 Chic
Can only be worn by female characters.
Bought on DQVC for 30000G.

Santa's hat

Style: 25 Nonchalant, 19 Vain, 31 Alluring, 22 Aloof, 30 Naive, 18 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 12000G.

Silver specs

Style: 21 Nonchalant, 26 Vain, 15 Alluring, 30 Aloof, 28 Naive, 30 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 5000G.

Sharp shades

Style: 32 Nonchalant, 30 Vain, 13 Alluring, 35 Aloof, 21 Naive, 10 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 8000G.

Monarchic moustache

Style: 12 Nonchalant, 20 Vain, 22 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 8 Naive, 35 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 15000G.

Skull cap

Style: 23 Nonchalant, 13 Vain, -2 Alluring, 22 Aloof, 20 Naive, 15 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 12000G.

Swashbuckler's bonnet

Style: 60 Nonchalant, 31 Vain, 25 Alluring, 35 Aloof, 32 Naive, 28 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 30000G.

Pumpkin head

Style: 27 Nonchalant, 6 Vain, 30 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 21 Naive, 12 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 9000G.

Brown afro

Style: 41 Nonchalant, 31 Vain, 28 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 13 Naive, 14 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 7800G.

Red afro

Style: 41 Nonchalant, 32 Vain, 28 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 13 Naive, 14 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 6000G.

White tuxedo

Style: 38 Nonchalant, 70 Vain, 52 Alluring, 65 Aloof, 40 Naive, 105 Chic
Can only be worn by male characters.
Gives 20% dark resistance.
Bought on DQVC for 50000G.

Wedding dress

Style: 40 Nonchalant, 52 Vain, 88 Alluring, 47 Aloof, 42 Naive, 105 Chic
Can only be worn by female characters.
Gives 20% dark resistance.
Bought on DQVC for 90000G.

Santa suit

Style: 64 Nonchalant, 45 Vain, 78 Alluring, 63 Aloof, 50 Naive, 50 Chic
Can only be worn by male characters.
Gives 20% ice resistance.
Bought on DQVC for 18000G.

Santa's little helper suit

Style: 65 Nonchalant, 48 Vain, 82 Alluring, 60 Aloof, 55 Naive, 52 Chic
Can only be worn by female characters.
Gives 20% ice resistance.
Bought on DQVC for 24000G.

Skeleton suit

Style: 52 Nonchalant, 42 Vain, 38 Alluring, 65 Aloof, 47 Naive, 37 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 15000G.

Captain's coat

Style: 105 Nonchalant, 66 Vain, 44 Alluring, 64 Aloof, 41 Naive, 42 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 35000G.

White tuxedo trousers

Style: 20 Nonchalant, 35 Vain, 21 Alluring, 30 Aloof, 18 Naive, 50 Chic
Can only be worn by male characters.
Bought on DQVC for 15000G.

Santa's slacks

Style: 28 Nonchalant, 22 Vain, 32 Alluring, 18 Aloof, 24 Naive, 20 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 12000G.

Skeletal slacks

Style: 25 Nonchalant, 28 Vain, 19 Alluring, 29 Aloof, 23 Naive, 16 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 10000G.

Pirate pantaloons

Style: 24 Nonchalant, 23 Vain, 20 Alluring, 26 Aloof, 29 Naive, 20 Chic
Bought on DQVC for 28000G.

White wing-tips

Style: 20 Nonchalant, 35 Vain, 22 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 18 Naive, 40 Chic
Can only be worn by male characters.
Bought on DQVC for 20000G.

High-class heels

Style: 20 Nonchalant, 20 Vain, 40 Alluring, 22 Aloof, 20 Naive, 40 Chic
Can only be worn by female characters.
Bought on DQVC for 30000G.

Wedding ring

Style: 25 Nonchalant, 25 Vain, 25 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 25 Naive, 25 Chic
Gives 50% instant death resistance.
Bought on DQVC for 50000G.

EMN · Mon Jul 06, 2020 3:44 pm

Mechanics: Fountain Group

Oh, fountain group. How I loathe thee. Fountain group is a little, seemingly innocuous variable that's generated when a new game is started and that you probably didn't even know existed. There are eight different values it can have, each of which corresponds to a set of items that can show up in the Quester's Rest fountain, and they're generally referred to as Grass, Stone, Sea, Ore, Sand, Flower, Water and Mushroom. You might think that, since it just affects this one thing that you probably won't see, it's not too bad. But that's where you'd be wrong, because it doesn't just affect the fountain, but most of the overworld item spawn points too! More on that later. For now, let's just look at what it does for the fountain.

The first thing of note about the fountain is that the items that spawn there are based not only on your save file's fountain group but on whether you've finished the main story or not. First, let's take a look at what it's possible to get before defeating the final boss. All of them share four items, as well as having four items of their own, and every item has an equal (1/8) chance of showing up.

All: medicinal herb, angel bell, emerald moss, holy water
Grass: flurry feather, ice crystal, superior medicine, softwort
Stone: ice crystal, flurry feather, rockbomb shard, corundum
Sea: evencloth, lava lump, seashell, crimson coral
Ore: lava lump, evencloth, iron nails, iron ore
Sand: royal soil, brighten rock, kitty litter, glass frit
Flower: brighten rock, royal soil, sleeping hibiscus, nectar
Water: thunderball, fresh water, wakerobin, nectar
Mushroom: fresh water, thunderball, belle cap, fisticup

Based on this and the fact that there was a thunderball in the LP save file's fountain, it's safe to assume that we have either a Water or Mushroom fountain group. I'm leaning towards Mushroom based on what I've seen of our gathering points.

In any case, what changes in the postgame? Well, for one thing, six new items get added to the item pool, and every item's chance of spawning gets reduced to 1/16 (except the first two fountain group-exclusive items, they stay at 1/8). The items added are as follows.

All: mini medal, narspicious, resurrock, astral plume
Grass: thinkincense, Yggdrasil leaf
Stone: flintstone, mirrorstone
Sea: mystifying mixture, panacea
Ore: platinum ore, mythril ore
Sand: malicite, saint's ashes
Flower: lunaria, enchanted stone
Water: magic water, sage's elixir
Mushroom: finessence, aggressence

I'd argue that there are some relatively clear winners and losers here in terms of usefulness - some of these are fairly easy to get, and Mushroom got hit hard, with fresh water and thunderballs showing up in Water and the rest being 1/8 drops from monsters in fairly early areas.

Now that the fountain is dealt with, how does fountain group affect gathering points out in the overworld? The answer is, in broad terms, simple: different fountain groups increase the rate at which items spawn and the maximum number of items that will accumulate at a given gathering point. The specifics of this, however, are not so easy to pin down, and the links I have to the information seem to be dead. However, based on the few examples I do have, it looks like items that show up in the fountain have a reduced chance to appear from gathering points, hence our low mushroom spawn rate which I may or may not have mentioned. Other than that, it seems to be really arbitrary which items are affected by each group.

So that's fountain group! You'd be forgiven for thinking it's not too bad, but just wait until you find a gathering point that's negatively affected and that you need for alchemy. The intended workaround is to go to another player's world, since their fountain group will probably be different, but then we run into the problem of not having friends with the game.

EMN · Mon Jul 06, 2020 5:13 pm

Part 23: Vocation, Vocation, Vocation

Music: Pub Polka

Ugh, my head... I can't believe Erinn threw a party for us. What was in that drink last night...?

Have you never drunk alcohol before, Solitaire?

Alcohol? Never heard of that one. There wasn't anything like that on the Observatory.

Oh, you poor, naive soul. I'm surprised you never passed out.

Oh. Is that a common thing?

It happened to Steph and Slasha, didn't it? Take my advice: never get into a drinking competition. I doubt those two will be ready for action any time soon.

That means we're taking Healie and Freddy, then. Hopefully they don't feel as bad as I do right now...

This is the team we'll be going with for the next section of the game. Yes, I know, Freddy's missing an accessory. I'm dumb and didn't notice until much later. Anyway, there isn't too much to comment on here, although the lack of dedicated physical attackers might be a little concerning. It's fine, though, because we've got plenty of healing! Fights might just take a bit longer, and Reona's decent at attacking anyway.

Music: None

While you were gooing off on your adventures, I learned some new spells. I can ooze this one to wake you all up!

Perhaps you could put it to good use and get the others back into shape.

Oh, no, it doesn't do anything for hangoovers.

Healie's all caught up with the rest of the party in terms of levels now, and he got a couple of spells from it. Cock-A-Doodle-Doo cures Sleep party-wide, and Insulate lowers the damage of breath attacks on one target. Neither will be useful in the immediate future, but it's the thought that counts.

Um, please don't wave that wand near me! That light looks really creepy...

His skills also pay dividends, getting him these two nice abilities from investing in wands. Antimagic is our first instance of something that inflicts Fizzle, and we'll be able to do some silly things with it. Sadly it's only single-target, but that'll be just fine for the most part. The MP absorb is neither here nor there, though, and probably won't make any difference.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

So where are we gooing today?

Right, that. There's this island with a temple or something on it, and we're looking for fyggs there. You know, those fruits I told you about?

Yes, I remember those. But how do we get there? There's no way to goo across the ocean!

Oh, really? Watch this, then!

This is Alltrades Abbey, isn't it? It's quite a famous place.

Well, I've never heard of it.

You've never heard of alcohol, Solitaire. The bar for your knowledge has been set extremely low.

Music: Assemble, People

Welcome to Alltrades Abbey! Or at least the outside of it. We'll probably be seeing this screen a lot, so get used to it.

Say, Solitaire, could you try to land us a little closer to the door next time? These stairs are a real killer in heels.

You thought I didn't think of that? I tried, but apparently the spell doesn't work that way!

Now we're here, who don't we ask around? Smeone wil problobly know about the fyggs if you got sent here, Solitaire.

But I'm afraid at the moment we cannot...

But unfortunately, at the moment we are unable to help them...

Aww, they're not letting people change their vocations? But that's why people come here!

You've heard of this place too?

Actually, I have too. Where I come from, there's another one. Or there was, but it disappeared a long time agoo, in slime immemorial.

Why is it just me that doesn't know about this place!?

Alltrades Abbey is actually a recurring location in the series. It's also cropped up in DQ3, 6 and 7, and it's where you can switch vocations in each one. This time is no different, although the mechanics involved aren't quite the same. We'll see what they are...eventually, since the place is closed right now.

I'm dead lucky that I managed to change my vocation before the abbot went missing.

The abbot is missing? We've got to find him!

Coming downstairs isn't really necessary at the moment, but there's some stuff here that I want to get out of the way sooner rather than later. Pretty much everyone down here is lamenting the abbot's disappearance right now in not very interesting ways, so I hope you'll forgive me for skipping over them.

"You need royal soil and iron ore to make steel stuff. Here's a hint: explore around Alltrades."

The first really notable thing down here is recipe books. This first one's probably the more relevant one of the two, and all of them share a recipe: one lump of iron ore, one clump of royal soil, and the corresponding iron equipment. You should be able to work out which iron item corresponds to each steel item. Full plate armour is just steel armour in all but name, by the way. We can actually make all of this once we find the Alltrades shop and the gathering points out on Newid Isle.

"Iron ore and lava lumps are essential for steel-weapon making. Both can be found in the Alltrades area."

Hold on, a steel axe? I don't think I've ever heard of anyone who would use an axe as a weapon.

The second recipe book here is also for steel equipment, but this time it's weapons. This time we'd need one lump of iron ore, one lava lump and an iron item to make one of these. Unfortunately it's a bit difficult to make a few of them at the moment, with iron bars being two towns ahead of us and iron whips being four ahead. The other iron weapons are all available to us right now, at least.

Oh, and about that steel axe, none of the vocations we have at the moment can equip it. I wonder if we'll be getting a new vocation or two soon...

I bet you're the same, aren't you?

Well...if you've got anything for alchemy...

It's a good job I brought my wares with me then, isn't it?

And this is the Alltrades Abbey shop. There's some good stuff here!

Here's what they've got. Consumables are boring and we've seen them all already. The same goes for the weapons; they're all the best of each type from Coffinwell. Iron shields are new and really good; we can upgrade them to steel, and they've got resistance to both fire and ice damage. Buy 'em up and upgrade 'em! Iron helmets and armour are just simple, no-frills helmet and body armour upgrades (although they're a bit limited in terms of which vocations can equip them). White t-shirts aren't new, but robes of serenity are! They've not got great Defence, but they've got some decent magical stats and resist sleep. Plus they can be upgraded to robes of sweet dreams. Iron kneecaps are also not new. The last item on the list, the springtime skirt, is something that we could have got from cupboards all the way back in Stornway, but now we can buy them! They've got a bit of Magical Mending and okay Defence and are female-only. That's it!

We're buying two pairs of iron kneecaps (for Solitaire and Healie), three iron shields (one for everyone but Reona) and a staff of sentencing (for Healie). We'd have got iron armour too, but that stuff's expensive and we don't have enough money. And now, back to the plot.

Hey, what's going on over there?

It looks like there's a big goothering. Let's listen in!

Ar. I's spended what few coins I 'ad to pay for this 'ere trip 'ere. An' now yer sayin' we can't change trades after an' all?

It was tough for an old stick like me to get here, you know. And I did it to fulfil my lifelong dream of becoming a maid. So I'm not budging from this spot until I've got my little frilly dress and a feather duster in my hand!

I can only apologise to you all. Abbot Jack is absent at present. If you could all just wait a little-

'Ow long 'ave you been fobbin' us off with that, eh? We'll still be standin' 'ere next year if we believe your rubbish!

I really am most dreadfully sorry. I implore you to be patient just a while longer.

Great, that didn't help at all. Now what?

Now? We should ask around, I suppose.

You're weird and creepy and I'm leaving now.

Do you suppooze anyone would employ him as a maid if he did become one?

Somehow I doubt it. He's lacking a lot of qualities people expect in a maid. Perhaps he should set his sights on becoming a butler instead?

I'm sure he'll get there eventually if he keeps trying.

Every Dragon Quest game with an Alltrades Abbey has one of these old men who wants to be a maid. It's something of a running joke.

What? No! Why would you just assume that?

Ah, well... If that's not why you're here, may I ask why is the purpose of your visit to the Abbey?

We're looking for this fruit that'd have fallen down here a few weeks ago.

It's shiny, so it'll be really easy to find!

I was just about to say that, you know.

I only wanted to help...

...You're searching for a shining fruit, you say? Well, as it happens, Abbot Jack was given a fruit that might match that description by someone who came for a change of vocation. I think the person in question is still here in the Abbey somewhere. Ask around, and perhaps you'll find something out.

Wait, there's really a fygg here?

I thought we would never find one of these..

This is one of those weird choices where you have to say no to advance the plot. If we'd said yes, we'd just get told that Abbot Jack isn't here.

Also, yes, his name is a pun, you should be expecting that at this point. He's Jack of Alltrades.

But when he returned, he suddenly shouted something and bolted outside.

It was as if... How can I express it...? As if he was filed with some overwhelming power.

Oh no. He was given a fygg, then he had lunch, then he went off acting weird... I'm getting a really bad feeling he ate it.

Oh no! How will we find them all now?

Hold on a minute. These fyggs are divine fruit, are they not? I doubt they would be destroyed so easily.

Even if that's true, I'm still going to punch that abbot. Preferably in the face. Hard.

You'll have to find him first, you know.

Should we check downstairs? Someone might know something! Or not...

Hey, you. Have you seen a shining fruit recently? Apparently that stupid abbot you all like so much brought it down here.

Hm? A shining fruit, you say? Well, I do like to dabble in a few unusual items, but I don't have anything like that. You should ask the maid over there. She's the expert on sweetness, if you know what I mean!

The Abbot had one of them with him when he came in to lunch the other day. He's very partial to his fruit, you know. He likes to have fruit for dessert, so I peeled it and gave it to him after he'd finished his main meal. He told me that he'd been given it by a man who wanted to change his vocation and become a martial artist.

We talked to him, didn't we? Let's goo and see him again.

Yes. Yes, I do.

We're looking for a shining fruit!

Have I seen a shining fruit? Yes, I have, as it happens. I gave a fruit like that to the Abbot. I picked it up on the way over here. I'd heard that the Abbot was crazy about fruit, so I thought it might help things along. I don't know what he did with it after I gave it to him. I saw him talking to the barmaid in the pub, but that's it.

This is just great. Ignorance strikes again! I swear, some of these mortals...

Surely you can't expect anyone to know what a fygg is, Solitaire? They're not exactly commonplace.

It's glowing! You don't just eat glowing things!

I'd eat it...

Did anyone else notice that we have no more looze ends to follow?

Of course I noticed! I guess I'm going to have to search myself. What a pain...

Now we've spoken to both the barmaid and the martial artist, we've activated the arbitrary triggers that will allow us to progress. So now we have to leave.

Great, it's Stella. Look, I'm not in the mood right now, okay?

Ooh, but hang on... I've got the sneaky suspicion one of those fruits you're after was here till not long ago... And something tells me this Abbot Jack character might have gone and made a meal of it.

You don't say!

Please, Solitaire, think about your blood pressure! I don't know if I can heal that!

I reckon you should find that important-looking man again and ask him if he knows anything. And then get after that Abbot!

Hmph. I was going to do that anyway.

Huh? What are we doing?

Oh, right, I keep forgetting you can't see Stella. Just follow me.

I might 'ave to 'ead back to the village and start fishin' again if 'e don't turn up soon.

Hey, you. How did you not see the Abbot leaving? The door's right there? And after he ate my fygg, too!

What? Are you sure? The Abbot left the Abbey after eating the fruit you mentioned?

Yes! Yes, I am! Do you know how important that fruit is? It's incredibly powerful!

I see... It harbours some mysterious power, does it? Well...

Of course! The Tower of Trades! Legend tells that it is where the vocation-changing rite was carried out in days of yore, but now it is overrun with monsters. Under normal circumstances, the Abbot would never have considered venturing into such a dangerous place, but... Well, if you say this fruit may have afforded him magical powers, perhaps his curiosity finally got the better of him. Oh dear! I, I don't like to ask, but there is no one else... Could you possibly go to the tower and bring the Abbot back?

Oh, we'd be happy to! We'll get gooing right away.

Oh, thank you! Before you go, let me teach you the secret way to enter the tower. You must stand at the entrance and take a bow. Just one will suffice. Let me show you how to do it...

Bowing isn't hard, you know. Why do you think I don't know how to do it?

Just humour him. There's no reason not to, and anyway, it's a good way to earn trust.

...Fine.

The Tower of Trades is to the east of Alltrades Abbey. May the Almighty watch over you and guide you to the Abbot!

With that, we're actually done with the fact-finding portion of our adventures around Alltrades Abbey. Yes, this was seriously all there was. It's not exactly a long portion of the game! The only thing we really needed here was the bow party trick. We didn't know how to bow for...reasons. Yes.

Oh dear, these stairs are even worse on the way down! I really hope there's some way to skip this journey.

Oh, I've got a goo idea! We could ooze Solitaire's new spell to fly down there.

It's a good thing I thought of that idea already, then.

Then why don't you act on it?

Sh-shut up!

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

Now that we're back on the overworld, we should probably check out what we can do on Newid Isle. First up, the monsters.

Music: Are You A Loser

More of these? How many types are there?

#047 Bodkin bowyer wrote:
Code: Select all
Humanoid Family
HP: 58         MP: 255
Attack: 58     Defence: 52   Agility: 56
Exp: 112       Gold: 62
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 075 : 075
: 075 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Leather hat (1/32)
Rare Drop: Leather cape (1/64)

These expert archers specialise in troubling travellers with hails of well-aimed arrows.

The brown hoods of the bodkin bowyers mark them out as master marksmen, mightier than mere bodkin fletchers.

This is the last we'll be seeing of bodkin monsters, and they're going out on an...eh. They're deeply average enemies. They've got the usual attacking and fleeing (seriously, not attacking is the exception rather than the rule) and can call for more of themselves because they're obnoxious like that. Thankfully that happens pretty rarely.

Their only other ability is Rain of Pain, wherein they fire four arrows to hit random targets. Each hit does half their normal damage, so it can add up, but their Attack isn't that great to begin with. Their drops aren't anything to write home about, either, so they're kind of just a nothing enemy. Let's move on to something a little more interesting.

Hey, hey, Reona, can you get me that monster's hide, please?

Isn't that a little bit ingoomane?

#050 Badboon wrote:
Code: Select all
Beast Family
HP: 90         MP: 6
Attack: 80     Defence: 64   Agility: 40
Exp: 171       Gold: 69
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 050 : 075
: 075 : 075
: 075 : 100 : 050 : 100

Common Drop: Magic beast hide (1/16)
Rare Drop: Strong medicine (1/32)

Giant apes and lords of the jungle who store up their anger, then attack with full, explosive force.

The one with the loudest War Cry wins the leadership, so every spring the forest comes alive with their cacophonous cries.

Badboons are our requisite big, bulky bruisers, so they've got a good chunk of HP to whittle down and hit relatively hard to boot. They're also our first instance of magic beast hide being a common drop, so stocking up on those is a good idea. Sadly the equipment they make is mostly outdated at this point, but there's still some okay stuff. Oh, and they can flee too.

These brutes remind me of Steph for some reason.

They're almost as good at shouting as she is!

They're fans of using Psyche Up to boost their tension, and War Cry (as their description says) to inflict Inaction. Thank goodness their chances are lower than ours on that front.

They also have a penchant for using this attack, which is just a stronger version of their normal attack. I don't think it's got any interesting properties other than that. Solitaire's defending against this, so it doesn't look that impressive, but that's 20+ damage otherwise. That's a third of Freddy or Healie's HP, and they've got less Defence than Solitaire!

Oh look, it's...er...

Wait, you don't know this one?

Just because I know a few slimes doesn't mean I know all of them, you know.

#001 Slime wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family

HP: 55         MP: 4
Attack: 42     Defence: 48   Agility: 80
Exp: 48        Gold: 16
Elemental resistances
: 125 : 125 : 125 : 125
: 125 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 075 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 000 : 100 : 100
: 000 : 100
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100

Common Drop: Medicinal herb (1/8)
Rare Drop: Slimedrop (1/16)

Common monsters that are found all over the world. Their simple yet lovable form attracts many admirers.

They're unimpressive alone, but if a few of them focus the force of friendship, they can make a miraculous metamorphosis.

Hold on, this can't be right, can it? We left slimes behind back in Angel Falls. Oh well, it's no use worrying about that now, since they're easy targets. Although those stats look a bit more inflated than usual...

There's Splatrick! I can't believe he's here. I thought he lived near Bloomingdale!

What does it matter what its name is or where it's from? It's gonna die just the same!

As it turns out, these slimes are a tiny little bit different than how they were before. They cannot attack, and they cannot run away. All they will do is call more of themselves.

Of course, their numbers aren't why they're threatening. No, it's what happens when three are in the same battle that's the real danger. Sometimes they'll even come in threes at the start of a fight!

W-Wha...? They can't do that! That's cheating! 'Ow am I s'posed to deal wiv that?

#051 Slime stack wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family
HP: 177        MP: 24
Attack: 93     Defence: 68   Agility: 102
Exp: 317       Gold: 137
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 125
: 100 : 200 : 100

Status resistances
: 050 : 050 : 075 : 100
: 050 : 000 : 050 : 050
: 060 : 050
: 075 : 075 : 075 : 075

Common Drop: Slimedop (1/8)
Rare Drop: Slime earrings (1/32)

You'd think three slimes would be better than one, but there's more bickering than battling with these tetchy towers.

Trios of slimes with royal ambitions who banded together to become king slimes, but were too few to do so.

As soon as three show up, the next slime to take its action will combine every slime in the battle into a single slime stack. Note that if for some reason there are more than three slimes in the battle, they won't transform. Yes, it's happened to me, and no, I don't know how. Maybe they just have a low chance of calling a new slime instead of fusing.

Ow ow ow ow ow! That hurt, a lot!

See, I told you it wasn't fair! You can't give these 'orrible fings an inch!

First off, slime stacks hit hard. Really hard. Harder than badboons (again, this is with damage halved). They also have a ridiculous amount of HP to whittle down for a regular enemy at this stage. Thank goodness they can only show up one at a time, then, and can't move on the turn they're formed!

What a relaxing shower! It's a bit - ow! - forceful, though.

This is a shower to you!? 'Ow do you live wiv this disgustin' gunk all over you?

Occasionally slime stacks will do whatever this is - how do they multiply like that, anyway? - and do a little less damage than their normal attack but to everyone. It hurts, obviously, and to make things worse we still have no multi-target healing.

Why...? I thought we...could be goo friends...

See? See!? You can't trust 'em!

They're dangerous enough, in fact, that when I got greedy trying to show off all its abilities, this one killed Healie. Oops. Suffice to say, without a healer, I was in a hurry to get rid of this slime stack.

For completion's sake, though, here's its last ability anyway. It wastes a turn, but on the other hand it's adorable. It's win-win for us!

Music: Assemble, People

Oh, hi, Healie! How was dying?

It was...strange. It wasn't a goo experience at all...

Now we've all died once! Hooray!

What are you, stupid? That's not something to celebrate!

Anyway, now that Healie's back on his feet, it's time to take a look at the other half of the new monsters. I probably should've healed at the inn at this point (5G per person), but it's fine! It's all fine. No close calls at all.

Music: Are You A Loser

This wind is so cold, it's going to wreak havoc on my complexion...

Oh, I know! I can help! Just stand there so I can get a good aim...

You know, on second thoughts I think I'll stick with the cold.

#049 Cyclown wrote:
Code: Select all
Elemental Family
HP: 56         MP: 8
Attack: 52     Defence: 48   Agility: 78
Exp: 108       Gold: 79
Elemental resistances
: 150 : 100 : 050 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 125

Status resistances
: 075 : 050 : 000 : 100
: 075 : 000 : 025 : 050
: 075 : 050
: 075 : 100 : 100 : 075

Common Drop: Glass frit (1/32)
Rare Drop: Agility ring (1/128)

Their whipping whirlwinds slice through enemies and stop wind attacks from working.

They turn heads with their hypnotic hurricanes and tempt people into their wicked world of whirling winds.

To start our second batch off, we've got cyclowns. They're kind of obnoxious, with an 8% evasion rate and the ability to use Psyche Up. They at least have the courtesy to flee if they're hideously outmatched.

They very much like using Wind Sickles, a multi-target but weaker physical attack. On our side it'd do more damage to Elemental family monsters, but that's not important right now. What is important is their drops.

Reona, let me see that! I think it's really rare!

No, you can't. It's my precious!

Huh?

Oh, that's just my little joke.

O-Oh. Okay.

Oh, wow, I didn't expect this to happen. Agility rings are really good and we've covered them before, but to get this while looking for glass frit (an alchemy ingredient) is incredibly nice! I was an idiot and didn't equip it immediately, so we aren't getting the benefits of +20 Agility right away. A shame, that. I also picked up some glass frit after the fact; it's not used in anything we can make right now, but we'll be wanting a lot of it eventually.

Oh! It's-

I don't care! No-one cares!

#048 Slime knight wrote:
Code: Select all
Slime Family
HP: 60         MP: 9
Attack: 62     Defence: 60   Agility: 49
Exp: 127       Gold: 74
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 100 : 100
: 100 : 125 : 100

Status resistances
: 075 : 050 : 100 : 100
: 050 : 075 : 075 : 075
: 060 : 075
: 075 : 075 : 075 : 075

Common Drop: Slimedrop (1/16)
Rare Drop: Iron broadsword (1/128)

An all-out attack is the only way to best these balanced battlers who use Helm Splitter and Heal.

Proud peacekeepers of the slime realm and paragons of chivalry, they protect the powerless and punish oppressors.

Slime knights, being chivalrous, will refuse to flee from a fight, and also put their shields to good use with a 4% block chance.

They like to use Helm Splitter and Heal, and that's really it. They don't seem to try to heal if they're affected by Fizzle, which isn't what I was expecting. Most monsters seem to ignore Fizzle.

Oh, also, occasionally it's implied (or outright stated) that it's the slimes in control rather than the knights riding them. The games never seem to agree on that detail.

...That's just sentient mud. I hate all of this.

#052 Mudraker wrote:
Code: Select all
Elemental Family
HP: 120        MP: 12
Attack: 85     Defence: 50   Agility: 26
Exp: 188       Gold: 86
Elemental resistances
: 100 : 100 : 125 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 125

Status resistances
: 100 : 050 : 000 : 100
: 075 : 100 : 025 : 050
: 025 : 050
: 075 : 100 : 050 : 100

Common Drop: Cowpat (1/16)
Rare Drop: Mystifying mixture (1/128)

These amorphous masses of mud toughen themselves with Kabuff, then set about throwing stones.

The souls of travellers who sink in sludge and become clumps of clay so they can try to slip and slither their slow way home.

Who wanted badboons but with more HP and a way to make themselves bulkier? Nobody? Well, tough. Mudrakers are only found in certain spots on Newid Isle, and they're stronger than basically everything else here (they're technically from the dungeon after Tower of Trades, after all). It's worth it to check out their habitats anyway, though, as we'll soon see.

I've heard that those in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

I dunno about glass houses, but sand is like glass, right? We should build a sandcastle!

Stone's Throw here is probably the thing we want them to do. It's fixed Earth damage and we can get it from Fisticuffs if we ever try out that skill.

And then there's Kabuff, which is what makes them annoying. Suddenly they or any other monsters they come with take a lot longer to take out, which is when they swoop in and start putting the hurt on everyone with their high Attack. Magic's really the best way to deal with them in that case. If we do end up being strong enough and come back, they'll run away on occasion. They also can't be enraged by abilities like Whistle, if you like that strategy (I don't).

Oh, also, Reona hit level 15 and learned Can Opener from investing skill points. It won't see use for quite a while, because there aren't any Machine monsters in the near future that it can do more damage to.

Anyway, that's all the monsters covered that show up on the overworld. There are a few others that can appear alongside what we've seen, like magi from the Quarantomb, but none of them showed up.

Music: Cross the Fields, Cross the Mountains

What's th- Aaaaagh! Hot!

Wow, this is amazing! I'll have to take some for alchemy... _{And some for myself...}

If we venture into the lair of the mudrakers, west of Alltrades Abbey, we can find a lava lump gathering point. This is the main reason to venture into their territory.

There's also an iron ore gathering point over at the southeast corner of the island, which also just so happens to be guarded by mudrakers. I wonder if this is the devs' way of soft-gating steel equipment.

The final point of interest on Newid Isle is this royal soil gathering point over to the south of Alltrades. Now we have all the ingredients for steel, in both weapon and armour flavours! We'll definitely be making some of that at some point.

Solitaire, don't you think it's time to go back and rest? If we keep gooing like this, I think we're all liable to collapse. Besides, I'm almost out of magic!

Me too! I'm worried I won't be able to burn things any more...

I suppose you're right. I couldn't find that tower anyway.

You do know that it's to the east, yes? I assume you were listening.

Of course I was! _{...But I don't know which way that is.}

...I think I'll take the lead for now. First, we should go back and rest. I think we've all had enough of this, especially with all these...slimes wandering around.

Extra: The Collection

This time, let's take a look at the various hats and wigs you can get from the special inn guests.

Cannock helm

Style: 20 Nonchalant, 27 Vain, 21 Alluring, 23 Aloof, 19 Naive, 22 Chic

Moonbrooke hood

Style: 23 Nonchalant, 20 Vain, 26 Alluring, 15 Aloof, 21 Naive, 21 Chic

Ragnar's helm

Style: 18 Nonchalant, 22 Vain, 17 Alluring, 20 Aloof, 16 Naive, 24 Chic

Alena's hat

Style: 26 Nonchalant, 21 Vain, 25 Alluring, 18 Aloof, 22 Naive, 18 Chic

Kiryl's kamilavka

Style: 18 Nonchalant, 20 Vain, 16 Alluring, 19 Aloof, 23 Naive, 22 Chic

Borya's bouffant

Style: 20 Nonchalant, 13 Vain, 10 Alluring, 28 Aloof, 20 Naive, 24 Chic

Torneko's cap

Style: 15 Nonchalant, 9 Vain, 11 Alluring, 6 Aloof, 18 Naive, 10 Chic

Maya's mane

Style: 21 Nonchalant, 17 Vain, 21 Alluring, 15 Aloof, 14 Naive, 17 Chic

Meena's mane

Style: 21 Nonchalant, 17 Vain, 20 Alluring, 15 Aloof, 14 Naive, 18 Chic

Bianca's braid

Style: 23 Nonchalant, 18 Vain, 22 Alluring, 16 Aloof, 20 Naive, 17 Chic

Nera's hair

Style: 15 Nonchalant, 18 Vain, 21 Alluring, 16 Aloof, 14 Naive, 24 Chic

Debora's damasks

Style: 26 Nonchalant, 21 Vain, 18 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 8 Naive, 17 Chic

Carver's hair

Style: 14 Nonchalant, 8 Vain, 2 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 18 Naive, 3 Chic

Milly's hair

Style: 17 Nonchalant, 19 Vain, 19 Alluring, 20 Aloof, 16 Naive, 18 Chic

Ashlynn's hair

Style: 19 Nonchalant, 14 Vain, 21 Alluring, 17 Aloof, 12 Naive, 11 Chic

Kiefer's hair

Style: 15 Nonchalant, 15 Vain, 12 Alluring, 21 Aloof, 11 Naive, 12 Chic

Maribel's hood

Style: 17 Nonchalant, 7 Vain, 20 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 21 Naive, 8 Chic

Trodeface

Style: 18 Nonchalant, 12 Vain, 16 Alluring, 10 Aloof, 15 Naive, 8 Chic

Yangus's titfer

Style: 17 Nonchalant, 13 Vain, 10 Alluring, 11 Aloof, 23 Naive, 2 Chic

Jess's tresses

Style: 21 Nonchalant, 18 Vain, 24 Alluring, 20 Aloof, 13 Naive, 16 Chic

Templar's tresses

Style: 15 Nonchalant, 16 Vain, 14 Alluring, 25 Aloof, 12 Naive, 24 Chic

Morrie's mullet

Style: 13 Nonchalant, 11 Vain, 8 Alluring, 18 Aloof, 10 Naive, 12 Chic

Fleurette's floret

Style: 30 Nonchalant, 22 Vain, 38 Alluring, 35 Aloof, 10 Naive, 19 Chic