Earning our JRPG black belt - Let's Play Legend of Legaia!

Has any RPG ever had this amount of implication/foreshadowing of a possible disaster (in this case, the windmills stopping), and then had it not happen?

Merry Christmas and happy holidays, everyone! I would've posted the update earlier, but my imgur account is acting screwy and won't let me upload or link anything for some reason, so I had to get a Photobucket account. I'll have to use that until I can get things sorted out, but it should work okay. Future self edit: Nope!

Chapter 11: In Which the Party Goes Sightseeing

Today we're going to put off the plot for a bit to explore what we can of the Sebucus Islands. First, though, we'll finish checking out Vidna - don't worry, there's not much left.



♪♪Town Square♪♪

If we take the stairs in this house, they'll lead to the machine room. Let's check it out.



Well it must be if you're standing around in your underwear. Speaking of which, ew...

Almost-nude old guy: Hot water and steam comes shooting up from inside the earth. We use it to power the windmills. The windmills were used to cool things off for the tourists. We also found another use for 'em! As you can see, Vidna will never have to worry about the Mist as long as there's hot spring water.



Well, here we are. The sound of a giant piston is filling the background at the moment, and there are a few chests we can't get to due to the hot water. If we try to go in anyway...



Ruby: No you didn't! You didn't say that! {Ruby is also bright red, if you're wondering.}
Worker: I didn't? Well, it serves you right for not asking. Hmmf.



Here's that giant piston I was talking about.

Well, that's about everything here. Let's head to the shop before leaving.



The armory is right next to the house leading to the machine room. There's a Magic Leaf in a cabinet in the back room if you need one.

Seru-wearing man: There's no Mist in Vidna, so you can wear Seru safely. But, there's really no use for them.
Seru-wearing man: Hey, you guys are wearing nice Seru. Where did you get those? *pause as we begin explaining* Whew! I have had enough...



Here's the Arms Shop selection. It has a new weapon and chest armor for Umber, as well as a full armor upgrade for Blue (who kind of needs at least part of that), but we don't have the money for any of it. We'll be back later, though.



The item shop is near the inn. This stash of Healing Leaves should last us a while.





Once again, the item shop sells all the accessories we've come across so far, as well as a few healing items. We're good, though, so we won't be buying anything.





It's kinda weird seeing a town with, like, more than one house.

Well, that's all for Vidna! What do you say we hit the road?



♪♪Barren Fields of Mist♪♪

Let's start our trip by giving Yuma's Ring to Zalan. We could actually wear it as an accessory (that increases the wearer's max MP by 10%), but I'll go ahead and return it.



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪

Zalan: Did you give my wife and son the letter I asked you to deliver? {Um... about that...}



Zalan: This... This is the ring I gave to Yuma!
*Zalan stands in silence for a moment before shaking his head.*
Zalan: I see. So Yuma is no longer with us. I wish I could have stayed by her side. That's my only regret! *pause* But thank goodness Pepe is safe! Someday, when the Mist is gone, I will go to Vidna! I will go to see Pepe! I know that you can make that day come! {Don't worry, we will.}

*Zalan walks over to a cabinet and takes something out of it.*
Zalan: This is a token of my appreciation. Please take it.



Zalan: I'm just a humble jeweler, but if there's ever anything I can do for you... Please let me know.
*Zalan returns to his desk.*

Thanks, man. I wonder what that crown does...



Ah, so it's like another Mettle Ring. That means we can sell the Ring and still keep its effect!



Holy shit! That solves most of our money problems immediately. Thanks, Zalan! Let's learn a new Art to celebrate.



♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪



Talk to the hand, bitch! (The combination is ← ↑ ↑, for the curious.)



Turns out the Lip Kid's Kiss of Death still causes paralysis, but there'll be new effects a while later... and they won't be very pleasant, if I recall correctly. Edit: Nope, totally misremembering. Kiss of Death only ever causes paralysis. Sorry! ^^;



♪♪Barren Fields of Mist♪♪

Seriously, what the hell are these things? Why are they in seemingly random places in the ground? We can't even examine them, either. A mystery for another time, I guess.



South leads to those ruins we saw earlier... but why not head north?



Hmm... well, the Shadow Gate seems closer, so let's head east first.





Huh... didn't expect the Shadow Gate to look like a circle of Easter Island statues. Let's investigate.



♪♪The Calling of the Relics♪♪

I don't know about you guys, but that theme sure as hell makes me want to dive into ancient myste-



Who-



♪♪An Unpredictable Happening♪♪

*The ninja-looking fellow jumps from where he's standing.*

Damn, dude just jumped thirty feet. This doesn't look good...



Gi Delilas: That Zeto is pretty pitiful to let a bunch of brats like you defeat him!



Ruby: Is this a bad person, like Songi and Zeto?
Gi Delilas: A "bad person"? Oh, brother.



Yeah, so? What's it to you, jackass?

Blue: I'm the leader! Me, Blue!
Gi Delilas: Ah, I knew it. Well, Blue! Let's see how good you are! Fight me one on one!
Ruby: Hey! How come you want to fight just Blue and not me?
Gi Delilas: One-on-one combat is a Delilas family tradition. I'll fight you later.



If you insist. Sure we're only at level 13 at this point, but giving it a shot won't hurt, right?

Blue: Bring it on!
Gi Delilas: Most admirable. Now, prepare yourself!



*Two people with rather ridiculous outfits teleport into the area.*



Shit, where did these two come from?! This is getting bad real fast...

Pink-haired lady: Older Brother! *begins whispering* ...Nivora...Koru...
Gi Delilas: I see. Alright, I'll be right there!
Pink-haired lady: Yes, I see.



*Gi's eye flashes as the music fades.*
Gi Delilas: You want to know our names? Ha, ha! Very well!



♪♪Attack♪♪



Pink-haired lady: I am Lu Delilas! I strike with lightning speed!



Big dude: I am Che Delilas! Brute strength and chaos are what I am about!





Er... do these guys moonlight as a sentai group in their spare time?

Gi Delilas: Blue, I thought we could play together, but now I don't have the time. I'll let you live for now! But next time I see you, I'll have your life!



So apparently we have a group of assassins out to kill us now. Great...



♪♪The Calling of the Relics♪♪

Ruby: Boo-hoo!

Well at least Ruby's taking it in stride.

In any case, we might as well look around while we're here; hopefully the Delilases won't come back to murder us in the meantime.

The statues all say the same thing. We'll have to decipher the code later.



What's the point of this giant stone flower, I wonder? Hmm...

That's about all we can do here for now. Time to go, I guess...





♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪

But not before encountering new enemies, of course. The Gizams aren't too bad besides the occasional Water Column, but the Zenoirs are pretty nasty. It takes almost two turns of everyone attacking to bring one down.



Hooray! We'll have time to have Blue absorb a Zenoir once whenever we come back here.

Alright, time to head west of that sign and see what this "Ratayu" is. While we're on the way there...





Yes, that is a Lip Kid killing a Poisonous Worm and laughing about it. I'll try to get a bonus video recorded of this kind of thing when I can.



♪♪Barren Fields of Mist♪♪

So... I guess this is Ratayu? We'll find out soon enough.





♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪

These are the enemies encountered around this area, and they're all quite formidable. The Wolf is ridiculously fast, and will probably get its turn even before Ruby; the Mad Ogre is like a regular Ogre except harder to kill; and the Demon Fly is, surprisingly, the strongest enemy out of this group.



They sure do give out lots of experience, though.

Time to see what this town's all about.



♪♪Mist Covered Town♪♪

I don't like the look of this place...



*Ruby walks closer to the cliff.*
Ruby: Wow! No, Blue! There's thick smoke coming out! It's too hot! We can't go there!
Umber: *crosses his arms* It's superheated steam! It's too hot to jump over.



Umber: Blue! It's no use. We have to turn back.

Well damn. I guess we'll come back later.

That's about all we can see for now, so I guess Octam is our next destination. Before we go there...

♪♪Town Square♪♪

I upgrade the hell out of Blue and Umber's equipment. Our trek across the Sebucus Islands (as well as selling the Mettle Ring and a Phoenix) allows me to buy everything I need. We don't have much money now, but we should be good for a while.

Now we just need a quick inn stay at Jeremi and we'll be good to go.



...And another possibly prophetic dream while we're at it, I guess.

♪♪Noa's Dreams♪♪

Dear... can you feel it? It's Ruby! I feel Ruby's presence.
*Another light appears.*
Ah, Ruby! I can sense her, too! It's Ruby! My daughter! So warm... Such a pure heart. She's growing up healthily.



*Ruby gets up and notices the light. She looks at them for a second before moving closer.*
Ruby: Who is it? Who's there?
Ruby... Can you hear me? It's me... Your father...
Ruby: My father? Father! Is it you, Father? Is Mother there, too?



Ruby: I... I want to see you, Father! I want to see Mother, too!
And we want to see you. But...
We are trapped in eternal darkness.
All we... can do... is send you... our words... through your pure heart... in your dreams... It pains me... to send you... our words... like this...
*One of the lights fades away.*



*The other light begins flashing faster.*
Mother... wants to see you, too... Ruby... We're... waiting for you...
*The other light begins to fade away as Ruby starts running in its direction.*



Ruby: I'm coming. I'll go to where the deepest Mist is to see you!
*The screen flashes white as the dream fades away.*

Bummer... Hopefully we'll find Hari soon to sort out this dream nonsense.

In any case, onwards to Octam!



♪♪Barren Fields of Mist♪♪

There it is...



♪♪Octam in the Mist♪♪

Umber: Yes, this would appear to be the Octam as was told to me in past dreams.
*Ruby runs off to look at the ruins; Umber turns to Blue and shrugs.*



Ruby: That means Hari is here, right? He's the one who can tell me what my dreams mean!
*Ruby runs to the top of the building.*
Ruby: Hari! *runs over to the other side* So where is Hari? *runs down some stairs* Come out, Hari! I want you to tell me what my dreams mean!



Ruby: But...



♪♪Mist Covered Town♪♪

Umber: Could any ordinary human beings survive here?
Ruby: But I just...
Umber: Ruby, forget about Hari for now! We can look for him when the Mist is gone.
Ruby: You're so mean, Umber! Waa! Waa!



Ruby: Terra! Terra! Tell me, is the Genesis Tree close by?
Terra: I am sorry, Ruby. Unfortunately, I do not sense the presence of a Genesis Tree here.
Ruby: No! It's not fair! Waaa!



Eh, I guess it wouldn't hurt to look around a bit. We might find something that could help us.

Blue: Let's at least look around.
Ruby: *blows a heart at him* Oh, Blue, you're my favorite! So there, Umber! You have to do whatever Blue says.
Umber: Very well, then. But if we don't find anything, Ruby, then... You must forget about Octam and about Hari.
*Ruby glowers in silence.*
Umber: But, Blue, there is something that troubles me. In Mist-covered towns there are always people possessed by Seru. But I detect none here. If we must search the town, let's be very careful.
Ruby: Umber, you talk like such a big shot! Blue, let's look for Hari!

Time to start searching.



Hey, an inn. I wonder what's inside?



I don't see why not.

Tomorrow we launch the plan! Travel light!

...That's it? What the hell does that even mean?

♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪

New enemies! The Mad Mantis isn't so bad as long as you take it out quickly. That Orb, though...







It packs a punch. If you manage to absorb one...



You'll acquire the second healing spell. It's pretty great; I'll demonstrate it later.



Fucking christ, that thing is disturbing, not to mention the fact that it can shoot eye-lasers. Luckily it's pretty slow, so you can Charm it and save it for last.



At least it leaves behind a lot of G!



Killer Bees aren't too bad, though they do block attacks more often than most enemies. There was actually a Hornet enemy in the previous region, but I never ran into one for some reason.



♪♪Mist Covered Town♪♪

Maybe there's something in here...



I'm beginning to wonder what these blue things are; they're in every building, and I can't even examine them. Curious...



Nothing here, either.



Hooray for random houses!

That's the rest of the town; the only building we haven't searched is the one in the center. Let's start with the top floor.



Here's what's in the greenish door. Might as well read it.



Take it from the top, please.

Gate of Shadows
From Octam, island-hop north then head east to reach the ancient ruins, the Gate of Shadows. This site was once a holy place, but for what purpose its ancient owners used it, is unclear. Also unknown is why a site in the mountains would be named after Tohn, god of the Sea. Legend has it you can hear the ocean waves if you press your ear against these massive stones.

Flying Trains
The flying trains are a form of transportation unique to the Sebucus Islands. The most unusual aspect of the airborne rickshaws is undoubtedly their crew's appearance. Wearing Flying Seru, crewmen pull a large gondola along a taut rope suspended in midair. Trains are the only transportation linking the complex Sebucus Islands to Karisto Kingdom.

Octam
Located at the center of the Sebucus Islands, Octam is the 1,000-year-old ancient capital. Recent surveys have detected prehistoric ruins underneath Octam and...
The rest of the pages are missing! They have been torn out!

Rem Shrine
The Rem Shrine in Octam is an eminent shrine dedicated to Rem, the god of time. Rem is said to sleep underground and is worshipped as the creator of the 99 islands in the Sebucus archipelago, and its 33 hot springs and 11 volcanoes. As the reader no doubt knows, legend holds that strange events happen when Rem is angered. Strangely, the Rem Shrine contains a massive stone identical to the one in Gate of Shadows in the east.

That was quite a bit to take in. We'll try to make sense of all that once we see what's behind the red door.



An old train station, huh? Maybe those weird pillars dotted around the islands are connected to the flying trains we read about.

Time to see what's in here.



♪♪Octam in the Mist♪♪







Okay... this is a bit... different.





How far down does this place go, I wonder?



I... don't think it's a coincidence that this room and the Gate of Shadows match almost exactly.









This definitely seems like the code that those Gate of Shadows statues were talking about.



Books? I bet these are the Books of Prophecy that Sashia said were so important. Time for some light reading, I guess.



Why, yes I do.

*The screen darkens.*
To those who walk in the Mist: This is the First Prophecy. Read it well. Be warned! Take heed! The Mist is Death in disguise! The Mist is a cradle of madness! History warns us: The Mist stops time. The Mist brings chaos. When the evil Mist appears from the west horizon, leave everything and run for your lives! The god Rem awaits you all, in the hot depths of the earth. Until the heroes of Ra-Seru defeat the Mist...

Onwards, to book two!



*The screen darkens.*
To those who walk in the Mist: This is the Second Prophecy. Read it well. When reality turns into a nightmare and nightmares bring despair, the god Rem is the last hope. Rem leads humans to the depths of the Earth, and in his bosom destroys the Mist nightmare. But hear this, heroes of Ra-Seru, those who walk through the Mist! Thou must show a sign of being the heroes of Ra-Seru! The path to Rem's bosom is ever steep and hidden in darkness. Gather at the Gate of Shadows! The path to Rem's bosom can be found only there.

Two to go.

*The screen darkens.*
To those who walk in the Mist: This is the Third Prophecy. Read it well. The path to Rem's bosom is at the Gate of Shadows. However, the mouth of the Gate of Shadows is shut. The Gate of Shadows is a stone flower. Only words carved in the Four Faces make the flower bloom. Speak to the Four Faces. Find the words engraved in the Faces and engrave them in thine hearts.

One more book...



*The screen darkens.*
To those who walk in the Mist: This is the Fourth Prophecy. Read it well. The Gate of Shadows is a stone flower. The words of the Four Faces will cause a great flower to bloom. However, for the true Gate born in the flower, seek out the Key. That Key is the Star Pearl, a silent treasure that slumbers deep under the Palace of Rem. The Star Pearl will open the true Gate. Heroes, pass and take the ancient path to Rem's bosom.





Ruby: Blue! Umber! Stairs! There are stairs there now! Wow!
Umber: The secret will be revealed when you read the four books. So this is what the message Hari gave to Sashia meant. That Star Pearl must be at the bottom of the stairs. Blue, let's go down the stairs!

And down we shall go.



I wonder what these stairs are made of to make them look so ornate.

*Suddenly, before I can get a decent shot of the next room...*



♪♪Cara♪♪

Those of you who have played Alundra will notice that this song appears in that game as well, though it's called "Requiem" there. I'm not really sure why it's in this game, too; the only thing I've been able to find is that Contrail apparently worked with Matrix Software at one point, so that might explain it. I don't really know for sure, though, so any information on the subject would be appreciated.

But anyway, on with the cutscene!



Umber: What are you doing here?
Alluring Voice: Ha, ha, ha!
*The owner of the voice steps out of the shadows.*



Mystery Woman: I should be asking you what you're doing here!
*The woman casually tosses her hair, or at least makes the motion; the hair-part of her model doesn't actually move.*



*The group walks forward a bit.*
Ruby: I'm Ruby! This is Blue and Umber!
Umber: Cara! I ask you again! What are you doing here?
Cara: Oh, you make me laugh! I'm doing what you are -- Sneak thieving!
Ruby: Sneak thieving? What's that? {A strange combination of words?}
Umber: It's something bad! It's stealing from people!
Ruby: That's wrong! Sneak thieving is wrong! I hate bad people!
Cara: Ha! Give me a break! Stop talking like a goddie two-shoes! You mean you're going home empty handed, even though everyone ran away and the town is deserted?
Umber: What did you just say? Everyone ran away?



It seems the people we've met lately really love their dramatic poses.

Cara: *turns to look at everyone* They knew the Mist was coming, and took the elevator to an underground shelter to hide.
Ruby: Underground? Shelter? So he's still alive! Hari's still alive! Let's take the elevator and go find him!
Cara: Sorry, kid, but the elevator won't work. It's locked, probably as a safety precaution.
Ruby: Oh, boo hoo!
Cara: Oh, brother. Uh, say... if it's valuables you're after, there are none here! The townspeople must have taken everything with them when they went underground.
*Cara backflips to the door she came out of, for some reason.*



Umber: Wait a minute, Cara! The Star Pearl! Where is it?
Cara: You want that piece of junk? Ha, ha, ha! Well, then, I'll tell you where it is! I palmed the Star Pearl off on a jeweler in... Jeremi, I think. His name was Zalan or something.
Umber: Cara, wait! We still have much to ask you!



*Cara hastily exits as the music fades.*
Umber: *crosses his arms* I don't get it. How can she travel through the Mist at will -- without a Ra-Seru?
♪♪Octam in the Mist♪♪
Ruby: The Star Pearl! Blue, Zalan in Jeremi has the Star Pearl!

Time to head back to Jeremi, I guess. Good thing we have like, four Doors of Wind!





♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪

I at least walk manually out of Octam, so I can get Orb on everyone. Oh, remember when I said it was a great spell?

Because it's a really great spell. Orb heals the entire party, and is much more powerful than Vera (and it even shares Vera's status-healing at higher levels). What might have been a full turn of healing becomes one action, allowing you to get in more attacks! Trust me, this thing is going to help out immensely in the coming battles.



♪♪Mist Covered Town♪♪

Oh, I almost forgot - there's a bar down those stairs, but there isn't anything in it.



♪♪Barren Fields of Mist♪♪

To Jeremi!







Handy. I'm glad these are fairly common item-drops from Curry Devils.



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪

Zalan: What?
Ruby: Do you know about the Star Pearl?
Zalan: !
Umber: Ruby! You can't just ask out of the blue like that!
Zalan: Ha, ha, ha! Yes, Ruby, I know of the Star Pearl. In fact...
*Zalan takes the Star Pearl out of his desk.*
Zalan: Here it is!
Ruby: Wow! Neat! It's the Star Pearl! Can I have it? Please?
Zalan: Of course you may. I have no use for it. Here you are!



Zalan: A shifty looking female thief palmed it off on me. It has no value as a precious gem. I would've never thought something like this would make someone so happy! Thank you so much, everyone. From the bottom of my heart.

Awesome! We have everything we need to open the Gate of Shadows - but we'll do that later. This update's already larger than I thought it would be, anyway. I'll need you guys to hold off a minute on replies, however - there's one more post I need to make, concerning everyone's Arts.

Next time: Opening the Gate of Shadows!

Concerning Arts

Everyone up to this point has learned around seven or eight regular Arts (out of a total of eleven each), and one or two Hyper Arts (out of three). However, there are two more kinds of Arts that I haven't talked about yet - Super and Miracle.

Super Arts are basically a combination of at least three regular Arts that end in a special attack. These require at least seven inputs for the combo and anywhere from 50 to 80 AP, so only Ruby and maybe Blue can use them right now- Umber will have to gain a few more levels. Everyone can learn up to five, but the game won't remember the combination for you - you'll have to write them down (which I'll be doing, so don't worry about it).

Miracle Arts are, essentially, a character's ultimate Art, combining almost every single regular Art into one ridiculously powerful attack. To use a Miracle Art, a character has to have an action gauge that stretches all the way across the screen, and must store up 99 AP beforehand. I think you have to progress to a certain point in the game, too, but I'm not too sure. Don't worry about these; we won't gain access to them for quite a while.

We'll learn all of these eventually, but I want everyone to have all their regular Arts before we start learning Super Arts (due to, admittedly, purely aesthetic reasons). Because of this, I'll reveal the maximum number of inputs for everyone's regular Arts.

Blue - max of 4 inputs per combo
Ruby - max of 6
Umber - max of 5

That's not to say that everyone's remaining Arts only have their max number of inputs (except for Blue, anyway), but I wanted to help you guys out. Hopefully we can start learning Arts quicker, and then we can get to the really fun stuff.

The next update should be ready to go in about an hour or so. In the meantime, have a tiny bonus video I couldn't figure out how to fit in the update.


I hope the sudden drop in replies have been due to the holidays and not a lack of interest or the like! I apologize if it's the latter; I'll do my best to improve for future updates.

I mostly just can't really think of inputs for combos.

I mean, what, Left-Left-High-Left? Has that been done yet? Not sure! But someone should do it.

You're doing good though! I like the premise of the game, I just can't think of much to add to it yet.

My imgur account is magically working again, so I'll be going back to that for image linking. So, without further ado...

Chapter 12: The True Face(s) of Hari

We have a gate to open and the means to do so, so let's get to it. First, though, we'll learn a couple of Arts.



♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles♪♪



First is Spin Combo for Blue, learned by inputting ↑ ↓ → ←. You can't really tell from the screenshot, but it's a roundhouse kick followed by a back-punch - I just used that particular shot because the timing made it look cool.





Next is Sonic Javelin for Ruby, learned by inputting → ↓ →. It's basically a really strong gut-punch. That's all for today; we'll be learning Arts a bit faster than normal, so we can start using Super Arts relatively soon.

Time to head to the Gate of Shadows! We can't warp there with a Door of Wind since it isn't actually a town, so we'll have to hoof it some more. I could just warp to Octam and go from there, but I feel like going there on foot for some reason.

*I'll just go ahead and cut out the walking...*



♪♪The Calling of the Relics♪♪

Right, here we are. Time for some light puzzle-solving.



To visit the past, touch the West Key!



Well, the corresponding statue in Octam said Fire, so we'll go with that.



Three to go.







I hope you wrote down or remembered what was on the statues in Octam - otherwise you'll be stuck here until you go back to the statue room there and check. And yes, that did happen in my first playthrough.

*The music stops and the ground begins shaking.*



Ruby: Blue! Look! It's moving! The stone is moving! This is so exciting!
Umber: What kind of internal mechanism is this?!

*The music starts playing again.*
Ruby: Oh, wow! Look! Blue, look! The big stone flower opened!
*Umber notices the weird blob-thing in the center of the flower.*
Umber: Blue! Look! The center of the stone flower! Some strange thing is moving! That must be the entrance to the path leading to underground Octam.

Only one way to find out...



Know well that the Star Pearl opens the door to the past!



Well it seems to be the only way to move forward, so...

Blue threw the Star Pearl into the bud of the Stone Flower!



This is quite possibly the strangest door-unlocking/opening sequence I've seen in a game. But enough about that; it's time to get going.



And by "get going" I mean "sink into the ground". Totally.



♪♪Voz Forest♪♪

Well, we're definitely underground... let's see how far this tunnel goes.





This cave seems... strange for some reason. I don't know if it's the way the stalagmites curve or the cube-like ground we're walking on, but it's really alien.





The earth changes color the farther down we go. It's really quite pretty for a PS1 game.



You'll want to head right when you get to this intersection. If you do...





You'll receive the Life Ring, which acts the same way as Mei's Pendant (i.e. increasing the wearer's max HP by 10%); this is definitely going on Ruby straightaway.

I remembered the game pretty clearly up to Berserker, now we're getting into territory where my memories are fuzzy. Which is somewhat unusual considering I only ever played the game once, so there's no specific reason for me to remember the first part of the game more clearly.

I do still recall some key things from later on down the road though.

Down and down we go... A good way to prevent yourself from getting lost here is to keep this tidbit in mind - if you suddenly start heading up, you'll find a chest, while heading down means going farther into the dungeon.



♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪

In keeping with the odd feel of the area, the enemies here are freaking weird. Sure, we've already seen these things before in non palette-swapped form, but it's... rather unusual to see a flying puffer fish underground. (Oh, and the Mush Mush can Rot its targets, so it's a good idea to take it out first; the Mad Bird(?) is unchanged from its previous incarnation, except that it hits harder.)



Warmen are... odd. Besides looking like a cross between a sahagin and a xenomorph, their recovery animation is fucking freaky - they just kind of... rise from the ground back to a standing position. Without using their arms or legs at all. They can also use Ultrasound to Curse their targets.



Nova are the second Wind Seru, and are quite a bit more dangerous than Swordies. Besides the Scythe Wind attack (which hurts if you aren't using Spirit or wearing a Tempest Jewel), they also have a fair amount of defense.





Of course, battling a Nova does have its merits, which I'll cover later.



♪♪Voz Forest♪♪

This item raises every one of a character's stats for the duration of the battle it's used in. I think I'll save this for later.



I'm not really sure what this blue stuff is. Glowing rock? Weird-looking water pockets? Something to ponder, I suppose.



Further into the depths we go. Just how far does this tunnel lead...?





I took the best screenshots I could, but these blocks float up and down... for some reason. We can't fall off or anything like that, though, so we'll be fine.







It's a pretty big area, but there's only one side-path (at the very end) so you can't get lost. Weird, but cool nonetheless.



You'll know you're at the end once you reach this intersection. South leads out of here, while northwest is where we came from. Northeast leads to a Shield Elixir, should you want one.

♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪

Holy crap, finally! For some reason Ruby had a much tougher time absorbing a Nova than Blue or Umber did; seriously, they absorbed a Nova the first time they defeated one, whereas this didn't happen till the very end of the dungeon. Still, better late than never, as they say.





♪♪Voz Forest♪♪

In any case, I think we've reached the end. Time to see what's on the other side...



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪



Uh... wow, indeed. Either ten years is a long enough time to build an underground village or this place was made beforehand. Pretty impressive either way.

Umber: Ah, these must be the caverns under Octam.
Ruby: Octam? That means Hari must be here!



It's a definite possiblility, that's for sure.

*Blue nods.*
Ruby: Hooray! Blue, let's go! Let's go find Hari!

Well, Hari did say he'd be here (or something along those lines, anyway). Let's see if we can't get any directions.



This was in a house above the inn. Who are these worker-lookin' dudes, though?

Worker dude: Well!! It's been 10 years since I saw anyone wearing a Seru. Do you know about the flying carts? {Er... I know they exist, but not much else.} You don't? Oh, how depressing! Octam used to be famous for its flying carts.
Worker dude: We flew a direct route to Karisto Kingdom, over mountains and valleys... Ah, if that Mist would clear, I'd take you there in a flying cart! {Hmm... something to keep in mind.}
Worker dude: It's so frustrating! Above us is our dear town of Octam, yet... The town's been dead for over 10 years because of that blasted Mist! I loved that town so much.



The inn is more of an all-purpose shopping area. Probably meant to save space for the town or something like that. I wonder what's for sale?





Damn, that is some nice stuff. Blue can do without the Force Blade since his ATK is already pretty high, but that Ironman Armor's looking pretty nice... But I'll buy that later since it's so expensive. I decide to buy the Jeweled Clip and Olive Shoes for Ruby, and the Fighter's Band and Fighting Boots for Umber. Some item selling also allows us to get the Scarlet Robe for Ruby. We should be good for now.





Here's the item shop selection. It actually has a couple of new accessories - the Madlight, Luminous, and Ebony Jewels help protect against Thunder, Light, and Dark attacks, respectively. We don't need any of those for the moment, so we'll pass. We'll skip out on healing items as well, since they're both a rather common enemy drop and found in plenty of chests.



Yoink!

Hmm... maybe someone in the inn/general store can point us to Hari.

Upstairs
Merchant: Well, hello there! Welcome. Anyone who pays cash is welcome here!
Blond guy: These people are staying here because they lost their homes. {Que? That doesn't sound good...}

Downstairs
Old woman: We've been living in this dark underground place for more than 10 years! I want to see blue skies!
Old man: First I run out of my surface home, now the earthquke destroys my undergound home. {Earthquakes? That must be pretty tough to live through underground.}
Boy: The sky, the clouds, the stars, the rain, night and day, the wind, the sea, the flowers... Mommy and Grandma talk about all these things, but I don't really understand.
Woman: This child was born and raised underground, and doesn't know about all the beautiful things up there.

Well that didn't turn up anything. Time to hit up the rest of town.

East end of town
Woman: I d-don't believe it! It can't be! But it is! Standing right before us -- real human beings! This is wonderful! That must mean the Mist outside is gone! That's why you're here, right? {Uh... sorry, lady, but not exactly.} I knew it. The Mist isn't gone after all. That means we must go on living in fear here. {Geez, talk about mood swings.}
Man: It's been over 10 years since we fled here from the surface of Octam. Everyone is losing hope.
Old woman: Yes, it has been some time since we moved here. I wonder if we'll ever get to see the sun again...
Old man: Stay on guard! When the shaking starts, run for cover! That's the slogan for this week!
Hmm... maybe the west end of town will prove more successful.

*The screen begins shaking and the music stops as Blue takes the path to the west end of town.*





*Several people run out of the house as everyone looks to a building in the south part of town.*

*A young woman, presumably Debora, runs out of the house and trips immediately afterwards.*



*The very ground under Debora's feet begins tipping to the side as the townspeople look on helplessly.*



*Debora stops herself just short of falling and gets up. She begins running to the edge of the platform she is on.*



*Debora backs up a bit to get a running start and jumps.*







♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪



Jesus fuck! How often does this happen?!



Ruby: Oh no! Wow, Blue, did you see that? The whole house collapsed!

This doesn't bode well... Still, there's not much we can do to stop random earthquakes, so we might as well keep looking for Hari. Maybe he's in that big house from the cutscene?







Oh, it's a shelter. Maybe someone here can help us out?

First floor
Woman: Hari looks like a little kid, but he's really older than everyone here. {Really? Interesting...}
Woman: We managed to escape the Mist thanks to the prophecies of Hari.
Boy: Mr. Mayor is always upstairs, on the third floor.
Man: What eerie earthquakes! It's like they're picking off houses one by one! {What? That's... oddly precise for a natural disaster. Weird...}
Man: This used to be the mayor's house, but now it's a shelter for people who lost their homes.
Woman: Things are so bad now... I wish Hari would wake up! {Crap, he's not in a coma, is he?}

Second floor
Old woman: That old woman lost her entire family in a recent earthquake. She hasn't spoken a word since then.
Old woman: *silence* {Uh... whoa.}
Woman: I can't stand this -- we're just waiting to die! If I'm going to die I want to die in the outside world!
Old man: Every time the ground shakes, I get so scared, thinking that this might be the time this place collapses!
Old man: Well, did you youngsters talk to Hari? { I would if I could find the guy...} It's just as well. He's asleep now, and can't talk to anyone.
Old man: There used to be ancient ruins here. But when the Mist covered the outside world, we came here to hide and build new homes.

Third floor
Bed-ridden old man: I'm doing what Hari does -- sleeping! So don't wake me!
Bed-ridden old man: This reality is worse than any nightmare!
Bed-ridden old man: There's no reason to live anymore.



Mayor: The people suffer so much, but I can do nothing. What an incompetent mayor I am! Ha ha! If only Hari would awaken, then we could do something about the situation. This is a dangerous place, so you'd do well to leave here quickly. Ha ha! Between me and you, I may have escaped the Mist so far, but I don't expect to live much longer. {Geez... poor guy's starting to crack.}

Well that didn't turn up much. Time to search elsewhere...



But not before nabbing this.

*Blue walks toward the stairs...



Hm?

*The guard runs upstairs.*





Ack!



Mayor: You don't say! What wonderful news! The town is saved! Ha ha ha! There's no time to waste! We must hurry to Hari at the Palace of Meditation!
*The guard and mayor both leave as Blue gets up.*

It seems we got here at just the right time. Let's see if we can get some directions to this Palace of Meditation.

West end of town
Hunter: Ah, the memories. This is the elevator we all took to get down here when we fled the Mist. That was more than 10 years ago...
Boy: I hate staying inside! There's so many people and there's no room to play!
Boy: Wow! That's cool! Those things on your arms -- are those Seru? {You'd better believe it!} Hey! You're gonna get in trouble! Hari said we should never wear Seru!
Man: The mushroom patches that fed us have been swallowed up by the earth. Soon we'll all starve.
Debora: My home... My dear, sweet home... {Uh... yeah. We'll just leave you to your shock, I guess.}
Some kid named Kina: Hari is awake! I hope he'll give us a prophecy that'll help us save the town!
Man: That's right! I live in this house! Any minute, an earthquake could come with a boom. That's why I'm standing watch.



Sweet! I've been saving these for a rainy day, so we have three of them now. Good to have in an emergency.

Inside that last dude's house
Man: The houses we built with our blood, sweat and tears -- destroyed by the earthquakes!
Woman: Above ground, the Mist! Underground, earthquakes! We don't have anywhere to hide!
Girl: All my friends' homes are gone.



Woman: Please, go into the Palace of Meditation!
Palace guard: Hari will save Octam from danger. That's what we are waiting for.

And of course the only building we haven't checked is the Palace... though it's more of a house, really. Well, nothing for it but to go in and get some answers.



Hmm... a few priestesses, the mayor, and a nun-looking woman with a character model we haven't seen yet. Let's talk to her first.

Nun: The words of Hari are the words of Rem. Listen carefully.
Priestess: I'm worried about Hari. He seems to be hiding his true feelings from us.
Priestess: Hari seems to have been awakened by your arrival here.
Priestess: Welcome! Hari is waiting for you!
Mayor: How deplorable! Hari won't even talk to me, the mayor! He says he wishes to speak only to you outsiders. How rejected I feel!



One last treasure before heading downstairs. I don't know if I've covered the Life Water already, but it raises a character's maximum HP by 16 points. Yeah, it's going on Ruby.



Well, here we are, but... where's Hari? All I see are a few babies. Unless...

Nun: The 3 Haris are, from the left, teller of the past, of the present and of the future. You may listen to any of the 3 Haris.
Priestess: Hari will remain awake only for a short time.

We found him, but... well, I don't think any of you were expecting Hari to be three babies.



Three talking babies that can also levitate. Yeah... moving on!



I guess... I'm not really sure what to expect from this, though. Maybe Hari knows the origins of the Mist?

*Blue nods.*



♪♪Noa's Dreams♪♪

Hari: The interrelation among the Mist, Seru and Ra-Seru is part of the inevitability of time. Beyond the human world in which we live is the home of the Seru, the Seru-kai. All Seru in the human world are born of the Seru-kai. Human world and Seru-kai are indivisible, but the two worlds were destined to remain apart. However, an unfortunate accident allowed the Seru to enter the human world. Humankind learned of the Seru's power and built civilization.



Hari: At the heart of the Mist is a demon! Even through Rem's eyes its true nature is unclear. This demon, neither human nor Seru, used the Mist to destroy the world! It is no coincidence that you have been chosen by the Ra-Seru! Fight with all your strength! The power of the Genesis Trees is with you!



Uh... I think we got the gist of it, yeah. Frankly I'm still weirded out a bit by your appearance, but I'll get over it.

*Blue nods. The background fades in, with the camera focused on Hari floating above his cradle. He blinks, and his eyes turn from blue to brown.*



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪

*The Hari of the past closes his eyes and goes back to sleep as his body returns to its cradle.*

Well that was enlightening. And a little strange. Moving on...

Lay it on me.

*Blue nods.*



♪♪Noa's Dreams♪♪

Hari: They are now tenaciously pursuing us -- who have barely survived the Mist's attack. They are now raising an army to kill legions or turn them into Seru monsters! Deep below Octam, at the bottom of the Fire Path, are their henchmen! Blue, Ruby, Umber! Use the powers of your holy Seru to destroy the demon's henchmen! That is the only way to save this town from danger! The only way to save the world from imminent annihilation is to save each individual life! Fight with all your strength! The power of the Genesis Trees is with you!



I believe we're good, yes.

*Blue nods. The background fades in, with the camera focused on Hari floating above his cradle. He blinks, and his eyes turn from green to brown.*



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪

*The Hari of the present closes his eyes and goes back to sleep as his body returns to its cradle.*

Okay, one more to go.





Aw yeah, we're about to get some mad foreshadowing up in here.

*Blue nods.*



♪♪Noa's Dreams♪♪

Hari: Even with the divine powers of Rem it is not possible to see into the future. I can tell you this only. Listen well. Blue, a horrible tragedy will shatter your hopes. Ruby, your parents are still alive! They are in Conkram, in Karisto Kingdom!



Hari: Yes. If you go to Conkram, Ruby, you will see your parents! But beware! Seeing them will disturb you greatly. And you, Umber! In Songi you will find a nightmare awaiting. Remember -- Songi is your shadow, your alter ego. Viewed as part of the flow of time, tragedy and salvation are two sides of the same coin. You yourselves may pull the trigger and cause nightmares to happen.



Hari: Fight with all your strength! The power of the Genesis Trees is with you!



Indeed we did.

*Blue nods. The background fades in, with the camera focused on Hari floating above his cradle. He blinks, and his eyes turn from red to brown.*



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪

*The Hari of the future closes his eyes and goes back to sleep as his body returns to its cradle.*





Okay, that was kind of a lot of information to take in. Let's try and simplify it a bit. (Feel free to skip the quote box if you were able to piece things together yourself.)

Well that certainly cleared things up a bit. Seems like our next course of action should be to head to the Fire Path. Sounds good - but first...



Such a peaceful look on his face when he sleeps!

Even prophets snore every once in a while.

*The party attempts to leave the Palace, but the mayor blocks their way...*

Mayor: The Fire Path of which Hari spoke is a tunnel to the northwest of the town. {Wait, were you eavesdropping? Dude, creepy.} I told the guards there to let you pass. Well then, I must be going. Ha ha!

Right... we'll be heading to the Fire Path next time, and face one of this game's more infamous bosses (and one of my personal favorites). We've almost learned everyone's regular Arts, so if you have any combo ideas, now would be the time to submit them. See you guys next time!

Next time: The Fire Path.

Hey, everyone! I don't really have an excuse for why I've waited so long to update - I've just been lazy!



I'm waiting on the boss video to finish uploading, so while I do that I'll use this post to catch up on replies.

That's actually what I like the most about the bosses you fight in this game - they aren't around for long most of the time, so they're memorable in entirely different ways. Caruban? The monster that killed Terra's wolf form. Zeto? The guy that got Blue started on his quest in the first place. Songi? Crazy fucker that attacked Byron Monastery and has an amazing boss theme. Berserker? Well... we've already covered that. The upcoming boss in the next update is no different, but I'll go over that in more detail at the appropriate time.

Yeah, you have to play this game's boss fights kind of defensively. It's not very buff-intensive except for certain parts we haven't reached, but you have to learn when to back off and when to go on the offensive. I find the measured pace of bosses to be a nice contrast to the all-out nature of most regular encounters, when you'll often be throwing Art combos together to see what kind of cool shit you can pull off.

Er... I admit I'm kind of confused, here. You're not implying anything, are you? *nudge nudge* *wink wink*

Not to my knowledge.

You don't have to post any potential inputs if you don't want to. I mostly decided to let you guys do that to give you some participation beyond naming our party. I'm perfectly fine if we go a few (or more) updates without any suggestions.

I'm glad to hear it. It's not often you get to show off your favorite game ever to a bunch of pseudo-strangers on the internet, you know? I want to do the best possible job I can do, so if you can think of any suggestions to improve the LP, let me know! That goes for the rest of you, too.

Oh, I dunno, Berserker's a pretty specific reason.

I have a feeling I know what at least some of those things are. There are quite a few important events sticking out in my mind at the moment, one of which happens after this update.

Alright, the boss video is finished processing. Let's get this shit rockin'!

Chapter 13: The Fire Path

We'll need to stay at the inn to heal ourselves before heading to the Fire Path, so let's-



Oh, shit.



♪♪An Unpredictable Happening♪♪

*The guard knocks down the woman in his haste to get away. The party runs over to help her.*





Crap!

*Blue begins running into the Palace, but Umber stands in his way. A priestess runs out in a panic.*





*The view switches to the basement of the Palace.*



*The priestess and nun nod to each other and begin praying. The view switches back outside as the ground the Palace is on begins sinking.*









The earth opened up and swallowd Hari...



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪

Shit... I guess whoever's behind the earthquakes finally found Hari. What are we suppo-







Hey, he's alive! Er, they're alive. I mean... if being glowing balls of light counts as being alive.

You must not forget the mission
with which you have been entrusted!
The Hari of the Present ordered you
to first head to the Fire Path.
Destroy the henchmen of the Mist
who have brought calamity to
Octam.
That will open the door
to a new future for you.
The three faces of Rem
are watching over you.



*The lights float towards the surface.*
Ruby: Blue... Is Hari... is he...



It's... hard to say. Can he be called "alive" if he doesn't have a physical body? Wherever he went, I don't think we'll be able to follow Hari for a long time.

Blue: I think he may be gone after all.
*Blue bows his head in silence.*
Ruby: Boo hoo! Now I'll never get to talk to Hari again! I'll never get to ask him anything again!
Umber: Before he died Hari told us to save Octam, right? Ruby! You can feel sad later! But now we have to do what Hari instructed! That's the best way to respect his memory!



Absolutely. This isn't the time to mourn - there's a town to save, and right now we're the only ones who can do it.

Blue: Yes, you're right...
Ruby: Yeah, you're right! The Fire Path! That's where Hari said the Mist's henchmen are!



That's the spirit! We'll find who's responsible and kick their asses! But first we'll have a talk with the people of Octam to see what they have to say about all this. I'll cut out any repeated conversations.

Near where the Palace stood
Woman: Hari was swallowed up by the earth along with the Palace of Meditation!
Guard: When the earthquake came, I was too scared to move. I stood there and let Hari die!
Priestess: You are our only hope. Please defeat the monster of the Fire Path as quickly as you can!
Nun: The entrance to the Fire Path lies northwest of the town. Good luck.
Priestess: The monster of the Fire Path is Hari's sworn enemy. Please destroy it!
Guard: It's too bad about Hari. You're our only hope now. Please, go ahead.

In the shelter
Woman: Hari is dead. Our hopes died with him. {Hey, don't talk like that - we're still around, after all.}
Old man: I see. Before he died, Hari entrusted you with our future.
Bed-ridden old man: I'm doing what Hari does -- waiting to go to the next world. So don't bother me!
Mayor: Ha ha ha! I told the guard at the entrance to the Fire Path to let you through. Thick Mist flows through the Fire Path! Be very careful! I'm sorry. Ha ha! Hari is dead. This is what you'd call a bitter smile at our hopelessness! It's all over! We're finished! Done for! Ha ha ha! {Not if we have anything to say about it.}

Walking around town
Kina: Oh no! Hari died in the earthquake!
Woman: Now Hari is dead! All hope is lost!
Guard: It's too bad about Hari. You're our only hope now. Please, go ahead.

Well, that's everybody.



We won't stay here quite yet - there's a few things to show first.



♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪





First I'll teach Umber Black Rain, learned by inputting ↑ ← ↓ ↓. This is his last four-part regular Art, by the way; the remaining three Arts for him to learn each have five arrows.





This is Pyro Pummel, learned by inputting → ← ↑ ←. Blue only has two regular Arts left now, each of them four arrows long.

Finally, we have Nova.

As you can see here, Nova deals massive damage, especially if Ruby uses it - we could probably one-shot every non-boss enemy we've run into at this point. The only problem is that Nova is really expensive to cast (at 48 MP). We'll have to wait a while to use it with any regularity, but it wouldn't hurt to use in a desperate situation.



Also, apparently Mad Birds can do this. I never knew this!



♪♪The Light of the Town♪♪

Right, enough dicking around. Let's do this!



♪♪The Fire Path♪♪

This first area is quite short...







But it soon gives way to a larger path. The Mist isn't in these first few areas, so the encounter rate isn't as bad as it could be.



Sweet! That wasn't exactly difficult to find, either.



Damn... I wonder whose house this was?

The path branches here. Let's try east first.



Ooh, sweet, a-

*The screen begins shaking.*



♪♪An Unpredictable Happening♪♪



Umber: This is bad, Blue. That pillar is holding up the town of Octam!
*The screen briefly shakes again.*
Ruby: No! I don't want to see anything sad happen anymore!
Umber: Ruby's right! Let's hurry down there! If we hurry, it might not be too late!

Guess we better hurry, then. (The chest had a Healing Bloom, by the way.) But I wonder what lies south at that intersection?



♪♪The Fire Path♪♪

Ah, cool. I'll save this for later, or possibly sell it. Either way would be fine, really.

While I'm here, let's go over the new enemies.



♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles♪♪

Warmen and Mush Mushes are the only non-Seru holdovers from the path to Octam, but they do appear in slightly larger numbers. The Gel Frog, meanwhile, is basically a stronger version of the Frogs from around Biron Monastery.



The Stone Lizard is pretty tough - it has the most health of the enemies here, and it likes to spend its turn whacking you for large chunks of damage. Luckily, it's really slow, so you could either Charm it or have everyone gang up on the thing before it could act.



♪♪The Fire Path♪♪

Moving on...





Ah crap, the Mist. We'd best stay on our toes.



♪♪Brand of the Holy Knuckles (Ver. 2)♪♪

It's at this point that we start running into Novas again. If one of your party members has yet to absorb one, now would be the time (we're good, though).



♪♪The Fire Path♪♪

Hmm, another branching path. I wonder what's in here?



Awesome.



Hm... east is where we came from, so... south, I guess? (The item inside the pillar is a Healing Bloom, but you have to enter from the left to get to it.)



Well don't I feel smart. West it is!

A save point, huh? We must be close!



Just a short, encounter-free path north, then back around east and south...



Uh... well, I guess it's called the Fire Path for a reason.

Umber: Blue, no good... The lava is blocking our way. We can't go any further.
*Ruby spots a nearby rock and examines it.*
Ruby: Blue, we can use this! We can climb this and get across!
*Ruby jumps on the rock to demonstrate. Somehow, it starts sailing away.*



*Ruby turns around, and the rock starts coming back to shore.*



*Ruby jumps from the rock, nearly knocking Blue over in the process.*
Umber: Blue, it looks like there's no other way.
Ruby: Blue, what are you waiting for? Hurry! Let's go!

Well, you heard the lady.



Retarded? A bit.



Awesome? Hells yeah.



Ooh, loot!



Sweet. Onward, on the magical lava-rock!



The hell kind of a question is that? Of course we want to go on.



I guess this is the end of the line. Time to find out who's behind all this.



*The centaur-creature stamps its hooves a bit, then charges at the pillar in front of it.*



*The centaur runs back to its starting position, while Blue jumps over near the pillar.*



Dohati? Who the hell is that?

*Xain begins readying to charge again.*

Well, if he won't listen to reason, we'll just have to block his way.



Um... this thing is pretty huge for a centaur.

Xain: We can talk after I push over this stone pillar and kill everyone above us!
*Xain once more begins readying another charge.*

Damn it, this isn't working. Let's try blocking his way again.

*Xain turns to face Blue, and shakes his head in surprise.*
Xain: Hey, those Seru on your arms... Those...
*Xain actually steps back a bit.*
Xain: Those are... Ra-Seru, aren't they?



Dude, you're trying to wipe out an entire town of innocent people because some guy we don't even know told you to. Does that not answer your question?

*Blue assumes a fighting stance in response.*
Xain: Alright, alright! I'll fight you! All three of you, come at me at once!





Boss Battle 5: Xain
♪♪Attack♪♪

Alright, we've got a tough battle ahead of us. Xain has around 9,000 or so HP (compared to Berserker's 6,800), and several nasty attacks.



This is the signal that he'll use his most powerful attack on the following turn. You, uh... you'll want to use Spirit, trust me.









Terio Punch is easily his most dangerous attack, and it's one he'll spam the hell out of. Luckily you're given a clear warning to use Spirit; otherwise you'd be pretty fucked.





It's really important to use Orb the turn after a Terio Punch, to keep your health up; Xain's other attacks, while used less often, are just as deadly.





Case in point - Xain's non-special attack, a.k.a. punching the shit out of you, can easily deal almost 800 points of damage if his target isn't using Spirit. Hell, if you aren't at full health, a Xain punch-combo could outright kill whoever he's attacking, Umber included.



I fucked up here, because I was counting on Umber to use Orb before Xain could get in an attack. Don't be fooled; Xain is deceptively speedy, and about the only time you'll get a full turn before him is when he's charging a Terio Punch.



Paradoxically, Terio Punch has actually become a good thing; we know exactly when to block to suffer a minimal amount of damage (to the tune of 350 or so), and we can plan when to heal.

This is Xain's final special attack, and it's almost (but not quite) as damaging as a punch-combo. Speaking of punch-combos, sometimes Xain will kick you with his front hooves instead of punching you; it deals about as much as a blocked Terio Punch even if you aren't using Spirit, making it his least damaging attack.



We've almost got him! Don't go all-out, however; Xain can and will fuck you up if you don't take this fight carefully. Remain patient, wait for the right opportunity to pile on the damage, and above all, use Orb. Seriously, you guys, Orb is such a great spell.



Speaking of which, don't be surprised if this happens. I'm using Ruby as my main healer for this fight because she's still the fastest character in the party, and rapid healing is essential.





Goddamn, Umber is the man. That's, what, four bosses in a row he's finished off now?



♪♪The Fire Path♪♪

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you kick a centaur's ass.



Wait, what's that?



Xain: I've lost my host body... Now I'm going to die... I bet you're happy! You're as happy as can be over defeating me, aren't you! I can't stand it! Just looking at your face makes the anger swell up in me! I'm going to use what strength I have left to bother you! Now watch with your own eyes and see what will happen because you defeated me! Watch in vexation! Ha ha ha!



Uh, this doesn't look good.







*A crackling sound is heard as the screen flashes white.*