You promised me a pony... with missiles... Let's Play Iji

My breath, it is bated. Look how I wait with it.

Kalir, you are a weird person.

Of course there are heavy Komato forces. At this point, we have every non-secret weapon in the game. Bring it the hell on.



Psh, Health is for cowards and pacifists.



Right off the bat, Troopers. At first, I consider fighting them on equal footing with the Hyper Pulse.



But nah, I have a Plasma cannon. Also, you don't technically NEED 8 Strength to go through here.



Just ask those friendly Komato off to the right to help you open up the top entrance!



Down here is a small sub-area with a single logbook, a bunch of ammo, and a bunch of Komato.



The actual way to progress is over here. Now, there's that ledge off to the right, which we can't actually get to by jumping. The ceiling's too low. But if we use the knockback from the nuke...



Hooray!



It sure was. Let's do something new instead.



That spider-walker thing is a Komato Beast. Believe it or not, this is the equivalent of the Tasen Scout: Komato soldiers who reacted badly to the combat drugs, or who were rendered unfit for general combat some other way. They're given Protoss Dragoon style exoskeletons, which give them unmatched speed and agility among the Komato forces, able to outrun Iji and send anyone they hit flying with their massive claws. However, they are very weak, only having one health point, although they do explode when killed. Mostly these guys are dangerous to pacifist Iji more so than violent Iji, since they represent a hazard that's easily killed.



Wow, I forgot that I have only 3 Health. Maybe Dan was right!

...Nah. I just nuke everything down there with impunity.



From here on out, Tasen forces, as well as active skirmishes, become less and less common. If you have it, the Splintergun is an effective and cheap way to dispose of them.



This side room is guarded by like five Soldiers, all standing next to two explosive barrels. Try to kill as many as you can in one shot for no prize whatsoever!



This place isn't just an armory in name only, mind you.



I mean, yes, the next armor upgrade, putting Iji at least on par with Komato armor, is here, but there's so much Nano and ammo here! Really generous, actually.

Not to mention one of each Cyborg station and a Nanoweapon station.



As for the lift itself: check out that view! Also, night has now fallen over the Sectors. It's a neat touch, especially if you recall the sunset in Sector 3.



And now we're aboard the ship: the Phantom Reaver.



The doors are all locked, but this teleporter is not.



This Berserker isn't even trying to reflect rockets at all!

Actually, that's something else that changes on higher difficulties. Enemies that can dodge or reflect projectiles have an increased chance to do so. On Extreme, I think it's like a 75% chance or so, assuming you're shooting from the front.



A neat quirk about the ship: the doors and their security levels are all denoted in the ternary system used by the Komato (and the Tasen). You can even see that system in the cracking interface!



As mentioned earlier, the sliders either represent 0, 1 (seen here) or 2. Once you hit 3, you add a second slider at 1, and that slider's value is multiplied by 3. Takes a while to get the hang of it, but it's a suitably "alien" numerical system.



Yeah, uh, Beasts really don't pose a threat to us.



We need to get more security clearance around here.



In this area, you can either go up top, stealthing your way around the Troopers and Beast down here, or just plow through them.



Either way, level 2 security clearance is at the end.



Behold, the easiest Assassin in the game to ambush!



However, Assassins are far more alert than most, and will not only immediately catch on if you crack them, but won't even bother trying their Plasma cannons.



Just below that is the level 3 security clearance.



Aside from opening the way forward, it also lets us get to a CFIS and more ammo. I'm trying to save my ammo this Sector, for reasons that will become clear later.

The path down is sealed off, but the terminal to unlock it is



just up here. However, don't get sidetracked, because there's a secret up here too!



As we learned in Sector 3, the Hyper pulse can destroy Shield doors at a distance. And as I demonstrated earlier in this Sector, the knockback from the Nuke is helpful in clearing low-ceiling jumps once you've gotten more Jump upgrades.



It's like rocketjumping, except it actually doesn't injure you. Wacky!



Not recommended for pacifists though, for obvious reasons.



"These advertisements of the Sentinels are pretty weird. I mean, they're built for and owned by the Imperial Army, it's not like you could buy one. The posters do look inspirational though."

Sentinels? Are those another brand of cyborg?



It's round! And it has Plasma! I bet Samus has a poster of this in her ship.



Anyhow, down we go. Lots of interesting things here, but one thing that interests me most is that logbook.



No sense trying to ambush the Assassin from behind, the Trooper will spot us and alert them. Let's just go with a direct assault.



With our Attack as is, it only takes a single shot of the Plasma cannon to drop the Assassin, and we can even do so before they react to seeing Iji, which is always fun. This area, by the by, is a great place for the Nanoreflex Overload, but we got Nanospark again. There's only two more "high" Nano Overloads, and I do hope I get both, because they're fun and impressive.



"Hey Tieropay, I finally figured out how the Berserkers can keep their damn cool when hit by a rocket - they press C the EXACT moment before they're hit, which temporarily puts their Nanofield on the defensive. If you're hit by something that sends you flying, this'll reduce knockback and let you land on your feet, or if the damage is small it'll still let you ignore the pain as if nothing happened, so you won't even stagger. The Berserkers call it "teching" - sure, it doesn't reduce the damage taken, but it's useful for quickly getting back into the fight or escaping more quickly. Plus it looks damn awesome!"

Speaking of Nanoreflex, we can now perform teching on our own! The logbook lays it out pretty plainly: hit the Use button to negate knockback from damage.



Up above, the level 4 security door. Below us, the Phantom Hammer!



It can't be kicked down, so you have to use Nanoweapons on it. For some reason, destroying it unlocks level 4 security.



This, understandably, gets the attention of the rest of the ship, and Berserkers start teleporting in behind us as we escape.



Huh, those must be the Sentinels that poster was advertising. Maybe they're a kind of bomb.

Well, whatever. Back to terra firma with us!



This is a one-way trip, complete with a final Berserker escort. Once we land, it's easy to get back in.



Hooray, family bonding! Also, this is the point at which Iji actually starts to smile a bit during her chats. It's a very subtle change to her expression, though.



If we wanted to nukejump again, we could get over there and skip the last bit of the Sector, but we won't be doing that.



First, we have to go this way!



It bears repeating that Komato and Tasen prioritize each other over Iji.



Anyway, this up here is our goal. It leads to the sector's ribbon!



Minor story tidbit that isn't expanded upon a lot: Mia's mom is different from the mother of Iji and Dan, as a result of their dad Ron's divorce. I think his name was Ron, it was mentioned back in Sector 1.



This elevator just past the Tasen can actually go up here. If you've beaten the game, and are unafraid of spoiling yourself silly, fire a rocket at the right wall. You didn't hear it from me, though.



Oh, I forgot to mention. Elites that have Spread rockets also have a dual-firing Machinegun. This is their best weapon against Berserkers, barring their kicks.



A Beast ran in shortly afterwards and mauled them all, and then everyone exploded.



Here's where that shortcut leads. We top up our Attack score as best as we can, in preparation for the end of the Sector.



For there is, in fact, a Sentinel that drops into the room!



Iji, honestly, what made you think that would work?



Kids, meet Komato Sentinel Proxima, a unique enemy type and one of the most annoying bosses in the game, due solely to the fact that Proxima can fly. Since Iji cannot fire weapons in midair, you have to be at the same altitude as Proxima to hit it with your weapons.

Proxima, of course, has no such problems. It's got an impressive array of weapons, including scattering rockets as makeshift bombs, Spread rockets, omnidirectional MPFB and Splintergun, and of course, a Plasma cannon.



You can tell what attack Proxima is going to use by the targeting. A perfect horizontal line denotes the Plasma cannon, which it fires multiple times in quick succession. The faster you can bait it into moving vertically, the easier it is to dodge.



Also, Proxima is the first, but not the last, boss in the game to have more than one lifebar. Not a terribly big problem on its own, except that Proxima also has a special armor that negates all armor-damaging attacks save for the CFIS and Velocithor, and halves damage from explosives.



And as if that wasn't enough, sometimes Proxima just decides that ramming into you is the best strategy. This is actually your chance to do some major damage to it. See that electropad below us? If Proxima collides with it, which you can either bait it into doing or force it in with a kick or explosive, it takes heavy damage, about a quarter of its max health.



This is made easiest when it drops to the ground to charge its Superweapon, and it can only be interrupted by kicking it into an electropad. Problem is, in order to get the Supercharge for this Sector, you have to destroy Proxima without using an electropad. For this reason, having the Velocithor, plenty of Attack, and a fair amount of Assimilate is recommended.



The Velocithor does deal about half of Proxima's health with 40 ammo and 7 Attack, so if you've got more of either, then you're in good shape. Incidentally, Proxima's Superweapon?



It is the Nuke. So if you're after the Supercharge, you also need at least 3 Health. Preferably more.



Proxima is aggravating enough on its own, but as far as getting the Supercharge goes? Yeah this is the hardest one in the game by far.



It doesn't even have battle quotes, just beeps. And yes, Proxima is very light. With Strength 10, you can launch it the width of the arena in a single kick.



The Plasma cannon, MPFB Devastator, and Spread rockets are all great options for damaging Proxima if you lack the CFIS, or enough ammo to spam the CFIS or Velocithor for the whole fight.



...Oh wait, I still need a bit more health to survive the



Yeah, that.



Third time's the charm, right?



CURSE YOU, MECHANICAL BLIGHT!



Okay, this time, if I'm careful, I can finish it off.

Be careful not to blast Proxima into an electropad with your weapons if you're after the Supercharge.



There we go! Gotcha!



"Looks like the security's getting extreme around here. I gotta get moving before they send down more ships and nail the planetary shield generator!"

Iji will comment on Proxima's difficulty depending on whether you get the Supercharge or not, or failing that, how much health you have left. If you're unscathed, she goes "psh, what a pushover". That changes if you're damaged, with her reply varying according to the damage taken.



But we took down the Phantom Hammer and got the toughest Supercharge in the game. Screw you, Proxima!

Next Time: Idle Hands are the Devil's Workshop

I didn't actually know of this. Huh.
I can't help but notice you are not using up all of your rockets or plasma (or if you have max strength, MPFB). If you hit Proxima with one at the right time then keep it up in a rhythym, Proxima will just fly back and forth in the room trying to stabilize back in the center while you pummel it.

"I would expect a soldier to be more violent. You've got some useful abilities, and I think you'd benefit from a little help as well. Keep walking your path and we'll meet up later on. Look for the teleporter in Sector 9. /Ansaksie"

While Sector 7 doesn't have many changes due to pacifism, those it does have lay the foundation for the changes to the ending of the game. This logbook doesn't show up in a violent run, and as it happens, neither does Ansaksie at all. She doesn't even get mentioned, but we will meet her in Sector 9, so look forward to it.



The next logbook is in a vent just under the opening of the level.



"Alright, this isn't the time to panic. I got separated from my squad, and last I saw them there was a Beast on their tail. Damn it, gotta find my gun..."

Note the ammo next to us. Same as used by Tasen Soldiers. Also, remember how I said Beasts were even more of a hassle for pacifists? Yeah, this level showcases the hell out of that.



"It doesn't matter if you're certain that Assassin Ansaksie has turned against some of our leaders, we don't have time to investigate it now. She's already deep enough in technology theft and weapons smuggling. Let Asha take care of her."

This logbook also doesn't turn up if you're not pacifist. It gives us a bit more info on who Ansaksie is, enough to prove it's not just Asha trying to screw with us some more.



If you've got an explosive, you can go up here, bypassing most of the Komato forces, Beasts included, below.



We end up taking the long way around.



"Not to sound indifferent, but we're out of Scouts here. They were the first to go when the Komato stormed us, and they didn't exactly have much of a chance. I guess the only people left standing in a while will be the Elites... and that Human anomaly. How powerful is she, anyway - and what are her motives? Soldier Vateilika says the Anomaly is not the one who killed Krotera or called for the Komato, but I trust the majority on this one."

Yep, at this point, there will be no more Scouts in the game. And as we go further on, the Komato forces will continue to triumph, and the Tasen will become less and less frequent.



"Whoa, check out that cool guy's new gear! What is it that makes him so hip and awesome? Is it the newly polished metal boots? His daring pink-and-green clothing? NO! It's his brand new, heavy duty PLASMA CANNON! Yes, this mother of all commercial Nanoweapons eats Tasen like snacks, and makes you the most popular guy in the neighborhood! Nothing escapes its sleek, beautiful beam of mass destruction and stomach-churning mayhem! Nothing proves your style and awesomeness more than possessing a weapon so powerful that only Annihilators are issued it as standard equipment! Witness the visual poetry of a bolt of pure plasma and kinetic shockwaves powering through an uncountable number of Tasen - the beautiful, pink-hued grace of the only weapon you've ever owned that kills whatever you point it at within 0.35 pulsecycles (estimated by experiments on various cute animals)! Be hip! Be awesome! Order your Plasma Cannon NOW for the LOW price of ONLY *cough* 18'500'000 *cough* units! You know you can't live without it, baby!♥ (Komato Imperial Weapon Industries cannot be held responsible for personal injury, technical problems, or you actually not becoming the most popular guy/girl in the neighborhood.)"

I know this game takes some inspiration from System Shock (or Bioshock, one of the two) but cripes, their adverts.



"KIWI's commercials are hilarious. 18'5 million units for a Plasma cannon? They even poke fun at it themselves. Who're they trying to fool? NanoBitSplit figured that one out ages ago, it's a Pulse cannon combined with a Shocksplinter. Not saying it's easy to do, but so much cheaper - a Pulse cannon is 60'000, a Shocksplinter is 580'000, that makes an illegally cracked Plasma cannon nearly 32 times cheaper. And for most of us in the assault teams those weapons are standard equipment! Not gonna reveal the opcodes for the crack here (remember kids, illegal Plasma cannons are on criminal par with treason) - but Imperial Weapon Industries seems intent on pushing us around with their authority just because they got picked up by High Command as the official military manufacturer. I for one ain't paying their prices. Power to the Troopers! /Craxmasta"

I wonder if the Komato ever tried using their cracking for sabotaging the Tasen like Iji can, or just for cooking up crazy new weapons?



"Komato Imperial Research had no choice this cycle but to confirm the suspicions regarding the mysterious death of an entire Komato platoon, which attempted to take control of the Tasen carrier ship named Ciretako. The Komato Annihilator leading its platoon in boarding the ship had in an attempt to raise its internal kill counter mown down every living being on Ciretako, and later died from its numerous wounds. Imperial Research states that the Annihilators have since been modified to let special stimulants pump into their bodies, which help significantly in making them more interested in killing the Tasen than in murdering their own troops. Many organizations have requested the removal of the counters to prevent the incident from repeating, but Imperial Research combats these arguments with statistics showing how much more efficient the Annihilators are with the counter present. On a different note, the experimental Nanoweapon the Annihilator was carrying could also have been the "new addition" that Imperial Research was actually testing in this operation, meaning the rampant Annihilator itself was less of a scandal than acknowledging the existence of this weapon."

More on Ciretako. And an added possibility of a new weapon, one that would make an Annihilator even more of a threat? What kind of madness could that be?



Up here, there used to be a Berserker, but now we instead find a familiar face!



If you've got less than 10 ammo for your weapons, or are damaged at all, you have only to give her a bit of Nano to recover. Not terribly useful in a pacifist run, since you're unlikely to have any weapons, but it's a nice bit of flavor.



Could you give me something else? Snacks, maybe?



You can keep poking Vateilika like this for a while, increasingly annoying her.



Good thing this Iji didn't kill Yukabacera, I guess?

Eventually she turns away and starts pointedly ignoring you, humming the lyrics to Welcome to Ciretako.



Before Remar released Hero Core, she instead hinted at "Hero 2". It's a teaser for another game of his.



Moving right along!



"Yep, we did it. Ask Craxmasta for the opcode switches, they're pretty heavy. But long story short, the Hyper pulse is basically a combination of a Resonance detonator and a Pulse cannon, and it's a real weird Nanoweapon. Drain someone's armor with this, and just like a Resonance detonator, it'll send them flying depending on your physical strength. If you're really, really strong, you'll totally maul Tasen Elites, you gotta see it yourself to understand. Of course, the problem is that most of us aren't that strong, so I see why it's only issued as a high-rank weapon. It's useful anyway though, the fire is more spread out and deals more damage than regular Pulse cannons. If it wasn't for the Imperial Army's inflated price for these things, everyone would be walking around with them. Power to the Troopers, OmnikrakR out."

The Hyper Pulse works even better on Komato Berserkers, especially with high Strength, because you can airjuggle them.



"In the early times of the Tasen-Komato war, many raids on Tasen starships and battlecruisers were made, and they often faced heavy resistance. Sometimes, however, the invading force so greatly overpowered the crew of the Tasen spaceship that it became more of a game. When one particular Komato Berserker came face-to-muzzle with a Tasen Turret, he accidentally fired his Resonance detonator - it sent the turret flying off its support pole, bouncing around the room, until it came to a halt in front of a platoon of other Komato. One of them kicked the turret back across the room, and the Hyper Turret Game was born. The platoons split up into two teams, and tried their best to kick the turret into a door behind the opposing team. Any Tasen that happened to interfere with the game were swiftly taken care of, and the turret kicking game continued. Before long, it was decided that the use of Resonance detonators and Hyper pulse Nanoweapons were also allowed while playing the game, to increase the mayhem. Whenever the turret became mangled beyond use or exploded into debris, the platoon simply headed off to find a new one. the Komato platoon was later given honorary medals for their field studies in "creative combat"."

You thought I was joking when I said the Komato were Team Fortress 2 players. Oh no, they treat fighting like a game complete with achievements.



"In modern Hyper Turret Game, the two teams line up on each side of a large field, armed with Resonance detonator and Hyper pulse Nanoweapons. On each side, there are two posts stuck into the ground to represent the doors used in the original form of Hyper Turret Game. When the match begins, a Tasen turret is tossed onto the middle of the field, and from then on it's a free-form battle to kick/shoot the turret into the opposing team's scoring area. A gigantic supply of Tasen turret heads has been collected in recent history, so that a new turret can be tossed onto the field whenever the current one is destroyed. The Hyper Turret Game is filled with nostalgia and fond memories of boarding Tasen spaceships, although it is considered the most dangerous game ever invented, bar only "Ultra Minefield Run And Seek", which violates every known universal Komato law and has been banned on 36 planets."

I mean, you'd think they'd just invent football or something, but no.



"Some troops question the use of the self-destruct mode installed in Berserkers, Beasts and Annihilators. As you know, it's integral to the effectiveness of the Beasts to trigger the Shocksplinter explosives embedded in their armor upon death, and it's imperative not to let the Tasen get their hands on the weapons left behind by dead Berserkers. One of the keys to the Tasen's inability to catch up with our technology has always relied heavily on the fact that they can't salvage any Nanoarmor or Nanoguns from the more advanced of our fallen troops, as they simply blow into bits when killed. And when it comes to the Annihilators, who cares? They usually take everything on the battlefield with them anyway. As for the Generals, yes, it's true that they used to carry Random Particle Displacement warheads inside their armor until the tragic loss of General Taeho, whose warhead suffered critical failure and leveled two cities. But that's all behind us - now no self-destruct device is so powerful as to be a worse threat to our own army than to the Tasen."

Huh, if that was the case, they'd have recovered Pulse cannons at the very least by now, right? Or are they overthinking the fact that a failing Nanofield tends to cause the user to vaporize anyway?



"I don't get it, we write the door security levels in good old-fashioned ternary and everyone complains. Our civilization on Origin advanced a lot before we almost completely switched to decimal, and I don't see how it's supposed to be easier to use - you've got three joints per finger, a second hand to point at one joint on every finger, and even a kid can start memorizing the joints and numbers. +, T, 1+, ++, T+, 1T, +T, TT, 11+... it's so easy. Someone got the idea of using your ten fingers to count to 10 instead, but come on, with ternary you can count from 0 to 242 on one hand, but only to 5 if you stick your fingers up to represent numbers in decimal. What a primitive idea."

I tried to represent the ternary symbols as best I could here, but you can only do so much without diving into the character map.



"Iosa was born on a small planet on the borders of Komato territory, and following her exceptional results in combat training and her strong mind, she was chosen as one of the test subjects for a new type of shielding system. Based on the Tasens' planetary shielding technology, this system was immune to all forms of Nanoweapons in existence, and unlike the weaker versions used on Shield doors, this system could even withstand full-force Alpha Strikes. It had yet to be used to protect single individuals, as previous tests had shown that anyone coming too close to the actual shield generated by this technology suffered heavy neural damage. Unfortunately this held true even now; every one of the test subjects died within a few shortcycles, except Iosa. Due to the extremely high cost and many casualties, the shield system project was stopped until further notice. Soon afterwards, a Tasen fleet entered Komato space unnoticed and proceeded to Alpha Strike the unshielded planet. All research data was lost, but Iosa's shield indeed worked perfectly - she alone survived the Strike. After drifting around on the planet for two longturns, she was found and picked up by the Komato Imperial Army. Miraculously, her psyche was intact, even after such an experience. As the starturns passed, Iosa was promoted to Annihilator class and her reputation grew quickly. Even when her Annihilator exoskeleton was destroyed, she continued fighting the Tasen with her clawed hands and belief-defying strength, as the shield continued to protect her actual body from any and all attacks. She was eventually dubbed "Iosa the Invincible", and many Tasen now fear her more than the Komato Generals, as her hatred for them is beyond fanatic."

Huh. That sounds... a lot like Iji, actually. Especially violent Iji.



NANOSHIELD IS THE LAST THING I NEED RIGHT NOW



Destroying the Phantom Hammer with just a shotgun takes a bit longer, but it is still doable.



Leave me alone you horrible claw monsters.



Finally! They kept knocking me down the levels.



"Why'd we bring a buncha Sentinels here? General Tor is pretty serious about this kill-the-Tasen-as-fast-as-possible business. Sure, their triple composite alloy hull is completely impenetrable to most armor-damaging weapons and explosives are only half as effective, but they cost a fortune. So they're more powerful than Annihilators, can float freely and hail MPFB, Plasma and Nukes all around, but for the same price you could equip four hundred Troopers. Now which is more effective? Wait. I'm actually not so sure about that. Let em have their floating death spheres, as long as I'm a safe distance away."

The Komato have already made a unit so powerful that even a single one can destroy a spacecraft and its invading platoon solo, and they want even stronger units. Wow.



High Morale Iji is the best Iji.

"Dear logbook, I'm getting worried. The radio silence is over, but I can't reach my girlfriend... they say I should wait for the battle reports, but I don't think I can wait that long. The adults and I are almost at the place where we'll set up the defense base, and so far we're all alive. We've gathered turrets, supplies and parts of bulkehead doors, to make sure that nothing can get into our base once we set it up. I'm learning how to reprogram turrets to make them fire at the Komato rather than the humans. I've heard about that "Human anomaly", and I hope they'll beat the Komato before they Alpha Strike this place... and I hope no Komato have reached what the humans call Sector 3, my girlfriend was stationed there when I last heard from her. My friend Vateilika told me that she's the one who killed Krotera, not the Anomaly... I tried to keep it a secret, but the rest of my group found out. They're not angry av Vateilika though, instead they want to meet the Anomaly and talk things through with her."

The logbooks from the diary-writer only change a bit if Vateilika kills Krotera, which is also the trigger for Iji not calling the Komato, but it sounds like Ansaksie isn't the only one that wants to speak to Iji. Maybe we can make peace after all!



Contrary to popular belief, you don't need to save this security box to get to the ribbon. You can get there just fine from here.



I hate Beasts when playing pacifist.



The Elites actually survive this time, if you pay close attention to the one on the right.



And then she murders her ally with Spread rockets in a desperate attempt to get Iji! TREASON!



Ah, just enough to pick up Strength 10. As mentioned earlier, it increases invulnerability time after being damaged, which is very useful to pacifists, and it lets you fire the MPFB Devastator without the knockback, which is very useful to violent players.



Now, for Proxima. Unlike our other playthrough, here we have no weapons that can directly harm Proxima, and because it flies around quickly, reflecting Spread rockets or the MPFB is going to be damn near impossible.



That said, it's leagues easier than that fight, because we can direct Proxima into the electropads now, as we're not concerned about the Supercharge.



The best time to attack is when Proxima starts charging the Nuke. It can be easily kicked into one side or the other.



This deals pretty heavy damage, but disables the electropad for a while.



After colliding with an electropad, Proxima will always attempt to charge into Iji, meaning you can bait it into hitting both electropads in one pass.



Once the electropads charge up, the terminals on the sides of the arena activate. All you have to do to reenable them is hit the terminals.



Another good opportunity to hit Proxima into an electropad is if you stick near the bottom while it fires the Plasma cannon. It won't hover upwards far enough to avoid the electropad.



Easily done.



Beating Proxima with full health is easily done, but beating Proxima without the electropads, less so. Anyhow, now we never have to deal with Sentinels again! And if they're tougher than Annihilators, I bet we can handle anything else the game's going to throw at us.

Next Time: Cut Off the Head and the Body Will Die

Apparently it's famous for the oddest meme this side of Origin.

There are two big choices in the game that shape the plot. The first is whether Iji plays as a pacifist, and the second is a choice you make here.



I'd prefer to get more Attack, but I need the Health for a secret later on. Also, check out that bunker with the Tasen in it. Like how Sector 6 was the last with any Scouts, from here on out, Tasen Soldiers will not appear, barring a few rare exceptions.



Sector 8 is a relatively short sector, but it's got action to spare, with the high density of Komato forces.



If you have the Strength for it, you can "let" these Tasen out, and they'll open fire on any Komato behind you, but it's not really worth the trouble.



Quick jaunt through the vents to get to that door, and



Oh. The floor broke. There was a floor there.



And we land face-to-face with that legendary brand of cyborg: the Komato Annihilator.



These suckers can take multiple MPFB Devastators head-on and still keep walking, and their arsenal is equally formidable, consisting of Plasma cannons, either a Splintergun or Hyper pulse, and a Shocksplinter they can launch rapidfire, up to five shells at once.



They can also walk clean through some walls, as evidenced by it breaking down that stack of boxes like it wasn't even there.



And as if that wasn't enough, they also have a grabbing move called "Destroy", with which they can electrocute the Nanofield of any unlucky Tasen (or Iji) that happens to be close enough. This instantly kills Tasen, but thankfully does only 3 Health damage to Iji.



Unless you can crack one of these, or are packing an MPFB Devastator and several shots with it, just run from them, pacifist or no. The rewards, as you can see before us, are well worth it, mind you, but they're suitably difficult to discourage fighting them.



Anyhow, the lift here. Also, check out that weird symbol below us. Maybe the Komato were trying to set up a game of Hyper Turret?



The lift breaks down once we get back up here, only to find more Elites facing down a second Annihilator.



Even though I just said running is your best defense against the Annihilator, I'm killing both of them here. I need to, for reasons.



Unrelated: that ledge over there is most easily reached by kicking the Trooper to the left, then having him Shocksplinter you across.

I lack the Strength to kick him, so I have to see if I can jump across with the Nuke.



Just barely.



"'Zentraidon' is a taboo word coined by the extinct race we discovered, meaning self-annihilation through rapid technological advancement and arrogance. It was the fate they themselves met. Many mysteries still surround this species and the remains of their homeworld, but our only hope of total galactic dominance lies in fully reverse-engineering the technology they mastered. It is considered treason to suggest that once this happens we will be headed for Zentraidon as well."

Independent Newsprogram: Explaining Komato curses since before the dawn of humanity.



Looks like a propaganda poster for the Komato Imperial Army. We can't read it, though.



Moving right along.



See that turret? I have an idea.



First, we kick it down here.



Kick it all the way into this room...



Down this hole, once the Commander is out of the way...



Haha! Point for humanity!



And that's the Supercharge. Get the turret head all the way to the goalpost without breaking it. Since you have to kill two Annihilators to keep them from blowing you or it up, it's not at all practical for pacifists to get.



"Project 00002-90103-00525 is still starturns from mass-production. We have not yet managed to fully decipher the documentation of the extinct species that invented it, as they encrypted everything as heavily as possible. The only safe way to conceive this weapon is combining an MPFB Devastator with a Cyclic Fusion Ignition System. Either they did the same, or most of the weapons we have now are simply lesser modules of their more potent technologies. Imperial Weapons Industries looks to a future where we shape Nanotechnology to our will, rather than guessing at its inner workings. The next generation of weaponry may be coming, and a "Massacre" prototype was indeed used on Ciretako. Until then, this is the best we've got."

Well THIS is quite interesting. It seems that not even KIWI has gotten the Velocithor in mass production yet, and moreover, a completely new weapon type, "Massacre", may have been the cause of the devastation at Ciretako.



Anyhow, let's get moving up here.



"I know we've got no time to lose, but... Something tells me there's something important around here. I should keep looking around before I go any farther!"

Yes, there's another thing to collect. A very important thing!



On the left end of the upper hall, near the ledge where we got the poster...

A Trapmine! It sounds extremely situational. I'd like to test it out on a teleporter somewhere, but the only person I know who uses them is Iji, and she's had enough trouble without being subjected to Aperture-style Science.



Down below the ribbon, though, we find our chance.



Point defense! Yay!



They'll never see it coming.



Once you activate this terminal, you have about three seconds before Komato start showing up.



If you're a pacifist, and you have a Rocket launcher, you can aim it at the wall, blast yourself onto the ground, and stay laying down. The Komato that teleport in will mistake you for dead until one of them walks onto you.



We're not a pacifist, though. Also, the Trapmine worked as advertised!



I am a smart player.



There's three waves: a Trooper, a second Trooper, and a Berserker for each teleporter. The Berserkers pack Plasma cannons, so be careful.



Checkpoint. And heavy gunfire!



Looks like there's another skirmish here. And a Nano Overload.



Maybe we can get something cool out of it?



SWEET MERCIFUL CHEIBRIADOS





Someone's captured Dan. Either that or he's got a Nanofield voice distortion thing like everyone else does. Nuts to Sector X, saving him comes first!

Sadly, the Nano Overload is wasted here, as the Phantom Hammer kills pretty much everything in the area. And we didn't even get a new thing.



The crater doesn't go down indefinitely, so it's safe to hop right in.



Not only safe, but extremely profitable for a violent player. First is this thing. It'll come in very handy once we hit Sector X.



"A scanning of the "Human anomaly" has been completed, and the results are frightening. I can understand the maximum health and Nanoweapons, but her innate skills are probably more powerful than she may realize. Air braking, Teching and Nanofield rebooting are well known among the initiated, but this last, unnamed ability I've never even heard of. According to her Nanofield, the requirements for triggering it is to have 5 or less HP left, the eight basic Nanoweapons and at least 1 ammo for each of them. As for actually activating the ability, it seems she needs to hold C while getting up after being knocked to the ground. The ability consumes 1 ammo for all the weapons, however, and expels it in a massive storm of explosions while shielding the Anomaly from damage. Luckily this technique seems so difficult to perfom, she will never discover it."

You don't say, oh Komato researcher? How kind of you to tell us! We must try this out at the earliest convenience.



You can use the vending machines here to get drinks, but they don't do anything except serve as stuff you can kick around.



Stupid Shield doors.



Just down here is the last fight area in the sector.



I want to get my health low enough that I can use Retribution.



Come on fellas, keep it coming.



"Oh yeah?"

Here we go.



"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Retribution, Iji's strongest move.



Showers the area in explosions of all types, starting with outward radiating Rocket explosions...



Then an X made of MPFB explosions, followed by a finale of a Nuke. The enemies that can survive Retribution can be counted on one hand, but it can only be done once per Sector or boss fight.



Okay, we've got 9 Health, that should do. The rest of my points go into Attack and Strength now.



The Sector's exit. And a teleporter.

Oh right, the threat!



But we already used it!



"Ahhgk!"

Ah, of course. Who else would it be?



What, a sole Trooper? That won't do more that momentarily distract us.



That's all Asha needs, though.



Since she has to take down the Trooper, there's nothing stopping Asha...



"AAAAUGH"

From Destroying Dan.



I did mention the plot changes here.



Iji heads over to check if he's still alive.



Just barely.



No reply.



Elites can't take being Destroyed. Dan didn't stand a chance.



"n... no...! y-you... I... hhh... hhh... uhhh... uuhhHHH!"



Asha was right. She does have a weak point.



Iji takes his body to a cot nearby.

Regardless of what happened to Dan, Iji still has to get to Sector X.



"No, no, I'm fine. Yeah, I won't mention it again. Sorry. Uh, so, Sector X, right? That's where the General is. Won't be easy getting there, but - you know. You've made me stronger than they'd ever suspect. Heh. No, I know. Don't look at me like that."

She's talking, but no one's there to listen.



"I can't be weak now."

Dan may be dead, but she won't ever believe it. Not for all the world.



There is a way to change the outcome, though.

Next Time: Forewarned is Forearmed

I knew all that murder would make her crack eventually. Funny that it was someone else's kill that did it.

You spent a lot of time horizontal in this update.

(edit) Dan pretty much spells out the solution for you.

Yeah, the solution to that particular problem is pretty clear, but the game offers up that first teleporter anyway, as a red herring. I fell for it the first time I played Iji.

Yeah, but we already knew that. I mean, everyone knows what Ciretako is famous for.

I'm lovin' it.

Again, Iji opens up Sector 8 with a comment relative to how much health she had after beating Proxima.



"Tired of parasites eating your Nanogun for breakfast? Being nibbled on by those pesky little Bilts? With BLIT-AWAY SPRAY, all your worries will be over! Order now, and get a free Assassin-class laser dagger! Note: Due to the aggressive (and heavily armed) local animal rights activists, BLIT-AWAY SPRAY has not been tested on any live organisms, including Blits. Please use this product at your own risk."

Ten bucks says it doesn't actually work on Blits. There is, however, something that does, though we won't be getting it for ages.



I wonder if that Berserker up there bought some BLIT-AWAY SPRAY.



Dude! Priorities!



That's more like it. Juggling a Berserker with multiple rockets? You guys are the best.



"The rumors have just been confirmed; there are indeed Annihilators among the Komato assault teams. Who knows why they brought them, we're doomed anyway - probably 'cause they get a kick out of seeing us slaughtered. If I ever live to see one of those walking tanks, I'm not even gonna fight it... I'll just stand there and let it kill me in the fastest, most painless way possible."

They don't even bother telling you what an Annihilator can do, because to the Tasen, if you encounter one, you're going to die. Fun fact: the only known survivor of an Annihilator encounter is Elite Krotera. And if he used his rapid-fire MPFB on one, he could almost kill it in one volley!



Speedy travel is best accomplished by being shot in the face, especially here.



Yeah, uh... Annihilators don't really care about the concept of "friendly fire".



Damn it quit doing that I am TRYING to increase my total number of cracks!



Oh good it worked.



"The Tasen are soon to be extinct, as we all know - but from that point on, when we no longer have a common enemy, we need more leaders. Powerful leaders to keep the people together, as internal conflict should remain in our past. General Tor and Annihilator Iosa are perfect examples of who should be our role models - Tor cares about his people, while Iosa is so powerful they couldn't even kill her with an Alpha Strike. That woman has a great war record, but her future looks even better... history will treat her well. The more young leaders like her and General Tor we get, the better."

Well, Tor sounds kind of okay, but I don't know if I like the sound of this Iosa person.



"Yes, the brilliant minds who most probably fixed the catapulting Lift bug have once again outdone themselves, with a new integrated soundchip that receives new Lift music every cycle. Just tune in the chip to the nearest legal frequency, making sure to skip the illegal ones so as to not accidentally trigger a global war alarm, and prepare your aural tastebuds for the sensation of such unforgettable classics as "Exploding Eardrums That Are Also On Fire", "It's awesome being purple" and "Hel Sarie will kick you in the face". So don't delay! Order an upgrade for your Lifts right now, and get a free Elite Krotera action figure!"

Just popping up here for the Trapmine. Also I wonder what those songs would even sound like.



This might seem counter-intuitive for a pacifist run, but A: we're already maxed on all our stats that don't count as offensive, and B: this applies to reflected projectiles too, meaning we can, without increasing our kill counter, do much more damage, enough to drop Troopers in a single Shocksplinter pretty soon.



"The fury with which the Komato Imperial Army commenced its first strike was beyond belief. Tasen starships and civilian ships alike were raided and destroyed, and the number of casualties grew astronomical as they invaded our homeworlds. The Komato eventually developed a starship-class Nanoweapon called the Alpha Strike, which let hundreds of starships equipped with this space-to-ground Nanoweapon bombard a planet with unbelievably powerful Attacks. We managed to create a planetary shielding system to defend our worlds, but even when we finally managed to steal the Komatos' Alpha Strike technology, so had they in turn stolen our planetary shielding system - since then, the only way to wage war on the surface of a planet was by personal combat, with soldiers and attack ships. We were now hunted across the galaxy, and every time a part of our population settled down on a new planet and erected a planetary shield, the Komato found them, fought them in surface combat, destroyed the planetary shield generators and proceeded to Alpha Strike the planet. Our population rapidly dwindled, until it consisted of only a million individuals - our very last colony."

Well, I guess that explains why there's only one space-to-ground weapon and like fifty types of foot soldier.



Y'know this wouldn't be so bad, only it takes a long time and the damn things keep walking away while I attempt it.

"Few seem to like thinking about the future of our species, and rightly so. We're so advanced, we've been able to hunt the Tasen clear across deep space without a single individual escaping our grasp, at least to our knowledge. With the Alpha Strike, we have reliable planet killer technology - and the Star Strike may soon no longer be just a theory. We are the grandest, most organized lifeform we have ever come across. Despite past wars, High command keeps us together, and we colonize an exponentially accelerating number of planets. It's simply impossible for our race to ever be extinguished if we keep growing at this pace. Back on Origin we were ruled by nature, but now the galaxy belongs to us. with the Imperial Army controlling the military branch uncontested, any planet - any species, any solar system High Command so wishes - we can and will destroy if we put the time and resources into it. The Komato will be eternal."

That's a pretty grim future for humanity or the Tasen if any survive. Even if they recover and advance enough to travel the stars, the Komato might play a game of Hide and Seek and Destroy at any time.



"It reminds me of a robot Mia had when she was little, the one we used to save Dan from a bully once. I threw it pretty hard. Something tells me I should hang on to this mine, until it really comes in handy. I don't need it to defend myself right now. I'll keep it, though it looks like the batteries won't last past this Sector."

The ribbon here is basically the only advance warning you get about saving Dan. Not a lot of backstory, aside from Iji chucking robots with the best of them.



No Trapmine, and no ability to play dead. All we can do is fight.



Wave the first isn't so bad, especially if you've got 5 Attack, because that's the minimum needed to take down a Trooper with one Shocksplinter.



Once the Berserkers get into play, though, damage is pretty much going to be guaranteed.



The faster you kill the Komato, the faster the lift activates. Speedrunning it is best done with 12 MPFB ammo and the Nuke.



You can't actually progress through here without going for the Nano Overload and triggering the Phantom Hammer.



"The human-made food containers in this area seem to require the use of an elaborate mechanism to obtain their contents. Some narrow hatches and symbol-endowed buttons are the only visible ways to interact with the containers, save for dismantling them. I guess they're the humans' equivalent of vending machines, but less sophisticated. Gets me thinking of the ones back on Tadezocora... they had all kinds of fruity stuff, and I don't mean "fruity" as in "contains the crushed fless of innocent living organisms that happened to be born on a tree". I mean packaging adorned by such brilliant slogans as "It's all-natural!" So is nerve poison."

Hang on, what kind of animal uses nerve poison again? I can't recall.



We can't reach the Nano Overload without the Hyper pulse. Not that we need it, but it'd be nice to have.



"After decrypting the humans' language, we began translating everything we could get our hands on to aid our research. They possess mainly primitive technologies and equipment, but a few mildly interesting things as well, mainly concerning energy sources like "power cells" and "megacores". Their so-called "neoweapon" research wasn't of any use to us, though; its mechanical nature is inherently inferior to our Nanoweaponry. I thought we'd find some answers to the Human anomaly as well, but we've had no luck. The only thing I could find around here was a short promotional message. It reads:"



"...a particular line of work. the weapons branch consists of Sectors 1 to 8, with all higher-tiered Sectors consisting of a higher security level. When you first arrive, the healthy open spaces of Sector 3, home of software development, will welcome you with a smile. The nearby Sector 2 contains the local medical services, and a quick trip to the main storage in Sector 4 will get you geared up for work in no time. Sector 5 houses the storage control and materials analysis department, while Sector 6 is the main Neoweapon and genetics research laboratories. Sector 7 handles exotic technology and reverse-engineering research, which along with Sector 6 constitutes the most highly classified part of the weapons branch. Sector 8 is the main recreation area, offering free entertainment network access, games, swimming and sports. Dotted around the Sectors are guard stations, operating from the security gateway in Sector 9, which let you feel safe and secure in your everyday work. Your performance is of great import to the other Sectors of the facility, among them the top-class Sector X which houses some of the most cutting-edge research labs in the world, focused on military A.I. applications and alternative energy sources. Please enjoy your stay in the facility, and have a safe day."

In case you were wondering what the facility was for before the Alpha Strike. Also, I like how the writer of this logbook assumed our species was military because their colony went after this facility for the most part.



"Clearly the most lethal game ever created, the rules are really quite simple. First, find or plant a large minefield, and gather every participant in its center. Then it is time to choose who will be the "seeker" and who will be the "judge". This is usually decided with a large fight, of which the two participants with the least bruises and wounds win. When the seeker and judge have been chosen, they remain in the middle of the field, and the seeker closes his eyes. Then, the other players start running randomly around the field, and whenever someone steps on a mine, the seeker must point in the direction in which it happened, and guess the distance to the explosion. If he succeeds, with a pre-determined margin of error, the judge gives him one point. This continues until ten shortcycles have passed, at which point any player who is still alive counts against the seeker's points. If the seeker has a positive score, he wins, and can expect a thorough and utter beating by the survivors, who are most probably not very pleased with not having become the "seeker" at the start of the game."

Wow. Um. I, uh... I can't think of anything to add to that.



"The invention of the Forced Electron Stream system notably increased the Annihilators' combat efficiency. Put simply, it allows them to electrocute an enemy at will, causing their personal Nanofield to self-combust. With an effectiveness degree of 99.85%, the opponent is completely obliterated. The only drawback is that the Annihilator must be in physical contact with its enemy, but given their size and strength, it is usually not a problem. It is a problem for certain Assassins that possess this ability, however, as they are too weak to hold their opponent still for long enough. Still, having been proven to blow even Tasen Elites into dust in an instant, the Annihilators have given this extremely powerful ability its own nicknamel calling it to "Destroy" their enemies. Of course, certain individuals with particularly strong personal Nanofields may be resistant to this attack, but the Annihilators usually manage to deal with them with their regular Nanoweaponry. The nature of the system even allows for fatal electrocution of those not using Nanotechnology."

This explains how Asha can Destroy Dan even though he never tries it on us. Also explains how Iji can survive being Destroyed.



It does hurt a lot though.



Okay, now let's take it from the top.

If you handle the Trapmine beforehand, or if you skipped any information about it, Dan doesn't comment on it.



And yeah, Asha has too much free time and a really fragile ego, if being beaten by a human makes him do something like that.



Well, let's go piss him off a bit more, why don't we?



Yes, this Iji is pacifist, but considering what she's been through, I don't think there's any doubt she would kill Asha.



What about it? It has a Shotgun and some Resonance stuff. You can't have it.



With Iji's weapon trained on him, Asha can't do any damage to Dan without getting himself killed, so he retreats, and Dan is spared!



No worse for wear than a sore throat.



And yeah. From here on out, Dan remains safe, as Asha doesn't care about him specifically.



So this is the other part that affects the ending. If you save the Trapmine until the end of the Sector, you save Dan, and he'll remain safe through the end of the game. Otherwise... well, neither he nor Iji's psyche survive.



Stupid Annihilators, ruining my Cracking score.

Next Time: Achilles' Heel

Platypi and Jellyfish? Mercury might be considered natural.

Great job showing off both playstyles and the neat story variations.

"Stay beside me, and I promise I'll keep you safe. You know that. No, don't mention it again. Good. This place looks like one big security checkpoint, and I bet Sector X is on the other side. We can still send these bastards back where they came from - together!"

From here on out, violent Iji assumes Dan is right by her side, and talks as though he's talking back.



As for Sector 9, it's got one of the most silly secret things in the game. We'll get to that later, though.



Right now, Shredder joyrides!



Complete with plasma shots!



Just go down here to open that door up by the Nano Overload.



As you can see, we're trapped here without an explosive, but we have several.



Normally, if you don't explode the wall (or if you hit yourself in the face and take too long leaving) an Assassin turns up to Plasma Cannon through both walls for you.



This first area has a massive security door at the end, which can only be disabled by hitting all four terminals in the area.



There's Annihilators here, too, and explosions can hit you through Shield doors.



We hit that terminal and get enough Attack to unlock Improved Autoloading. As mentioned earlier, it speeds up reloads by 20%, though it does nothing to improve weapon switching speed, which is also based off of reload time.



We head around the left side of the area and up top, where there are Shredders and Cyborg Stations galore.



The next terminal is this way. If you lack explosives, you can always go around the left side, though there are electrical conduits in the way that you have to time your way past.



There are also Komato forces basically everywhere here.



This one is guarded by a surprise Plasma turret. It pops up right next to an explosive barrel, though.



Normally, falling down from there puts you right in the path of the Annihilator, but since we killed it, we're safe.