Let's Play: Kagero: Deception II

I'm going to ask the question that no one seems to be asking:
Why does the castle have a self destruct button, and why do humans think it's the secret to eternal life? I assume that people were instructed to never touch it, so rumors spread about it, but it seems like it would have been easier to, y'know, take the bomb out of the castle to keep people from touching it.

Because Tecmo.

Deadmoon started the rumor about the secret because he wants someone to set off the bomb and kill the King and/or PANTS.

But... I don't understand what the bomb is supposed to accomplish? It's supposed to kill PANTS? And then they can say that they've killed the (immortal, unkillable) King (who Deadmoon knew wasn't in the castle)? God this game's too confusing just kill everyone and be done with it. Except Keith

We know Ursula is trying to bait PANTS, but it’s not like we have much of a choice.



Ursula is still just standing there, and Gostero hasn’t shown up, so I guess we’re free to set up a combo. Blast Bomb is an excellent trap because it does good damage, covers a fairly large area, and throws the victim.



Looks like Blast Bomb is another one that doesn’t want to give the Initial Trap bonus. Rolling Bomb had the same issue.



Well Ursula, you did manage to pull PANTS down away from protecting the virgin icon. Plus, you just stood there waiting for PANTS to have her way with you, and she did so with multiple hot explosions.

I feel dirty.



Figures. Like all thieves, Gostero hides, cowers, and in this case, runs away back to the room he started in.



The description for Spike Wall is incorrect. It claims to “throw victims 3 blocks away,” but it only pushes them 3 blocks from the wall like Press Wall did. As far as positioning Traps go, Attack Wall is better and I’ll switch back to it now that the Initial Trap bonus is out of the way.



Seriously? You’re blaming her at this point? Did you forget the parts where you sent her in first, and you cowered in the corner?



Just once, I’d like all the enemies to use the same door. Is that too much to ask?



Standard setup in the altar room, as soon as he comes through the door… wait, he seems to be ignoring PANTS!



Noooooo!!

Oh. Well, no one said you could live, so I don’t suppose you’re willing to walk into that magnetic field?



Nope, doesn’t look like it.



I should have thought to do something like this for the July 4th update. Blast Bomb is also nice because it has a radius and can set off a double explosion when placed next to a Powder Box.





These two both have very high hp, fairly high move speed, and are traveling together. I probably won’t be able to do anything too fancy with them.



When standing next to a wall, the L2 button can let you control the camera to see through the wall. It isn’t actually useful very often, but sometimes it can come in handy.



Evil Breath is really just a glorified Slow Gas. I only used that trap once, and I don’t foresee using this one more often either. If I’m going to use a gas trap, I’d rather it be one that offers some control over their movement, like Confuse Gas. For the record: pure luck that I’m going to get a Double Hit on these idiots from the Pillar.



Still no initial trap for Blast Bomb, I bet that won’t be listed for Zartus’ cause of death, either…



Unfortunately, the Spike Wall is about 1 second too slow to chain the combo.



Power Magnet is a very silly hit, but it’s another combo hit and is worth more Ark than I thought it would be.

I find it interesting that Barbalos is lying on his back when he dies, and nearly everyone else dies facedown.



Leopold: Roger.



I guess all “Large Blasts” count the same, so when I first set off the Powder Box back in chapter 2, was the only time I got Initial Trap credit for anything that would produce a Large Blast.



Emilia: …noooo…

Bleuge: You have to tell me why you’re crying.

Emilia: My mother left… and hasn’t come back…

That’s our Yocal!! *cue laugh track*





Three enemies with ranged status effect attacks, and an Assassin. Looks like fun.

The Ark just keeps coming in, so what should we buy with the 10041 Ark at our disposal?

Next… “Chapter 15: Brave Promise”

Vacuum Floor and Rising Floor, if you could.

Two floor traps, Papillon? Either Vacuum Floor or Rising Floor, plus Fire Ball!

What can I say? The floor holds the best traps. I admit the fire ball sounds interesting though....

Chain needle and Fireball. There's been too much of these magnet/wall/floor shenanigans. More projectiles!

And berserk gas. That one guy ignored PANTS when he entered the room! Can't have that.

Yeah, if these folks want to play with projectiles, we'll show them PANTS's projectiles.

Sylvia: The grail… you mean the secret of the TMD?



Belkdahl: I hope so.

Belkdahl: Someone’s luring us to the castle for a reason. Be careful.



Belkdahl: That’s true.

Belkdahl: Even if it’s a trap, we can handle it.



This is probably the worst starting position so far this game. Two ranged attackers immediately throw projectiles at PANTS, fortunately the game isn’t so cheap that there isn’t time to dodge. And run away.



Either Bleuge is immune to gas traps, or I was too slow on the trigger (the latter being more likely). Bleuge easily leaps over the Smash Floor and throws a pair of axes into PANTS. Time to run away some more!



It’s a good thing these guys are after PANTS instead of the secret grail thingy. While under the effects of Berserk Gas (or Basin or Vat), an enemy can’t use any of their active defense abilities like Bleuge’s ability to leap away from floor traps. It’s similar to when they are trapped in a magnet, but far less safe. That last panel is a trick, it’s still showing the Initial Trap from the Berserk Gas since the Rising Floor hasn’t done any damage yet.



And there it is.



I hate to run away and let Lazaford heal the both of them, but there isn’t much choice.



Fireball deals very good damage with a fast (5 second) charge time. Hopefully, Berserk Gas will speed up Bleuge, and Lazaford will be slower now so the two will be separated…



Wait… that’s different. The Berserk status apparently completely turns off Bleuge’s pathfinding algorithm, so she runs up to the wall nearest PANTS, and futilely throws axes that clatter harmlessly to the ground. Meanwhile, Lazaford chases his tank, spamming cures.

Berserk Gas was required to once again override Bleuge’s evasion abilities, and good ol’ Attack Wall flings her a hefty distance away. Poor, unsuspecting Lazaford dutifully runs after, unaware that he is the real target.



There we go, one down. Bleuge has recovered and run past the Berserk Gas trap by now, so PANTS will continue her castle tour.



It’s nice having a high damage wall trap to combine better with Magnet Floor. Unfortunately, I’ve confirmed that the projectile does knock a victim off-center from the Magnet Floor, so it has to regrab the victim after each hit. That explains the perceived weirdness with Triple Arrow a couple chapters ago, and why we get two “2 Combos” instead of a single “3 Combo” here.



Oh, how did you want to die? I’m not sure I should start taking requests on that; someone will insist I get a killing blow with Press Wall or something.

Sylvia and Belkdahl, another Assassin + Chemist pairing, show up at the same door Bleuge and Lazaford used, but it’s definitely not worth going in there to meet them.



They’re about to enter the room… but Belkdahl is first? How did Sylvia do that?!



PANTS has to stand still for a brief moment to set off traps, so Sylvia gets a few easy hits in. Time to keep running!



We fail to catch Sylvia in the Berserk Gas and get hit. Later, Sylvia is too fast and runs past the Attack Wall, and we get hit some more. There are a few more undocumented hits, but eventually Belkdahl stumbles into the area of effect for the Berserk Gas.



Oh dear god, what happened to his head?!
I forgot that Berserk Gas also does poison damage over time, which yields a very crappy, 0 Ark, death blow. Also, why isn’t a Chemist immune to gas/poison or at least able to heal himself?



Eventually, Sylvia is too focused on PANTS and gets caught by the Attack Wall.
I bet she was an annoying kid.



Keith: Send the search party immediately!

Well I hope you guys weren’t too spoiled by the last 2 chapters’ Ark rewards. PANTS (almost) took more damage this chapter than in all the prior ones combined!



Priest Dusk: I … I assumed this pointless scheming died with Deadmoon.

King Eclypse: That’s a reasonable assumption.

King Eclypse: Well, we’ve returned safely. PANTS will see to matters…

Priest Dusk: Yes, my King.

King Eclypse: This episode has opened my eyes a bit…

King Eclypse: Offering immortality for loyalty has spoiled the humans.

King Eclypse: But this has been a good way to test our marionette project.

Priest Dusk: Yes, my King.

King Eclypse: One more thing…

King Eclypse: Now we must consider how to deal with the rumor of the grail.



Yocal: But some have found this place and will try to invade.

Yocal: It is your duty to destroy any trespassers.

Yocal: Remember, this is our sacred place. No human may enter.



Gilbaless: Ballantine, you wait at the entrance.

Ballantine: Yes, sir.





A new castle to play in! With several new traps to experiment with!

I apologize, 3827 is a pretty pathetic amount of Ark by this point. If you guys want Chain Needle or Quake Bomb, that’s all we can afford.

This chapter, we can let all 3 intruders leave alive if desired. I’m getting a little ahead of myself, but it’s worth pointing out that this isn’t a critical plot juncture, the following chapter is. I’ve already noted 2 spoiler-texted votes for what to do in chapter 17, so feel free to decide these three’s fates guilt-free.

Next… “Chapter 16: The Ruins Defiled”

Since it's already been requested, I say pick up Chain Needle for now. But! Only if you make use of the Guillotine. I want to see some head-chopping action, damn it!

...What the hell is this game turning me into?

I second (third?) Chain Needle. I dunno... I get a kick out of PANTS poking people full of tiny holes like that.

I reaffirm my prior selection of Chain Needle. Also, all must die. We needs us some Ark.

Right. Seeing as these guys would kill us given half a chance, we can take 'em out guilt-free.

Especially that Buddhist. I hear they can get violent and uppity.

Too dumb to live, be the hand of natural selection, and so forth and so on.

I say they need to die because thirst for ark shouldn't be the only reason for deciding who survives the chapter after...

Gilbaless: No, I won’t.

Ballatine will stay right at the entrance, letting Gilbaless go off exploring on his own. If they’d decided to stick together, it would make PANTS’ life much more difficult. Instead, we can plot elaborate demises for these foolhardy explorers.



This central room makes a good base of operations, and we open with a traditional Lava Vase against the opposing Knight. Gilbaless then blindly rushes forward, towards a large, creepy face on the wall.



It’s actually a large, creepy, electrified face! Sadly, the push from the Attack Wall doesn’t send him back through the electricity, but there is an Oil Vase ready to continue Gilbaless’ suffering.



Another nice thing about Fire Ball is that it will travel up stairs. Most projectiles just go in straight line and stop at anything other than an empty square. I decided to equip both Lava Vase and Oil Vase this chapter just for the combo potential. Both charge very quickly (2 or 3 seconds) and as long as an enemy has a Vase on their head, the combo is maintained for the next hit. Gilbaless also has very high fire resistance (Blast Bomb + Fireball combined did less than 50 damage) which means we can keep hitting him for more and more combo hits.



Oroch shows up without any fanfare, and shortly thereafter, Ballatine decides to abandon his post and go looking for trouble.



Oroch corrects guesses PANTS’ identity and immediately tries to run as fast as his little ninja legs can. An Oil Vase Slows him down however, and an Attack Wall knocks him away from the door…



It’s been a while since we tossed someone into a fireplace. The fireplace hits him twice, but the second hit is no more photogenic than the first.



Ballatine decides to take the left path, so there’s no reason to leave this room. We Attack Wall him over to where a Lava Vase will force him to walk forward into that pit. It’s funny that I pretty much never used Lava Vase prior to this LP, and now it’s one of my favorite traps. In case you were wondering, yes, there is a big pool of lava in this room.



Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a falling-into-a-pit animation; one frame he’s walking forward, the next he’s just gone.
I think Ballantine’s player is arguing with the DM that a less than 10 foot fall shouldn’t do 50 damage. Sorry dude, I told you we were playing by hardcore rules, now roll 3d6 in order to get new stats.

I just realized I didn’t use Chain Needle at all. Sorry guys.



Leopold: Some of the search party were killed by her.

Keith: This doesn’t look good for us. I wanted to avoid confrontation until we get our hands on the Timenoid grail.

Keith: I don’t want to lose anymore Red Blood members, especially when our true mission is to destroy the Timenoids. And there’s no guarantee we can defeat her.

Leopold: But, captain, do you think she’ll simply let us go?

Keith: She’s even killed some of the search party members. I have little hope.

Keith: But we need to find the grail first. This is the Red Blood’s most important mission.

Keith: I’m going to the ruins, too.

Leopold: Roger.



Carmine: When we get the grail, people will join us in our fight against the Timenoids!

Keith: Exactly.

Keith: But, as you know, the girl who killed Gerald and the others now protects the ruins. She’s the Timenoid’s secret warrior and she can’t easily be killed.

Keith: We have to confront her sooner or later.

Keith: The priority is the grail, not the girl. We must avoid losing any more men in this fight with her.

Hey, PANTS didn’t kill Gerald! Did he fake his own death so he could go run off with Rain or something?





They don’t look like much, but this is the most important chapter in the game for determining what ending we get. We’ve long since eliminated the “kill everyone” ending, but there are still three possibilities based on whether or not these guys live.

8153 Ark is a pretty good amount, hopefully it makes up for the prior chapter’s meager allowance. Keep in mind that I still owe you guys a use of Chain Needle, and depending on the consensus, PANTS might not set off a single trap this chapter.

So what shall it be? What sort of eventual fate will befall PANTS?

Next… “Chapter 17: Call of Blood”

I’m not sure exactly when the next update will be since I want to allow enough time for anyone interested to voice an opinion, and I have plans for Friday night.

BUZZ. SAW. Need I say more?

By the way, what kind of endings do we get depending on this chapter? I can't decide if I don't know the consequences.

Well as spoiler-free as possible (but still spoilered out), the short answer is that if none of the search party escape alive, PANTS will be forced to kill Keith and we get the "bad" ending (that ironically gives the best trap in the entire game). If the grail is discovered, then there will be a final branching path several chapters later....

Hmm...

Well, I've always been one for [good endings], so let them live? I can go either way, but I think that's the best way to go for now.

I could go either way with this. I like the kill-em ending and one of the don't-kill-em endings.

Heat Breath sounds like something you might not have used much before... Buzz Saw sounds fun but you've already got one shooting trap on your plate.

Heat Breath just sounds...interesting. It conjures up the idea of the 'dutch oven' technique, which makes me giggle. Now, I'm all for good endings, but what is this ultimate trap about?