Here there be dragons. Let's Play Bahamut Lagoon!

And with that...



Meet Holy/Dark Dragon #2, Brandon the Belzebub! Two down, four to go.







A lot of our armor stock goes to VicViper, whom I'm hoping will become our first Master Dragon (VicViper's final form is unique in that he gets infinite HP in the form, essentially making him a living Win button). We'll see, though.

Whew, and with that...



Holy/Dark Dragon #3: VicViper the Phoenix!

Yep.



Holy/Dark Dragon #4: Polaris the Black Buster! (?)



That was fast.

Holy/Dark Dragon #5: Calzone the Black Chimera!



And with that...



Holy/Dark Dragon #6: Wh.MAGE the Raiden!



Whew. Talk about a marathon of eating contests. But it was so worth it.



Dragonkeeper: As I didn't have any children of my own, I took special care of VicViper. Everybody has been calling me the Dragonkeeper ever since...



One present is from Hornet, the other is from the crew. Which one will you choose?

You can choose either present here, to be honest - though Hornet's present has one-of-a-kind items that you can't get anywhere else, the items you get from the crew are still quite good, and won't become available until the very, very end of the game. Personally, I prefer the one-of-a-kind stuff, since it doesn't mean negotiating an infuriating and impossibly difficult sidequest to get them, but hey! Choose your poison.

The other present disappeared into the sky...

Hornet's message: Congratulations on the revival of Kahna!! PANTS, protect the skies of Orelus!! P.S. Don't tell the crew that I gave you a present!

The present includes a Scharnhorts, the best sword for the Cross Knight, as well as a Dreadnaught armor and a Dillinger katana for one of our assassins.



Yeesh.



...He's a weapon shop owner. Military affairs are his job, woman.








I guess we've been putting things off too long. To the plot!

Whoa, deja vu.

Matelite: As you know, Sendak has fainted. He's not dead yet, but he probably doesn't have long to live... Here is Sendak's will! He hasn't died yet, but I'll read it anyway! It says, "I hereby make PANTS acting captain after I pass away..."!! Since it'll be boring around here after he dies.... We will respect Sendak's dying with and make PANTS acting captain! PANTS! Do your best as the new captain! But then there's also the possibility he's just faking it, that he was exhausted in battle! We'll have Captain Sendak help out in the next battle, so don't worry! Okay, General Palpaleos! We're counting on you!



$50 says he's a spy.

Spoilers: He's not, but I wouldn't have been surprised if he was.



Hornet's giving us free reign over the control board this time, it being our job as acting Captain to figure things out...



I'm sure the others won't be annoyed if you "accidentally" pressed the wrong button. Heh.



Matelite: The entire world of Orelus is resting on our shoulders now!

But we still can't fight.

Taicho: Sir Matelite! Wait!

Matelite: Taicho! Give it to General Palpaleos...

Taicho: Sir Matelite! Allow me to...!



Cold man. Ice cold.

Matelite: You know what to do, General!

Oh!! The Orelus Freedom Force flag!



Matelite: ((It's the battle with the Empire's sky fortress! Let's go!))



And it's off into battle!



Well... not quite yet, I suppose.



Starting this mission, we'll have access to the obscenely-difficult hard dungeon, featuring monsters with are a good 20-30 levels higher than the final boss. At this point in time, the battle is essentially unwinnable - unless you're willing to spend entire weeks watching a Master Dragon VicViper slowly peck away at enemies, you'll have to wait until later playthroughs to be able to beat it, and even still, the battle takes a long, long time to play out once you can stand a chance and can fall to pieces if you're unlucky. So... yeah. Avoid unless you enjoy having your ego crushed to pieces by unfair competition.

BRIEFS: There's a Holy Dragon here... A Holy Dragon with tremendous power...!

Taicho: The fortress utilizes the power of a Holy Dragon? That is amazing!

More like horrifying. Small wonder why Sauzer and Palpaleos shot the idea of using it down like they did.

Palpaleos: Sauzer... Are you here as well...?



Despite everyone's warnings about the Trafelgar, the battle itself is pretty simple - head through the halls and defeat the enemies one-by-one. The only real thing you want to keep in mind is to defeat Irvine with a Holy elemental attack, else you might pass it up.

Taicho: What are those on the floor? They appear suspicious!!

Matelite: They've got nothing to do with us defeating the enemy!! Just attack!!

Taicho: Are they not some sort of trap?



First order of business is to regroup in front of the entrance - our groups start out split up and our fighters can speed aheady easily by accident, so making sure they're all together before moving on should be a priority.



Once they're together though, the battles go by quickly, thanks to our virtually unstoppable dragons.



BRIEFS and Sendak help out too with their own brand of brokenness.



With the enemies out of the way, our melee fighters try out some of their new elemental skills.



Babarella goes down quickly enough, netting us... a spear. It's a good spear, but it's not like we'll be needing it.



More importantly, the doors to Irvine's room are now open so it's time to press on and finish things up. You don't need to finish off all the Gran Gunner's in the room, mind - just pick a side and wipe them out.



Taking them out is as much of a snap as the other enemies, though they get off a few good hits on our allies.



Once they're gone, a few rounds of healing bring our team back into good health.

One of the things to watch out for in the stage are these trap doors, which open up into sky when nearby switches are pressed and can instantly kill anyone on top of them. They make good obstacles otherwise, leaving one open forces our enemies to move around them, creating a convenient chokepoint to inconvenience them with.



Our Wizards, blessed with Brandon's newfound power, gain access to the powerful Halley Gazer spell. Halley Gazer and the other spell like it have a much wider range and more power than the others, turning the formerly-weak Wizards into true powerhouses. It's also pretty visually-stunning, too.



The Priests also gain access to a new spell too, Big Burst, though it's not nearly as neat to look at.



Things turn out as well as you'd expect them. Move along, move along.



Polaris tries out his new Dark spell, Dark Light, here, for massive damage.



While Wh.MAGE tests out her new Holy spell, Thunder Wave, as well.



With the other enemies basically finished, our team begins weakening Irvine down.



Things... get a little weird at times, admittedly, but nothing new.

PANTS finishes Irvine off with a well-timed Holy attack, netting the legendary sword, Excalibur, as a reward.



Irvine: The end of the Granbelos Empire...?

Pretty much, yeah. A shame, isn't it?



Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.



Heading further into the Trafelgar leads us to this room...



...And we're locked in thanks to Gudolf. Well there goes the option of a strategic retreat.



Wait, what the...





What in the world...?



Oh, Tomato.

Seems the rage of the Holy Dragon inside has paralyzed our team a bit...



...Though I'm not sure whether or not Bikkebakke's mushrooms are helping.



Sendak: I was scared of fighting... I suppose I really am a weak old man after all...

Seeing the Holy Dragon's rage for the first time... I'm not sure I can blame Sendak for how he acted. This is some seriously scary stuff, here.



Gudolf: Emperor Sauzer? It really was quite unfortunate... Gwahahaha!! He told me YOU were the one who betrayed him! And at the end he took my hand and said this... "Never forgive Palpaleos, no matter what happens!!" Gwahaha!!

Bastard!!

Palpaleos: What...!! Sauzer... Why...?

Gudolf: Why? Why don't you ask him yourself? You can all ask him together! Now you die!! Gwahaha... Sink into the sky with the nightmarish Holy Dragon!! Farewell!!

That son of a bitch... when I get my hands on him-



Hyperion: ((Leviathan... Garuda... Jormungand... You are all here, I see... So the time for vengeance has come... I am the Holy Dragon Hyperion... Weak-minded girl... Come alone... You have the ability to relieve our anger...))

Palpaleos: BRIEFS...

Matelite: PANTS, do someting... At times like this, my head hurts!

Taicho: My beard is standing on end!! So this is the anger of the Holy Dragons... It is excruciating!



BRIEFS: ((Matelite... You and Taicho get along so wel... Sendak... Don't overdo it... Relax... Everybody else... Stay well... PANTS... Don't forget to feed the dragons...))



BRIEFS: ((I'm unable to read your thoughts...))

????: Princess BRIEFS!! No... You are not the only one who has become timid...



It's Sauzer!

Sauzer: The Holy Dragon's anger... Their anger... I should not have taken it into myself... Take Hyperion's mind from me... Princess BRIEFS... The skies of Orelus are in your hands.

Hyperion: ((Weak-minded humans... Humans who know the truth of the legend... Lead the way for we Holy Dragons... To the land of tranquility... Dragnar... Human who will lead the Holy Dragons... There, the new era lies in wait... The renewed memories of the sky... The era of we Holy Dragons... Once more, to that era...))



Sauzer: Palpaleos... Take me up into the sky...

Palpaleos: Sauzer... I won't leave you here... I'll take you to Papillon...

Things are starting to heat up aren't they? Five Holy Dragons so far, I guess that means there's only one more to go, huh?



Next time: The Resistance returns to Kahna and reads the mind of The Holy Dragon Bahamut.

Welcome back. In our previous installment, we had just finished turning our dragons into killing machines and stormed the enemy battleship, Trafalgar. Inside we ran into the fifth Holy Dragon, Hyperion, and, with some surprise help from Emperor Sauzer, had BRIEFS read its mind.

Join us now as we finally read the mind of...





Hornet pops in to remind us that Sauzer's aboard, presumably because of how weak he became from Hyperion's rage. The music takes on a much more serious tone in this chapter - a large change from the usually-played theme.



The entire ship's on edge, it seems. Can't really blame them, though - they've just taken aboard what used to be their worst enemy, making the situation all the more confusing.



Seems we're not the only ones that've noticed.



Reeve's... feeling sick. I wonder why?



Frenze: That's what he gets for betraying our friendship... The things we're doing are gradually becoming treacherous... I'm... scared...

Update on the Frenze/Reeve scenario... Frenze's been poisoning his "pal's" food recently in the hopes of upsetting his stomach. I wonder what kind of torment they'll think of next?



Barclay: A man and woman who are constantly bickering... Love suddenly sprouts between them one day... Does this sort of thing ever happen?

Happens all the time. Slap Slap Kiss, I believe it's called.

Barclay: Oh, I see... Um, never mind then...



Shall we listen to Gunso's tune?

Gunso: Mahaaal *scratch* will all your lakes, from Rainbow Briiiidge *scratch* Looking down on the water gate that doesn't open *scratch* The people fishing for octopi *scratch* Oh, Mahaaal *scratch* Your old palace towers in the sky! *scratch*



Bikkebakke's still scrounging around for some more money, it seems.



Might as well pick up some more mushrooms to help him out, eh? (Don't worry, they'll go to use.)



I cannot tell a lie.

Melodia: Meanie!



Anastasia: That slow-moving Heavy Armor Knight can do whatever he wants, but for some reason that makes me mad. But why? Why does it make me mad...?

Jeanne: I pity Donfan, but sometimes it's nice to have quiet around here.

Wait a second... is that DONFAN!?

Donfan: ((This is the biggest crisis of my life!))



Oh my God, what have you done with him!? He's a rabbit! You turned him into a rabbit!

Donfan: This is miserable! This is the most humiliating thing in my life!!



Sure thing!

Lukia: Just kidding! Relax!



Hear what about BRIEFS? C'mon, tell meeeee.

BRIEFS: As usual, there are painful-sounding voices coming from her room. I thought it was because of the Holy Dragons again... but, she's used to their anger now, isn't she? So I wonder just what is going on in there...

Well, you see Diana, when a man and woman are in love...



Crazy stalker girl Ectarina is still bubbling over Hornet...



Frederica: It's time... For my medicine... Today I think I'll have some Heal SP...

You know, I've been wondering for a while... does Frederica suffer from an illness, or an addiction? Maybe the shaking is from the withdrawal...



Somebody's jealous.



So... they're trapped then? We don't have to deal with them anymore? Woohoo!



Please, the weapons and armor shop owners make due with the same amount of space, so can you. Besides, it's for a good cause! No more Mini-Devils to annoy us, y'know?

Speaking of shop owners...



Everyone's hooking up nowadays, aren't they.



How many updates has it been that Saijin's been saying that?

Zeroshin: It's so lonely all by myself...

...You know, you could try mingling with the others, Z. Best way to meet other people is to immerse yourself in the crowd, y'know?

Anyway, the dragons are calling my name... I can here it! It's time now to feed the dragons!



With the elemental stats down, it's time to get started on maxing out their combat statistics now. Like before, you just can't beat Bikkebakke's mushrooms - they're by far the most cost-efficient and easily-accessable means to raise their Mind and Dexterity stats. Vitality's still a bit of a worry, but the armor we'll be picking up over the last few chapters can go straight to them to max out.

And with that, all of our dragons have maxed out Mind, Dexterity and HP. All that's left is Vitality, and we'll have them in their final, Master Dragon forms.



Some words of wisdom from our good friend, the Dragonkeeper.



Note that, if you want your mushrooms for free, you could always just pick them yourself. But then again, you'd just be screwing Bikkebakke out of money. Jerk.



With pretty much all of the dragonfeeding over and done with, we'll be focusing on updating our team's equipment. We're a bit short to do so with everyone on our team, but we've still got time to pick up a bit more scratch.



Matelite: Same goes for Palpaleos, but why'd we bring Sauzer on board? I don't understand BRIEFS's thinking at all, lately...

Everyone has mixed feelings about the Emperor's presence. They've fought against him for so long, and yet...


Sendak: Emperor Sauzer made an agreement with some monsters and was shown the mind of a Holy Dragon. Such an agreement would be far too frightening for me to make...

Sauzer: ...That is correct.

Oh! He's awake.



Sauzer: Thanks to them I was able to read the mind of the Holy Dragon Hyperion... Were they Hyperion's dreams... Or his memories... I'm not certain...

BRIEFS: What does it mean? The fact that the Holy Dragons' minds are filled with anger... The fact that their anger is directed toward Bahamut... Even I can tell that. But, they're hiding it. So that I won't know... They're hiding the reason behind their anger and hatred...

Sauzer: The feelings the Holy Dragons are hiding... They may perhaps be the truth... The Holy Dragon Hyperion... Inside his mind was a battle... a war. A war between the Holy Dragons... The Holy Dragons wounded each other... And shed each other's blood... Their minds taken by anger and hatred, they can no longer think... That battlefield was our world, Orelus... Campbell's greenery set ablaze, the lake of Mahal turned to poison...Orelus's beautiful lagoons engulfed by the flames of destruction... Why must the Holy Dragons fight? Yes... Because Bahamut was there. Bahamut, the guardian dragon of Kahna, is despised by the other Holy Dragons. Bahamut betrayed us... Bahamut disturbed the order... Kill Bahamut... These were... Hyperion's thoughts... However, I don't understand the Holy Dragons' fighting... Are they memories of ancient times... Or dreams of the future... I cannot tell...

BRIEFS: In our forgotten past there was a war between Holy Dragons. That, I know.

Sauzer: I see... Yet, the burning anger and hatred like that of long ago... If those thoughts are still deep within the minds of the Holy Dragons... If things remain unchanged... The war in the past will continue into the future... They will defeat Bahamut... And the era of hatred will end... Is that... the new era...? So that's how it is... The new era lying beyond the door... It isn't for us... It's for the Holy Dragons...

Sendak: The new era is for the Holy Dragons...? I... am confused...

Sauzer: I want to look at the sky...

BRIEFS: General Palpaleos. Use the terrace upstairs...

Sauzer: PANTS, was it? Take care of Palpaleos...



Sauzer: Palpaleos. But... I lost. To the legend... To this never-ending sky... Without realizing my dream... The new era... No matter what kind it was, I too would have liked to see it...

Palpaleos: Sauzer...

Sauzer: If I die, release me... Release me into the skies of Orelus. Embraced by the infinite skies, I shall float among the white clouds... I shall float every which way... And then a lone lagoon will take me in... A lagoon no one knows of. Floating silently... And then I shall give that lagoon a name... There... I will start over from the beginning.

Palpaleos: Start what over from the beginning?

Sauzer: Yes...I will make the entire sky mine!! The time... has come...

Palpaleos: Stop it! This weakness... Sauzer! This isn't like you!

Sauzer: ...This is the new me. Inside me... Are all the things I scorned. There's uncertainty... Regret... Fear... And a weak mind... Ironic, isn't it. I lack only the true strength needed to overcome those weaknesses...

Palpaleos: Stop! Don't speak! I'll call somebody!

Sauzer: Stay calm... Palpaleos... As Emperor of the Granbelos Empire, that is my final order!

Palpaleos: Sauzer!! Sauzer! Say something! Give me an order! Sauzer!!

Sauzer: ......Don't cry...



......



No getting up to the terrace, huh... ...Sauzer...



Sendak: Bahamut, the guardian dragon of Kahna, is despised by all the other Holy Dragons... And the new era is to be after the Holy Dragons' war...?

Matelite: If we wake up Bahamut, the Holy Dragons'll go to war again... If that happens, Orelus'll be destroyed...

Rush: Then let's just not wake him up!

Truce: Is that really a good idea? We started it all. We have to end it... And, there's something I don't understand. The Holy Dragons don't have bodies. They're just living inside BRIEFS's mind. Maybe it isn't the kind of war that could destroy the world?

Sendak: Oh no! If Bahamut awakens, then the Holy Dragons' battle will begin inside the princess's mind! Her mind will contain all that anger and hatred... We must prevent that from happening...

Rush: I felt like I was gonna die just from Hyperion's anger.

Truce: All of the Holy Dragons' anger and hatred inside her mind... How painful could that be...

[Taicho enters.]

Taicho: It is terrible! BRIEFS is in trouble!



BRIEFS: I'm... fine... The Holy Dragons inside me, they're... Okay, Holy Dragons! Use my body... I... I'm not afraid anymore. There are people who will protect me... People I must protect... I'm not... afraid anymore. The Holy Dragons... They want you all to hear this...

[There's a brilliant flash of light.]



Holy Dragons: Altair, our homeland... Once there, we shall leave this girl... There we shall free this girl...

Matelite: Altair?! Where's that!?

Sendak: Do you mean that hole in the sky?! The world on the other side of the door?

Matelite: The hole in the sky!? So the monsters that came out of there and attacked Kahna came from Altair?! Were they their allies?!

Holy Dragons: Take us to Altair... Take us to Altair...



BRIEFS: Altair is on the other side of the hole in the sky. They don't know what those monsters were either. So the Holy Dragons are confused too. This is the first time I've sensed confusion from them. Everyone! Let's go to Altair! At this rate, the hole in the sky won't close. Monsters can come through to Orelus at any time. We'll have to go to Altair and defeat them! And...And... If possible, I want to take the Holy Dragons back to their homeland...

Matelite: BRIEFS... You've grown strong... I'm so happy!

BRIEFS: This battle is to protect Orelus. That is what my powers are for... That's what I think... PANTS... I... guess I'm a little scared after all. But, it's strange... The Holy Dragons' anger isn't as strong as before. It must be because they're worried and confused just like we are... It's not just anger, I also know it's because I have a weak mind... Or, PANTS, maybe it's because I'm a little stronger now?

Hmm... not sure. Maybe the latter, but who knows what it could be.

BRIEFS: Yeah, PANTS. It isn't something that simple.



Yep, let's go!

Hornet: But where are we going?

BRIEFS: I'm going to go talk with Bahamut.

Matelite: BRIEFS! You're going to wake up Bahamut?

Sendak: If you do that, the Holy Dragons inside your mind will...!! If something terrible were to happen we would be unable to help you!

BRIEFS: I'm fine. I may be a little unreliable, but I'm the Queen of Kahna. Bahamut, guardian dragon of Kahna... I am sure he has concealed his power for the moment. Hornet, please take us to Kahna!

Hornet: I can't right now. I can't move the ship just yet. Have a look outside the window...

BRIEFS: Palpaleos...



...And so ends the life of Emperor Sauzer, conquerer of the human world. His only weakness was his ambition, and his dream for a united world in peace has yet to come to fruition. Maye he come to rest on a forgotten lagoon, where he will lay in eternal rest...



Anyway... same team as always. Palpaleos hangs on despite his loss like the soldier he is.

Easiest fight in the game.

There's no strategy to this fight, really - just gang up on the boss and kill, kill, kill. If you're strong enough, you can even kill him before he gets to act - try and challenge yourself to kill him in as few rounds as possible.



BRIEFS and Sendak go first, summoning the Granbelos Holy Dragon, Hyperion, to the field for the first time. Hyperion is very powerful, and can dish out some serious hurt. Unfortunately, like Jormungand, he goes obsolete very quickly as the next Holy Dragon we get is superior in terms of power and range...



Honestly, the battle goes by really quickly because of how close the boss is - he's in the immediate range of all of our teammates, and if the Holy Dragons had joined in on the fighting we could've killed Gryphon here in one turn.



Unfortunately, the Psychic Dolls gathered around him are able to heal a huge chunk of the damage we dealt him in the next turn. It's not enough for a full heal, but still.



The Cottontails are able to turn your teammates into rabbits as well, but here they just end up targetting our dragons to no effect/



Good thing for us the Psychic Dolls got so close - we can wipe the floor with them thanks to Garuda.



Hee hee hee!



Odin tests out his new skill, Fatal Blade, for the first time, wiping out a good number of the enemies on the field.

\

The other dolls get taken out fairly quickly - they have very little HP, so that shot of Garuda weakened them to the point where any direct hits can finish them off.



Brandon goes next, using his new title as Lord of the Flies to summon up a swarm of them to attack Gryphon.

With that, all of the other enemies have been wiped out, leaving Gryphon wide open to a slaughter of epic proportions.



...Like so.



No, my good sir. Thank you.



Honestly, I could've sworn this battle was tougher when I first fought it, not the slaughter it became.



BRIEFS: The thing my late father couldn't do... Reaching into your mind... My strengths... My weaknesses...Hiding nothing, I have come... O, Holy Dragons inside me! Accept Bahamut! If you cannot yield your anger... If your hatred will not end... Fight inside me! But I will not let you do as you please! Now, Bahamut!



BRIEFS: Dragnar? Am I a Dragnar?

Bahamut: Indeed... Valitora... Leviathan... Garuda... Jormungand... And Hyperion... Their anger... their sadness... All that is within their minds... Yet, you have not lost your own mind, girl...

BRIEFS: Me... A Dragnar... Please tell me... The true meaning of the legend of the Holy Dragons...



Bahamut: A new era... The era of the revival of we Holy Dragons... A dragnar shall be the one who to lead us to that era... It is your destiny...

BRIEFS: If you revive... Will you... fight?

Bahamut: The new era... Even we cannot see it... The one who will lead us there... Is you...

BRIEFS: But... What should I do?

Bahamut: Combine our minds... into one... Our hatred-filled minds... Make them one... Then... the door shall open completely... Dragnar... can you do this?

BRIEFS: I'll try... Okay... Bahamut...



Sendak: We must carry the princess to the castle quickly!

BRIEFS: No... To Papillon...

Palpaleos: But BRIEFS!

BRIEFS: To Papillon... We will... take off soon. The door... will open... The Holy Dragons will open the door... Everybody... To Altair... PANTS... Please get prepared...



Next time: We fight with the Granbelos Empire one last time in The Final Battle!

Welcome back. Last time, we had taken Emperor Sauzer, weakened from the Holy Dragon Hyperion's rage, aboard the Papillon to rest. After passing on information regarding the Holy Dragons' goals, Sauzer finally passed away from his weakness. With his death weighing on their mind and the information they were given, the Resistance headed back to Kahna to read the final Holy Dragon, Bahamut's, mind.

Meanwhile, back in the Granbelos Empire...



Gudolf: Corpse...? Gwahaha... You will take the place of Sauzer!

[Gudolf stabs the soldier, killing him.]

Gudolf: Gwahaha... Hurry up with the preparations! The people are waiting ! Waiting for the Emperor's sad little funeral!



The death of a single man... It is merely that, and nothing more... The Granbelos Empire... The foreshadow of destruction...

Back on the Papillon...



Matelite: BRIEFS! The door!? Where will it open?

BRIEFS: ...Palpaleos.

Palpaleos: BRIEFS! Are you okay!?



The door to the new era finally opens... join us now as we prepare for...





Matelite: PANTS, take care of the rest, I'm...

[Matelite leaves.]

Taicho: It would be best to stay away from Matelite. He is irritated about BRIEFS and Palpaleos.

Jealousy, eh? I can see that.



Rush and Truce are hiding something... I wonder?



Thanks! You too - the hallways are looking remarkably clean.



Barclay: A stuck-up wizard and a simple Heavy Armor Knight. If they started to like each other, would things work out?

Hmm... I can see it happening. You and Anastasia, eh? Heh.

Barclay: Really?! I got that feeling too. Heheh... Do it like that... Heehee... Do it like this... Next time, I'll try a direct assault.



Gunso: My life has been nothing but scratching. *scratch* It will probably continue to be that way. *scratch* *scratch* No, giving up means failure. *scratch* I'll try my best...



...? What happened? What did Frenze do?

Bikkebakke: I don't have enough money... I don't think I can do it...

Bikkebakke's still moping about his lack of funds. Cheer up, buddy - with the looming house crisis, soon you'll be able to afford whatever house you want!



Wasn't there an NPC in FFVII who said the same thing? I smell a reference!

...Nah, probably not.

Jeanne: I might not be able to see that Donfan Jump anymore.

It's like he's become their pet. Isn't forced imprisonment against the law...?




Oh lord.



Hmm...



Hmm?

Diana: Melodia has some dragon panties that are important to her. But they disappeared. When we went looking for them, we found them in the men's bedroom!! They were tied to a lancer's spear! And, the owner of that spear is Reeve! That's disgusting!!

Wait, Reeve's spear? Then that means... Frenze, you magnificent bastard!



Ectarina: Ah, I'm in his mind now... Heh heh...

...... *Slowly inches away*



He's doing good work, honestly. The halls are as clean as they'll ever be.

Zora: That's good.



Dream on, sister. I've got eyes for one woman and one woman only.



Again, as long as we don't have to deal with the Mini-Devils, I'm cool with it. All right? Now sell me stuff, merchant.



I'm still waiting for you to follow through with it, you know. I hope you give refunds, or else...



Zeroshin's falling further and further into seclusion. That boy, I swear...



That's good. The holy dragons are getting along, I presume?



You have to ask BRIEFS about the doorway to proceed with the plot - the other two choices available don't do anything.

BRIEFS: Where is the door to the new era...? Hold on, PANTS. I'll look into the minds of the Holy Dragons. The relationship between me and the Holy Dragons is different than before.

BRIEFS: The door is open. The location is... ...The skies above Granbelos.

Palpaleos: The Granbelos Empire...

You don't think... Gudolf?

Palpaleos: PANTS, General Gudolf is still in Granbelos. He'll attack us for certain if we take Papillon there. When the time comes, PANTS... Don't hold back. Crush Gudolf and the Granbelos Empire. This is for the people living in the new era that will finally dawn upon the Granbelos Empire... Peace will return to the people of the Empire, who know nothing but war...



(Author's note: It never happens.)



Matelite: When she was little, she'd follow me around and call me Uncle Matty. PANTS. Do you know the first word she learned? It was "Matty". Not "Daddy" or "Mommy"... "Matty". Me! What do you think of my memory?



Right, let's get this over with.

Hornet: Granbelos, huh... It'll take a little while. Go and make sure we're ready.



Huh? ...Okay, I'll be right there.



Truce: What're you saying, Rush? Don't you wanna see those two together?

Rush: Shut up!

[Rush leaves. PANTS turns to Truce.]

Truce: If he thought about for even just a minute, he'd see it. BRIEFS and Rush. Their social positions are completely different. He should think more before acting...



Rush: But, ever since Palpaleos came on board my dreams and wishes have all vanished...

Cheer up! There are other fish in the sea, right? I'm sure you'll find that special someone someday.

Rush: Yeah... Oh, here. I'll give you this. It's a special good luck charm. I don't need it anymore.



And with that, we get the fifth and final Princess's ???. Anyone want a Behemoth? I could always make Lucky one, if you guys want.



...Who's they?

BRIEFS: The Holy Dragons are confused right now... It was necessary to gather the strength of all of the Holy Dragons to open the door. Gathering their strength... Apparently this was the first experience the Holy Dragons had working together. The strength of the Holy Dragons is very powerful. But, it seems they didn't know how to use it. They savored watching the people of Orelus trembling in fear of their strength. Then the battle with Bahamut, who tried to stop them, began. Then it escalated into a great war... Actually, other than Bahamut, the others are all very young. This was the start of the Holy Dragons' war long ago.

Truce: They didn't know how to control their power... Because of that, a war started... Countless people were killed in it...

Palpaleos: The reason for starting a war is always something trivial...

Truce: General Palpaleos! You! what about the war you started? Are you saying that was because of some trivial reason?!

Palpaleos: ...... It was to realize a dream...

Truce: That's trivial! Very trivial!

Palpaleos: That may be so. However... I am prepared to take responsibility for it.

Truce: Responsibility? Just how will you do that? I don't understand... Enough of this! I'm a member of Orelus' army. So I'm gonna fight! I'm gonna risk my life and fight! But, I won't think anymore... If I think, I can't fight. It's just like Rush said!

[Truce leaves.]

Sendak: One more thing, BRIEFS! How did the Holy Dragons' war end?

BRIEFS: Because the sky... The door... closed. The Holy Dragons couldn't return to Altair since the door was closed. So the Holy Dragons hostile toward Bahamut were left here... Once again, the days of fighting have returned. The sadness of not being able to return to their homeland, despair, anger... All directed toward Bahamut... For humans, too, times have been trying ever since then... Bahamut was also sad. Sad for the people who were engulfed by the war. Because he felt responsible. Bahamut decided to risk his own life...

[Palpaleos leaves, with BRIEFS following.]

Sendak: Bahamut felt responsible, decided to risk his own life... then what?

[BRIEFS enters.]

BRIEFS: I'm sorry, Sendak. I'll tell you later. Palpaleos! Wait!



[Papillon shakes.]

Matelite: What the?! What was that?!

Hornet: It seems we're under attack... But from above or below?

Taicho: It was from below! It is the Granbelos Empire!

Palpaleos: It's Gudolf.

Matelite: Granbelos! What're you doing at a time like this?! Hmph! PANTS, finish getting ready!

Hornet: Well, PANTS?

Might as well go now - new equipment doesn't become available for a while, and our dragons are nearly as good as they'll ever be.

Taicho: General Palpaleos. Can you fight against the kingdom you were born and raised in?

Palpaleos: If I don't think about it. If I don't think about anything...



And we're off to the Empire!



It's worth noting that BRIEFS has changed classes into a Dragnar. The differences are mostly cosmetic - she only gains a slight increase in stats, and her sprite changes, but that's pretty much it. Still, you have to admit it's a nice touch, showing just how much she's come from when she first joined.



This battle is pure meanness on the developer's part. Winding, difficult to cross terrain, enemies with extremely powerful long-range attacks that can one-shot some of our teammates, three bosses we have to deal in quick succession, and loads and loads of cannons and walls. After the cakewalk that was the previous chapter, this battle is a large shock and is nigh-unwinnable if you don't take it slowly.



To our benefit, we have access to Bahamut from this chapter out, and he is, far and away, the strongest summon in the game. With Garuda's range and Hyperion's strength coupled with the ability to set very large amounts of forest on fire, you'd have to be insane not to take advantage of him while you can. His only weakness is that he can't damage fire-elemental enemies, but otherwise he's as good as it gets.

The first half of the battle goes well enough... the enemies stationed near the start are pretty weak-sauce and can be taken out with regular attacks pretty easily. Fan out your army and take them out one-by-one, then reform back near one of the sides...



Watch out for the cannons, though, since they can hit you at quite a distance.



This motherfucker right here is what makes the battle so difficult. He can shoot at you from a ridiculous ten-panel range, and his attack hits everything in a four-panel radius. What's worse is that it deals something like 1,500 damage to individual teammates, meaning you can lose allies from no fault from your own. The only safe way to deal with him is to set your dragons to "Go!" and have them take it out - with their HP and attack power, they shouldn't have as much trouble as your human units.



Before you do so though, make sure to take out the other cannons when you can so your dragons won't get distracted and split up. The less targets there are for them to attack, the more likely they'll be to target the right one.



The Galgstaf's near the start are similar to the Ziegfried's in attack power, but their range is much more limited and they only deal around 1,000 damage. As it is, you could probably just walk by them and ignore them their range is so short, but the experience is nice to have.



See? SEE!? I told you! The Ziegfried in the center is a right bastard, and you should be very careful working your way north. The two shots here are from when I misjudged its range and walked right into its fire.



If you're like me and don't feel like trying to work towards it with a crippled team, you could always just throw yourself in front of an auto-cannon and start over - as I mentioned earlier, game overs are immensely forgiving, and sometimes it's in your best interest to just start over.



Anyway, let's do this from the top.



When you finish clearing out a side, position your team just outside of Ziegfried's range, and let your dragons loose.

Hopefully, if they're smart, they'll head for the Ziegfried like they do here and start smashing away at it. Since they've got maxed HP, they can take the beating the cannon dishes out, and their access to their Refresh spell means that they keep going for quite a while.



Be careful nonetheless, as the bosses near the cannon will take notice and join in on the brutalizing. There shouldn't be any trouble, but be careful anyway, right?



Of course, if a dragon starts having trouble, you can just set them to "Come!" and heal them back up with a White Drug. Their move is fantastic, so they can rejoin the fight in no time flat.



Eventually, the cannon should fall with repeated bashing, opening the path north again...



And then you can restart your party's march. The other cannons are pretty wimpy compared to Ziegfried, so you shouldn't have any problems.



Anyway, things pretty much go as you'd expect them to at this point, so... uh, yeah.



Negotiate the terrain as normally - thunder down the walls and ice the water. This is one of the few times that a simple ice spell works better than Leviathan, since you'll want to save your Summoner's MP for Hyperion and Bahamut.



Oh! Right, bosses. Irvine here is just like he was the last few times - he's got a field attack and a single-hit attack to use against you, but neither are much of a threat. You can probably pick up another Excalibur here if you finish him with a Holy Attack, but there's not much point since we'll be winning one for free anyway and we've already got good swords for our other knights.



The other mini-boss is Lenderbaffe here, who is... well, a dragon. His breath wing attack is pretty much the only effective weapon he has against your party, which isn't saying much. He's usually the first to go down, though he's pretty resiliant and can take quite a beating.

Lastly is Gudolf, who also is just like he was last time. Except now that he's got some adequate back up he's a very big threat. A hit of Nightmare 99 followed by Irvine's and/or Lenderbaffe's attacks is pretty scary, so try not to trigger his mode change before you deal with the other two.



Irvine falls soon enough, dropping a Dilinger for our Assassins to use. However...



Note that, even if you didn't finish Irvine with a Holy attack, he'll drop an Excalibur anyway. Nice of him, eh?



Gudolf puts up a good fight as well, but he goes down for the count soon enough.



Gudolf: I still have some surprises left... ...awaiting you in my castle!!



Yech.



At least we get some sweet EXP out of the deal. Gudolf's still runnning loose though, which means...



Next time: The once glorious Granbelos Empire meets its Destruction!

A short one today. Last we left off, we had just stormed the Granbelos Empire and broken through its defenses, killing Irvine and pushing Gudolf back into its innermost sanctum.

Join us now as we mete out the Empire's...





Battlefield Salesman: A kingdom might be destroyed! Or the entire world might be destroyed by monsters! Even at a time like this, a new life will be born! The mysteries of life! That's why I'm retiring as a battlefield salesman. Now I'm a salesman who's going to protect his wife and child. Hey you!

[Salesman turns to rush.]

Battlefield salesman: Here you go, Rush. Wow, this is heavy! From what I've seen, you'd make a good salesman. But I think you should think a little more before you act... If you do that, you're sure to be a huge success! Truce! You think too much. Think in moderation. And help Rush. Rush, Truce! If you two work together you can accomplish anything!

Bikkebakke: What about me...?

Battlefield salesman: Bikkebakke! I like you a lot! You're good just the way you are now! PANTS! Thanks for everything! I will pray to your safety! Goodbye, everyone! Thanks!

[Battlefield salesman leaves.]

The point of that scene was to inform you that Rush will be taking over merchantile duties for the last few chapters - if you need anything, be it weapons, armor or items, you go to him to buy it. Bikkebakke still keeps everything else, however...



The two are still thinking everything over. Don't worry, they'll get it eventually.



New weapons and armor have yet to come in, so we purchase a few things from Rush and Bikkebakke...



...And head straight to feed the dragons. They could use some more MP still in the last few chapters, and maxing out their Wisdom helps their AI pick smarter targets, so we'll just take the time to pump a few points into those stats.

With that done, next up is to sell all the useless items we've accumulated over the course of the game to free up some more money. We still have to max out our dragons' Vitality stats, so building up the scratch needed to buy the required number of equipment is going to be a higher priority.



Higher-quality equipment, of course, will still go to our allies, so Truce claims the other Excalibur for himself.



Next up is to buy some armor...



And let the feeding begin again!

Welp, that's it for now.



Seems we've walked into the middle of a scene.

Palpaleos: Let me go alone!

Matelite: General Palpaleos! I may hate you, but I'll tell you this! There is nothing you can take responsibility for by dying!



Hmm... things are a bit eerie.



Traps, maybe? Considering that we've dealt with Beamos statues and trap doors before, I'm leaning that way.

Nothing else to do. Let's move out, troop.





Interestingly enough, this is the only chapter in the game where we won't have access to the Easy Dungeon. In addition, this will be the last time we can take a run at the Granbelos Fortress - afterwards it will be replaced by a new sidequest, Situation Critical.



Anyway, the battle this time is much more straightforward - move through the halls, engaging anything that gets in the way, and head for the boss.



As mentioned, there are trap doors laying around, so be careful not to trip a switch accidentally when a character's moving over a door.



Anyway, things go as they normally do - enemies approach, we slaughter them. It's like they're not even putting up a fight now that we've stormed their castle.



Just for the hell of it, I'll be cycling through the various Holy Dragons. First off is Valitora, Holy Dragon of the green lagoon Campbell!



The statues, as expected, are boobytrapped to shoot at anything passing by. They're not much of a worry, since our teammates can shrug off the damage.



That chest in the corner, by the way, contains the strongest Knight armor in the game, the Reconquista. It has the added effect of blocking various status effects directed at the wearer, which is always useful.



Next up is the Holy Dragon hailing from the water lagoon of Mahal, Leviathan, unleashing his icy fury on his enemies.



...*cough* Anyway...

After a protracted slaughter of the guards outside, we come across the second chest in the battle, containing a Chobham Armor, the best armor for Heavy Armor knights. It shares the status-blocking nature of the Reconquista, making it hella useful.



With the looting done, we now start on wearing down the last of Gudolf's guards, who go down with as little a fight as the others.



Garuda, the Holy Dragon hailing from Magic City Godland, joins the fight with a bang.



Gudolf is still a pest with that magic of his, but our teams can take a beating.



Hot on the heels of Garuda is the fourth Holy Dragon Jormungand, hailing from the sandy dunes of Dafila!



Yadda yadda yadda, the Granbelos soldiers get their asses kicked.



Hyperion, the Holy Dragon of the Granbelos Empire, makes his appearance next, using his dark power to lay waste to the remaining Gran Gunner.



The final two chests in the chapter contain an Invincible, the best spear, as well as a Prinzeugen, the best rapier. They're not very useful, all told; we're not using lancers, and we've already won enough Prinzeugen's from bosses for our Light Armor knights.

Anyway, with most of the Granbelos Elite dealt with, the Holy Dragon of Kahna, Bahamut, unleashes his fury on Gudolf himself.



One thing you have to give Gudolf is that he's very sturdy - even after the beating our team gave him he's still got HP to spare.



Of course, even he can't last against our combined forces, and eventually he takes the fall for one last time.



Gudolf: Granbelos was all mine...

The Energy Suit we won, by the way, is the best armor for Light Armor knights. Though it doesn't have the highest stat values, the added effect of absorbing all elemental damage makes it far and way the most powerful armor they can get.



Woo! Go Resistance!



Palpaleos, seeing the throne empty and his homeland conquered, finally breaks from the stress. The poignancy the scene is handled with is truly amazing - no words are used, but it gets the message across with more power than if they did.

Well, that's how I saw it anyway.



Next time: We board the Papillon and return with the Holy Dragons To the Homeland...!

Truffle has a goddamn spear. Awesome.

Damn straight. Nothing can't quite beat being the All-Father in all his glory - he even has his instant-death attacks, too!

Anyway, the final chapters have been played! Expect to see updates over the course of today and tomorrow.

Also: Bumping this to the next page so I don't have to deal with the previous installments reloading each time I post.