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Music: 歴史の渦で

So this is the inside of the Great Tree… The greenery seems to stretch out forever.
A forest within a tree… I suppose it wouldn’t be too odd to find a small forest growing inside such a huge tree, but…
Actually seeing it with your own eyes… It feels like all I can do is shake my head and laugh. I bet I’ll have a stupid grin on my face for the next 3 days when I remember this before I go to bed.
Really? For me, it’s all so normal that it’s kind of disappointing.
Yep. Ya find one mysterious super huge plant, get all fired up and go inside… And all that’s waiting for ya is a forest with a lotta soil and grass.
For something that makes no sense from the outside, what’s inside it makes way too much sense. It woulda been better if there it was a place with boiling magma, or some space-like atmosphere, or something else appropriately crazy.
Spare me from that, please…
Reimu and Marisa are, how do I put this… Extremely experienced with incidents… Their perspective is much different from ours…
As the bastions of common sense, we’ll have to do our best to keep them in line…
I don’t mind if you wanna be a bastion, but you better be as helpful as one in battle!
Hmph, I was just temporarily overawed by the sight of this place. Of course I’d be helpful in battle, my skill is nothing to scoff at.
My skill is plenty to scoff at, and I doubt I’ll be anything more than a liability. Can I go home now?
No.
Nah.
You, a grown man, want to leave behind frail and defenseless young ladies and return by yourself? What a heartless person you are.
…Who exactly qualifies as a ‘frail and defenseless young lady’ here?
What are you trying to insinuate?
Nothing. You’re reading too much into it.
………
C’mon, Keine. Stop glaring at him so that we can get started.

Well, time to go. I’m sure Rinnosuke will surprise us with his battle prowess sooner or later.



Oh.

This was our first battle, barely a few steps from the entrance. The Great Tree does not mess around – the squirrels wiped out Rinnosuke and the wasps severely injured Keine before we even got to make a move. Pressing on against this lot would be suicidal, so we make a quick exit.


It ain’t too bad if we’re careful.

I don’t think Marisa was paying attention.

It wasn’t too bad because of you all. I couldn’t do much at all…
We managed one way or another, but it gets pretty rough when they start attacking. It’ll be best if we take the initiative and use spellcards to take out the enemies before they attack.
Not like I can do that either…
Well, even if we take damage in battle, we’ll recover after we’re done with it. It’s okay, don’t worry.
Alrighty, let’s go. Let’s keep the beat goin’.

All HP that was lost in battle will be recovered after it. If a character was downed in battle, he will come back to the party with their HP fully recovered.

However, for characters that recovered HP after being defeated, a large amount of TP will be consumed to bring them back. Downed characters will lose 10 TP, and other characters will lose 1-5 TP depending on their remaining HP.

TP acts as motivation for characters. If a character’s TP goes down to 0, they will be demoralized and return to Gensokyo by themselves.

By reducing the amount of damage taken, you can reduce the amount of TP consumed. It’s one way to extend your exploration.


Music: 決戦の刻

This battle is a little more manageable. Let’s take a look at our options.



Characters take turns whenever their active time bar hits 10000. Attack is a weak attack that scales off the higher of their ATK or MAG. It requires no MP and reduces their ATB to 7000. Concentrate restores MP based on their MP recovery rate, and reduces their ATB to 5000. Form Change switches a character in the front row with another in the back row, and reduces the switcher’s ATB to 7500. If someone in the front row has fallen, the empty spot where they once stood can be targeted for a switch. Escape causes us to flee the battle, and will always succeed, but escaping causes everyone to lose a hefty chunk of TP.

Finally there are spell cards, which all have different effects and lower the time bar by different amounts. Let’s take a look at what we have.




Ancient History ~Old History~ is a dark-element attack that hits all enemies on the field and is calculated against enemy DEF. New History –Next History- is similar, but spirit-element and targets their MND. Three Treasures – Sword raises the ATK and MAG of all allies in the front row, while Three Treasures – Mirror does the same for DEF and MND.



All of Reimu’s moves are spirit-element. Yin-Yang Orb is a weak but cheap single-target attack, while Fantasy Seal is a stronger attack that hits all enemies. Exorcising Barrier is a fairly expensive healing spell that heals all allies, and Great Hakurei Barrier buffs the DEF and MND of all allies even more than Keine’s move.



All of Marisa’s moves are mystic-element and scale off her MAG. Magic Missile is a single-target magical attack, and Asteroid Belt an all-target one. Master Spark is a tremendously powerful all-target attack, but it’s off limits for now – she doesn’t have enough MP to cast it even at max MP. Finally, Concentration is a low-delay self-buff to her MAG.



Rinnosuke has a somewhat limited skillset. First Aid restores a very small amount of health to one ally, and can cure some status ailments at higher levels. Battle Command buffs all the stats of one ally by a small amount.



Unlike most games, buffs and debuffs aren’t static for a few turns – instead, they degrade slowly over time. We’ll find ways to modify this decay rate later.

Also, Rinnosuke was downed again. In the early game, even our tanks can’t take too many hits.




Dungeon navigation is done by moving the little Reimu avatar about. Whenever we step on a circle, all the other circles connected to it are revealed. We can see points of interest in the distance, but not the path to them – and often the path to them is anything but straightforward. With every step we take, the encounter rate rises slightly until we get into an encounter, at which point it resets.

Heading down, we hit our first point of interest. A red point of interest usually indicates an event of some plot relevance, a green one indicates an item.


Oh my. Hey Marisa, in front of us, isn’t that a tengu?
Yeah, I think I saw that girl before. Hmmm, what was her name again…
Eh, wha? Where did that tengu go?

Uwahh! You startled me, how did you get so close?
…Ah, I remember now. You’re Momiji, one of the Youkai Mountain’s guardians, aren’t you?
Being called a guardian is a bit too much. I’m just part of the patrol.
So, what would a patrol tengu be wandering around here for?
The Great Tengu ordered us to investigate the Great Tree instead of patrolling the mountains. I wouldn’t have come to this place otherwise.
…Aren’t the crow tengu already doing that?
That is quite likely… But they are doing so in hopes of getting their hands on a scoop first. I am here because I happened to pull the short straw.
Ah, I see.
In any case, I will be going back shortly. Humans from the village won’t approach this tree, and strong humans and youkai are coming in for a bit of fun. It’s more or less as the Great Tengu predicted.
Oh my, going home so soon?
Since you’re already here, explore this place with us. You’ll probably get more direct information that way, ya know.
I’m sorry, but my duty was only to patrol. Besides, the crow tengus will surely return with more information anyway.
Though I don’t know how accurate that information would be…

This is probably just me, but the fact that ‘tengu’ and ‘tengus’ are used interchangeably as plurals is slightly bugging me.

Those crow tengus like gossip way too much, what proof does anyone have that their information will be correct?
And besides, those crow tengu only care about getting news before the other crow tengu for their next edition…
…… Right.
Compared to these crows, the information coming from the very serious white wolf tengu will be so much more reliable, isn’t that right?
And the Great Tengu told you that the Great Tree is a higher priority, right? I bet patrolling the mountain is a real bore, especially after getting involved with a major incident like this.
…That’s true. And the crow tengus would probably prioritize making their newspaper over actually reporting any accurate information they get…
*sigh*…You’re pretty good at winning people over. The Great Tengu didn’t say “make haste in your report”, I guess.
Putting things that way does have a certain logic to it. I am willing to help you for a while then.
Sweet. We’re in your hands then, Momiji.

Momiji Inubashiri joins the party!

Momiji is our first bulky physical attacker – high ATK and DEF, terrible MAG and MND.

For the time being, I will stand by at the human village. Call for me there if you need my services.

We continue onwards. Heading to the left, we see a cluster of green points.



All of these are treasure chests, but we can only unlock one with Akyuu’s key at the moment – we’ll have to come back later. For now, we choose the top one.

Obtained Biggest Sword Ever, Purple Metallic Armor, Mana Flower and Symbol of Faith!

Biggest Sword Ever – The strongest weapon that fires three huge waves of unlimited range. You may want to save your money for it at the last stage, but with just the last boss in mind, the Raging Wave Sword’s wave trails are more useful. Sub-equip, ATK +36%

Purple Metallic Armor – From the looks of it, it’s an armor meant to protect the shoulders and chest, but when worn by a human, it’s big enough to cover more. It has a lot of Yellow Noisy Boys on it too. No idea what that’s supposed to mean. Sub-equip, DEF +36%

Mana Flower – An accessory created by fusing a Nature’s Gift and a Mana Potion. Judging from its icon, it’s created by just plopping the green flower representing the Nature’s Gift in the mouth of the potion bottle. Sub-equip, MAG +36%

Symbol of Faith – A statue placed within the Con Cave. Used to open the heart of Hoffman. Screw diplomacy, just force mysterious items on them. That’s how a true savior of the world acts. Reimu and Sanae could learn from him… maybe. Sub-equip, MND +36%

This path is a dead end, so we head upwards. We pick up a Power Bracer and a Miko Board from the green points of interest (seen earlier in Nitori’s shop), then head back down and to the right.



Our third battle goes as well as our second one. For every battle we fight consecutively (without leaving the dungeon), we gain a bonus to exp and money earned, and to item drop rate, stacking up as we fight more and more.



Unfortunately, we can’t do that. Keine’s TP hits 0 after that battle, and there’s no reason to push on with a three-member party at the moment.


Music: 初詣に行こう!


The enemies sure hit hard. In battles, we should aim to defeat them before they can hit us.
However, if we go all out like that from the beginning, we’ll run out of gas quickly…
Well, it can’t be helped for now. We’re not used to exploring after all.
As we recruit new members, get stronger, become luckier and chip away at it, our exploration area will little by little become wider as well.
Hmm. I guess all we can do is keep going at it.
Ah, by the way. For some reason, it feels like the enemies ain’t targeting us equally when attacking. Am I just imagining things?
You’re not. The enemies tend to attack characters that they have an easier time reaching.
Characters in the front of the party will be targeted more often. Conversely, characters in the back will be targeted less.
Amongst our current group, the shopkeeper and I are a little tougher than Reimu and Marisa. It might be best to put us at the front using the Formation option, to offer Reimu and Marisa a little more protection.
Well, I’m also the worst at defeating the enemies. I’ll at least be a tank… If I’m just sitting there uselessly while you girls are shielding me, I’d have trouble sleeping at night.
Oh, well said, Kourin. We’ll be relying on you.

The target for an enemy’s attack during combat is largely influenced by the position of the group in the front line. In short, enemies are inclined to attack the leftmost character. Physical enemies especially show this tendency.

Thus, characters with high HP and defenses should be put at the utmost left, with more fragile characters at the right. This reduces the chance of them being killed by normal enemies. Controlling who the enemy attacks is very important in battle. Make sure your front line is well-organized at all times.


My party’s getting bigger!
Way to go, Mari!
…What did you just make me say?
Nuh-uh, that was all you.
Anyways, it’s good to have more allies, but only four people can be in battle at once, yeah? Is there any reason to get more allies than that?
Of course there is. Only four people may participate in battle at a time, but you can still bring eight others with you. The more people you have, the more battles you can endure, and the wider you can explore for each run through the Great Tree.
Furthermore, people resting in the back lines during battle will slowly recover HP and MP. If someone’s spent, you can shift that person to the back, where they’ll slowly heal back up until they’ve recovered enough to fight on the front lines again.
…Though we don’t quite have enough party members to do that kind of rotation, so don’t worry about it yet. Just continue on as you are now, and give it more thought once we’re up to eight or so party members.
Hmm. Sounds like it’ll be best if we make full use of the advantages of having many people to work with as we progress onwards.
By the way, this might sound a little naggy, but do take note that you have to go to the Human Village and switch your party around to add new party members to the exploration team. Make sure to give the Human Village a visit later.
And if you don’t equip those weapons and armor!
Then they won’t have any effect!
What did you just make me say?
Nuh-uh, that was all you.
…I give up, just do whatever you want…
You have it tough. Good work.
*sigh* Is this really going to be okay…?

Nitori’s Store


What’s that?
I’m asking you because we don’t know either.
We went ahead and picked it up, but it doesn’t do anything special when we were carrying it. Does it have a use?
Don’t you have someone in your party way more experienced at running an items store than me? So what’s it do, bro?

There are in fact two members of our party who qualify for this statement. Marisa technically also runs an items store – though it’s less a store and more a large pile of whatever junk doesn’t fit into her house proper. Few people know this, largely because it’s in the middle of nowhere and she makes no effort to market it or sell items.
Hmm? Well…Even though I have the ‘Ability of Knowing the Name and Utility of Tools’, when I see these kind of items, all it tells me is that there’s no specific use for them.
Just like Reimu and Marisa said, it appears to carry some traces of spiritual and magical power. So we may be able to use them to make some useful gear.
…And that’s where you come into play. When you talk about making things in Gensokyo, the kappa are the first thing to come to mind.
Hmmm? So you want me to find a use for these things, huh…
I can’t fault your taste in choosing an inventor for these things, though! Oh well, there’s no other customers other than you guys anyway, so I have some free time. I’ll think about a way to put them to good use, and I’ll let you know when that happens.
Alright. Thanks in advance!

We can’t craft items out of materials quite yet. For now, we save our money and equip our party with what we have. Keine gets the defense-boosting gear and takes Rinnosuke’s place, and Momiji gets the offense boosting gear, taking Keine’s place. Rinnosuke retreats to the back row.




Heading back into the dungeon, we head to the red point of interest down and to the right.



Hmm? What’s that over there?

Hey, we ain’t extras over here.
What would you all be doing, entering this place as a group?
I could ask the same thing. What are you doing here?
As for us, we’re doing the usual, sticking our neck into trouble ‘cause it looks interesting.
Ah…yes, that was entirely what I expected.
Reimu and Marisa really do give off that impression to everyone else, huh…
Anyway, enough of that. What about you? You don’t seem to be the sort to stick your neck into this mess.
It’s not like I came to this place because I wanted to.
Lady Yuyuko got really excited, since this gigantic tree appeared just when she was feeling bored… She was going on and on about how she wanted to give this place a visit…
She kept telling me things like ‘The journey to becoming a worthy swordswoman begins with a search for an appropriate sword, which will also polish your skills. So Youmu, go look for a sword in that tree!’, and so on…
Were you trying to imitate Yuyuko’s voice just now?
Ah, did it sound like her?
Ehh, not really.
Ah…
Anyways, you came here to do as you were told, then?
Of course not. No one could cater to Lady Yuyuko’s every whim… And besides, I already have my Roukanken and Hakurouken. I just happened to come here to kill some time, enjoy the cooling atmosphere, and return to Hakugyokurou after. The garden still needs cleaning.
Roukanken and Hakurouken… Those are the two swords you carry with you? The long and short one?
Yes. They are both very good swords.
If we aren’t seeing things… Your short sword, the wakizashi, is nowhere to be found…
Hmm? No, I have left it around here……Huh?
Wha-!? No, that’s impossible! Wait, really? My Hakurouken’s gone!? Eh, whaaat! No way!?
Umm……
Ya know, for a sword master to not be able to keep an eye on her sword… You may still be a provisional sword master, but it’s still pretty embarrassing, don’t ya think?
No, it’s different! It was really there just a moment ago! This can’t be happening! Where’s my Hakurouken!?
…Well, good luck.
W-w-wait! Please look for it with me!
Sorry, can’t do. We got places to go.
Uwaaaah!! Where is iiiiit!?
Talking to her later brings up this dialogue:
It’s not here, nor there… Waaaah, where is my Hakurouken!?
Did you try retracing your steps?
I remember performing maintenance on both of their hilts after I arrived, so there’s no doubt I had them since I came to this place…
…Fine, if we happen to find it along the way, we’ll bring it back to you when we get the chance.

There are two green points of interest to the right of Youmu. One is a Piece of Heart, the other is currently inaccessible.



Nothing more of interest this way, so we head back to the entrance and to the left.



Momiji has two spellcards – Rabies Bite is a single-target physical spell and an Expellee’s Canaan is an all-target wind spell. Both scale off her attack and are the hardest hitting physical spells we currently have access to.



This point of interest is a tunnel – a shortcut between two dungeon areas. Once one end of the tunnel is found, the other can be accessed anytime to pop between the tunnels.

To the left of the tunnel, there’s another event.


Wait Reimu, look, look. On the other side of the grove.
What? ...Oh, that...

What's there?
That's Rumia, a youkai that can manipulate darkness. She collects the darkness around and forms a bubble of darkness around her, but it seems to blind her as well.
...Quite the eccentric youkai.
I wonder if she can hear me if I call her from here? Hey, Rumia~.
Waha? Someone called?
Ooh~.I bumped my head. I can't see in front of me~.
Awww~. Owww~.
...Looks like she went somewhere else.
That was predictable...

We head downwards, picking up another Cypress Stick and a Steadfast Ring.

Cypress Stick – A cypress board that isn’t very thick. It’s not very reliable as a blunt weapon, but having a weapon at all gives people courage and a way to fight back against those trying to intimidate them. Main equip, MP +3.

Steadfast Ring – A ring that decreases knockback from damage. The game has an excellent system that offers good customization and collecting fun, but it’s not present in other titles. Quite a shame. Sub-equip, SHK +50.



Circling back up, we find another tunnel next to the first one.



With Momiji around, our damage output is high enough that we can take out enemies in one turn with liberal use of all-target spellcards. There’s no reason to hold back – enemies hit us back just as hard, and we don’t have the TP for extended dungeon runs anyway.

Heading up, we pick up a Great Tree’s Leaf, Bulletproof Armor and Lucky Horseshoe.


Lucky Horseshoe – Accessory that negates damage of falling from high places. Falling from up to fifty feet will not do a single point of damage normally, yet 1 inch more results in grievous damage. Definitely equip this to prevent accidents. SHK +50.



These guys are new. Forest fairies are faster than our current party, and like to toss out all-target wind attacks. Running into a group like this is bad news.



Very bad news. Fortunately, getting a game over just boots us back to the village, our ego slightly bruised but none the worse for wear. A step up from the first Labyrinth of Touhou, where you had to continue from your last save.

We earn an achievement for it, in fact. Let’s check out our achievements.




First Wipe

Conditions: Get defeated for the first time

Reward: Money +100


Even if everyone gets defeated, all that happens is a forced return to Gensokyo with no real penalties. Wipe as much as you want!

Walking

Conditions: Walk a total of 200 steps

Reward: Energy Gem


You may finally get to the next town.



While back at town, we take the opportunity to level up our party members. Leveling up increases all our stats and gives us bonus levelup points that can be invested in any stat. Every character has different growth rates for their stats, as well as different leveling rates. Leveling down reduces stats and skill points gained via levelup growth, but not via levelup points or the Magic Library.

Heading back into the dungeon, we head down and right from the entrance, running into a new face.


Hey, Reimu. Over there...
What? ......Geh.

If it isn't Parsee. Why did you leave the Underworld to come here?
It's not like I like to go out. I was on the upper tier of the Underworld, when all of a sudden, massive roots sprouted forth and stretched down to the bottom of Hell, blocking the way back down. I had no choice but to go up instead.
Really, how can people carry on their life up here, with such a bright light shining on them like this... Ahh, I'm so jealous.
I see, that musta took a toll on you.
Oh, I thought you came out here to attack humans. That's good, that's good, I was just about to exterminate you.

Not as ominous as it sounds, ‘exterminating’ usually just means giving the offending party a solid thumping and telling them to cut it out. That said, Reimu totally does straight-up murder dudes when the situation calls for it.

There's something I wanted to hear about: what is this Great Tree? Since when did something like this become enshrined on the surface?
We don't know either. It grew like crazy here all of a sudden, just a little while ago. It was really surprising.
(...That's it. I just thought of something good.)
And that's how it is. So, it looks like every youkai have been coming to this tree. After all, it looks pretty interesting.
Every youkai... How interesting that sounds. Ahh, I'm so jealous.
I know, right?
(Aaah, I see. That's how it is.)
We're also planning to scale this tree to do something about it. Want to come along?
With this tree and its roots going all the way into the depths of the Underworld, the monsters of the tree who waltz around like they own this place and yours, and all these youkai inside enjoying themselves... Don't you want to beat them all up?
.........
.............
Just quit it. I've come here just a little while ago and I'm still being jealous of the light that shines so brightly up here on the surface.
Tch…

Talking to her again brings up this dialogue:

What, you're still around?
Well excuse me for being here.
By the way Parsee, did you change your mind? Do you want to come with us now?
We can kick the crap outta the monsters inside who strut around with a smug look on their faces, and ruin the mood of all the youkai in high spirits. Let's do it!
Don't feel like it.
Tch...

Looks like Parsee isn’t quite jealous enough of us yet. We’ll have to come back later.

Continuing to the right loops us back around, so we head downwards to the next red point of interest.


Ayaya, you would be...
Hm, that voice is...

Well, if it isn't Aya. What are you doing here today?
...Nevermind, you crow tengu love these kind of scoops. You're always there when you can get a scandal-like article, and even more for this kind of news story...
The truth is, I wanted to come here even earlier. I was pre-occupied acquiring information on another bit of good news I had heard, which ended up delaying my investigation of this incident considerably...
What's the big deal with being a bit behind schedule?
That delay means the rest of the crow tengus reached here before I did, and they're probably at the floors above by now. This head-start they have will be hard to make up...
Ah, that's right, there's a lot of you paparazzi... Guess you lot have your own pressures.
So, do excuse me while I start my comeback rally now. I've got some catching up to do!
She's all fired up...

Far to the right of Aya is another red point of interest.


Waahh…
What's that?
That's a crying voice.
I guessed as much.

So, it's the cursed tool this time.
...The human part at least. Hey you, didn't you always have an umbrella with you?
*sniff sniff*... Let me explain, it's not with me cuz...
Nah, let us guess. Since humans aren't surprised by you anymore at your usual place, you decided to try your luck in the Great Tree.
You wanted to surprise someone here, but the monsters beat ya black and blue and your umbrella got stolen instead. Your bruises make it easy to guess.
Ooh... Wahhhhh...
Nailed it.
I don't get it, she's an umbrella tsukumogami, no? How can she be here crying when they took her body away?

A tsukumogami is the awakened spirit of an object that has existed for over 100 years. Rinnosuke raises a valid point – Kogasa’s true body is the umbrella, her humanoid form is merely an extension of it. This will not be addressed.

Wahhh... C'mon, help me out... Get my umbrella back from those monsters...
No way.
Waaaaaaah!
...If your umbrella was stolen, do you know where it is now?
I don't know.
That's even more annoying.
Uwaaaaaaaah!
......*sigh*......

Talking to her again brings up this dialogue:

Waaah...
For now, we have to look for where that spiritual umbrella could be before we can bring it back.
So annoying.
Uwaaaaaah!
...... *sigh*......

Hang in there, Kogasa.

This area is a dead end, so we loop around and start exploring upwards. Along the way, we pick up a Cantrip Book, a Manga Meat and a Bludgeon.

Bludgeon – A bludgeon created from the trunk of the Great Tree. Might have some mysterious power within. The girls thought it too heavy, so they scraped at it until it was thin enough to work as a staff. Poor bludgeon. ATK & DEF +12%, PHY and SHK +12



The fatigue of exploration is taking its toll: Keine runs out of TP on account of doing the bulk of the tanking work, and Reimu and Marisa follow shortly, on account of running out of MP and having to rest repeatedly. We head back to the village once more.

We’ve earned some skill points due to leveling up, so it’s time to start investing in skills. Every character starts with three skill points at level 1, and earns one more every level.



Keine picks up a level in Firm Defense, which raises her DEF and MND whenever she’s hit.



Marisa picks up a level in Sudden Impulse, which increases the damage variance of her attacks and raises the damage cap slightly.



Reimu picks up a level in Hakurei’s Divine Protection, which gives her a 33% chance of restoring 1MP to all front-row party members at the end of every battle as long as she’s in the party.



Momiji saves her skill points for now. Her useful skills are out of our price range at the moment.


This seems like a good stopping point. Let’s review our party members.



Reimu Hakurei
Flying Mysterious Shrine Maiden


The main character of the Touhou series. First appearing in the PC-98 game Highly Responsive to Prayers, Reimu has been a playable character in every mainline Touhou game since then and a prominent character in many of the spin-off games and stories.

Reimu Hakurei is the latest in the line of Hakurei shrine maidens, caretakers of the Hakurei Shrine. This makes her responsible for maintaining the Great Hakurei Barrier, the dimensional barrier that separates the pocket dimension of Gensokyo from the outside world, and resolving incidents which threaten the overall stability of Gensokyo itself.

In combat, she attacks with the Hakurei Yin-Yang orb and her sacred anti-youkai paper talismans. She is also skilled with magical barriers to a prodigious degree, able to assemble and dismantle even the most complex ones instinctively.




(all stats are shown at level 1, with no items equipped)

Stat-wise and resistance-wise, Reimu is fairly all-rounded, neither excelling nor falling short in any category. Her affinities are good – her only weakness is to mystic-element attacks, and she has high spirit affinity.

Skills

HP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base HP.

MP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base MP.

Magic Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base Magic.

Motivated Heart – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Reimu’s XP earned by (6*S.Lvl)% as long as Reimu is in the party. Does not stack with Hands-On Experience.

Hands-On Experience – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Reimu’s XP earned by (12*S.Lvl)%, as long as Reimu is in the frontline at the end of battle. Does not stack with Motivated Heart.

Main Character: Reimu – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Whenever another party member is KO’d, Reimu gains a (6*S.Lvl)% buff to all stats.

Grand Incantation – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Whenever Reimu uses Concentrate, the damage of the next attack is multiplied by (1.6 + (0.4*S.Lvl)).

Hakurei’s Divine Protection – Max level 2, cost per level 5. At the end of every battle, there is a (33*S.Lvl)% chance that 1 MP is restored to all frontliners if Reimu is in the party.

Final Prayer – Max level 2, cost per level 5. When Reimu is KO’d, restores (50*S.Lvl)% health to all other frontliners.

Armored Yin-Yang Orb – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Reduces all spirit-element damage taken by other frontliners when Reimu is in the frontline.

Youkai Buster – Max level 2, cost per level 5. All damage against Youkai enemies is increased when Reimu is on the frontline. If another party member knows a similar skill, the damage increase does not stack.

Spellcards

All spellcards have max level 5, cost 5 skill points to level, and increase in damage/healing/buffing capacity by 5% per level. Some have additional effects when leveled.

Yin-Yang Orb – Spirit element, single-target, 2 MP, sets ATB to 6000. 123% (ATK+MAG) – 70% DEF. Gains a chance to Shock enemies above level 2.

Fantasy Seal – Spirit element, all-target, 5 MP, sets ATB to 5000. 180% (ATK + MAG) - 75% MND.

Exorcising Border – Spirit element, all allies, 8 MP, sets ATB to 3200. 66% MAG, heals all allies.

Great Hakurei Barrrier – Spirit element, all allies, 7 MP, sets ATB to 4800. Raises DEF and MND by (38 + (4*S.Lvl))%.

Reimu is, as mentioned, an all-rounded character who can take on any role. Right now we’re using her for offense, but as we pick up more dedicated attackers, she’s probably going to be moved to supporting with Great Hakurei Barrier and Exorcising Barrier. Hakurei’s Divine Protection, Final Prayer and Armored Yin-Yang Orb helps to support the front line, while Grand Incantation and Youkai Buster improves her damage. Main Character: Reimu is a useful skill for any situation, and helps her turn the tide when things go badly for our party.



Marisa Kirisame
Ordinary Black Magician


The second main character of the Touhou series. First appeared as the fourth boss in the second Touhou game, Story of Eastern Wonderland. Has been a playable character in all the mainline Touhou games ever since, and a major character in the spinoff games and stories.

Reimu’s chief rival and best friend, Marisa is a human witch who lives in the Forest of Magic. Unlike Reimu, who often investigates incidents reluctantly and out of a sense of duty, Marisa charges full-throttle into them, looking for adventure and new stuff to loot. Very skilled with magic, but knows few utility spells, preferring to focus on combat magic.

In combat, she uses light and heat magic with astronomy-themed spells, fueled by the magical herbs and fungi she gathers from the Forest of Magic. She prefers raw firepower and flashy displays over finesse, and often copies enemy spells she finds interesting. Her trademark move is the powerful Master Spark – a turbocharged laser of pure magical energy fired from her handheld mini-Hakkero.




Marisa’s stats are clearly focused on her magical prowess – high MP, magic, mind and speed, low everything else. She has subpar resistances to everything except Heavy and Silence. While her elemental affinities are low, the rest of her affinities are decent, and she has tremendous mystic affinity.

Skills

Speed Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base Speed.

MP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases max MP.

Magic Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base Magic.

Motivated Heart – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Marisa’s XP earned by (6*S.Lvl)% as long as Marisa is in the party. Does not stack with Hands-On Experience.

Hands-On Experience – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Marisa’s XP earned by (12*S.Lvl)% as long as Marisa is in the frontline at the end of battle. Does not stack with Motivated Heart.

Main Character: Marisa – Max level 2, cost per level 5. If five other party members are KO’d, Marisa recovers (S.Lvl)MP per turn and all her stats are boosted by (10*S.Lvl)%. Bugged, does not work.

M(Alice) Cannon: Marisa – Max level 2, cost per level 5. If Alice Margatroid is in reserve, Marisa’s speed increases by (15*S.Lvl)%.

Sheer Force – Max level 1, cost per level 15. Pierces enemy resistances and affinities when attacking.

Sudden Impulse – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases damage variance and damage cap.

Lively and Healthy – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases decay rate of debuffs and status effects.

Magic Training – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases all Mystic damage done by frontliners by (20*S.Lvl)% when Marisa is on the frontline.

Spellcards

Magic Missile – Mystic element, single-target, 2 MP, sets ATB to 5800. 192% MAG – 60% MND.

Asteroid Belt – Mystic element, all-target, 6 MP, sets ATB to 4000. 193% MAG – 87.5% MND.

Concentration – Mystic element, self, 3 MP, sets ATB to 8800. Buffs MAG by (21 + (3*S.Lvl))%.

Master Spark – Mystic element, all-target, 27 MP, sets ATB to 0. 480% MAG – 120% MND, reduces Marisa’s MP to 0.

Her skills largely revolve around boosting her offensive capabilities. Sheer Force, Magic Training and Sudden Impulse all help to boost her damage, and the bonus speed from M(Alice) Cannon is nice if you can get it. Main Character: Marisa would be a potent skill – if it weren’t bugged. Asteroid Belt and Magic Missile are our main enemy-sweeping skills for now, and Master Spark will be an excellent boss-killer once we get the MP to use it.



Keine Kamishirasawa
Half Beast of Knowledge and History


First appeared as the third boss in the eighth Touhou game, Imperishable Night. Since then, she’s made occasional background cameos in spinoffs and side material, usually in her role as guardian of the human village.
Keine is a were-hakutaku who runs a school in the Human Village, teaching history to the children there. She considers herself the guardian of the Human Village, and protects it against youkai threats. In human form, she has the ability to ‘eat’ history, concealing past events from the minds of the world at large.

In combat, she uses spells themed around Japanese historical events and items, particularly the three sacred treasures. In were-hakutaku form, her physical strength and combat prowess increase sharply, but being a cursed lycanthrope and not a natural one, is forced to take on this form during the full moon and has no control over it otherwise.




Keine has above-average defense, HP and mind. Her offense isn’t stellar, but it’s workable, especially at this stage. She has decent status resistances and good affinities, weak only to dark-element attacks.


Skills

TP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases max TP.

MP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases max MP.

Magic Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base Magic.

Motivated Heart – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Keine’s XP earned by (6*S.Lvl)% as long as Keine is in the party. Does not stack with Hands-On Experience.

Hands-On Experience – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Keine’s XP earned by (12*S.Lvl)% as long as Keine is in the frontline at the end of battle. Does not stack with Motivated Heart.

With Mokou – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Attack and Magic by (15*S.Lvl)% if both Keine and Mokou are on frontline.

Organized Formation - Max level 1, cost per level 10. Whenever someone uses Form Change while Keine is on the front line, all characters involved (switcher and two switched characters) regain 1 MP.

Firm Defense – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Gains a (5*S.Lvl)% boost to Defense and Mind when hit by an enemy attack.

Teacher’s Command – Max level 2, cost per level 6. All frontliners gain a (6*S.Lvl)% Mind buff whenever Keine takes a turn.

Historian’s School – Max level 1, cost per level 10. All party members gain 6% more XP while Keine is in party. Only applies if all 12 members are present.

Spellcards

Ancient History – Old History - – Dark element, all-target, 5 MP, sets ATB to 5120. 164% MAG – 64% DEF.

New History – Next History - – Spirit element, all-target, 5 MP, sets ATB to 5120. 164% MAG – 64% MND.

Three Treasures – Sword – Physical element, all allies, 5 MP, sets ATB to 6000. Buffs ATK and MAG by (21 + (3*S.Lvl))%.

Three Treasures – Mirror – Physical element, all allies, 5 MP, sets ATB to 6000. Buffs DEF and MND by (21 + (3*S.Lvl))%.

With the exception of With Mokou, Keine’s skills largely focus on boosting her defensive and support capabilities. Her offenses are lackluster and she’s better off casting Sword or Mirror in most battles.



Rinnosuke Morichika
Unmoving Used Goods Seller


First appeared as the main character in Curiosities of Lotus Asia, a collection of side stories. Since then, has made several background cameos in various other side works.

A half-human, half youkai salesman, Rinnosuke runs an item store between the Forest of Magic and the Human village, selling various trinkets to humans and youkai alike. Occasionally picks up items from the outside world, due to being fairly close to the border. Before setting up his own store, he used to be the apprentice of Marisa’s father, and has known her ever since she was young.

He has genuinely no combat ability whatsoever. His youkai power allows him to intuitively grasp the name and utility of things: what they’re called and what they’re used for, but not how to use them. Has picked up some degree of mechanical aptitude over his long life, and is skilled with working with magical items. Gave Marisa her mini-Hakkero, and helped Reimu prepare her purification rod.




Lackluster in almost every respect, about the only thing notable is the incrementally ascending resistances, giving him above-average death, silence and debuff resistance.

Skills

High MP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 3. Greatly increases max MP.

High TP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 6. Greatly increases max MP.

High Attack Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 6. Greatly increases base Attack.

High Defense Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 6. Greatly increases base Defense.

High Magic Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 6. Greatly increases base Magic.

High Mind Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 6. Greatly increases base Mind.

Motivated Heart – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Rinnosuke’s XP earned by (6*S.Lvl)% as long as Reimu is in the party. Does not stack with Hands-On Experience.

Hands-On Experience – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Rinnosuke’s XP earned by (12*S.Lvl)%, as long as Reimu is in the frontline at the end of battle. Does not stack with Motivated Heart.

Gensokyo’s Shopkeeper – Max level 10, cost per level 1. Increases item drop rate by (4*S.Lvl)%. Only works when Rinnosuke is in party. Effect reduced if Rinnosuke is in reserve.

Keen-Eyed Shop Owner Saga – Max level 10, cost per level 1. Increases item drop rate by (2*S.Lvl)%. Only works when Rinnosuke is in party. Effect reduced if Rinnosuke is in reserve.

Effective Formation Change – Max level 2, cost per level 5. When Rinnosuke performs a Form Change, the character switching in will start with an ATB of 7500 + (800*S.Lvl).

Weird Creatures Knowledge – Max level 2, cost per level 5. All damage against Other enemies is increased when Rinnosuke is on the frontline. If another party member knows a similar skill, the damage increase does not stack.

Attack Debuff Add-On – Max level 2, cost per level 5. When Rinnosuke receives a turn, he attempts to inflict a (4*S.Lvl)% Attack debuff to all enemies.

Magic Debuff Add-On – Max level 2, cost per level 5. When Rinnosuke receives a turn, he attempts to inflict a (4*S.Lvl)% Magic debuff to all enemies.

Spellcards

First Aid – Physical element, one ally, 1 MP, sets ATB to 7000. 20% (ATK + MAG), heals ally. Cures Heavy at level 2 and Silence at level 3.

Battle Command – Physical element, one ally, 2 MP, sets ATB to 6600. Buffs all of one ally’s stats by (8 + (2*S.Lvl).

His skills go some way to making up for his unimpressive stats. High Defense/Mind/TP Boost can really increase his staying power, and the auto-debuff skills allow him to contribute simply by taking hits. Effective Form Change helps to speed up switchers, and the boosted item/money drop skills really help with farming later on, and he’s a good character to keep in reserve solely for those skills. However, he requires a lot of skill point investment to get up to even halfway decent. His spellcards are unremarkable, though Battle Command is the cheapest all-round buff spell we have at the moment.



Momiji Inubashiri
Petty Patrol Tengu


First appeared as a nonspeaking midboss in the tenth Touhou game, Mountain of Faith. Later appeared as a boss in side games Double Spoiler and Impossible Spell Card, and appears in the occasional background cameo.
Momiji is a white wolf tengu, a species of tengu most often found patrolling the Youkai Mountain. She is loyal to Tenma, lord of the tengu, and carries out his orders faithfully. She dislikes the crow tengu, particularly Aya, who she feels often looks down on her for being a lower-class tengu. In her spare time, she’s an avid shogi player.
In combat, she attacks with her sword and shield, and like most other tengu, possesses some degree of wind magic.




Momiji is a bulky physical attacker, with high HP and Attack and stellar Defense. Her resistances are average and on the low side, but she has fairly good affinities, weak only to cold and mystic attacks.

Skills

HP Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base TP.

Attack Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base Attack.

Defense Boost – Max level 5, cost per level 2. Increases base Defense.

Motivated Heart – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Momiji’s XP earned by (6*S.Lvl)% as long as Momiji is in the party. Does not stack with Hands-On Experience.

Hands-On Experience – Max level 2, cost per level 5. Increases Momiji’s XP earned by (12*S.Lvl)% as long as Momiji is in the frontline at the end of battle. Does not stack with Motivated Heart.

Ability to See Far Distances – Max level 2, cost per level 5. When Momiji is on the front line, all active members receive a (25*S.Lvl)% Accuracy boost.

Tengu’s Watchful Eye – Max level 2, cost per level 5. All damage against Flying enemies is increased when Momiji is on the frontline. If another party member knows a similar skill, the damage increase does not stack.

Accelerate – Max level 1, cost per level 10. Momiji gains a 10% speed buff whenever she takes a turn.

Eyes that Perceive Reality – Max level 1, cost per level 7. When Momiji attacks or takes damage from an enemy with buffs, damage is calculated as if buffs were nonexistent.

Instant Attack – Max level 1, cost per level 12. When Momiji switches into the front line, her ATB is set to 10000.

Spellcards

Rabies Bite – Physical element, single target, 3 MP, sets ATB to 6000. 225% ATK – 75% DEF.

Expellee’s Canaan – Wind element, all-target, 4 MP, sets ATB to 5000. 202% ATK – 90% DEF.

Accelerate boosts Momiji’s speed if she stays in the front line, while Instant Attack helps with a hit-and-run playstyle. Ability to See Far Distances is one of our few accuracy modifying skills, and will come in very handy for more evasive enemies. Eyes that Perceive Reality is a powerful skill against enemies who like to buff themselves to the point of near-invulnerability. Her spellcards are straightforward but powerful – the strongest physical attack spells we have at the moment.

Finally, let’s take a look at some of the enemies we’ve been fighting.




Kedamas are mysterious bodiless nature spirits. Your standard low-level disposable mook, they are to Touhou what the goomba is to Mario.



Nut Eaters are fairly weak but hit hard, and occasionally they fire off a strong attack which can Shock allies hit.



Enormous Wasps are relatively frail, but hit hard and can Poison allies hit.



Kuron Nuts are the tankiest enemy on the first floor, and if they get a defense/mind buff up, they become very tough nuts to crack indeed. They don’t hit as hard as the others, relatively speaking, but they’re still capable of putting quite a dent in our party, especially if they focus on the weaker members.



The enemy responsible for our first game over, Forest Fairies can unleash punishing all-target wind attacks. Fortunately, we’re fast enough to outspeed them now.

Next time, finishing up F1 of the Great Tree.