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Part X: The Rain of a Capital
I mean, apparently. The castle is that large round structure on the left, the cathedral is to the right. The fountain directly in front of you from where you start is our next landmark, and frankly, Edna gets what's coming to her in the resulting skit for dissing the fountain. There's another normin, good ol' Justiss, hanging out on the reverse side of the fountain. Let's get him out of the rain. In the capital
Fountain in the Square posted:
A fountain built in the square before the main gates of Pendrago. The underground parts are made up of surprisingly complex components.
*massive jump*
Sergei!
He's one of the cardinal's subordinates. I tried to apprehend him, but... Well, you saw what he was like.
His movements were incredible.
You could tell, right? It was a hellion.
The cardinal's underling is a hellion? Then...
Forgive me, sir. He's escaped into the shrinechurch.
It looks like it's true.
I believe he was likely a messenger of--
*pokes Sergei from behind* I'm COLD. You can blather on INSIDE.
*cute sneeze*
Tell us the details after we find shelter from the rain, if you please. Our friends are feeling a bit chilly. And even a seraph can catch a cold!
Friends?
Not that you could tell, since you can't see 'em.
*nods*
F-Forgive me. I should have been mindful of the seraphim's presence. Let us head for the knights' tower. Your wife sure is considerate!
Yep.
*marches off*
He still thinks they're married.
...
The knights' tower is near the castle, as you'd expect, but until then, we have free reign to roam around the city, looking for treasure. Well, mostly. The shrinechurch is off-limits, but the grounds itself are not. But before that, a new town usually means new inn skits, and that's certainly the case here. First up, you need to find enough normin for this first one, where Lailah joins the normin-detecting crew, Dezel teaching the secrets of Windstepping to Mikleo if his level is high enough, and Rose's take on an old tale between hellions and seraphim (that's actually a variation of the old Japanese fable Shita-kiri Suzume). If you've ever seen a video game moral choice where you choose the smaller or presumably less valuable thing, as opposed to the larger or the apparently more valuable thing, and you get better rewards from the former, yeah, it's referencing the same fable.
The eastern quarter of the city is apparently a residential district. The nearby citizens are definitely none too thrilled about the apparently-unceasing rain, but you'd certainly think so, wouldn't you? That ! marks points you to another map-selling Turtlez, and after talking about revenge against one of his kind, offers you another map for 400 gald. Another paltry sum to part with, I should think.
The northwest corner of the city has the knights' tower on the left, and apparently the castle ahead of us. Considering how our last visit to a castle went, maybe it's a good thing they're not admitting anyone right now.
This little branch in the Northern Quarter, where we started, has a number of treasures in it. Mostly minor boons, but you can find a monolith if you clamber up to an accessible rampart and follow it to the end, and there's a second normin, Gaizer, on a bench to the left of where Sorey is in this shot. He's bright blue, so easy to spot. Once you've surveyed to your content, return to the tower to continue the story. The knights
This should be a better place to talk.
Did everything go okay? Can we get in the church?
I secured the permissions, but after that last incident, I'm afraid we're likely under high scrutiny.
So what else is new? They weren't big fans of us in the first place.
*nods* Yeah, good point. We've got nothing to hide. Let's do it.
Look at that! Ever since Rose joined up with us, I feel like Sorey has become so much more proactive!
Too bad it means that much more trouble for us.
Thank you.
It was my decision to begin with. And besides, I've really wanted to see the shrine inside the church.
There's something about you that reminds me of the pope. He too would never hesitate to spare expenses for the sake of his people.
Oh boy, another masochist.
I-I see.
I've prepared lodgings for you. I pray that the seraphim will also be able to rest well tonight.
But captain! It's been there days since we last heard from Boris after his infiltration. I believe we should hurry.
Who's Boris?
The rain may be affecting our food supplies, but i shall prepare our famous drago stew for you!
Aren't you the least bit concerned?! He's your only brother!
I do not wish to burden you with my troubles any more than I already have. Please rest for now.
It's a kind offer. Let's take it.
We will. Thank you.
Sounds like there might be some personal stuff there. If you talk to the guy who spoke out of turn there, you'll discover Boris is Sergei's younger twin, actually. But we best not pry further into it right now, if you ask me.
Over in the corner we have...Heldalf? As a human, actually. And yep, there's no mistaking it. Probably. I mean, how many JRPGs have you run into where two named individuals have the same family name, but they're not related to each other and one of them has nothing to do with the story?
Better look at it, by playing around with the camera a bit. This one is a bit weird in that, yes it IS a landmark, but you can't actually register it as one until later on in our business in Pendrago. But if you don't get this skit now, you'll miss it later on. Very strange. But for now, let's chow down on this allegedly famous stew. The business of merchants
*burps*
Hey... Learn some manners.
You sure can eat.
So can these two.
It was surprisingly good! I couldn't help myself.
Drago stew. 85 points.
My policy is eat while you can! It's been ingrained in me since I was a kid. That's the law of a soldier.
Hmph. A soldier, huh.
Soldier? Aren't you and your buddies in an assassins' guild?
Well you know, it wasn't always like this. We used to be just a band of mercenaries. Not to brag, but they called us the best on the continent.
Is that right.
*stands up, yawns* That's it for me. We've got a job to do tomorrow.
*nods*
*walks off*
Is Rose's "band of mercenaries" the one you mentioned before?
The Windriders, I believe.
I think I've heard of them. The tales said just a hundred of them could scatter a force of twenty thousand men and capture three castles in one night!
Yeah. They were a legendary band of mercenaries. It's no wonder Rolance itself was their primary employer.
They sound crazy strong!
Strong AND loyal, to the point that even the Emperor of Rolance trusted them like his right-hand man. Isn't that right?
*looks down* It's true. WAS true. But then the imperial family of Rolance ended up stabbing them in the back. Along with the very one I'm seeking vengeance against.
The imperial family joined forces with hellions?!
Is it that surprising?
I guess not. People and hellions aren't separate entities, after all.
Very true. You can even consider them two sides of the same coin.
In fact, if the cardinal's power is somehow linked to a hellion, things start to make sense.
*stands up* It looks like Rose snuck out through the back. *takes off* Can't take my eyes off her for a second!
Hey, Dezel!
That is indeed Rose's backstory, more or less how the anime also tells it. The prowess of the band of mercenaries was such that the abandoned-but-then adopted Rose was engaged to be married to one of Rolance's princes, but an internal power struggle ended with her fiance breaking things off, let's say, by framing the bunch for the murder of another of Rolance's princes, that ended up getting Brad killed and leaving Rose in charge of the assassins/merchants. That assassination mission I mentioned earlier? That was actually against Konan, the malevolence-filled husband-to-be. Rose's motivations are slightly different in the anime, but ultimately a negligible point, as she ends up traveling with Sorey anyway as he continues the battle against Heldalf after the events of Glaivend Basin.
So once more, we're headed back to that little offshoot where we found the most recent normin. Truth be told, when I first started recording this update, it took me a while to find this place, so if you need help on your end, well, the story's got your back.
That's what we want to know! Where were you going?
Oh, just taking a walk. Though maybe I ate too much.
You don't have to follow every whim that pops into your head, damn it.
We thought you might have ditched us to go assassinate someone.
Not yet, silly. That comes later.
*everyone except Dezel gasps*
It's from someone who lost their son in the war that just broke out. "Kill the one who started the battle". The invasion was proposed to the emperor about a year ago... In documents bearing the name of Pope Masedra.
Huh?! You're going to kill the pope?!
Hold on. How do you know someone didn't just use his name? I thought he went missing, after all.
Maybe. But then again, maybe not. It's awfully close to the time he went missing. We'll have to investigate further.
And what if we find out that he's bad?
If it's evil, the Scattered Bones slay it.
Even if it's the pope?
Oh! Was that...inappropriate?
Hahahaha! I'm not a fan of that last part, it's true.
It isn't like we walk around all stabby-stabby. We make sure what kind of person our target is first.
Seems like a poor business model, if you hire assassins but then they decide on their own whether to actually fulfill the job, but I'm guessing they typically don't get paid unless they finish a job or, you know, decent folk don't go around hiring assassins, so who is a jilted client gonna complain to?
Hm. I think I understand you better, Rose.
Do you, now? Well, that's good.
I'm starting to understand, too... Why she bears no malevolence, that is.
Because she's as nuts as he is?
Rose would certainly never tell a lie, that's for sure.
She was always that way. It's in her blood.
Well, at least it was nothing more serious than that...probably. By resting at the inn, you can get the chance of seeing a skit between Lailah and Rose about equipment fusion, but we're still not really at that point in the game where you have to worry too much. Also, Mikleo still putting in the effort to master his abilities.
Well, nice place. It looked a lot more white back when we were here last, but this is actually only a small part of the structure. There's an antechamber and a massive underground complex, both of which we'll hopefully get to see at some point. The shrinechurch
Um, ah...
Musiphe! Oh, and Eumacia!
Correct. Now, can you tell me the name of the last one, the seraph who's worshiped here at the shrinechurch?
Maotelus!
*gasps*
...
That's right. Maotelus is the seraph who has given the entire Glenwood continent his blessing.
The seraph worshiped at the shrinechurch is Maotelus?
The Five Lords, huh? Big movers and shakers.
I bet Maotelus would know something about how to stand against the Lord of Calamity! He's got to!
I don't know about that, Sorey. If Maotelus is supposedly "blessing" this continent, then why are things so terrible now? It's likely Lailah would know a bit about the answer to that question, but we're better off talking to a wall than asking her anything about Maotelus right now.
Is he really all that?
Well, he's the leader of the Five Lords, after all!
You must be Sorey. Welcome to the Rolance church headquarters. I heard you were to visit. Please, come on in.
He's not wrong. And definitely confirmation that the Era of Asgard was Velvet's day.
Could the spiritual powers...
...be real?
Just possibly!
It's like the lettering's meant to tell us something...
But it's all gibberish. It must be some kind of code.
Well, it does involve sensitive info. Maybe there's a hint to crack the code somewhere.
Hey. What does the big rock thing say?
I'm afraid I'm not really sure. The inscription is written in some sort of cipher, and the key to interpreting it is handed down only from pope to pope.
So I guess we'll have to get the pope to read it then, huh.
Something's wrong! Let's get outta here!
Well, let's uh...let's hope we can get out of here before any lion men show up.
Going home already, Shepherd?
*gasps*
This domain... Is it yours?
Ah, so you can still move. Why don't you lend me your powers? For the sake of the people, of course.
They asked me the same thing in Hyland.
I hardly think myself the equal of a philistine like Bartlow.
Sounds like something a philistine would say.
Charming. But sticks and stones and so on, young lady.
Ooohh! She's good!
I have but one wish: to see my empire overcome this tumultuous era of chaos. A task only possible if the people are united. But Rolance is far too expansive to unify the people through mere patriotism alone. Shepherd. Do you know exactly what it is that the state has used for aeons to keep an entire country in line?
Is it...faith?
Yes. Faith. It is the belief in their own salvation that inspires in people the greatest sense of unity, when they band together against outsiders who share different values. Meaning that the church itself should serve as the cornerstone for all of Rolance.
So I looked up Forton's voice actress, since she sounded vaguely familiar, and the woman's name is Amanda Celine Miller. Turns out she's been in quite a few things I've watched / played. God Eaters, Berseria (I'd love it someone could pick where this voice was in the game, allegedly), Zestiria the X (though Forton doesn't show up in that show), handful of other animes I've seen. I can't think of anyone specifically that she played but seems like she just has that kind of voice.
Maybe in your mind.
It is but the vision of one who would guide the people. With the name and power of the Shepherd, more people than ever can be brought to salvation.
Then you should cooperate with the knights. Wouldn't that really be what's best for everyone?
I would welcome their efforts if they would simply bend to my will and do as I command. Even if they are a pack of loutish meatheads who can't figure out that their pope abandoned them.
Wait a minute-- The pope just ran away? You didn't have him locked up?
I am not a street thug, child. The pope--Masedra, I should say--left of his own accord. Abandoning his duty to both the empire and his followers. What pray tell, would you call such a man?
Pretty irresponsible. If what you're saying is true.
Irresponsible is one word. And still there are so many fools out there who trust in such a coward. The knights, for example. In order to bring the people together, we must find Masedra and give him his due punishment.
Punishment?
Yes. The same punishment that befell those uncivil enough to mistrust me.
Then we have a problem. We need the pope to tell us the meaning of the inscription.
Why? Cooperate with me and it won't be necessary.
I need to know. No matter what.
Ah, I see. That's very unfortunate. So then, you mean to say...
My body!
Sorey!
*gasps*
Let's go!
*grabs Rose's arm* We're leaving!
*smacks staff where they were standing*
What?! *stands up* They broke through my domain and connected with the seraphim, if only just for a moment... Oh, will I relish this!
I hope so, Forton, I hope so. Most of what she said sounded...sensible, but it's hard to beat the first impression of casting a domain equivalent to Heldalf's and turning children to stone, isn't it? An internal power struggle between the church and knights definitely doesn't seem like the kind of thing the Shepherd has any business getting mixed up in, but with perpetual rain in Pendrago, that domain, and the inscription we need to read, sounds like it's more worth our time than might have been apparent at first.
This is Spectral Cloak as a Map Action. This makes you invisible while it's active, which is about...8 seconds or so. Enemies who can aggro against you will not while this is up, but its other big use is in an...infamous dungeon, let's say. But for now, we're headed back to the knights' tower with this latest revelation. Now that we've somehow managed to unearth more information than Sergei's entire squad, we'll get some idea on where to go next. On the trail
O-Okay.
The pope fled of his own volition?!
I'm sorry I couldn't get more details. We were sort of running for our lives.
No, that is more than enough. I'm just relieved that you weren't captured.
*nods* Thanks for saving us back there.
It's the least I could do.
Seraph Mikleo, my humble admiration for your bravery!
It's nothing, really.
It IS nothing. All you did was blind her temporarily.
Well, geez, I know you're prickly but don't bully him too much about it. He had a better idea than you did.
We have to do something about her domain.
*nods* Those powers might help. Let's get the pope to decipher that inscription.
That'll be tough if we don't know where he is. The knights have been hunting him for a year now with no success.
Yeah, but they were assuming the whole time that the cardinal was behind the disappearance. Guess what? I think I know where Pope-a-dope might be.
You do?!
The village of Gododdin, on the southern part of the continent. We won't know for sure until we check it out, of course.
How did you get that information?!
Well, let's just call it an "industry secret". You know how it is.
Of course. I should have expected no less from the wife of the Shepherd! Let us send a search team to Gododdin.
Hold on a minute. The cardinal already expects that our side will be searching for the pope.
A highly-visible squadron of knights would essentially be a bright pink arrow pointed straight at him.
However...
We can operate covertly in small numbers. Let us handle Gododdin.
But that's far too much to ask.
Chill, Cap'n, we got this! What is it they say? Pope springs eternal?
Abandon Pope, all ye who, er, don't go to Gododdin!
We're definitely losing the pun thread here, and fast. We better get the hell out of here.
Okay, settle down.
My thanks, gentle Shepherd.
Actually, as for what you can do in return... Do you suppose we could get a pass to Rolance? I might be mistaken for an ally of the Hyland army otherwise.
I have seen for myself the quality of your character. I shall prepare it immediately!
Thank you! That's a load off my mind.
There is something I would like to impart to you as well. Would you please step outside for a moment? *marches out*
I'm starting to get that impression, too. Let's hope it's not another duel. Oh, and now you can officially register that portrait of Heldalf as, what else, "Portrait of Heldalf". Some soul-searching in this skit about the true face of the Lord of Calamity, well-needed from Sorey.
Portrait of Heldalf posted:
A portrait of the formidable man who rebuilt Rolance through militarization and established its modern divisional structure.
That's the least of what he's done, honestly...
*nods*
That is the "Lion's Howl", an arte passed down through our band of knights. *begins walking away* I and my younger brother Boris are the only ones alive who know it. *turns around* But now I pass it on to you as well. Wilt thou accept?
Yes.
That's it. Nice and quick.
Well, you're a fast learner. I must apologize that this feeble arte is all an oaf like me may offer you.
Don't say that, it's incredible! Thank you so much, Captain Sergei.
You and I stand as equals. You may call me Sergei.
Then you may call me Sorey!
Sorey. I am loath to believe the pope just abandoned his post to us. But I also sense that there may be another side to this unfortunate story.
I understand. We'll find the pope and come back with the truth. *offers hand*
*shakes* Godspeed.
*fade to inside*
Rose, was it the Scattered Bones who found the information on the pope?
Maybe. Seeing where the church's money was going gave us a little hint.
That's what I thought! You guys sure don't operate in the same way that the knights do.
Course not! An assassins' guild can't function without proper intel!
Assassins... Right.
Here is your pass, Sorey.
Thank you. Our travels should be much easier now!
I wish it were so, but we've received word that Biroclef Ridge, which leads to Gododdin, has been blocked by rockslides.
We could've been on the ridge right now--
If only we'd been a little boulder!
Rooooose! My puuuuuunchliiiine!
Alright, glad they got a little practice while Sorey and Sergei were outside.
What's the plan?
You'll have to go through Cambria Caverns, south of the Meadow of Triumph.
An underground passage, huh? No problem!
Heh. That's your thing, isn't it.
You bet it is.
With that settled, our official business in Pendrago is already over, but there's, again, a few more skits at the end. The first one is a save point skit (I really liked Lailah trying to empathize with Forton here), as is the second, and...that's it. Well, that was nice for once. I hate resting at the inn a bunch to try and get all the skits. Now we're ready to leave.
A hellion! Is it one of the cardinal's guards?!
I *think* you get in a fight if you don't do this right, but remember the trick we just learned? Throw on the Spectral Cloak and mosey on out of here.
That doesn't quite make sense...
The last part of Sorey's line there, for the Vulture, was cut off by Rose using her Mystic Arte again, but I'm pretty sure that was the end of the dialogue there, anyway.
So I decided to take a detour back to the Great Camelot Bridge to see if I could actually make it far into a location we're not supposed to be going for quite a while yet. Yeah, just like I thought, the first enemy I ran into completely destroyed me, so you definitely have no business going this way.
Getting back on track, returning to the Meadow of Triuph causes this conversation to pop up. Remember when I mentioned one branch of the Meadow Triumph, on our first visit, was unavailable? The Cambria Caverns are in that direction.
That red icon to the west. It's more "southwest" of the Meadow, if anything.
I mastered it while practicing with Sorey.
It's got the reach you'd need to win, since he's taller.
That's not the reason why!
But the height--
That's not it!
A likely story, Mikleo.
Yay, spelunking. The Cambria Caverns, you might think they're named for the second-earliest geological era of Earth's history (about 539 million to 488 million years ago), but it's also the Latin name for Wales, which is probably the intended reference. If you're curious, Caledonia is the Latin name for Scotland, and Hibernia for Ireland. Despite the Roman Empire frequently using Latin names for their settlements in Britain (for example, Londinium would eventually become, of course, London), "Cambria" is a post-Roman invention to refer to the Celtic kingdoms of the island separate from the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms that began to be founded after the Romans left. Incidentally, the village we're supposed to be going to, Gododdin, is named after one of those Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, based in what's now northeastern England and southern Scotland.
So this certainly is an interesting dungeon. There are two paths here, of course. You want the quickest way out of the caves? Just head to the path to Sorey's right. That'll soon lead you to a cliff area that's on the actual road to Gododdin. The left leads much further into a dungeon and leads to the continuation of a sidequest we actually started in the last update. On the subject of non-essential business, there's a save point skit nearby, wherein we learn Sorey loves cave-diving. I'd certainly think so.
You better believe it. Also, that Platinum Knight just straight up repeats what I said in the above paragraph about how quick this dungeon's critical path is. But obviously, we're ignoring the critical path for now. But of course, we have new friends in the caverns.
(Armored Centipedes) Armored Centipeds take a low stance when they go for an attack!
Meaning, we should attack when it takes that low position!
Good rule of thumb for this dungeon is Fire and Wind are the most effective counters to enemies around here. As always, watch for Wraiths. Spellcasters in this game, I'm telling ya.
(Serpent) What a wishy-washy, wimpish, wussy.
Quit it with the wordplay and just fight already!
It can call for help, so we should defeat it first.
Yep, this is an occasional gimmick of this dungeon, floors breaking underneath you. Well, it usually won't set you back too far.
As you might guess, we'll be Wind Rushing around a fair bit.
Further on, you can find an Amphibole Tiara for Lailah in that little alcove. Good thing for that radar, eh?
Continuing the path through more enemies and minor treasures, you'll come across the Stone Pillar room. Some of these will break apart from under you, but if they do, just pick a new path. There are also some treasures at the bottom that are worth grabbing while you're in the area. Make sure to pick up Cast Heels and an Aqua Ring on opposite sides of this larger area before you move on.
The larger chamber we're going toward has something special on the wall.
I think that counts as something special, don't you? In spite of how...dire this thing looks, the only thing on Edna's mind, apparently, is seafood. After climbing up some vines near the petrified...thing, there's a monolith in a small offshoot cave, so don't go too far without examining that.
Petrified Colossus posted:
A fossil of a strange, gigantic organism. It is literally impossible to makes heads or tails of it, but one can sense the dynamism of ancient life within.
I personally don't think I'd want to meet whatever this thing's friends were, but hopefully, we won't have to. After you pick up the monolith, there will be some vines opposite, and we'll be climbing up those to get to the good stuff.
Despite how it might seem, you can actually cross over to that small island in the distance (if you squint, you can see a gold chest on it) by following the shallows. In fact, that's how we get to the purple star.
I actually spent many, many attempts to defeat this thing, and yeah, it was not going well. Well, given that gold chest, we'll be back this way at some point. That's something, I guess.
See those little lights on the cave roof? Those are our next landmark, actually. A well-hidden one, but luckily, this chamber is small enough that if you're going for those red herbs (this is the first dungeon in the game where those start showing up), you should get the prompt for it.
A pleasant sight in this gloomy burg, to be sure. The ephemeral life of these organisms, however, is no excuse not to pun if the opportunity comes up.
Tiny Luminescent Organisms posted:
Tiny organisms that exist only in highly humid caves. In a dark world bereft of sunlight, they emit faint glimmers of light.
Yeah, my advice for fighting this latest purple hellion right now is...don't. I spent like 50 minutes on it with 0 progress. Way too easy to die right now.
Well, if it's not...it sure looks like it.
Hm, seems like Heldalf ran into some kind of failure at some point. Surely that wouldn't be enough to turn someone into a Lord of Calamity? I think there's more to it than that. The requisite post-Historia skit is pretty funny because the game's not sure if you discovered the Portrait of Heldalf, so they don't recognize him yet.
Quite surprising...a Shepherd in an age like this.
I think you've surprised us!
*bows* My name is Sorey. And you are?
Are you the seraph of Lastonbell?
I once was, yes.
Can we ask you to give your blessing again? There's no seraph enshrined at the sanctuary in Lastonbell, and strange things are happening.
That's of no relation to blessings.
*hops out* How can you be sure?
Because I have used the bells in the belfry as my vessel.
I see. So the sanctuary in Lastonbell is nothing more than a figurehead.
In any case, it is no longer my concern. I no longer have the capacity to understand humans. Please, leave me be.
May we ask you what happened?
I'm sorry. *leaves*
Well, that was unhelpful, but at least we do know it's connected to something going on in Lastonbell. To continue this sidequest, just return there and start asking around. Of the three exits to this underground lake area, the southern one leads to where that giant fossil was, the northern one was that smaller lake with the landmark, and the center one leads to a cliff that eventually winds back to the start of this dungeon. We want that one. Although we could go ahead to the ridge outside Gododdin, we're instead headed back to Lastonbell.
So the NPCs you need to talk are marked with !s over their heads, and they all seem to point to this "Margaret" child being involved with the seraphim somehow. Given what Sindra said, easy to think there's a connection there. After you talk to enough people, if you get a short conversation directing you to rest at the inn, that's how you continue this quest. Girl in the shadows
This skit will end with hearing a girl scream, and given the time of day, it can't be good.
This fight against a "Rougarou", according to Lailah, is pretty easy. Just a typical hellion wolf enemy without any special stats.
Eeek! A wolf monster!
She has resonance, too?!
*the wolf runs off*
Dang!
We're going after it! C'mon, hurry!
Definitely nothing wholesome here.
So the Breed Wolf is actually a pretty hard fight, because it's fast and unpredictable. At times it may be pretty passive, occasionally it'll go very aggressive, making it a hard enemy to read and know when you're safe. It only has short-range attacks, but it can close a distance very quickly. Additionally, its elemental resistances are a huge pain. Your best bet is either Earth, which is neutral damage, or Fire, which can quickly open up a Power Combo to deal decent damage.
Fatal Claw is a very important attack to dodge, when it gets low on health. Practically guaranteed to KO anyone it hits. I wouldn't try to style on this unless you're 100% sure in your timing.
This fight was near the end of a 3 hour recording session, so yeah, I was jonesing for it to be done.
What?!
Wh-What is going on?!
Margaret?
You can tell it's really me? Even though my mom said I'm a monster?
Of course. I know you're not a monster.
No, but I became one...because me and Wiggs got so angry... Wiggs became a super scary monster all of a sudden and then killed the people in the city... I got really scared, and so I went to see my mom to get help, but then my mom...
Don't worry. Your momma's gonna come soon.
Really? I... I'm so happy...
I sensed the presence of hellions... And also a bit of nostalgia.
I can hear Sindra's voice... Wiggs...let's go to the bells... Sindra will be waiting for...us...
I could have stopped this if I hadn't run away...
Sindra... *stands up*
All Margaret said was that there isn't a seraph enshrined in the sanctuary.
I see. And so that must have been what led to the bullying.
Yes. In the midst of the intensifying clash between countries, the Church has been disciplining their believers more strictly. It's gotten to the point where they've started to act more hostile towards anyone else with conflicting values and beliefs. Even if it is just some child's nonsense.
So that's the reason why you left. Out of utter disgust for humans.
Shepherd Sorey. Please, could you give me just one more chance to protect the city?
I'd like to, but that city is still...
But she's willing to do it. Right?
Yes. I won't have people speak of my friend as a liar.
Well, that was an unexpectedly dark ending to that sidequest, wasn't it? Sometimes things just can't be helped... If nothing else, coming to terms with how things happened ended up with Sindra becoming our first optional Lord of the Land. Because of the nature of this game, restoring these areas via sidequests is a very important thing to do. But now we're headed back to the Cambria Caverns to continue on our road. This sidequest also gives you an alternate color for Rose's civilian outfit.
This normin is easy to detect if you're coming from the opposite direction, and it's not that hard to pick out even if you're coming from the normal one, since this outcropping is prominent. Anyway, it's just a straight shot to the outside from here. Hellion of the wind
I'll say she spoke too soon. At least Lailah got to end this dialogue on a pun. So in spite of this being a large enemy, and it appearing with a self-made tornado, Griffin's biggest weakness is being unable to deal AOE damage in a radius around it, unlike like every boss in Berseria with a token Soul Burst arte. The best it has to this effect is an arte when it gets lower on health, Whirlwind, where it'll throw down a whirlwind at the edge of its wings before jumping backwards. Still, as long as you avoid the front, it's easy to dodge this one, as well as its flame breath techniques. Other than those abilities, not a lot you have to worry about.
As far as dealing damage, again, Earth and Fire forms are your best bet.
Technically negative Grade? I think that's a bit harsh. Maybe that's because Rose ended the battle while KO'd? Not sure.
I hate the wind. *gets blown down by Griffin getting back up, before collapsing again* Huh?!
Edna!
You all right?
*gets up with his help* I just slipped, is all.
Boy, we can't take Lady Edna anywhere, can we.
Lady Meebo is talking
I'm thrilled they're enjoying themselves, aren't you?
So that rock there is the "landslide" we were told about. The only reason we had to cross through those caves is because we couldn't Wind Rush over the gap.
Off in the distance, you'll see something poking up over a ridge; that's Gododdin, so we're already close, but we can, and shall, make a detour into another short optional dungeon for some goodies. By the way, you can't burn those vines. Need to cut 'em. Sorey's map action, if you will. As for the leach...
Leecher Leech. It's dangerous to fight them in close combat!
So what's the difference between the Leech and Leecher?
Maybe when you're older. Despite being slow and having low HP, they can melt HP if you get caught in-between them and they attack. Try not to let that happen.
The advantage with Trolls is when they bunch up like this. Fire form can really sock it to 'em.
Once you Wind Rush over a gap and proceed a bit up a slope, closer to the village, you'll get a skit about the terrain around here. The skit does make a good point; how DO the folks around here manage? We'll just have to see.
A fairly well-hidden normin in some caves after the aforementioned slope. See the open box? It's in there. If you're just zooming past here and don't have Normin FTW on, easy to overlook it.
Nice view from up here. The silver chest has has a Sidekick Mask in it, but the other prize is shortly beyond. While you can't Wind Rush out of good taste, there is a landmark here, a baby Grifkyte resting in its nest. As you might guess, Dezel seems much more attuned to animal than human (or seraphim life) life, and Lailah mentions another Grifkyte flying high up. I couldn't find it.
Grifkyte posted:
Kites that inhabit the southern valleys of Rolance. They take flight on the winds of the vale and glide gracefully through the skies.
The junction point is where we found the normin, to give you some context. The path we're currently on leads to Gododdin, but we've got more caves far off the beaten path.
The main area also has Lailah's Malevolent Crucible. As with Mikleo, unless you're pretty confident, I'd attempt this later. Of course, on Easy or Normal, probably would be fairly easy. Mages in this game aren't terrible, per se, it's just you need powerful AOE spells to handle them well, since mages in this series very rarely have skill sets oriented around straight up-fighting. The most they'll usually have is artes for self-defense. Put it this way, nobody ever made jokes about Rita spamming Math - Rudolf in Vesperia. There's also a new big hellion in front of it. Without fighting it, probably out of your league right now, too.
Anyway, the path that leads to Yder Cave is below the plateau with the crucible on it. Pick up some minor goodies along the way and here we go.
Getting some deja vu here. Might be just me. Like many minor locations in this game, Yder Cave bears the name of a very minor Round Table figure, Yder, alternatively known as Edern ap Nudd. His major claim to "fame" is as an early ally to Arthur against the Saxon invaders. Geoffrey also places Yder as a knight in Arthur's company during his campaigns in Gaul. As always, some knights and some figures become popular, some just don't. Morgan had a reputation as a fairly flat antagonist for a couple centuries before again rising to prominence in the late 19th and 20th centuries, and is now a staple of Arthurian mythos, with her air of mystery and otherworldliness. Who's to say Yder can't be next? I'm personally not going to Vegas with those odds but you never know.
Yder's main claim to fame in THIS game is Undead Magicians being incredibly annoying, appearing out of nowhere to ambush you and drag you into battles you probably won't want to fight. That's not to say they're *difficult* enemies, just that there's a lot of these guys wandering around and unless you are paying super close attention, you probably can't dodge one appearing like this one did in time.
Well, that's that.
All together now! One, two...
So we're going now?
Whee... Wait, what's our cue?
Oh, c'mon guys!
I did get a cute victory screen out of this fight, so that's something at least. These girls just aren't on the same page.
Wait. So what's the gag here?
Surprisingly, there isn't one. Just a normin right in a path you have to travel.
The only new enemy around here is the War Tiger. A meaty and powerful enemy when it decides to attack, which is actually fairly infrequent. Most of the time, they'll just stomp around toward the enemy they're currently aggro'd on, and won't bother with an enemy they're not targeting. Don't underestimate them but they're not too dangerous.
What's a barrette?
You don't know... What a barrette is?!
Were you born... In a barn?!
...In a barn?!
You're not walking away from this one, Sorey.
Proceeding south from the main room in the second area, you'll eventually find this chest with a Dragon Tail weapon for Edna in it. Bad taste...
Hooking around from that room and following the path north will eventually lead to a couple bronze chests, one with Featherlight Steps in them. Despite its size, a large room in the north of this area doesn't have anything in it, aside from a shortcut that can be created after we have Edna's map action. Meaning we're now going south, past a couple of gold chests.
That path will eventually dump you in the southeast. See that oddly-shaped rock there? That's a landmark, wouldn't you know. A...helictite. These strange rock formations are real, and the skit gives you a little idea what they are, but basically, they're stalactites that have grown up in a strange way, shifting their vertical axis several times. Interestingly, no one's quite sure how they formed, but what we do know is they are very delicate and can break apart at a touch. So let's not do that. Edna might get offended. I mean, even moreso than the burns Mikleo finally managed against her here.
Helictites posted:
There's a sense of dynamism to these warped limestone structures. They seem proud to be what they are.
As they should be, as they should be. There's only one more particular treasure we should pick up here.
The Accurizer, here, for Sorey. Thankfully, it's near the cave entrance, so if you didn't pick it up before, it's not too far a detour to pick it up on the way out.
Finally, our hidden village. Looks pretty nice, but, particularly in this world, looks can be quite deceiving.
Oh come now. I don't forget about commands, because I mostly use them by accident because I still have residual muscle memory from Berseria where the right stick moves the camera, a feature sadly unavailable in this game. Anyway, yeah, the right stick on PS4 is how you issue commands. They're general party strategies to dictate how the AI will work. There's rarely a need to get that micro-managery, since the party AI in general is good in this game. I mean, at least, I have no specific complaints about how it behaves. Like, if armatization is available and a character is low on HP, they'll tend to armatize to keep themselves alive. It doesn't tend to be bizarrely aggressive or passive, unlike how the AI could act in Berseria, where spellcasters would not infrequently run right up to an enemy to begin casting, and such like. Hidden away
Eek! Outsiders!
Hey! Didn't they say in school not to use that word?!
Oh! Oooops! Hello!
Hello there!
Is this new-looking building your school?
That's right! The village chief built it!
For the future of the village!
A school!
??? It's a bit plain compared to the rest of the town, don't you think?
We always did want one, though.
I'm Slenge, the chief of this village. What brings you two all the way out to our tiny corner of the continent?
Oh! Well, we're looking for--
*pops out in front of Sorey*
We're here for work. Researching what people eat out on the frontier, stuff like that.
Your efforts are very much appreciated. Thankfully, our village has been spared the ravages of famine.
But sadly...this looks like malevolence is not far behind around here.
And we have the chief to thank for it! If there's anything we can help you with, don't hesitate to ask.
You say that like you own the place!
Seems like a nice village!
Sort of reminds me of Elysia.
Sorey...
I know, I know. We'll split up and try to find some clues about the pope.
Nice to take a break for a bit, eh? One thing I'll warn you about, you have to talk to Edna, of course. Thing is, that school is our next landmark, but the prompt to talk to Edna is right next to the prompt for registering the landmark. If you get the latter before the party reunites, you'll miss out on the skit. Investigating
To give you an idea what I'm talking about.
What's wrong, Edna?
Nothing. Just thinking about how Meebo insulted me earlier.
O-Oh, I see...
Anyway, it looks like there's some kind of ruin in the back of the village. And it's a pretty darn old one, to boot.
How old do you think?
It's probably from before the Dark Period. It might be even older than I am.
You don't mean from the Temperance of Avarost?! If that's true, then this is an incredible fine! Wait... Hey, uh, Edna? How old ARE--
What? Never mind...
Don't upset this girl... Anyway, we've heard of both the Dark Period and Avarost before, both in Berseria. Avarost was the civilization long before the current one (for example, the book talking about Innominat that was so crucial in the second act was written in the tongue of Avarost), and the Dark Period was the time before King Claudin reunited the land and founded the Holy Midgand Empire.
Indeed. Everyone here is so positive and active!
They're all like family here.
But I still can't feel the blessing of the seraphim.
True. The guardian seraph is missing. It seems that this place used to be rather barren. But it looks like the current chief was able to overcome these issues.
I can tell the people here respect him a whole lot!
I imagine they do. This would normally be such a desolate environment.
Yeah. Not just anyone could pull that one off.
Rose, is something the matter?
Sorry, I was just thinking out loud. I'll tell you more once I've had time to investigate. *gets to work*
As for Meebo...
It's strange. This village seems rather prosperous.
And that's a problem?
The issue is why.
Their source is income!
Right. The land in this area is infertile and hardly fit for farming or hunting. It's far from a major thoroughfare, and they have no local products to export. Isn't that weird? You'd think a place lie this would be the first to fall victim to famine.
There must be some explanation for all this.
But what could it be, and are the ruins connected? Sounds like something's going on around here. Before you go check in with Dezel and see if Rose has turned anything up already, there's two easily-found normin nearby. Near where Mikleo is standing, there's a normin just around the corner on some crates, and there's even a second normin on the opposite side of the main entrance (still in the village, of course). Easy money.
No.
Well, if you do come across anything, let me know.
One thing bothers me. The chief. There was something out of place in his personal effects.
His glasses! Lenses are a precious rarity. They're usually only available to those of nobility or holy orders.
And Slenge only showed up here recently. There's dots there if you want to connect them.
You mean to say the chief is...
I'm just saying the possibility is there. Don't quote me on it.
I'll look further into it. Thank you.
Don't.
Huh?
All I'm saying is there's no need to thank me.
All right.
And around the corner from Dezel...
*hiding behind a building* Wait!
They'd better not! Without our chief, Gododdin is doomed!
There's no cause for worry yet. As long as they stay out of the Pureland, we'll be all right.
Let's go.
So although Rose says to go, there's a couple folks blocking the entrance to this..."Pureland". Sounds like something is *definitely* afoot around here. While you can hit up the local Turtlez to buy a new map, we need to take an alternate entrance to this place. Oh yeah, and don't forget to get the school landmark now, since, after that above scene, the party reunited.
Sounds like Rose was brought up right. Relatively. Sorey and Mikleo, however...I wouldn't go that far for those two. Seems like Sorey has always had a fondness for capes, though.
The School in Gododdin posted:
A school built for the children of Gododdin. A place of learning that pins its hopes for the future of Gododdin on its children.
Hmm...
Well, that looks hopeless.
Oh, does it, now?
Edna, you could use your powers!
Give it a try.
I certainly might...
This is no time to be joking around...
Mikleo can't take "Lady Edna" anywhere, can he?
Oh, for-- Are you still hung up on that?
C'mon, spit it out.
Hey, that's longer!
Well, I charge interest.
Edna, I think that's enough teasing for now...
We need you to do something about these rocks, Edna. Please help us. *bows*
I didn't mean you!
Maybe not, but I'm as guilty as anyone here of taking you and your powers for granted. Even though I've seen malevolence born from that very mentality. Gratitude is vital in all actions. Whether you are worshiping the seraphim or simply journeying with friends.
Seriously, it's fine. I'll give you my ability, the Giant's Strength.
FYI, Sorey doesn't get jokes.
*shrugs, jumps into Sorey*
Nice! I'll try breaking down these rocks that the meek and pitiful Meebo couldn't!
Not you too?!
He really doesn't get jokes.
Hey, maybe that's why malevolence finds no purchase in his heart. You don't know.
What mighty power!
Oh?
And that's the last map action! Finally. Now, I'll just level with you here. While there's been plenty of breakable rocks we've seen already in this adventure, there are also lots of gold chests that we're still very far away from being able to access. Like, we'll finally get the legendary Gold Key in like, the final arc of the story, which is quite a way's away, lemme tell you. So it's actually not *that* worth it to backtrack right now, since we'll just have to re-do quite a bit of it later on. But for now, you can certainly go back into Biroclef Ridge and destroy that boulder I mentioned after we defeated Griffin, jump on over to grab some goodies, follow the path up and around, destroying some boulders along the way, and...
The last landmark for this update. Dezel seems quite sentimental around this place.
Herbs of the Cliffs posted:
Herbs that grow in steep terrain where few other plants can. A view that captures the robustness of planet life.
But to formally wrap this update up, yes, there are skits in Gododdin's inn, it's just that, well... For a couple of them, you need Rose's Item Ordering skill at level 12 and Mikleo's Treasure Detection at level 12, and I was nowhere near either when I finally reached this point. So, I had to grind. Quite...a...bit, for both. First time I've actually played this game off-camera since starting this LP. But I'll join you on the other side of all that. But before I actually say goodbye, the skits we can get now include another fusion skit with Lailah and Rose, and the second involves ordering Stew, featuring more of Rose's bad table manners. The Scattered Bones never had the courage to scold her about those, probably.