Okay, so Forte City.
(Field NO. 04: Uncertain Hometown)
Near the left is a shop, but there's a guy trying to mooch some gold so he can drink.
Near the castle is a man feeling chest pains. Polka offers her magic, but he becomes afraid upon hearing that. I can't help him now.
Also here is a kid who lost his money. We give him a Piggy Bank, and he gives us a pair of Speed Shoes. We could equip them, but we want to hold onto them for the trading sequence.
Well, our objective is to find an inn. There's one to the east, but inside, all we find is a cute little girl (roughly 8 or 9) who's worried about her friend, Phil. (Is there a Harmonic somewhere around?) He's run off, and if caught, he'll be in big trouble. (When the girl shakes, she makes me think of a marionette.) Allegretto asks what the matter is, and she asks if they wanted to stay the night. She says that Phil's supposed to be watching the desk, but she can't find him. She figures he's run off to play in the city. She adds that Phil's mother is scary, and doesn't want to think about what might happen if she finds out; Phil is practically risking his life, it seems. Allegretto thinks she's talking about normal discipline, but she emphasizes that Phil's mother's discipline is "a lot worse than being sent to bed with no dinner, or a hundred spankings. She gets the idea to send them off to find him. Allegretto asks why them, but the girl asks if he doesn't feel sorry for him, and says they'll be literally saving his life. Allegretto agrees to look, and guesses that Phil hasn't left the city.
I find 100G on the floor of the inn.
Back outside, I go to the shop. The moocher's still there. He claims he'll turn into a wolf if he can't get a drink, and wants 100G. The shopkeeper isn't giving him anything. The moocher thinks that if he turns into a wolf, he might trash the town. The shopkeeper figures he needs money more than the town, at any rate. Defeated, he turns to me for money. Hey, I just got 100G, and even if I hadn't, I had 5487, which is plenty. I buy a Walloon Sword for Allegretto, a Wolf's Fang for Beat, an Oak Barrel for Frederic, and Tailored Clothes for Polka. I equip them all, though I would understand keeping Poison Blood.
I enter the tavern and talk to the proprietoress, who remembers an old man who was upset about a prank Phil pulled.
Outside, in the middle of the emblem on the walk, is the man. After a few attempts, he recalls Phil drawing on his face, waking him up. Phil ran off... toward the cliffs! The old man figures he's long gone now.
This time, we talk to Darling's brother to tell him the situation. (If you just approach the cliffs, he'll warn you away, and you don't go.) I approach the cliff, and Allegretto finds a child's shoe! (You can't tell the girl, Koto, about it, by the way. She'll just tell you to look for Phil.) There's a rope to climb down to reach the...
Glissando Cliffs
(Field NO. 18. "Take a Stand")
This place is full of ropes to climb up and down, edges to jump off, and tunnels to go through. The ropes are sometimes hidden, too.
Items are: Bubble Straw (Recovers target's HP and gives him Air Body, i.e. one not affected by light levels), Hell Mustard (applies Burst to target temporarily; this increases attack power while decreasing defense), Silver Necklace (Accessory that increases DEF by 3), Speed Shoes (see? They don't increase SPD, just movement speed in battle), Spirit Arrowhead (Accessory that increases ATK by 3), Larkspur Robe (DEF +31; Viola can wear it)
Enemies are: Sweet Whispers (light) / Caravan Crab (dark)
Sweet Whispers are batlike enemies. They can use Constant Shadow, which, if unblocked, causes an unnatural ring of shadow around the target until it's dispelled. Another move is Side Dive. It can use Night Flutter at range. It can heal another with Tumble Down. In the dark, it turns into a Caravan Crab, which looks like a crab with a scorpion's tail. It can use Poisonous, which can... do I even have to say? It uses Nutcracker at range. It heals with Viva.
There's a man on one part of the cliffs that you can't impress no matter what score piece you try... until a New Game Plus, that is.
Frederic
- Lv. 19
- 5451 HP
- ATK: 100
- DEF: 93
- MAG: 91
- SPD: 65
Polka
- Lv. 19
- 5221 HP
- ATK: 91
- DEF: 90
- MAG: 105
- SPD: 64
I reach the bottom, and after some investigating, hear someone calling for help. It's a kid in a tree, who thanks us. Allegretto asks him if he's sure he's okay, considering the distance. He checks himself out. Allegretto reminds him to get home soon. The kid realizes he does have to get going, as he doesn't want to be killed right after having his life saved.
The game automatically returns me to the top of the cliff. There are other items to get down there, but I'm going to skip out on them.
I go around and talk to townsfolk. A number of them react to me having found Phil.
In the inn, Phil thanks us again. Apparently, his mother didn't find out. He gives me an inn stay, paid for by the saving of his life. I talk to Phil's father. Good thing he followed his dream.
(By the way, Darling's wife's name is Honey. Unfortunately, they don't appear to run a minigame based on Bombchus.)
I swap out Beat for Viola and save at the Save Point, because I know what's coming. But more on that...
Next time: Have fun approaching the castle!
