So, we're trying to deal with two dangerously moronic nobles before something bad happens. Let's see how that goes, shall we?
Battlefield 10: Verlaine Hills
Black Rose Manor: Check Point!
White Rose Manor: Check Point!
(I'm not kidding. They zoom to each side's headquarters without actually having any dialogue.)
Meadows at the Hill: Check Point!
- Durant: Both sides are amassing their armies...
- Milanor: They're getting ready for the big one, huh?
- Durant: Even the town guards are being drafted Without them, I hear the city is flooding with thieves. The neutral city. Which neither side has any right to conscript from.
Marvel City: Check Point!
- Brigand (Bandit): Heheheh... Hey, Boss, the coast is clear. Given Sting's philosophy of not having one-shot antagonists, I think you can tell who's attacking this town.
Assault! -Under siege!-
- Ortega: Now's our chance. Let's go! See?
- Brigand: Yee-haw!
- Resident: Help! Police! This particular NPC uses a slightly special portrait. I'm only pointing this out so I can call back to it in about 29 maps or so.
- Milanor: Those rats think they're on top of the world now.
- Yggdra: Then we'll rid the city of those brigands first. After that, we'll send envoys to both houses.
- Durant: Envoys? Even the supposedly smart character is doing it!
- Yggdra: When armies of that size clash, the casualties will be steep. There may still be a chance to stop them in time...
Victory condition:
- Liberate Neutral City of Marvel! (Move an ally to "Neutral City of Marvel")
Defeat condition:
- If Yggdra or Milanor dies...
- If you use up all your cards...
Before I start this mission, I have Nietzsche devour a Medallion, giving her reasonably respectable morale. I also give Yggdra the Iron Choker to make her not suck, then toss the Ice Javelin onto Nietzsche.
When choosing my cards, I'm given twelve. My choices are:
- Steal
- Bloody Claw
- Shield Barrier
- Blizzard
- Banish
- Revolution
- Mind Change
- Banshee's Cry
- Doll Craft
- Necro Gate
- Chariot
- Refreshment
- Milanor: Sheesh, there's another familiar face...
North Grasslands: Check Point!
- Inzaghi: Wow. What a boring job... Well, no one will notice if I half-ass it... Heheh... Inzaghi, Inzaghi, Inzaghi... Don't you know what the admins'll do to you if they find out about this?
- Milanor: Check out the worst mercenary ever and his merry men.
- Yggdra: There's quite a few of them... Four bandits, an assassin, and Inzaghi's fencers. I wouldn't call that "quite a few".
- Durant: True, but they're disorganized. We need not fear them.
- Milanor: They didn't even bother with a formation... Let's go after 'em!
So, my enemies are unbelievably underpowered. Ortega is actually evenly matched with his men (they have higher Luk, but he has higher Atk). Inzaghi is quite far from the battle itself, and no threat regardless (though his Headgear's Void Ailments effect is decent), the assassin doesn't have the Atk to do anything interesting, and when Ortega's men show off they're skill...it's Mirage, the worst skill in the game.
Anyway, I definitely want to get Ortega's item seeing as he's right in my way, though Inzaghi's item isn't going to be easy to obtain if I even go for it.
Also, if I hadn't screwed up my item-getting on map 7, I'd be able to trade the Pretty Shell (found on a water tile) to a witch living on Rosary's side of the map. She only opens her shop at night, and will turn away anyone who isn't Nietzsche because drooling fanboys. She will then produce a Shell Breastplate for our resident death mermaid.
Well, enough talking. Time to get to killing things. I start with Bloody Claw, which is used to move Yggdra up to the bandits (who are in a square formation, which is keeping Ortega from attacking me). Milanor and Nietzsche help her.
The three of them bring one bandit down and severely injure a second one, then I end my turn to the tune of bandits fighting my team and losing to everyone bit Nietzsche.
My next act is to send Milanor forth with Steal, moving him next to Ortega.
- Milanor: How's it going?
- Ortega: You're that kid...!
- Milanor: Got it in one!
I then send Yggdra a space east to join Milanor's union, which starts a conversation with nearby residents.
Midway Village: Check Point!
- Resident: The Ankhs are not originally from this land. A mysterious wandering magician left them here not long ago. Who was that guy... and why did he leave the Ankhs...? I've never been able to figure it out. What I do know is that they're the cause of the bloodshed. All this chaos is a direct result of those Ankhs...
Interesting. I hadn't actually read this before now, but it doesn't surprise me in the slightest.
Anyway, I do my usual routine of battle saving and then stealing Ortega's item, which was giving him automatic Rage and increasing his Atk. He is now weaker than his men, which is truly pathetic.
I send Nietzsche and Durant north a bit, then end my turn.
- Ortega: Hey! New guy! Quit slacking off, and get to work!
- Inzaghi: Tch... This is so humiliating. No amount of money is worth this... I'm just not feeling it today...
- Ortega: Hey! C'mon! Stop dozing off!
- Inzaghi: Yeah, yeah... *sigh*
After that, I think Inzaghi will start moving. Not that it's going to help, though, given that Im one turn away from finishing Ortega.
Speaking of Ortega, he wastes all his movement getting an assassin in place to fight alongside him, and she manages to fell Yggdra for minimal damage.
I, however, choose Blizzard for the purpose of doing something I alluded to a bit earlier. It involves sending Nietzsche in to fight Ortega.
- Nietzsche: Y-You're scary, too...
- Ortega: What's an Undine doing out here!?
I then follow this up by having Durant go second, then Yggdra. Now, normally sending a spear user against an axe user at this point in the game would be suicide, but my plan makes things somewhat easier for Nietzsche. You see, thanks to the Ice Javelin, Diamond Dust will deal fatal damage to anything that isn't outright immune to ice. This allows Nietzsche to turn a fight she'd probably lose into one she'll definitely win. She fails to bring Ortega down on her own, but Yggdra tears up what's left of his morale anyway, gainihg another level.
Withdraw! -Forced to retreat.-
- Ortega: Dammit... Time to scram, guys!
- Brigand (Bandit): O-Okay, Boss! Come to think of it, are any of Ortega's non-bandit minions ever depicted in cutscenes?
Also all the water on the map froze, but there's only one water tile at the moment so this doesn't matter.
Anyway, after Roswell and Rosary both do nothing at all, I can move again. Using Chariot, I move Milanor and Yggdra up to the town, liberating it with Yggdra.
Marvel City: Check Point!
Leberated! -Freed from enemy control!-
- Milanor: We kicked 'em out!
Strategy Succeeded! -Marvel City liberated!
- Durant: Alright, let's set up camp here.
Some time later (with me accidentally skipping a bit of text and having to use Malachi's LP to get what I skipped)...
- Royal Messenger: Mission complete, sirs!
- Milanor: How'd it go? What did they say?
- Royal Messenger: Erm, well... Neither ruler is willing to withdraw... And, they say if we intervene, they'll attack us too.
- Durant: Princess...
- Yggdra: Did they say how long their preparations would take?
- Royal Messenger: I believe the answer was one day for both houses. But they're not going to attack after one full day. That would make sense, after all.
- Yggdra: Thank you. You've done well.
- Milanor: ...............There's only one thing to do now. The music stops when he says this, so you know he's serious. And I don't think you're going to like it.
- Yggdra: ............
- Durant: Esq. Milanor...?
- Milanor: We've gotta completely destroy one side's army. Okay, who didn't see this coming? Tell me honestly.
- Durant: ......!
- Milanor: It's the only way to prevent a bloodbath.
- Durant: Well... Even so... Which side should we sabotage?
- Milanor: That's not for me to say. But you know I'm right, don't you?
Black Rose Manor: Check Point!
White Rose Manor: Check Point!
- Milanor: It's just a matter of picking a side, then. Your call.
Victory condition:
- Defeat Rosary!
- Defeat Roswell!
- Milanor: You're calling the shots here. Decide who to attack.
This is where I shall end this update, though the map is far from over. You see, they are, in fact, making me kill one of the two rulers. The one who survives will join the Royal Army.
Both of them are rod users, so the difference is entirely dependent on their stats and abilities.
Anyway, I'll briefly list off the pros and cons of each choice now.
Attacking Roswell, and recruiting Rosary:
- Pros:
- Roswell is easier to kill than Rosary (Banish=easy win).
- Rosary has better maximum stats (4/3/5/6)
- Golems are very slightly better than skeletons.
- There are some items that are worthless aside from recovering Rosary's morale.
- Rosary voids fire.
- Cons:
- Rosary's Atk is terrifyingly low.
- You don't get Roswell's theme music.
- You can't get as many items as you could if you had Roswell.
Attacking Rosary, and recruiting Roswell:
- Pros:
- Roswell has more balanced stats, which are easier to max (5/4/4/4)
- Roswell voids dark, which is good against assassins and one Dragon General we haven't met yet.
- Awesome theme music.
- He can get some items Rosary can't.
- Cons:
- Rosary is harder to take down.
- Roswell's stats aren't very good if they aren't boosted.
- His equipped item is better when taken off his corpse and given to someone else (it's not raising any of his stats, and it gives Void Dark, which he already has).
So, I now leave the fate of these two leaders in the hands of my readers. Will the Royal Army attack Roswell, recruiting Rosary, or will they attack Rosary, recruiting Roswell?
Comments
