We so rarely need heavy weaponry like hammers, heavy spears, and armorslayers that any opportunity to put them to real use is quite nice.
Chapter 13
◊ - Hamill Canyon: Finished.
Base: The boss of this chapter is the first real threat to appear after Tirado, save for arguably Pablo, so I take a bit of extra care in preparation. I deck out everyone in at least one weapon to help them take on the boss more effectively; Franz got a heavy spear, Garcia got a hammer, Neimi got a silver bow, Josh gets an armorslayer, Natasha's magic is good enough (though I buy some shine tomes from Caer Pelyn), and Amelia grabs a horseslayer. I also give Franz some heavier weapons now that he has the sweet 13 Great Knight con, and give him an iron blade and steel lance that he can wield unhindered. With that, the army sets off to Hamill Canyon.
Eirika: Hid in the early mountain range area until Cormag appeared, where Joshua and Natasha took down the nearby foes, and she recruited Cormag, who then rescued her and flew off.
Joshua & Natasha: Acted as the party's rear guard, taking care of the enemies approaching from behind to prevent us from getting caught in a pincer trap. Josh first cleared up the northern enemy forces at the start, taking down one of the ballisticians, and then joined Natasha, who had just dealt with some southern soldiers. They helped cover Eirika and Cormag's escape after Cormag was recruited, and finished off the fighters and mercs who spawned in the northwestern forts. After Pablo appeared, Natasha and Josh ganged up on Pablo's strongest guard, a swordslayer!warrior, and took him down. After that, they survived the waves of foes, and then the two of them finished off Pablo once and for all.
Amelia & Franz: Took the front of the assault, covering the main canyon entryway and fending off the main enemy force. They were joined by Neimi for a bit, where she used her arrows to take out some annoying foes, such as a sleep staff priest and the ballistician near them. They both advanced slowly and confronted the enemies as they came, cutting a swath through Aias' main force. After the enemy frontline crumbled, they headed northeast and dealt with those reinforcements, leveling Amelia to level 20 in the process.
Garcia & Neimi: Garcia headed down the southern canyon path, Neimi providing him some assistance at the start with regards to the ballistician, while he pushed his way out and around the canyon bend. He assisted Franz and Amelia by drawing off some forces, but otherwise stuck to his own business of dealing with southeastern cavalier reinforcements alongside Neimi once she rejoined with him.
Aias: Fought Garcia and Neimi in a joint battle. Garcia opened with a fierce blow from his hammer, which was followed up by a critical from the Neimi's silver bow that finished off the enemy general.
Just a note, since I'm changing how I write dialogue from here on out, "Italics in quotes" are thoughts, while "quoted words" are spoken dialogue in the Vs sections.
Vs Aias: After biding some time to gauge the situation through fending off a group of cavalry reinforcements, Garcia saw an opportunity to strike at the enemy commander. He signaled for Neimi to prepare for enemy engagement, and then charged the great knight with his hammer. Aias turned away from commanding the reinforcements around Franz's group as he noticed Garcia's charge, but he could not mount a proper defense quickly enough, and Garcia's hammer struck home. The blow caused the knights chest plate to cave in around the hammer, severely denting the center and morphing the rest of the breastplate slightly downwards around the strike. The air was forced from Aias' lungs by the blow, and even as Garcia reset his stance for another strike, an arrow had buried itself up to the fletching in the knight's now-exposed throat. Croaking out a commendation for their success with a strangled gasp, Aias breathed his last. Garcia turned and saw a slightly queasy looking, but otherwise steely-eyed Neimi lowering her bow as the enemies sounded a retreat. As the knights of Rausten rode in and cleared the way, a genial smile and a nod between the two was all he needed to tell her that he could continue counting on her in the future.
Afterwards: The knights of Rausten appear and clean up the retreating mooks. L'Arachel is revealed to be a princess, who left anonymously after being inspired by a bard. Mansel gives us 5000 gold, and we are heartened by Rausten support, only to learn that Jehanna castle has fallen, and the army is being led by Prince Lyon.
Up Next: Queen of White Dunes, where another, slightly more surprising detail is revealed, and we face down a fierce swordsman and traitor to the throne of Jehanna.
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