Part 31: NG+ Update 03: The Dragon Blade
NG+ Update 03: The Dragon BladeMusic: Lift
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Remember the Death Cow that gave us trouble way back when?
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Its considerably less threatening now.
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The Lantern Bats are also easier to deal with thanks to Side Slash.
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The only other noteworthy incident in this stage is finding a Gold XP inside a yellow item box. Im not sure if a higher D-Ratio affects rare item drops, but I definitely seem to be picking up more Power Meals and other stat boosters from boxes and enemies this time around.
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Music: BioCorp
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The return visit to BioCorp is brief and uneventful, except for one specific point.
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The same series of cutscenes play when we enter the Genic Processor. Bosch marvels at Odjns corpse before urging Ryu to get a move on.
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When the game gives us back control we see that something is different this time around. Something is sparkling in the piled dirt and decay beneath Odjns body.
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Venturing down below the walkway reveals a sword driven into the earth.
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Of course we have to take it.
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What is this mysterious weapons true identity? Fortunately Jaju is only a handful of rooms away.
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The Dragon Blade is Ryus ultimate weapon. Its twice as powerful as Zenos Violet Blade, has a longer range than any of Ryus other weapons, has three free Lv. 3 skill slots and carries an inherent +20% accuracy bonus. The only downsides are that its slightly heavier than the Violet Blade and has Side Slash locked in as a Lv. 1 skill.
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Unfortunately Violet Death is a skill that only exists in the Violet Blade and cant be learned, so we cant thread it to the Dragon Blade. Deathbringer makes a decent alternative however.
Youll also note that this particular Dragon Blade is a +4 variant. The modifier depends on your D-Ratio, with higher values spawning more powerful Dragon Blades. The maximum is +9 for attaining a rank of 1/4.
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Aside from that, everything goes as normal. Ryu and Bosch make it to the platform just as the train is about to leave.
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Bosch asks Ryu to give him his test scores, but is interrupted when Lin attacks.
Music: Formidable Foe
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Ryu shoots back, but fails to stop Lin from sending the train into the abyss.
Music: Origin
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With our knowledge from the last playthrough, we can tell that the symbol Ryu sees in his vision is the seal keeping the gate to the surface shut.
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Odjn claims Ryu as his host. The scene ended here the first time around, but this time it carries on for a bit.
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Bonus Art: Miscellaneous Concept Art
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