Part 104: 01/01/10 - 01/03/10

Happy New Year everyone! Welcome to 2010!

Mistic



Happy New Year!
Let's make this the best year ever!
It's New Years, but there's nothing really special to do.
Well, you can always wish people a New Year's greeting...
Like, "Have a great year!"
Yeah.



Arf!



Did you guys see it? It had these giant Amazon women running around in the jungle...
Why would I watch that?

That's the most unusual New Year's special I can think of, that's for sure.



No. I don't believe in superstitions.
Me either...
Oh, that's too bad. Yukari-san and the others are already there.
They're all wearing kimonos.
...Kimonos, huh?
...Um, I'm gonna run to--



Honestly, at this point, it'd be weirder if Junpei wasn't immediately caught out on trying to be evasive.

...Uh, what?
You're going to the shrine, aren't you?
N-No, I'm not... I'm just going for a walk...
...Oh yeah?
Well, I'm going with you, then. I'm bored.
...Oh, I'll go too!
Alright then, let's go.
You coming?
...Anyone know where it is?



...Sweet!



Hey, you guys are late. We were just about to leave.



Wh-What?



Mitsuru-senpai... You look hot...
I, um... heh... I mean...
S-Stop staring at me...



Does my sash look okay?
Fuuka... You look... Wow!
G-Geez...



> The girls seem to be embarrassed about their clothing.

Ah... I'm so glad I came... New Year's kicks ass! Yah!
Junpei-san, why are you acting so strange?

It's Junpei. Might as well be asking why water is wet at this point.



Right, Akihiko-senpai?
Uh... I-I guess so.
Hey, aren't you guys cold?
A little, but I love this time of year...
Um, that's not what I meant...



So, this is Junpei's ruin. Getting outed by an eleven year old. Ken's ice cold, damn.

He said WHAT...?



Well, that ended about as well for Junpei as he could reasonably expect all things considered.

Memories of the City
moon is no longer reaching out stars. instead, we have melancholy. welcome to january.



There's a whole 3 people at the shrine that aren't SEES folks. Two of 'em are kinda boring and eh, and we can't even talk to the third one at all.

Althought the sash makes it... hard to breathe...



Mitsuru just serves as a way to let us leave, if you don't want to walk down the stairs that are ever-so-far away being a whole like 10 steps from here.



I'm anticipating excellent results.



But you know, it's nice to do this sort of thing once in a while.
Let's think positive thoughts, and hope for the best results.





What...? But you...

Yeah, nothing super fancy or anything, but given the whole overtly oppresive soothsaying atmosphere, I'd take whatever we can get right now.

Joy



I... I wished for a great year.
It's a bit generic, but that's what I really want.
That's what I want as well.
How funny... We all wished for the same thing.
But, it wasn't a plea for help.



We should get going.

So, yeah, that's New Year's Day basically.



We don't even have to wait any longer than that to get to advance further in Tartarus. Which is nice and sensible, all things considered.

Living With Determination -Iwatodai Dorm-



Atmosphere aside, January doesn't really deviate much from the expected norm. We WILL be spending more time going to Tartarus than usual, of course, but... we'll get to that later.

This month is going to be very important.
Make sure you spend your time wisely.



So, let's refresh our minds and do our best to defeat Nyx.



It never really meant that much to me.
But with all that has happened, now I realize that it's a time to leave behind the past...
...and look forward to the future.
Everything is possible in the new year.



On the first day of the new year, after making our big decision, he...
Tch! He's such a pervert!



...is it true that all the girls in kimono go "commando"?
No, that's a lie.
Oh, so it was a lie... I knew the girls wouldn't go outside without wearing underwear.
Junpei-san is beginning the new year acting childish...

"The more things change" and all that.



When you think of a kimono, you think of a chick with a great figure going "commando", right?
What are you talking about?
C'mon, dude. Don't play dumb. You know it's every guy's fantasy!



it's good to be starting a new year.



Newscaster: The year's first Apathy Sydrome patient was admitted at 1:13 AM...

Since we're past the penultimate full moon now, we'll take a quick detour to the Velvet Room...

Poem For Everyone's Soul (Reincarnation)



January brings with it only one new request for Elizabeth, and it has a seemingly simple reward for good measure. All we gotta do is wait around for the Reaper and then murder his ass.

We can manage that easily enough at this point, but this request is an unusual rarity in that it really has two rewards. The second, unlisted one, is the real reward and way more valuable than 5 million yen.



So, uh, we'll worry about that much later. It kinda takes the fun out of everything else if we do it right now. Sorry.

Living With Determination -Iwatodai Dorm-



You know, the ones saying "Mysterious Cult in Town" and "The End is Near"?
It must be because of Nyx.

Remember those posters and that NYX grafitti around town? Yeah, that finally gets addressed. A month later. It's like foreshadowing attempted by someone who doesn't know what foreshadowing is.



I wonder how much that will affect this city... I'm really worred...



Tch, what a joke.
Who would buy that?



But, they haven't done anything since then.
Not that that's a bad thing...
It's just a little unnerving.

The weird disparity between it starting and it being relevant at all even gets addressed. But that just draws attention to the problem, if anything.



Weird, huh?



Ridiculous, isn't it?
We will need to keep our guards up.
The public seems to be fooled by these words.

Understandable that now that it gets brought up, its all anyone can talk about. Still kinda undercuts it a bit, I think.

But, hey, there's a doomsday cult that's now explicitly plot relevant...



And we just so happen to know a doomsday cultist. Nozomi was totally definitely into this Nyx thing before it was cool, I'm sure.

Joy



I begged so hard for your soul that I think I even lost weight.
Oh brother.
Ha ha, yeah, that's probably not going to happen. I eat fried chicken first thing in the morning.



Look, I get it, alright? You're embarrassed to be seen with me. I can tell.
I'm not like my little brother... I can't study for hours, and my stubby legs won't let me be athletic.
...And, I'm genetically predisposed to spilling on my clothes.



What, you mean dead? That's hella dark.

Everyone's always making fun of me, and I just want the whole world to go away right now!
...but even then, you still won't--
H-Hey Makoto! I'll try my best to make it to Paradise. Then I'll have a totally sweet new body!



Okay, so at this point I realised what Nozomi thinks people look like in the Millenium Kingdom Paradise...



I dunno, it's a pretty good theory I think..

See? Then I won't be inferior to my brother, and you won't hate to be seen with me!
So please... don't abandon me.

> Nozomi truly cherishes your friendship.

> Your relationship is stronger now!





...I still have to recruit a new believer first.



Wicked Man: Yeah. It's not a problem so long as I get my money. Actually, I know this other guy who's been short on cash lately...
Middle-aged Man: I'm willing to pay for two guys. Just make sure it gets done.



Middle-aged Man: I'd stay away from that kid if you don't want to get caught in his trap.

> You decided to return to the dorm.

Living With Determination -Iwatodai Dorm-



nah



What a mess!



Newscaster: Since all the materials share similar designs, police believe they're the work of one culprit...

The news has finally bothered to acknowledge the Nyx stuff, even. It took long enough.

Memories of the City



Woman: If it was going to be like a big earthquake, or a tsunami, I'd be scared, but... Oh, well. If you believe, you will be saved, right?

Not often I bother with NPCs, because they're either a long game-spanning side plot thread or... kinda boring and irrelevant. At least now you can see the effects of the Nyx cult.



Male Student: The Absolute Will is coming from the sky to save us. You, too, should join us. Cleanse your impure mind and wait for the time to come.

Some people are considering the whole "belief" thing and others have already dived straight into the deep end.



Definitely not a weirdly worrying sign. Nope.

Living With Determination -Iwatodai Dorm-



January keeps bringing sad times with it. We can't buy anything off of Tanaka any more; he's selling doomsday prepper nonsense now and we can't buy it. We don't even get a chance, just to rub it in.



That aside, the girls (minus Fuuka) are hanging out on the 2nd floor today.

Even though I only have this one month to spend with you...
I will have no regrets.
Don't talk like that, Aigis...
Yukari... The chances that we will beat Nyx are slim.
That may be true... But, there is a possibility.
We must spend this month increasing our chances.

I... really don't know where Mitsuru and Aigis get this from. I do, however, appreciate that they believe we can go beyond the impossible and kick reasonto the curb!



To be honest, I do feel a little regret...
That can't be helped.
It's human nature to wonder about the choice that was not chosen.
That's true. People are always asking themselves, "What if...?"
But, I don't want to have any regrets...
...because this is what I chose.



Before, The Lost were here and there, but now it's just crazy.
Many people have been affected by Nyx.
I fear it may get even worse on the day of Nyx's revival.
It's astonishing that Nyx can affect an entire city...
We're the only ones who can do something about it. We have to fight no matter what.



Newscaster: The unidentified man would only repeat, "The Fall is deliverance..."

Might as well check out the TV now since no one's gonna have anything new to say this evening.

Memories of the City



Since its a Sunday, we're gonna be doing the obvious one choice we have. First though, we can see the final view on the cult: thinking it's bad and stupid.



Anyway, Akinari!

Living With Determination (Reincarnation)



Oh, did you finish the story?
No, not quite yet. ...Almost, though.



I just got back from the hospital. They were going to admit me, but not anymore.
...I guess my body is too weak to undergo surgery. So, I refused any medication as well...
So much for the hospital, right...?
...Now I'm just waiting for the end.
But, I don't feel like I'm the only one being singled out anymore.



Just in case you thought the general themes of the game were too vague, Akinari spells it out at this point in such blunt directness.

But once the time comes, it's the same for us all.
...I'm still a little lonely, but I'm not sad anymore.

> Akinari smiles slightly.

...I want to remember what you look like, Makoto-san...

> Akinari is staring at you.

> Your relationship is stronger now!





The story is almost done, so...
...I can show it to you soon...

> You decided to go back to the dorm.

Since we're glossing hard over the dorm this evening, let's take this opportunity to think about how we have a lot of Tartarus stuff to do over the course of the month. You might think this'll be back to when Tartarus bosses get difficult(ish), and... we'll see. They're definitely stronger than the previous batch in Harabah at least. Since the last stretch is roughly as long as Harabah but with less time, we'll need to cram it in more than we've ever done before.

That said...



Anyway, while you weren't looking I got everyone back up to being scratch. Yukari's made is super clear at this point that she's not gonna learn any Boost/Amp passives. She has slightly higher Magic to compensate, but it doesn't really balance it out well. Wind Break lets her get around resists, though.



No idea why Junpei even bothered picking up Fire Break at level 60. He's never gonna be using it, or his Agi spells, so I don't get it. It cuts the legs off his offensive capabilities by wasting a skill slot on it and then dragging Agidyne out for his next skill. Inconvenient, that.



Akihiko is... okay. His debuffs aren't gonna get completed for a long while, apparently. He's still better than he seems for a balanced generalist at this point, but he's not gonna be as effective as Yukari, Junpei or especially Mitsuru.

Speaking of which!



Mitsuru is incredibly strong. She hasn't changed much, but she just gets even more focussed on demolishing dudes. Simple, potent and yet unnerringly efficient.



Now that she's got Athena, Aigis has picked up some healing magic for some bizarre reason. As mentioned before, she sneaks Diarahan in at level 59 just before Matarukaja. And her first spell afterwards is Samarecarm...? Incredibly peculiar and it takes her already limited offense and sidelines it even harder. She has all the Ma-kajas now, though, and Diarahan so she's incredibly good at support.



Koromaru is Koromaru. Bad at offense, bad at support, bad at instant death even. But he's Koromaru so that counts for a lot more. His lacking capabilities have been glaring for a while but now its REALLY apparent.



Ken is... Ken is not good. He's a worse generalist than Akihiko, lacks the offensive stats to use his surprisingly decent skills to their full effect and his support is really lacking compared to everyone else with it. Still statistically better than Koromaru, but technically worse by virtue of not being Koromaru.

Well, you know the deal by now:

3 slots to fill. Who's getting them this time?