Part 100: Update XCVI: An Apprentice and the End of the Legend

Welcome back. Last time we finally got Dessier off our back about things, even though we had already accomplished it 6 months prior. I suppose news travels slow in Arls. Now that that's done, we've got a ton of work to do. I'm happy to announce we'll be getting some ultimate equipment this update. Or rather, we'll be getting the ingredients prepared for ultimate equipment.

Ent is also going to be coming around soon, so we need to teach that tree a lesson. Even though it really hasn't done anything to us...yet. You'll see when I do fight it, it attacks me. This is an unforgivable sin, and thus it must be punished for misdeeds it has yet to commit. Hey, I'm a humanitarian. All that said, though, we have some preparation to do.



This is one among many letters that comes after Meruru officially becomes an alchemist of Arls. "The art of war", huh? Surely now is time to celebrate my glorious conquests with delicious rank points.



Well, winning of course is up my alley. Unfrotunately, I didn't complete Tactical Withdrawl or Besieged. The first is for retreats (I call them Tactical Redeployments), and the other is for sleeping. Since I am no coward, obviously I haven't retreated many times. Unfortunately, I'll have to do so...but there is a way to make things less painful, which I'll discuss later.

With Besieged, though, there's no particular reason to grind it, although there's certainly nothing wrong with doing so if you need some points. You need to sleep every now and then after a lot of syntheses because your MP decreases after every synth, but one of Astrid's facilities really reduces the need to do. We'll get around to it. Actually, in my game, I only have to sleep for a couple more days to get this achievement.



After some uninteresting syntheses, we're finally done with Modis Ruins I, which means it's also a good excuse to stop by the Blue Sky Path. We've got a monster squatting there, and it needs to move. Unfortunately, it's not going to do that without some persuasion.





I'm bringing along our good pals Esty and Lias this time. Neither for any particular reason, but it's a pretty effective team.



But first Lias could use a new weapon. The reason I have the name is because the Dragon actually gave me a Crampon Fist a while ago, back when I first fought it, but the traits on it were terribly worthless. With a Platine and Halmolium (with the Dragon Tusk courtesy Astrid), we end up with...



Well, it's not great, but it's a significant improvement to Lias' current weapon. For this forge, we get a scene.



Well...to put it simply, it's like a fist of steel. You just put your hand in it, like this. A man's ultimate weapon is his fist, right!?

A fist...but there's something sticking out here.

That's what you call a "pilebunker". You get it ready like this...then after you punch the enemy, bend your wrist, and... The mechanical spike comes bursting out, and you stab with it!

Urg...man, that's gotta hurt. But I'm sure Lias will be all calm-looking when he uses it.

It's incredibly efficient. You can double the pain with just one strike! Still, as you can see...its design is quite complicated. Make sure he's careful not to blow it up.

O-Okay...I'll warn him not to walk through town with it on, either.



*Hagel cracks his knuckles*

Whoa! Your fist is like a hammer!

Tell him that if he's interested, I'd be more than happy to train his fists.



If you complete Leadoff Victory, you get this unique upgrade to the staff swinging mechanic out on the field. Basically, if you smack an enemy who is a significantly lower level than you, you'll instantly kill the target without a battle, getting the materials they drop, but not the experience. Kinda useless, to be honest, mainly because it wastes time if you do bring it down without a fight.

However, if you want to clear out some annoying buggers without them bringing you into a pointless fight, I guess that option is always there.



Esty, on the other hand, is getting something quite a bit nicer. She'll be a demon on the battlefield with this, but will it be enough to bring down Ent?

We'll have to find out after another Rorona scene.



Wow, that's great! You're on a roll, Rorona.

Yup! Making pies is so much fun!

I guess Miss Rorona hasn't really changed. So, what kind of pie did you make?



That sounds very straightforward.

I don't foresee any problems like last time. I'd like to try some, just to see how she's coming along.



Oh, Gino! Just in time.

Huh? Just in time for what? Were you waiting for me or something?

Well...would you like to try this pie that makes you stronger when you eat it?

You better believe I would! I've been waiting my whole life for something like that!

Are you sure you wanna just dive in? There could be some side effects...



Ehehe, here you go!

Oh, thanks. Let's give it a try! *chew bite chomp*

...

H-How is it?



Huh?

I'm still too weak. I don't have time to waste eating pie like this! I need to go train!

*Gino leaves*

Ah! Gino, wait!

I guess it doesn't make you stronger... It just makes you want to GET stronger.

And Gino's the one who ate it, so it didn't even make that much of a difference...



Okay! I'm gonna keep on making all kinds of cool pies!

Meruru and Totori may baby you, but I am VERY disappointed in you, Rorona. Where's your imagination? Where's the heart? I expect far better out of you.



I'm just so pissed off, we need to get some air. This next scene comes up at a random location when Sterk isn't in your party and you've seen a few of his events.



Princess Meruru! I wasn't expecting to see you today.

Same here. ...Hey, did something happen? Your face is scarier than usual.

Please ignore my face. But it seems there was a bit of an accident at a development site near here.

An accident! Oh no! Someone might have been injured!





Wh-What the heck!? What are you doing here, Rufus? Weren't you just in town!?

To assess the situation as soon as disaster strikes is nothing more than my duty.

Yeah, but still...that was impossibly fast...

So, Mr. Rufus...what do you mean, it's all been "sorted out"?



I've spoken with the site foreman about future safety measures. So there is nothing to worry about. I should get going now. Mr. Sterk, would you like to head back with me?

Yes, that would be fine. If you'll excuse me, Princess...

*Rufus and Sterk leave*



Rufus is starting to give me the creeps. Anyway...



Welcome to the Blue Sky Pass. Let's start things off by talking to that settler...





These blue birds bring death! So get the hell out of here before they wander too close. We have business here, however. See that guy on the bridge? If he looks familiar, it's because the Penguin Monks aren't prepared to go quietly into the night.



These guys...these guys are pathetic. After their humiliating loss to Totori last time, looks like they lapsed in their training and as such, they are all pathetically weak.



Poor performance, indeed. Let's get out of here.



After finishing up Modis Ruins II (first Modis request was for the Wyvern), this place is looking a lot nicer. Though, I don't see many people living here, given the large amount of angry ol' creatures lurking about. Looks more like a tourist stop than anything. Anyway, we'll be back in this area soon.



Here's a trick for grinding Tactical Withdrawl: if Meruru doesn't get a turn in the battle, the day counter doesn't go down at all. So what you do is go up against some low-level foes (not these ones, but I did it here anyway), and strip Meruru of any equipment that might increase her speed. Chances are, her comrades will get their turns first, and they can issue the Tactical Redeployment order. Very simple, and it's a cool 30 points.



I'm not entirely sure why news of Meruru's cowardice makes Arls rank up. Personally, I'd be more confident in a kingdom where the princess was not only a warrior, but never fell back. Kill everything, leave no man or beast standing. If it is marked for death, let nothing stop you. After all, it had the temerity to exist in a world where she also exists.

Regardless, what's done is done. When we get back, we'll have good news to report.



Back at Cape Ichijo after Modis Ruins II and the Cape's request, Azure Wings start showing up. I kinda regret not fully developing Arls' marketplace sooner and not needing the Cape's Wings, but what's done is done. As soon as we return, we're making that Warp Gate pronto.

Ah, actually,we have a scene with Mimi first.



Sure, what is it?

A-About that whole mushroom fiasco... You heard me say a lot of things, so I wanted to talk to you about it.

Oh, you don't have to worry. I'm not gonna tell Miss Totori.

No, that's not it. Actually...I-I was hoping you could help me. When I was in Arland, Totori kinda sorta did me a lot of favors...you know, from time to time.



You don't have to beat around the bush. I know exactly what you mean. You want to tell her yourself, right?



So that means...me, you, and MIss Totori can all go out and have fun!

I-It's be easier if you came, yeah. I'll be your escort, and Totori can come and teach you about materials or whatever.

Just leave everything to me. I'll make it happen!

D-Don't make a big deal out of it or anything. Just bring it up naturally... You know, in a casual manner.

Yeah, yeah, I know. Oh, but where would you like to go?



That's perfect! I know just the place - a secret area with some amazing scenery. I'm sure you'll be able to talk to her there without any interruptions.

Very odd for Meruru to call an area with ongoing development "secret". I will never be able to penetrate her mind.

Then I'll leave it to you to sort out the details, okay? Now I don't mean to repeat myself, but-

In a naturally casual manner, I got it! I'll take you guys out there and then sneak off back to town. That way you can talk to her all you want. I'm sure Miss Totori will be really happy.

You don't have to go to all that trouble...but thank you.



Totori, a teacher... So is she at the workshop today?

Yeah, she should be. I bet she's just waiting for us to get back. Let's head back and eat dinner with her!





Remember that Jupiter is larger than Saturn, and the Sun is larger than both. We're still a couple rank ups from the top of the heap, but we've also got a lot more material for points. As a bonus, now your party recovers HP / MP on the road, making traveling much more convenient. Also, a new recipe book, but we'll take a look at it after we return to the shop.



An arena, huh? Arls could really use more bloodshed for entertainment. No joke, it looks exactly like the Roman Coliseum. I get that it's a very iconic structure, instantly recognizable to a Japanese and Western audience, but it also wasn't a place for tea parties and sleepovers, if you catch my meaning. More importantly, it's another revenue generating facility.



Also worthy of note is the Legendary Statue, a very important building for any potential conquerors of the bonus dungeon. Normally, when you get to level 50, everyone in the party stops leveling up. With the statue, however, the level cap gets bumped up to 99. The next rank, just for reference, is exactly 345 points away.

Now then, we have Keina's ending event coming up. This scene takes place the first time you rank up the kingdom after Keina's friendship level is 80 or greater. If you somehow make it to Sonne before that happens...I'm not sure what happens. I've never encountered that problem, but I don't imagine it's an issue many people have had to deal with. Video goes until the screenshot of Keina talking about staying with Meruru forever.







What are you doing up so late, Keina?

Would you like to take a walk? The stars are so beautiful tonight.

You don't usually get so sentimental. I feel like we did something like this in the past, though... That's right...when we were little, we'd sneak out of bed to go look at the stars together.



Yeah...boy, I miss that. I'd get so nervous when we snuck out like that. Okay, let's do it.

Hehe. Good, let's go!

*fade to black*



Ah, y'know, interesting fact about this CG is that it's used for the cover of the enhanced Meruru port on the Vita. I've neglected to mention much about that, as in I have never mentioned it in an update so far, but hey, I might as well digress a bit. Bear in mind, I'm only getting the following from Google Translate, so I'm doing my best to interpret it.

Most of the changes are fairly unremarkable. Changes to WT values for items use, various character buffs and debuffs, a new boss I have no knowledge of hanging out in Quelei Forest, maybe? Gleaming that from the trophy list for the game. It also seems you can wholesale accessories at Pamela's, but the biggest story is a new ending starring Rorona. Now, that ending was patched to the PS3 versions in Japan, but no word on it leaving the Land of the Rising Sun. It would be pretty cool if it was localized, but that patch was only made available a month or so from the time of this writing, so it may take NISA some time to do if there's any intention.

I know I said I didn't consider Totori+ a good chance for being localized, and on that I was quite wrong. I have no idea what fate Meruru+ will be subjected to outside of Japan, but if it does get released here, a good chance that patch will be available outside Japan, too. ANYWAY.

The stars never change. After all these years, they still shine down on us with that same light.

Yup! I love how they stay the same. They'll light up the night forever... I've done so much to help develop our country...but have I lost something along the way? I sure hope not...



The same is true for Arls. More people will come, lives will improve, and we'll give up our name... But everything we were in the past will still be here. It will live within the people.

Hmm...maybe. If you say that's how it's gonna be, that's good enough for me.

Good. Because I say that after having stood by your side of all these years.

Hehe. Oh, that reminds me. I had something I wanted to ask you.

Oh? What is it?



You can tell me now, right? Oh, but it was so long ago, maybe you don't remember.

No, of course I remember. That wish was very important to me.

Well then let's hear it! What'd you wish for way back then?





You, too? I had no idea. Hmhm, so we both wished for the same thing.

I guess so. I wonder if that star heard our wishes...

I'm sure it did. We've been together until now, right?



Absolutely. Oh! I Just saw a shooting star! Did you see it, Meruru?

Yeah, sure did! I wonder if that star heard our wishes, too.



How nice. Now let's check out what's in the book.





Ah, the Peacemaker. You'd think an item named something like that, a weapon to bring absolute peace through the sheer fact everyone who it is used against is dead, would be more powerful than the Meteor. It *kinda* is, but it's certainly not without its drawbacks. The prohibitive wholesale buy back value, the high alchemy level, and the fact it's not significantly more powerful than the Meteor works against it quite a bit.

Still, both items are very valuable, and working together they are more effective than either are by themselves. We'll certainly want to make a Peacemaker eventually, but we won't need it for some time.



Now that we're at Kingdom Rank VIII, the final requests for Quelei Forest and Trombe Plateau come in. Coincidentally, Mimi wants us to go to Trombe with her and Totori, so that'll be our excuse when all the items have been made. Quelei Forest III requires quite a bit of time for development, but that's okay. I'll get around to it in good time.



Thankfully, with the few of these I actually have accomplished by this point, I made it to 150 points. That means I have enough for the Arena, but...we'll wait on it a bit.



Look who so kindly joins us. The time is right. I have good healing items, a good attack item, and good equipment. All the right elements for an exciting bout against a tree.



For god's sake. You just need two Azure Wings to make the Warp Gate with all of Astrid's facilities, and Totori gave us just one. Oh well...water under the bridge.



But, I have what I came for. Works the exact same way it did in Totori. Anyway, another scene coming up.



Hmm...should I go gathering, then? Or...



Whoa, Ms. Astrid! Stop showing up out of nowhere!

I can show up as I please. Anyway, it might be nice to go on an adventure with a pupil. ...Okay, I'm going with you.

Huh? Are you serious!? I'm sure you'd be a big help, but...I'm afraid I have to politely decline the offer.

Bad Meruru! If there's one thing you should know about the Atelier series, it's that no matter how fragile-looking the heroine, alchemists are consistenly the most badass and capable members of any party they're in. Besides, even if Astrid was just a guest party member, that'd be pretty cool.

What? Remember, I only make an offer like this once every decade or so. Where is your passion? But fine, whatever. Listen, do you remember what we talked about last time? When I mentioned how I fought that demon?

Oh yeah, from that picture book, right? Were you...telling the truth?



It's a maze called the Endless Corridor. Far to the eat of here lies a doorway to the underworld. It slumbers there. The area has many rare materials I'm sure you've never seen before. It's the perfect place for any alchemist.

Whoooa! I had no idea there was somewhere like that in Arls. Now I really wanna check it out!

You see? I'll tell you where to find it, so you should go check it out. I have some business of my own there...but since you refused my offer, I won't be going with you. If you can defeat that which slumbers in the labyrinth, I'll offer my services again.

"Business", huh? I hope it has something to do with Rorona, but I guess we'll find out when we go there.





So now we have the Orthogalxen of this game. You can find any material in the game over yonder, and it's a critical location for both of Rorona's endings. There's certainly nothing stopping you from going there right now, but once we've advanced the storyline that leads to both of Rorona's endings, it'll make more sense why we should go there eventually.

After a certain amount of time passes...well, we'll get there in due time, but there are pretty significant different versions of events depending on if you go there sooner or later.



But NOW it is time to fight Ent. There are plenty of dangers ahead of us, so prepare well.



We've already seen the first area of Ent, back when I was gathering Iron Trees here. Nothing really worth mentioning, except you want to go up and to the right to continue on. We do actually have a scene before then. This triggers after that previous big scene with Rufus and Lias, and you've finished a battle. Esty speaks here, but that role can belong to any other party member.





Just for reference, the fight that triggered this scene ended in like 10 seconds.

But I'm glad we won. Let's take a little break before we leave.

*fade to black*



Huh? What are you talking about? It could have happened to any of us.

I never mentioned it before, but I'm always like this. I get tense in those situations and can't perform properly.

So that's the flaw Rufus was talking about. But isn't it just a coincidence?



It's gotten better since I started training, but whenever things get really bad, I seem to revert back... My brother was right. I'm not able to protect you in a time of crisis. I'm a failure as a bodyguard.

I-Isn't that normal, though? Whenever I focus on not messing up a synthesis, I end up messing it up.

Rufus is expecting a lot from me, but it looks like I'm boudn to let him down again...heh.

Lias...



What that scene means is that when Lias has low HP, two somewhat important stats get reduced in the game's only negative passive skill. It's not a huge game changer, but it can be a pain. We really need to snap Lias out of his funk.



Especially now that we have a mid-boss standing in our way. The Griffonian is no joke. Can we win?



This boy is packing some heat. Literally. He has a wide variety of elemental attacks, and they all sting. You want to bring him down, fast and hard.



The reason I'm not going all out against him is because we still have Ent. Spending a lot of resources on his guard dog is not going to make the master any easier.



But...sometimes you don't have a choice.



Ouchy. That was a sucker punch, but we're not done yet. Nice going, Meruru.



Well Lias, now you get a chance to prove yourself.



Music: Lias FJ: Flame Rancor







There's hope for you yet, kid. His bounty was completely unremarkable, so let's move on.



The next area part after Griffonian is full of twisting branches, with the occasional enemy lurking about. It's kind of a maze, but as long as you keep moving up you'll eventually reach the top without a hassle. Even so, there are a couple materials that should pique your interest.



One is the Fairy World Tree. Fairy's Prayer is an incredibly useful trait, so picking up a few of these is well worth your time.



The second is the Diamond Tree. Diamond Power is another incredibly useful trait to put on an accessory, so again, pick these up while in the area. Don't worry too much about the quality. The only other place to find them, off the top of my head, is in the Endless Corridor, and you can't be sure of the quality there, either.



But after gathering and fighting, we finally make it to the exit to the tree top. Let's see what's up here...



Must be a nice view from up here. But we have bigger problems...

Battle in the Shade - Forest Spirit





Like somebody's watching me.

*leaves rustle, then a crash*

Uwawawa! Is this Ent's true identity!? If it's a monster, I've gotta fight it! C'mon, Meruru, you can do this... All right, I'm gonna take you down!



Music: Tree God



Whew, look at this bad boy. That whole thing is the boss, making it probably the biggest enemy in the game. That's not even his entire body.



Ent's Echo Call lowers defense, which against this guy can be a real pain. Ent's main advantage is his enormous defense. Meruru can't even scratch the guy with standard attacks, which means she's entirely on item duty.



I'd talk about what this does, but he missed. Weak.



Look at that. Even with a critical hit, Meruru can't do more than 1 damage.



There we go. Uni Rain deals pretty heavy Earth damage, and has a chance of Poison. Doesn't seem to have a very high rate of success, though.



A bit more of a nasty attack is Mow Down, which deals pretty heavy non-elemental damage. All of these attacks are really just draining my ability to safely get both Esty and Lias to level 2 on the friendship gauge, which is my opening to an attack with a Meteor.



But thanks to some Lias WT trickery, I was able to let Esty have another move so she could get to level 2, as well as giving Meruru a turn. How lucky.



Even with the weakest Meteor strike, it still does some pretty heavy damage. I like.



Strongest does nearly 500 damage. Also, take note of the fact the Meteor is in the turn order. There's a number of items you can use that do that, but here's the thing. What I just used was a Potentialized Meteor. That means every time Meteor gets a turn, it'll be a Potentialized one.

That means, don't use another Meteor until those three turns are up. It's a waste of firepower, and that's a one way trip to the brig where I'm from.





That overly dramatic-looking attack gets rid of all buffs (like from the Mystery Ankh), but does fairly unremarkable damage. This battle is just a really long grind of who goes down first, unfortunately.



And for his final attack, he summons a horde of rabbits from somewhere to mob some unfortunate soul. Can cause Sleep, but it's not that big of a deal anyway.



Dammit, man, focus! Rufus is never going to approve of you if I fail here.



It may have been a rough few turns for us (especially Lias), but we're not licked yet.



Esty did quite a number on the bastard with her Super Move, but he's still got some life in him. Just hold on a bit longer, everyone.



It was a harrowing fight, but it's checkmate. Lias, let's let you have the honor.



Look at that guy. Still, the bigger they are, the harder they fall.





The crystal is shattered, and the story of the moving forest comes to a dramatic end.



Guy dropped some nice stuff.



I-Is that it? It looks like the crystal's shattered. Does that mean the forest went back to normal? I feel bad I can't put it back where it used to be...but forests shouldn't be moving around like that anyway! Agh, now I'm just confusing myself... But all's well that ends well, I guess!

Quite right. Now, let's check out what we also get for bringing down Ent, aside from 100 rank points.



Eat that, Astrid. Actually, don't, because all of these are mine.



Also, if you approach Ent's carcass and select the choice you get there, you'll fall down back to the first area on a cliffside, much like what happened in Modis. You get this Holy Tree Leaf gathering point, which again, is always there when you return to Ent. We did good here today.

Now then, upon returning back to town and raising Rorona's friendship level a bit, we get another scene with her. Hopefully she'll make up for her pathetic performance earlier this update.



Oh, looks like she's done with her latest pie. What kind of pie is it this time?

This one makes whoever eats it really happy!

Happy, like...they'll be more fortunate? That's amazing!

Right? Rorona's amazing!

A happiness pie...I do wanna try it, but...



Ah, thanks. ...Wait, I know! Hey, Lias!

What now? I'm really busy today. I can't stay for whatever random junk you have going on.

Don't say that. We made a really great pie just now!

Pie, huh? I'm not much of a sweets guy.



That's dumb. But...it WAS made with alchemy. Maybe it really could have that kind of effect...

It should! C'mon, just try it.



H-How is it...

...I don't feel any different.

What!? That's weird. It should go into effect as soon as you eat it...

Maybe if someone who's normally really unlucky eats it, that minus just becomes a zero...

Low blow, Meruru.

So basically it doesn't have any effect at all. Why am I not surprised? Anyway, I guess I'll get going.

Oh, but if you don't have to worry about bad luck anymore, that could still be considered a kind of good luck.



I guess it's not that easy. And here I thought for a second my unlucky days might be over.

You were really looking forward to it, huh? I feel really bad...

Don't pity me like that! Dammit...I'm going home!

*Lias leaves*



Oh...looks like the pie's effect ran out. You're gonna be luckless forever...



Let's get back to work. I might have mentioned it before, but in this game, a new material called Regentium, made from Rainbow Fragments, is the new highest ingot tier. Obviously, we want our weapons made from this. The Rainbow Fragment's inherent trait is called Rainbow Power, which not only adds the power of all four game elements to a weapon, but also has a chance of inflicting status effects. The only problem is...



Cost level for the thing is 50. That's a lot, and it's only one trait. We obviously want more, but let's start by making a single Regentium that has a high enough Cost to actually put Rainbow Power on an item.



That'll do. You basically need Sky Flames with Cost +2, Cost +3, or a combination of Cost +'s, or whatever, to handle them. There's another (Fuel) item that makes for an a excellent ingredient for getting high Cost levels on ingots, but it's much more a pain to make than the Sky Flame. It's fine, though, because with the way weapons are made in this game, you can get a single super ingot from a bit of trickery, instead of making a great one in one go.



But before I waste too much time on synthing, let's get the Arena's construction underway. Can't dawdle on these things.



In addition to Rainbow Power, there's three other extremely powerful traits that make excellent weapon traits. Spirit and Diety Power are listed here, but there's also Time Spirit (which is Spirit Power x Inflict Slow), which adds even more elemental power to a weapon as well as giving it a chance to inflict Poison (well, it says that, but I think it inflicts Slow. I think the trait description is wrong). A weapon that has Rainbow, Spirit, Deity, and Time Spirit is enormously strong, and well deserves the title of "Ultimate". There's no fifth "Power" trait, so feel free to put whatever else you want there. Master Skill, the highest attack boosting trait, is a good fifth slot. Don't waste it!

Just for the record, the Cost level of an ingot that has Time Spirit, as well as Rainbow, Spirit, and Deity Power is 160. In addition to the actual traits you have to combine to get those super traits, that Cost level is ridiculous. We're going to need to do this one step at a time.





Red+Blue is a combo of Fire+ and Water+, and Green+Gold is a combo of Earth+ and Lightning+. Obviously I can't guarantee you'll have all of these by this point, but I was lucky enough to have all four. Make sure you make a lot of Supplements that carry these, as combining Red+Blue and Green+Gold is going to get us a lot of those super traits. Registering Supplements that have these traits at Pamela's is not a bad idea at all.



First up, I needed some actual good Fuel Dirt, and Hagel wasn't selling any. I decided to take a break from forging for a bit to finish the last of Handel's jobs. That raises the quality of all items in areas north of Arls, which includes Fuel Dirt. I got some good Fuel Dirt up here before returning.





Sure, we only have one of the desired traits here, but that's okay. The next step of the plan awaits us.



Here's the thing: remember, in this game, you combine ingots to make weapons. Not just one ingot makes a weapon anymore. This is very important. First, I'm going to combine Rainbow Power and Time Spirit into a single weapon.



Like so. Next up, we're going to dismantle this weapon.



And now, we have traits that are worth 90 Cost (ignore Earth+. I have no intention of having that on my final weapon), on a single ingot. It really is that simple. Just keep getting the traits, combining them into ingots / cloths, dismantling the final product, and on and on until you have a badass arsenal of traits that you want on a single ingot, and even that is not critical.

As long as you have the money and traits, the world is your oyster. As long as you understand that very important chain of events, you dont' need to worry about Cost levels when you're making ultimate equipment. I'm not done with making my ultimate ingot, but hopefully you understand how I'm doing that. There's something very satisfying about ultimate equipment not given to you via sidequest, or a drop from a rare enemy / boss, but ultimate equipment YOU made.

All that said, though, I think we'll call it quits for this update. Next time...I dunno. I've recorded a ton of footage for the next few updates, just don't know how I'm going to put it together right now. Later.





Stars Never Change
Keina concept art
More Keina concept art


Tree God
This is the only orchestra-like battle theme. Whenever I see a big tree, I secretly hope it's filled with toys. If you know what I'm talking about, you must be pretty old. I was always so jealous.

Lias FJ: Flame Rancor
Lias uses repetitive striking techniques, so this one is simple but still speed metal-ish.