The Let's Play Archive

Chrono Cross

by The Dark Id

Part 74: Episode LXVII: Serge and the Birth of the El Nido Archipelago

Episode LXVII: Serge and the Birth of the El Nido Archipelago


Time for the penultimate dungeon of Chrono Cross: Chronopolis. We'll be saying goodbye to our pigtailed, sister obsessed companion Orlha here and swapping her out for more future tech inclined cyborG, Grobyc. He actually has a bit of business to attend to here...

Music: Chronopolis


Well, other than the new ghosts taking a smoke break and wandering droid sentries, I do believe we have seen this place ever so briefly before... A recall a certain red haired yodeler guardian of time had a flashback situated here...


"May there be everlasting peace for the children of the world." - 2400 A.D.

"THE MESSAGE ON THIS PLAQUE IS AT ODDS WITH THE STATED FUNCTION OF THIS FACILITY."
"Maybe in the future guns give hugs...hugs that choke bad guys to death. I dunno. Hey...the hell are those things...?"


"They're releasing the Flame's lock-level to D in order to trace the counter-time effect..."
"Yeah, but based on previous experiments, I'm sure it'll work out just fine. During their simulation, FATE guaranteed that they would be able to use the Flame as an up-link to extract the anti-annihilation energy associated with it. Don't worry, it'll be a success."
"I hope so..."
"Uhh... Did anyone catch all that...?"
"SCIENCE ANGERS AND CONFUSES ME."
"My-systems-are-detailed-only-in-scientific-knowledge-regarding-human-anatomy-and-aides-to-rifle-usage-such-as-meteorology-and-the-Coriolis-Effect."
"Good to know... I liked these ghosts better when they just wandered around and we could just beat 'em up..."


"I'm heading back to Zenan to spend time with my family. My daughter's birthday is coming up, you know."
"I've been on this island for a year and a half now. Man, I've had enough. Aside from the man-made island with this research center, there isn't a single island in the sea of El Nido."
"Once we're able to counter time successfully at will, we'll have full control over time. We'll find out soon enough."
"So are we like in the future now? Or is this another dead timeline where everyone was doomed to a fate of being shadows that only spout exposition?"
"A GRIM FATE."
"Eh? I thought you'd be all about the grim dark future, Roadwarrior?"
"NONSENSE. I ADVOCATE GOING GREEN AND A BRIGHTER, CLEANER FUTURE FOR THE CHILDREN OF THE TOMORROW."
"Tch...whatever. That tin can of yours recycled too?"
"YES. IT IS 100% PROCESSED RECYCLED MATERIAL."
"Oh...uhh... I really wasn't expecting that... Uhh...well... Good for you..."
"I DO MY PART FOR THE ENVIRONMENT."


Suddenly a giant mech suit attacks. Sure, why not?


Meet the rent-a-cops of the future: PolisPolice.


It uppercuts loiterers and those breaking curfew.






And god help you if you litter. It'll blast you with a bazooka for 500+ damage, 1-shotting any character. Unless, of course, they're wearing a White Plate. Then they'll be healed to full. Did I mention the plates got to be REALLY broken at this point in the game?


PolisPolice is a white innate and will fairly quickly fill the Field Effect to full white in just a couple of turns. This will allow Serge to finally test out what is probably the most broken of the Dragons' summon gifts.






This summons a squadron of angels to lob lances of light down from the heavens. Even against a White innate enemy, this does a whopping 1173 HP worth of damage. But, that's not all!


It will also fully heal the entire party in the process. It is a wee bit overpowered, to say the least.






In any case, the mechanical security guard will quickly fold after divine intervention and Team Serge 2.0 pounding it to fully recyclable eco-friendly scrap metal.


That is the only major threat in Chronopolis. Sadly, there is no battle against the swanky star fighters docked outside the facility. What is on guard duty are an array of fairly nonthreatening robot patrolmen:


You've got your bipedal coffee makers...


...OSHA compliant spinning blades on pogo balls...


...and of course Johnny-5 the Jet Fighter.


There is also a bit of silly business involving navigating a little worker droid through a small sewer network to extend a bridge. It takes about twenty seconds, is impossible to fail, and involves having a robot crossing a slowly moving stream that by all accounts the party could likely do much easier... But, people in the future are just that damn lazy.


Following the sewer slumming, the party reaches the central foyer of Chronopolis. The central elevator is currently locked down with a Level 2 security lock. To the west is a rather empty dock area we'll check out later (though there is a save point over there if you aren't feeling too confident in robot scrapping ability.) To the east is a stairwell leading to the 2nd floor of the installation. Floors 3 and 4 are currently in lock down as well.


I doubt any of you want to see several screens of the same corridor over and over, so I'll just cover it here: Floors 2-4 all have the exact same layout of the central elevator with a pair of laboratories on either side of said elevator. Pretty much each and every lab holds a rather huge infodump. So, go grab a sandwich and get ready to do some reading...


Floor 2 is the only one that can be reached by the stairwell. On the way there, the party will pass a security room also in Level 2 lockdown. We'll need to keep this in mind for when we power down security protocols...

Level 2 Western Lab...


As I previously mentioned, each level of Chronopolis has one or two labs. Almost every one of em is full of shades that are more than happy to spout loads of plot fluff exposition to anyone who passes by them. This one, if you cannot guess, deals with the El Nido Archipelago...


"The El Nido Archipelago is purely artificial, created by FATE. A plan to include islands, blessed with nature, in the sea of El Nido. The main island of El Nido, Earth Dragon Isle, Water Dragon Isle, Black Dragon Isle... The development of Elements, using the energy of the natural world... The distribution of memory terminal devices called the Records of Fate that could survey and guide people's lives... The research center staff, who had their memories of the future erased, left the center, and began a life outside amidst nature. This is how FATE's paradise came into existence."


"And for over 10,000 years, FATE has been watching over and guiding the descendants of the staff who left this research center. Everything was in pefect (sic) harmony. That is, until 14 years ago, when a boy came into contact with the Flame on the night of the storm..."

And so there we have a valid reason as to why the fuck El Nido didn't exist in Chrono Trigger. The jerks from the future created by waxing Lavos and saving the world went back in time and cultivated it into existence between games. Fancy that...


This room also happens to undo the Level 2 lockdown and release the elevator access. That was less painful than most security lockdowns...


Now, if we double back to the previous security closet, cyborg Grobyc will come across something of interest...


"But-what-is-it-doing-here? It-looks-complete."
"Dude...we're in some crazy future military joint. Weren't you paying attention? This thing is like a Pez dispenser technology wise now..."


So Grobyc gains the ever so originally named StrongArm tech. [spoiler]It replaces his arm with a STRONGER arm. Like...a gun...[/i]


Welp...onward to more adventures in Science!






Grobyc's Strong Arm


Music: Chronopolis