Part 18: Update Eighteen: Stranger Things* To Come...
Welcome back! Last time, Dem joined the team after a brutal fight. Today, I attempt a dungeon that I really have no business being in, and then actually move on with the game, so let's get crazy.
This is north and east from Alhazred. I'd reckon it's definitely the hardest bonus dungeon in the game; I think it was added in the PC re-release, because I definitely do not remember it in the 360 version.
For starters, it looks different than most other locations.
And it's the Soulcaster Cave. The boss at the end is definitely going to ruin our shit.
If the enemies don't do it first.
You know what's worse than regular bats?
Super strong demon bats.
We've got some powerful tools at our disposal; Dem is a pretty solid fighter in the vein of Cthulhu and Sharpe. He uses swords and shields like he did in Breath of Death, and his equipment will never change.
This is why these bats suck; they hit really hard and are basically guaranteed to be going before our party.
We've got what we need to drop them quickly, but October wasn't the best choice for this dungeon. She's not hardy enough to really stand up to the assault from the enemies in here and she doesn't have the powerful single-target attacks needed to drop them quickly.
October is good for whittling down large groups and letting the others clean up the mess.
But I do keep her alive. Her Dark skills hit pretty hard, and her Poison attacks could come in handy.
I should have either brought Umi or Ember instead, because Umi's Strike skills are pretty strong, and Ember has a lot of power in Smash and Aerial Assault.
My first instinct was to take the hits increase, but I decided it was better if my healer was less likely to be hit. It's a lot harder for him to keep everyone else alive if he's taking a dirt nap.
I like the checkerboard look. Some day, I want my bathroom tiled in checkerboard. Maybe try something crazy and get a carpet like that, but in soft, neutral tones that seemingly blend into one another.
Part of my troubles in this dungeon may have come from the enemies always going batshit. But on the same ticket, I can take a few hits from them like that, but they have trouble standing up to our assault.
They don't like Fire. Or being hit really fucking hard in general. Like a lot of people. Except for those with specific fetishes.
But, we're not kinkshaming anyone. That's not what we're about in this thread.
Though, last night, I had to explain what kinkshaming was to my wife. It was after we watched this skit.
Alright, what horrible shit is coming this time?
Jesus, those are some tough rats. Let's get to exterminating them.
...If they don't drop us first.
Which is entirely possible. I've only ever seen them in groups of three, which is good. If they came in four or five, I'm not sure if I could make it outta the fight.
Oh, Christ, what is that?
Oh, a snob-ass rat.
The layout changes a bit when we head up the stairs, featuring broken pillars and pits that look like they lead to nowhere.
It's a little different, and I kind of like it.
While Ur was an ancient Sumerian city, I don't think that's what they meant here. Or maybe it was. In a lot of other cases, when someone prefixes something with "ur", it means that they're claiming it is the original, the first, that sort of thing.
I don't even know what that means!
But, hey, it seems to be working for them.
Up to a point, at least.
At first, I wasn't even going to show this place off, but then I remembered I got a few levels in here, so I couldn't skip it.
Umi gains some extra Vitality and Will.
Sharpe learns yet another way to slice and dice fools.
While October upgrades her Plague spell. The other option was +40 Strength.
While Paws learns to become Death, destroyer of worlds.
This is probably why the first rat wouldn't talk to us!
Ooh, treasure!
While backing away, Ember gained a level, which takes some of the sting out.
I gave him Death Breath here, just for the extra ability to hit all targets at once.
But there's another chest around here.
If I find Siegfried around here, I'm going to stomp his ass into the dirt.
Okay, that guy definitely does not look friendly.
I talked to plenty of skeletons in that game! You're full of shit, narrator!
Well, this seems a little ominous.
As does the Gandalf looking motherfucker right here.
My God, they look so...Alien. Is this how entities like Cthulhu and Dagon see us?
Okay, that's a lot of HP.
As is that.
I can handle that.
And 20,000 ain't shit.
Okay, we've got this. We'll start on the right side and work our way--
--down
Yeah...We might come back here. Maybe.
For now, let's head over to Innsmouth.
We won't get our shit wrecked over here. We'll be back to being the shitwreckers.
It's a city full of grumpy people? Sounds fantastic.
Well, if that doesn't sound like a set up for a cutscene, especially considering what happens in Innsmouth...
But, I'll let someone else speak on that. Probably that achtung night fellow. He seems to know a thing or two about these stories.
...Naming shit really isn't your forte, is it? Cult Town? Honestly?
I don't think I'd have admitted to missing that connection for so long, but hey, I'm not the one writing those commentaries.
Uh-huh.
How the hell could you forget a face like that?
I pick up one of each; the sword that makes enemies Insane is nice, but a bit of a pain in the ass at times. And since Dacre now has Holy, getting something to boost that up will definitely come in handy.
Nope!
Eh, maybe if I need one, I'll come back for it. I'm not anticipating that, though.
So, Dacre is the only one sporting some new duds from this shop.
I should have made this stop before, honestly.
I'm just killing the whole flow of the update.
But, whatever, Umi has gotten a brand new dress that we first saw at the beginning of the game.
Noice. She's pretty well kitted out now.
Okay, back to the task at hand.
Which is breaking into this house. Or...If there's a giant hole in the side, if you go through the door, is that still breaking and entering?
Probably. I miss, you are still breaking into their house. Trespassing at least.
Another prominent feature of the Innsmouth story was fishmen and transforming into fishmen.
I'm not sure if that was part of the story.
Across the way is another house. I'd enter through the hole, but something about that seems...Rude.
Maybe I should have been rude and just gone through the hole.
There are also several locked doors in town, but maybe it's best if they stay locked.
So let's head through a door we can open.
And rob somebody.
Yeah, we're RPG heroes.
The door on the end is locked, while this door also leads into the Inn.
This seems odd.
But we'll just roll with it.
Jesus, Paws looks so friggin' tiny.
Villagers are dicks: got it.
How very Adam West of you, Cthulhu.
Fhtagn.
So...They're dead, right?
I think Cthulhu is yelling at dead people.
Oh, maybe not.
We're going to need an explanation for Dagon over here, too, somebody.
Which is...?
Ah, yes, the part of town I haven't visited yet.
Before we head over there, let's check the bookshelf.
What, were you expecting something different?
If you live somewhere and you don't have a junk drawer, you don't actually live there; you're just residing.
My junk drawer is the drawer on my desk. I have no idea what's in there, as it is quite unorganized.
Those doors are locked, by the way.
Why the hell did I never go through the holes in the sides of these houses?
Well, not quite what I was expecting to find, but I'll take it.
It's full of dirty diapers on dead fish. Just...Just a real mess.
Just north of that is the foundry.
And this is where we'll pick up next time.
Stay tuned!
achtungnight posted:
- Innsmouth is a small seaside town where the majority of the residents have frog or fishlike features coupled with deep-set Old One Cult beliefs and extreme hostility toward outsiders.
- These tendencies come from the town's founders- wealthy merchant sea captain Obed Marsh and his crew. They got freaky with some fish people known as the Deep Ones and their descendants now populate Innsmouth.
- In the Lovecraft novella "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" the narrator is a Miskatonic professor investigating Innsmouth because he has heard of the residents' hostility towards outsiders and figures it's worth checking out. Later we learn his uncle was from the town and committed suicide for some reason. The narrator learns during his visit about Innsmouth's fishman heritage and... if this sounds similar to Lovecraft's earlier mentioned story about the apes and humans mixing, yes, it is. But this story is in my opinion better written. It was also far more popular.
- The Old Ones introduced in the story are the god-rulers of the Deep Ones- Father Dagon and Mother Hydra. Dagon, whom our party is after now, is molded after a Phillistine fish-man god in appearance and name. Hydra, his consort, is named after the Greek snake monster with multiple heads.
- The key horror element in the story is not the physical mutations the humans of Innsmouth suffer because of their Deep One genes. The psychological issues are worse. If you have Deep One heritage you slowly turn into a Deep One in both body and mind. And you _want_ to be one. You do not regard the change as a bad thing. The transformation takes decades to complete but you will gladly retreat into your Innsmouth home and wait for it to happen, letting the less physically but just as mentally transformed residents defend you. And when you are fully a Deep One you will return to the sea and embrace the civilization there, leaving your humanity behind and forgotten. This is what happens to the narrator of Lovecraft's story.
Innsmouth remains one of Lovecraft's most well-remembered tales. The Deep Ones were featured again and expanded upon in many stories that continued the Lovecraft tradition. They are the main bad guys in "Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth". They also inspired the Kuo-toa and Sahuagin monsters in Dungeons & Dragons and the Creature from the Black Lagoon. In some stories their civilization makes comic book Atlantis look backwards and they are a serious threat to human life. In others they are backward and stagnant and only the previously described psychological issues of turning into one is an issue.
*Watch Stranger Things on Netflix. It's the shit.