Part 5: Norune Village and Divine Beast Cave Part 3

When we last left off, a couple of beefy men in neckerchiefs resorted to violence and it was somehow Toan's fault. Fuck you, Toan.

Back to the dungeon we go.



NO! GO AWAY! You gave us a Manual you jerk. I don't NEED to coming around and boring me anymore.



Statue Dogs aren't very threatening. They stay dormant until you get close, but by the time they spring to life, you'll probably have already killed them. The real problem is that they're a Rock-type enemy, which just wrecks havok on our sword's WHp. Given that Repair Powders are scarce (aside from the Mayor giving you one each time you talk to him after running out), this is a pain.



Another one of those magic circles. From this point on, I'll be ignoring them. You're more likely to make things harder on yourself (make enemies tougher) or full-on dick yourself over (randomly readjust the stats of your weapon) than you are to get anything remotely useful. The nearby chest has a Wind element attachment in it, which adds +3 to that attribute.



Statues are slow, strong, and tough. Like the Statue Dogs, they wear your weapon down a lot.





With another floor down and a handful of items and Atla collected, we head back up to restock before heading back in for another floor. The lack of Atla raises suspicion, as does the small, circular room that makes up the floor's layout. Toan advances forward, and three Skelton Soldiers animate and attack. But we're awesome so they die.

BUT!




This guy shows up for a special event. See, every now and then, you'll engage in a "Duel," which is just a glorified rhythm game. Hit the buttons at the right time to win the fight. This one lasts for all of 5 button inputs. Completing it nets you the Gate Key and an item. Doing it flawlessly also gets you a gem attachment (a Ruby, in this case). Gems increase multiple stats to a generous degree, but I don't intend to absorb this one into a weapon anytime soon. The Powerup Powder is better saved until later on as well.



Jerkhead is back again to explain charge attacks. Hold X until you glow, release for the stronger attack. Even if you don't hit anyone, this reduces WHp. Great, wonderful. Don't come back unless you have money or presents for us, dammit.




Another floor down. Now's a good time to head back to the village and find someone else to play with. This time, we restore Claude and his house.



Claude is a fat doughy little porker who lives in filth and also sucks. He wants his house to be near food, and a box of candy. We ignore Fatty's requests for food and go back into the dungeon.



More kitty mysteries. Hmm... Kitty Mysteries. That could be a show, where kittens are detectives that solve mysteries. Just imagine the cuteness.



If I had three wishes, they would be to give Mimics penises, to give Mimics assholes, and then have Mimics go fuck themselves. Posing as regular treasure chests, they spring to life when you try to open them. It's not a big deal, really. The problem comes from what I perceive as a hit detection glitch in the game. Sometimes, you'll just completely whiff on each swing, even when you're SURE it should connect. In turn, this leaves you wide open for their attacks, and they take quite a chunk of health off.





Time to add someone else back into the world. Odd Gaffer and his supplies buggy are a welcome addition, because not only will this eventually be a shop to buy and sell stuff at, but it comes with a Fluffy Doughnut in a chest. This is Toan's defense-raising item, and consuming it will raise that stat a few points. Let's thank him by getting his store back in business.





Well, shit. Gaffer hurts his back and can only stock about half the items he normally has. But if we place Paige's house and restore Pike (aka Dike)...






Much better. At least, it would be if we weren't so piss-poor right now.

Now, Floor 7 has a little catch to it, so I decide to level up my weapon one more time before moving ahead. Since I picked up a Tram Oil, I might as well use it on one of the earlier floors to both aid my levelling up and collect some treasures.

Next Time - Slipping in through the back door.