Drakengard Part #50 - Episode XLV: In Which There is Love That Crushes Like a Mace

Part 50: Episode XLV: In Which There is Love That Crushes Like a Mace

Episode XLV: In Which There is Love That Crushes Like a Mace

Let's get crackin'. Seere's Prayer shits us back out at the beginning of Chapter 5. Chapter 5 still progresses exactly the same as it has in previous loops.

The Union and Empire assemble for a final battle.

Goddamn giants out of fucking NOWHERE!

Caim and Red kill them.

Caim and Red kill the entire Imperial army nearly singlehandedly.

The Union gets nuked.

Things then branch back to Chapter 10 and we do the silly spacebridge business with Leonard in the ocean fortress.

And this dumps us back to Chapter 11. Time to do this chapter properly this time.

Verse 1: Maze

Chapter 11's first stage is exactly the same. But, there is a key difference at the end.

Caim fights his way through the fortress with his new ridiculous sword and makes his way to the bottom level.

I cannot stress how absurdly overpowered Hymir's Finger is compared to every other weapon in the game. It is painfully slow (there's about an entire second lag time between hitting attack and Caim actually swinging.) However, every single enemy in the above screen cap is already dead with just that one swing. Even that guy way over to the left. He's totally fucked. One swing hits everything about a couple yards in front of Caim and the actual swing will hit everything save enemies immediately behind him.

Anyhow, this verse is the same deal. Fight to the bottom and collect the key to reach the end. Only this time, we're going to double back and check out upstairs. Just in case we missed something.

On the previous floor there is now a glowing mission ending indicator in the northeastern part of the area. Checking out the source of it reveals...

Well...look who we have here! Looks like we've caught Manah with her pants down. Err...figuratively speaking you fucking creeps.

Leonard seriously has the least debilitating blindness I have ever seen. No pun intended.

Verse II: Hide and Seek

This verse has the two most aggravatingly contrary weapon unlocks of any mission.

The gimmick of this area is that Manah teleports from room to room and you're supposed to "chase her down". Really, you just have to run to a certain room a floor down and that's that.

Buuuuuuut...there is a catch. That being the new weapon. You see, this one has a really strict time limit of less than five minutes to haul ass to the very beginning of the previous verse. On top of that, Caim must follow a certain path or else he's SOL.

This is roughly the path for the first floor. I may have taken some liberties on mapping it out... Alcohol may have been involved.

And this is the path for the next floor. The biggest pain in the ass is the absolute clusterfuck of high level enemies in the super narrow corridor in the center of the area. They're the annoying as hell shield wielding chargier Imperial guards and there are about a dozen of them. They're all but impossible to avoid and it's the biggest pain to kill your way through within five minutes. In addition, Caim has to take out all the enemies in that room and they're all fairly hearty jerks.

The biggest load of shit is the requirement to unlock the second weapon. You know how we had to haul ass across the stage for the previous one? As a lovely "fuck you" moment, the second weapon is revealed by...wasting 20+ minutes in the stage... After twenty minutes elapse, it appears in the long corridor in the previous floor.

Cue me leaving the game idle for ten minutes while I worked on filing my taxes.

"Ma...nah...?"

"Oh wait, my mistake. Now it sounds like a middle aged guy with a head cold. Shucks... I got my hopes up for nothing..."

"Wait...is it you or...? What the heck is wrong with your voice, Manah? Remember how much mother hit you when I-I mean you smoked one of her cigarettes? Boy oh boy she was angry. Made you smoke the whole pack then put one out in your eye. Hah... Good times... Good times..."

Alright, the delivery of this line is just hilarious. So much so that I included it as a bonus video. It may rival the evil watcher voice's delivery of "Lalalala."

But, enough of this wild goose chase. Caim just needs to run into the unique circular room on the second floor and the mission ends.

What's this? A weapon with a title and magic attack that are actually related?! The world has truly gone mad. Let's see of the story follows suit.

Wow. All three parts of the weapon actually followed a theme. I am impressed. They got it right in one out of the sixty-five weapons.

I went to a skull banquet once. Talk about a bare bones buffet!
<wobbles head>
<guitar riff>
<fake laugh from Kevin Eubanks>

Hey these three are all related as well? The hell is going on here?!

But enough about this crap. Strap in, kids. Things are about to get fun!

Verse III: Betrayal

Oh, I'll give you something to sing about you little shit!

Oh for fuc-THIS is your friggin' sister?! I just met this kid and I'm pissed as hell at her. Must run in the damned family.

"Manah! It's me!"

"You... Seere... Let's remember some good times! This was always a favorite of mine. Let's reminisce!"

Manah pimp slaps Seere. Seems our little antagonist is a touch bitter about the whole being the reject thing and having been abandoned in the woods.

"It's my fault that she became like this. Not that I mind all that much. Someone had to take those beatings. Not my fault she wasn't slick enough to avoid them."

It seems there's a tiny bit of Manah left in the possessed little head of hers. But, seeing as she's a weak willed six year old child, that quickly gets swatted into line.

"Lalalalalala. Don't miss the Watchers."

"Lalalalala."

Manah give Seere the old Zangief style Spinning Lariat.

"More than anyone else? See? Humans still don't know what they really need. Stupid! They're all stupid! Salvation lies before them. But stupid people won't be loved."

"If Seere dies, me sad."

Heheh. Golem called him stupid.

<snort> "Heh."

And so Seere, child of pure bloodlust and vengeance, sicks his giant stone minion on his sister for slapping him a couple of times.

Verse IV: Loved

"Seere no get slapped!"

"Irony of statement not lost on Golem!"

JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!

We are treated to the dripping sound of the smushed Manah's blood for the duration of the scene. Wow, Seere. You are an incredible asshole!

Well, that was anti-climactic. I feel like I should be more disappointed. Dunno what that's all about.

"About killing that child?"

Yeah, I totally feel robbed. I mean yeah, that sororicide was fun to watch. But, that girl really rubbed me the wrong way.

"You worry me some times, Caim. At least everything is finally over."

Goddamn, dragon! Don't say that! NEVER say that! Something bad always ha-

WHAT DID YOU DO?!?!

So yeah... Remember how I said Manah was the one holding this flying clam shell up? That's what's this rumbling is all about. Oh yeah and seeing as how Manah was the avatar of the Watchers and there's no dragon apocalypse to muck up things this time... Yeah...

The Watchers are PISSED!

But, let's finish up things on the airship first... I wonder what happened to Inuart and Furiae since we ditched them...

Verse V: Paradise

Hey, Furiae didn't get a knife to the heart via possessed kindergartner or suicide due to incest revelation embarrassment. Maybe things will work out for these two this time.

Oh wait... There's been no Furiae death shock to the system to get Inuart to be less batshit crazy with his ideas... This won't end well...

"What will you do?"

"I have a plan, Furiae! A plan I made up! All by myself! No help from Caim! No help from the Watchers! No help from ANYONE! HAHAHA!"

"Oh. That's good. Where is Caim, anyway? Is he close by? I'd like to see his fine chiseled figure again."

"Uh...?"

"Oh sorry. I was just thinking aloud. Go ahead and finish, dear."

"...Right. Umm... Now where was I...? Oh yes!"

There is just one minor detail Inuart overlooked with this whole plan of his... Err... Remember how I said the only thing keeping the Sky Fortress airborne was Manah...?