Part 6: Stratum 1: Offering Part 2 Boss: Otakuphant

The waters of Peluna were said to be ruled by the cruel god Otakuphant.
- excerpt, Legend Cycles of the Ancients

Dangerous Waters

There was no way for us to push forward without first defeating the Otakuphant.

Video- “Offering Part 2”

Click Here for Video With Commentary

Ally Team:
We’ve got our same team as last time on the map. It’s still not ideal but we’ll live with it.

Enemy Team:
Once again we’re seven on seven, but the Majin have taken another serious step up in power. We’re up against the Otakuphant and his allies, two Uro Lumens, two Dawnwalkers, and two Exo Machinas. Let’s go through our opposition in detail.



Exo Machina is a powerful physical attacker. It’s got pretty tough defenses and a special physical with a chance to cause the Bleed status. Bleed causes a unit to take damage every time you move or act, and it’s a real problem. Exo Machina are vulnerable to a few types of magic and, as a mechanical Majin, are also vulnerable to Strikes. We want to pound them hard and fast to minimize their chances to Bleed us.



Uro Lumen are also powerful physical attackers. They hit really hard, and have an attack that can cause Fracture on a unit. They’re totally immune to Fire and take half damage from Light. The tradeoff for all this is that they’re terribly vulnerable to all other types of magic and Strike attacks. Ashley can just about one hit Overkill them from behind at this point. They can’t move very far, which we want to take advantage of because the Fracture status is really, really bad.



Dawnwalkers are the Light version of Nightwalker. They’ve got Sacra instead of Malus and are vulnerable to Malus instead of Sacra. They’re kind of weak physically magically, and are not significant threats at this point unless they get into the casters.



Here’s the big man himself, Otakuphant. He’s also got a skill to resist Mental status and a Demon Aura. He’s not got impressive physical attack, but he makes up for it in magic. He’s got serious defensive stats, is totally immune to Water, and resists both Strike and Light. He’s most vulnerable to Slashes and Darkness, though he’s also vulnerable to Earth and Piercing attacks. He’s armed with powerful Aqua magic, including the devastating Aqua II that can potentially Freeze our units in place. He’s also able to heal, which he’ll pretty much save for himself. He’s a tough nut to crack, and extremely hard to capture on a first cycle.

Deployment:



We’re forced to deploy on the narrow strip where the Majin started last map. This doesn’t give us a lot of depth to deploy in. I deploy Ashley, Glynne, and Vivian in the front with Nena, Reyna, Velnor, and Stein in the second row. We’re going to need to push aggressively with Ashley and Glynne to give us some space to advance everyone squishier than them into range. We want to go up the side with the near Uro Lumen, because it’ll engage anyway if we try the other side.

Tactical Objectives:
-Clear an area at the start so we can engage Otakuphant
-Capture as much as we can before we finish off Otakuphant
-If at all possible, capture Otakuphant as well

Map:



We start out by buffing Ashley with Accelero with Glynne, then push the two of them up towards the Uro Lumen. It comes in and Fractures Glynne, which is less than ideal but better than it being on Ashley. In return Vivian launches a Meta I at it for most of its health. Luckily Stein has the spell Restore, which cures Physical status like Fracture and Bleed. We’ve got four of these, so we want to be careful not to get too many bad Statuses or we’ll run out.



If you’re afraid, stay back, or you’ll be killed!
I’m… not…

Ashley moves to Uro Lumen’s back and trashes it with her mace, massively overkilling it. We capture it with Reyna, getting rid of one of the four Status threats.



Don’t put me in the same category as those weaklings!
I think you need a demonstration of my power!

The Exo Machina on this side moves up and hits Ashley with a Bleed Attack, but isn’t able to stick her with it. After an arrow and a Sacra I it’s in pretty bad shape. Now we’re about to get some important assistance we normally get when up against an enemy with a Demon Aura.



Whaaat!? What do we do now!?
Well… they say the god Otakuphant hates Earth magic.
I think it’s worth a try…!
Otakuphant…
Why do you have the same name as one of Stag’s gods?
Is it just a coincidence?
Little one… it’s certainly no coincidence.
Huh? Don’t be ridiculous!
Reyna, how do you know so much about the Stag faith…?

So now we know what we need to use to break Otakuphant’s Demon Aura, Earth magic. We’ll file this away for now, because we’ve got some more Majin to deal with. I decide that it’s worth putting Reyna in a position that lets the Exo Machina reach her to get an early start on the second Uro Lumen. It makes me pay by Bleeding her with an attack, which sucks but is fixable. We cure it with Stein and then send Exo Machina packing with Ashley. This causes her to level up.



Ashley doesn’t gain any new skills for this level, but she’s now less vulnerable to Earth than before. Her stats are getting pretty crazy now, she’s got a huge lead on even Otakuphant in most areas. We capture the Exo Machina and keep at the Uro Lumen, getting it into the sort of health range where Ashley can smash it into scrap.



I’m not Izel!
Hahaha! The truth will soon be clear!

Speaking of smashing Uro Lumens, let’s do that now. With him down, we can push Glynne up and break Otakuphant’s Aura. This does put us worryingly in range of both him, the second Exo Machina, and a Dawnwalker. We’ll need to deal with the two of them before we put any real firepower on Otakuphant. The Dawnwalker wastes its Sacra to minimal effect, and Otakuphant lets loose with an Aqua II on Glynne for massive damage.



Glynne’s looking sort of poorly, so we’re forced to heal with Ashley. We then move Ashley up into the Dawnwalker’s face to keep it from getting into our lines and also open up a good space to capture the Uro Lumen. The Exo Machina moves up and Bleeds Glynne, who’s been having a rough day. We move up to capture the bound Uro Lumen with Vivian, who levels up.



Vivian’s now got Terra II, just like Glynne. She’s still kind of weak with everything but her Meta attack, sadly. I move Velnor up to shoot at Otakuphant, and throw a Malus at the Dawnwalker with Stein. This gives him a level as well.



Stein has gained Aqua II, which is useless on Otakuphant but may be very helpful later on. The Exo Machina attacks Glynne and then moves away. Meanwhlie Otakuphant turns his eye towards Velnor, hitting him for about half his health with his second Aqua II and freezing him solid. We keep the heat up on Otakuphant, then free Ashley up by Overkilling the Dawnwalker. This lets us move her over near Otakuphant.



He’s targeting you specifically!
No way! I can still fight!

The second Dawnwalker moves up and wastes its Sacra on Ashley, who is barely scratched. We capture the Dawnwalker and finally manage to cure Glynne’s Bleed. We keep the pressure up on Otakuphant, and eventually Velnor levels up.



Velnor gets an area version of Revivo, which cures Mental status. Everyone’s hurt, so I heal Glynne and Velnor with a Cura II from Ashley. We clock the Dawnwalker with Pyro magic from Reyna and then Overkill it with Stein’s Malus. Then we finish the job on the last stray Majin by knocking Exo Machina in the head with Ashley. Otakuphant keeps throwing his magical weight around as we slowly wear him down. We capture the two Majin who are bound, and then Otakuphant decides he’s lower than he’d like and heals himself.



We keep up whittling down Otakuphant, and then on a whim I try something that turned out to be pretty critical. It turns out despite his Mental resistance Otakuphant’s pretty vulnerable to Sleep.



He’s not quite low enough to Overkill, even with a guaranteed Critical combo. But even then, the game can almost sense that we’re about to do something awesome.



Ashley! Try the librum!
Is that… the Librum Aurora? In the hands of mere Falsin?

I hit the Otakuphant one more time to get him in the red zone, then Sleep him once more. This puts us in a perfect position to knock Otakuphant on the noggin.



Both Ashley and Glynne gain a level from this, so let’s take a look at them.



Ashley gained the buff Salva, which lets a character regenerate health every time their action comes up. It’s really great for frontline fighters, especially ones like Ashley who are naturally pretty fast.



Glynne didn’t gain much, which isn’t really a surprise. We take a few turns to get to Otakuphant’s back, then capture us a big ole Majin!



Oh, and Nena gained a level from capturing his fat ass. She didn’t really gain much out of it, which I’d expect because she had a lot of skills to start. Still, we captured the damned Otakuphant, which I’ve never pulled off on a first run before.

Battle Result:

Levels:
Ashley 11->13
Glynne 8->9
Velnor 7->8
Stein 5->6
Nena 5->6
Vivian 5->6

Majin:
Otakuphant Lv. 12 x 1
Uro Lumen Lv. 7 x 2
Exo Machina Lv. 7 x 2
Dawnwalker Lv. 6 x 2

Refugee Saved:
Zadikus

We defeated the Otakuphant, but Glynne had other concerns than the Majin.

Video- “Offering Lead Out”

Click for Video

???: (Ashley…)
Ugh…!
Ashley, are you okay?
I’m fine…
Are you sure…?
I said I’m fine!
Oh, I’m sorry…
How’re you two doing? You ready to keep going?
Yeah…
Alright, let’s move.
No, I’m sorry, but from this point forward, you’re no longer part of our team.
Glynne…?
In all good conscience, we can’t travel with a follower of the Pope.
Glynne!? What are you saying…!?
‘Follower of the Pope’…? What are you talking about?
I’m not a fool!
The Pope ordered you to join our team to kill us, didn’t he?
I don’t know what you’re talking about.

Glynne was certain Reyna was some kind of assassin, which is just crazy. He did have a point that something seemed to be up, though.



I told you! I don’t know what you’re talking about!
If you’re trying to say something, say it so I can understand you!
You really don’t know anything, do you?
Ashley? Glynne isn’t making any sense! Can you explain what’s going on?
Reyna, just who ARE you, if you’re not a follower of the Pope!?
Huh? Well, uh…
I guess you’re not telling us the complete truth.
…
Who are you? Do you have a separate mission from us?
I can’t tell you who I am.
I’m looking for the Eternal Poison here in Besek, and I promise you, it won’t interfere with your mission.
That’s really all I can say.
You disguised yourself as a Protector of the Faith in order to get the Eternal Poison…
That’s right. I have no intention of harming the two of you.
You really expect us to believe that…?
Glynne… I really don’t think Reyna’s lying!
Ashley, don’t I always tell you not to be so trusting of people…!

So, Reyna is some kind of imposter. And also a man. Maybe. It’s what we’re going with for now.



You don’t know that! He lied to us!
How can we travel with someone we can’t trust!?
Wait!
If you’re going deeper into Besek, please take me with you!
No.
Unlike you, I like to be able to trust my companions.
We can still work as a team! I swear I’ll never betray you!
No way. We can’t trust you.
…I do.
Ashley! What are you thinking!?
Glynne, be quiet. Reyna needs our help. I can feel it.
But…
I don’t feel any evil in him.
You may be right, but…
Then there’s no need to argue, right? Let’s go, Reyna.
Thank you… Ashley.
It’s our duty as Protectors of the Faith. We must be there for those who need us!
(Oh, man… Once she starts talking like that, there’s no stopping her.)

We returned to Isapolis, together. The Count is still convinced Reyna’s a woman, nobody has the heart to tell him. He also keeps calling me ‘that’, which is getting uncomfortable.



Please don’t be cross with me… It is just my habit to call women ‘Princess.’
How is Princess Reyna? I have learned you’ve encountered some problems.
I am not worried about you, though. You could very well be the next Pope…
One cannot become Pope if she cannot learn to tolerate all people.

This fortune teller in town says the oddest things.



Shivan: It is neither light nor dark, neither good nor evil.
You have both the colors of pure white and of jet black.
What do these colors mean…?
Please do be careful.

I mean that doesn’t… mean… anything… to me.



Leon: During battle, have an ally move but not attack, or attack but not move.
By selecting WAIT, a unit can delay his actions until the leader’s turn.
As leader, you can use ACTION to command these allies.
Any ally who has saved up actions can execute them during your turn.
If an ally did nothing during their turn, they can move AND attack!
You can only lead a limited number of allies and can’t lead summoned Majin.
Don’t push around Glynne too much, alright?



Muse: If you capture a Majin and sacrifice it at Archaya’s place, you’ll get a Skill!
Then, if you equip that Skill, you’ll be able to use a special power!
I think it’s amazing! I want Skills, too! A Skill to become tall and pretty!
And a Skill to become a better dancer! And… Oh, there’s so much I want!



Basil: If you grow tired from battle, please come back into town to rest.
We don’t have a hot spring, but we do have many other forms of entertainment.
I hope you enjoy yourself.

We also gained some powerful new allies. The first was General Alexei of the Valdian Knights. He’s well known even in the Church for his skills.



Alexei: How can a lovely maiden like you put herself at risk on the battlefield?
I am at your service, Miss Ashley! Let us go into battle together!
Very good! I will defend you with all my might!



Alexei is a brutal physical fighter armed with a two-handed mace and heavy armor. He’s also got a special physical that can Fracture enemies. He’s very, very weak against magic of all types, so buffs like the Magus Def Ashley’s getting from her armor are critical for him. He’s also very, very slow, so Accelero is a great help to him. Still, anything that’s vulnerable to his attacks is really going to feel it in the morning.

The next was Ares. She’s well known too, I’ve heard she’s the most feared swordswoman in all of Alea.



Ares: Investigating this place, huh? Sounds like a thrill.
Need another sword?
Thanks, this is gonna be fun.



Ares is another powerful melee fighter. She’s in relatively light armor, but she’s much more resilient to magic and brings Slash attacks to the party. She can cause Bleeds with a physical skill, and at high levels she’ll get some really brutal skills, She’s super fast and actually has some decent magic defenses, unlike Alexei. I’m definitely going to use her a lot because I need a good Slash attacker.

We met a Koona that wanted to join as well. I didn’t have the heart to tell the little guy no.



Toma: Ni em tnuoc annaw uoy? Anook! Anook!
Uoy htiw krow ot desaelp! Emosewa!



This Koona uses Slash attacks and gets Pyro skills. Koona are sort of weird, they can’t use a full range of equipment because they have a special attack like a Majin. His attack might look high but everyone weaker than him is just a weapon upgrade he can never get away from outclassing him. He’s not as vulnerable as his elemental properties suggest because he’s got decent defensive stats, but personally I’d rather use really focused melee characters.

We also met Nena’s adoptive father, though he wasn’t quite ready to join yet.



Komori: I didn’t know they made priests like you…
I’m here with my adopted daughter, Nena. She has a vendetta against Majin.

Evan thinks he’s figured out why Basil couldn’t find any of his family, though I’m not sure I believe it myself.



What’s wrong, Evan?
Evan: What shall I do?
Wh-Whoa! Just calm down and tell me what happened, okay?
Evan: I talked to Basil and had an awful realization.
I am not only lost in the wrong place; I am lost in the wrong time period!
You what?
Evan: Upon further investigation into my family name…
I discovered that my family name has not been used for over 200 years!
Whoa, hold on a minute!
Maybe it was a mistake… Or maybe Basil was just playing a prank on you.
Evan: Perhaps. Tell me, who is Pope?
Pope Renart XIV
Evan: Fourteenth!? But Pope Renart V just passed away last year…
Pope Rossini III is the current head of the Church of Valdia, in my time.
Wh-What!?

The weird guy we rescued from Otakuphant was also at Twilight’s Rest.



Don’t worry. It’s my duty.
So what were you doing in a place like that?
Zadikus: Yeah, about that…!
Well, see, after I won the boxin’ match, I started singin’. As usual.
And the crowd, they all start goin’ nuts, right? I mean N-U-T-S! Nuts!
So I was like, “Huh?” And there was this gimongous monster there!
Of course, I’m thinkin’, “hey, monster, why you disruptin’ my singin!?”
Now, I gotta show him who’s boss, don’t I? So I start chasin’ him around…!
Oh my…
Zadikus: And I’m chasin’ this monster for three days and three nights!
…That’s six days and nights, when ya add ‘em all up, ‘course.
And now, I’m in this here place. Nice to meet ya!

We’re going to rest before we see what is on the other side of that door Otakuphant was guarding. I hope we’re making progress, Master Leto could be in real danger if the Majin are already this strong…
- journal entry