The Let's Play Archive

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight

by Ragnar Homsar, Dr. Fetus

Part 128: Overlord

Update 37: Overlord





I'll be covering this quest first. Not because it has any content exclusive to Story, but because Ragnar Homsar lost the footage involving this quest. So if you have a Beast, you can get the first part of the quest done. If not, there's an alternate solution.



Ye-es, can I help you? Hey, hey! Sit! I said sit...! Sorry. He's a naughty boy, isn't he? Ah, I thought I saw you somewhere before! You're Guild! Oh wow! You're really at this bar! Hey, hey, so, what's the castle in the sky really like? Is there really a god up there? ...Uh, sorry, that was a bit too much. I hear you're looking for an animal? If you want, I can lend you my little scamp here. But! I'll only do it if you can help me out first. So, what will it be?



Of course I will!
Alright! Hee hee... I can't believe the famous Guild is listening to my request! ...I'm so lucky! So, what I want from you... I heard a rumor that the meat of a black horse monster in the flying castle is super tasty! I think it was called a... Nightmare. Only if you can defeat it, but I want you to bring me some meat from its neck... ...Is that a little too much? But I really, really need that meat. I know it might be a little hard... but please!

For the record, she's not asking for an ingredient. Once you've taken on her request, Nightmares will drop something after you fight them. I proceed to kill one.



Indeed, she asked that you bring back some neck meat for her from this very monster. As you try to cut it, however, you see that rigor mortis has stiffened the flesh around its neck, making it hard to slice through. You refuse to give up, redoubling your efforts, and in the end, you manage to acquire a sizable cut of meat.



You're not sure how much Mercian would enjoy meat this tough, but you can trade this for an animal that can track scents...



Now let's report back.

Heeeey, Guild! How's it going...? You remember my request? You didn't get it already, did you?



I got it.
Huh, really!? W-Wow, this is a lot more than I expected... Heehee, thanks a lot! What did I need this lean meat for? Oh... um, I don't want you to get mad or anything... But I wanted to give it to my pet. Horse meat is really nutritious, and if it's yummy on top of that, then it's the perfect treat for him. The kind of meat you can usually get here is really fatty. And you can't just give that to animals when you feel like it! There isn't as much of a demand for this kind of tougher meat, so nobody usually brings it back... I had given up on it, and then you came along, Guild... so I decided to be a little selfish. That's what I needed it for, anyway. But more importantly... Bobby! Come here, Bobby! Awww, who's a good boy? You're a good boy! Oh, his name's Bobby. What do you think? Isn't he just adorable? He might be small, but you can trust his nose, and he's the bravest dog I know, so he won't get scared in the forest. Give him back to Cass when you're ready, okay? Thanks for your help, everyone. Go do your thing now. Good luck with work! And take good care of Bobby!





The puppy pokes out of your backpack curiously. You have it sniff the scarf received from Cass, and wait patiently. The puppy is apparently well-trained—it shows no sign of surprise, but sniffs deeply and peers around the area. After a moment, as if it has reached a conclusion, the puppy yips and faces directly east. The puppy must have found the Guildmaster's scent. Her lost possession must be somewhere on this floor! You can search for the item she dropped, or you can ignore the clue for now and proceed with your exploration.



This is the room you need to go to.

You deduce that the Guildmaster's lost item must be in this room. You decide to move further into the room, ready to begin your search in earnest.



If there is a Luminous Bird here, you won't be able to search this nest. You'll have to kill it or lure it away.

Soon enough, the puppy reappears with a fist-sized brooch in its mouth. It seems split into two parts: a face and a back. By clipping them together, you could hold together a mantle or some garment. This must be the brooch that the Guildmaster lost!



All that remains is to bring this to the Guildmaster when convenient.





Wh--That's...! Where did you find this? More importantly, why? Hah! I see. That bartender... I wonder what's gotten into him. I filed no request, yet he sent you on a search for one of my possessions. I must thank him. Long ago, I was a soldier in a country to the west... Though you'll find it's no longer on any map. I was second-in-command of the military there... the vice-commander. My father was the commander. I rose through the ranks, hoping to please him... But I was still young... and when he needed me, I could not help him. This is... an heirloom, from my adoptive father. I was a child from an enemy nation, but he took me in and showed me kindness. Guild Guild, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. And tell that lout Cass that before long, I'll come to his bar to raise a glass in celebration. Hah... It's strange. Watching you in action makes me believe in people once more. May we meet again soon.





Hey, yeh're back! How'd it go? Yeh find the brooch? Aw, this little mutt found it? Good dog. Gooood boy. Here, I can probably rustle up a little reward for yeh too. Haw! Some appetite! Lookit him go...! Wait, whassat? She's... comin' for a drink to celebrate? Th-That's... unexpected. I thought for sure I'd get some long rant about mindin' my own business! Oh, right... there was no official request. Haw haw! Yeh heard me! Yeh think she'd ever come into a place like this on her own? Haw haw haw! Nah, this one was my request. Yeh lot don't have a problem with that, do yeh? Don't worry, there's still a reward in it for yeh. Everyone's happy, see? I'm always counting on yeh! Come back anytime!





And that's all for playing cleanup. Back to your regularly scheduled Story mode content.





Here's the last vending machine in this Stratum.



Let's try the srimuang tom yum goong.

When you press the protrusion and the box makes its deep rumbling noise, a paper container of warm soup emerges. Just as before, the picture changes to display the name of an ingredient, and a slot to insert said ingredient opens up. The image shown on the device looks to be a strange, purple, gelatinous substance... Unfortunately, you are carrying no such ingredient. Without ingredients, the soup is a tad simple, but you decide to enjoy the warm, aromatic soup nonetheless.

Aah...!
You okay there, Arianna?
I-I'm all right. Thish ish sho spicy, but it's sho good...
Uhh, swallow before you talk, okay?

Though the soup lacks ingredients, its distinct, spicy-sour flavor causes power to well within you!



You finish drinking the soup and return to exploring with lightened hearts.

But what if we did have that ingredient?

The image shown on the device looks to be a strange, purple, gelatinous substance... Perhaps the Purple Gel you carry is called for... If you wish, you may insert the Purple Gel in the hole.



You produce the Purple Gel and drop it into the hole in the box. The box begins its low growling noise, which it emitted before the soup came out from the slot...

Oooh... The person inside is working hard.

After a short wait, precisely sized cubes of the gelatin are gently dropped into the soup. The gelatinous substance slowly melts in the warm broth, changing its color to a vibrant purple!

Uhh...

What a delightful color it's turned!
D-Delightful!? Did I hear that right? Are you sure you didn't mean ominous!?
I think that purple is a lovely color. Do you dislike it, Sir Flavio?
W-Well... It's not that I don't like it. I'm just not sure about seeing it in the food I eat...
And this isn't just about the color. Isn't it kind of gross how slimy and slick it is...?

It does look eerie at first blush, but you've noticed something more important... Ever since the gelatinous cubes were dropped in, the aroma wafting from the soup has only intensified! Your instinct tells you that this soup will be delicious! And in deference to that instinct, you take a sip of the soup. You bite into the gelationous substance and taste the sour flavor of lemons and the spiciness of chili peppers all at once. This senses-defying taste cannot be explained by logic... It is heavenly on your tongue! You devour the soup without wasting any time commenting to each other on it!



Having enjoyed the delicious soup, you return to exploring with renewed vigor.



One portion of it has countless fine holes embedded near a faintly glowing plate.

What's this?

The shining plate features an unfamiliar script, beneath which are two circular patterns: one red, one blue. Between the two circles is the slowly blinking emblem of what appears to be a hand.

Uhh... I guess we're supposed to put our hand here?

You may try touching a circle, or touch neither of them and leave instead.



Once a day, this machine will heavily increase the encounter rate or eliminate them for a short while, depending on the color you choose. The colors are a hint to their effects, because they match the colors on the encounter radar for when you aren't getting into a battle for a long while, or about get into one. I decide to touch the blue one.

You touch the blue circle on the right, and hear a strange noise as a mist sprays out at you from the wall!

Urp...

You back away in surprise at the wall's sudden action, but you feel no pain when the mist contacts your skin.

It doesn't seem toxic... Smells kind of like lemons.
It would be a pleasant scent if weren't so strong, but this is... a bit much...

As you reel at the powerfully pungent Bertrand seems to notice something and looks around skeptically.

Hey, does it seem to anyone else like we're not in as serious danger?
You know, I don't really hear the monsters around either. Could the smell have driven them off?

It seems that the mist has the welcome effect of drive monsters away from you... When you glance back at the wall where the mist originated, you notice that the panel's illumination has grown dim. You suspect it will require time before it can be used again... You leisurely return to exploring the castle halls, filled now with fewer monsters than before.



What might this be? They look like pictures, but they're structured like writing... If this is script, then it's a rather curious one. Why do I feel as though I've seen these before...?
They're a little like what's used at the castle, but different. I don't think I can read these.
Well, this floating castle was built by the ancestors of High Lagaard. There might be some relation to the modern High Lagaard script.
How about it, Team Midgard? Does this look familiar to either of you?
Dead languages aren't my field. Even the ones who specialize in it don't see many breakthroughs. One of the senior staff had a knack for this kind of thing... he was all self-taught, too.

You think back to your teachings at the Midgard Library, but you cannot recall anything that applies here. Still, if this is indeed a language, then it must follow some pattern. If you can grasp that pattern, you may be able to decipher the writing...



Might as well investigate.

Yeah... It might be important to know, so let's look into this.

You begin checking to see if this script has anything in common with your own, such as letterform frequency and distribution.

This puts me in mind of the cipher-solving scenes in detective stories!
Oh, yeah, I've seen those. 'Detective Austin's Case Files,' right? I didn't know you read pulp novels.

Another EOU reference.

Oh, yes, I read all sorts of books. Though it's been hard to find the time for reading lately...

Though deciphering the script utterly absorbs you for a while, the sound of heavy breathing jars you back to reality.



Huh? It's not me. You're the one who needs to... stop...

Flavio trails off there and looks towards you. If Flavio is the closest one at hand, then... who does the heavy breathing belong to? You slowly look behind you and lock gazes with monsters whose murderous intent is plain to see!

We were concentrating so hard that we didn't notice them surrounding us.
H-Here they come!

The monsters let loose a furious roar as they charge at you! You curse yourself for letting your guard down in this castle, but for now you must draw your weapons and fight!





Oh you have got to be kidding me!





What you saw there was pretty much a guaranteed game over. No party can survive a blindside against that encounter! (Unless you're not playing on Expert or are really overleveled.) It's probably the biggest (and only) dick move Atlus has pulled in this entire game.








































Good thing I came prepared! What you saw happen was the Survivalist's Risk Perception passive taking effect. What it does is it gives the user a chance to nullify a blindside if one happens. It even stacks with other instances of the skill (Not necessary if you're using a level 20 version.) It even works on scripted blindsides as well! Man that really would have been a handy ability to have for the original game.



I'm not dealing with this normally! So long!











You managed to fend off the horde of monsters... but one of them stumbles back to its feet!

Does it still mean to fight us, even now...!?
Stay on guard, everyone! Looks like we're not quite done yet.

But the monster that righted itself does not attack; rather, it stands on its front legs and lets loose a loud howl.

......!

Its cry is impossibly loud--you can feel the force of the sound from here! But after the monster's howl is done, it collapses back to the floor and does not move again.

What was it trying to do...?
...I'm getting a real bad feeling about this. That was an awfully loud noise.



What're you talking about?
I think you'll see soon enough.

Even as you speak to Bertrand, you hear the loud clashing of what sounds to be multiple monsters not far off...!

It was a cry of alarm to its comrades...!
Ugh, it just had to go and bring down more trouble on us... Days like this, I wish I'd stayed in bed!

The newly arrived horde of monsters gets you in their sights and glares at you with naked hostility! You are forced to take up weapons once more and strike down the marauders!



Thankfully this encounter isn't a blindside, but chances are that you took quite a beating from the 4 Nightmares if you somehow survived it. Yeah, the odds are stacked against you if you had no idea what this event entailed. Anyways, I beat down these things easily.



You turn back to the wall alongside Flavio, but...

The writing's wiped out.

Indeed, the hieroglyphs engraved in the wall were damaged during the heated battle and are no longer distinguishable!

This is most unfortunate... Why, it could have been a message informing the reader of an important clue.
...I think you've read one too many detective stories, kid.

You feel a crushing weight of futility at the sight, and pick up a few remnants of the wall before going on your way.



I guess that's a good prize? I dunno. To take our minds off of that failure, here's the last audio only conversation that plays in this Stratum:

Uh, i-if we fell from here...
Oh, come on kid. Try not to think about that.
Hmm. From this height, it would take quite some time for us to reach the ground.
Ah!
It's okay. You'd get stuck on a branch along the way.
How is that okay?



It's so quiet... ...Is the Overlord beyond here?

The voice that has spoken to you all this time... Could the Overlord be ready past this point with a final trial for you? The party seems uneasy at what might await you... Open this door only when you are fully prepared for the consequences!













If Overlord has anything else planned for our party, we're ready for it.



Enshrined in the hall's center is a strangely shaped object..



A giant upside down egg?

I have no earthly idea. Have any of you ever seen anything like it...?

As you look up at the egg-shaped object, the mysterious voice chimes in once again...





To your surprise, the Overlord's voice speaks not in your mind, but from the object your guild is gazing at! Questions for the voice rush into your mind, and you choose one to ask first...



Are you hiding somewhere?
I am not. What you see before you now is indeed myself... the Overlord.

There is no denying that the voice stems from the object before you. This unearthly object in the center of the hall is truly the Overlord, it would seem... As you digest this odd revelation, the master of the castle addresses you again.

Allow me to welcome you once more to the King's Hall, the highest reaches of my skyship. It was created for us to escape to the heavens from the earth of old.
Please, Overlord, we come bearing a message for you. The Lady who founded High Lagaard left these words with us. 'When the Fafnir Knight and the Ruler of Heaven meet, the Calamity's time is at its end.'
And now, Sir Knight has met you, the Overlord.
Please... Lend us your considerable strength to avert the crisis that the entire earth faces even now!
Saving the world... That is my goal as well. It is why I continued my research here; why I honed the power of the Grail of Kings.
Ah! Then shall we have your cooperation in vanquishing the Calamity!?
The combination of her research and mine will be one of unnatural might... A man who will surpass all men. But for that... Knight, was your name? I will require the fruits of her research from your blood and bones! Your power will continue within me... Rest easy on that score! I, who have surpassed the limits of humanity, will use your power to become something more, and bring about peace!



Just goes to show you that you can never trust an Overlord.





Overlord
Level: 60
HP: 6000
STR: 58
TEC: 48
VIT: 50
AGI: 37
LUC: 50
Skills: Damage resistances:
100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 125%
Disable resistances:
50% 75% 25% 25% 0% 0% 25%
0% 0% 10%
25% 50% 25%

This fight against Overlord isn't really a boss fight, so much as it is a specs check. If you're having trouble with this guy, you are not going to like what's coming up soon. Here's his attack pattern.
He's basically a countdown boss, but any party worth their salt should be able to take down Overlord way before he gets to use VOID0.











The only piece of advice I'll give is to avoid using Force at all in this fight if possible.





Well, that's unlucky.



MACV is a status move, and if you're wondering why I didn't bother with Prevent Order...



It's because Barrier is FAR better once Chloe has enough skill points to put into that and War Lore Mastery. What it does is it gives a chance for the entire party to nullify any ailments, binds, and debuffs. Except once Barrier is at level 20, and War Lore Mastery is at level 15, the activation rate will always be at 100%. Sound familiar? Yeah, it's a slightly weaker version of Fairy's Robe (Can't block Instant Death and there's a cap on how many times it can block something.) effectively making it so there's no reason to use that Force Break outside of a handful of situations. If you're bringing the Story party to the post-game, you pretty much need that skill to survive.











Sentinel Guard is a pretty special skill. It sets the party's defenses to the user's for the current turn, and reduces the damage of all incoming attacks on top of that. However, it comes at the cost of disabling all the user's defensive shield skills for one turn. So it's a bit situational however, it's the only skill in the Protector's skillset that can defend against Almighty attacks! And since Overlord only does direct attacks every other turn, this skill is perfect for this fight.



Really, Flavio?



At least Ailing Slash still deals respectable base damage.











And thanks to Sentinel Guard, the party barely took any damage.



Knight is the only person in the party that has pure elemental attacks, and he can only use those while Transformed, so everyone is forced to hold off on this turn.



Resuming beatdown.









That fight could have gone better, but oh well.





It's not moving anymore... Did we beat him?
Is it a good thing if we did?

As you struggle to answer that question, the dignified voice echoes once again.

No... I am not lost yet.
This voice...! Were you not slain!?
I will not fall... not until I have seen my research to its conclusion. Heed this... Unless my power is joined with Knight's... you will not have power enough to defeat the Calamity. If you wish to save yourselves, then stop resisting me and accept your death! As Overlord, it falls to me to end your journey myself...!

https://fat.gfycat.com/BlankPreciousGlassfrog.webm





Overlord
Level: 60
HP: 27000
STR: 59
TEC: 48
VIT: 50
AGI: 39
LUC: 53
Skills: Damage resistances:
100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 125%
Disable resistances:
50% 75% 25% 25% 0% 0% 25%
0% 0% 10%
25% 50% 25%

Overlord's attack pattern for this phase: In the original game, Overlord was pretty much the most pathetic final boss in the series. All it boiled down to was a damage race, and offensive oriented parties were heavily effective there. Here? Not much has changed. Despite Overlord's new shiny attack pattern, he still boils down to a damage race, and is still the most pathetic final boss in the series. Just don't debuff him unless you want him using Seek.











Just setting up here.



...Aaaaand the difficulty of this fight just dropped considerably.



Screwed up the timing on that screenshot there, but that's a lot of damage.



By the way, I hope you weren't enjoying the final boss theme.









This is going to be painful. For Overlord, that is.







Nope.









A decent chunk of damage.



Oh joy, summons.

Killer Satellite
Level: 60
HP: 1700
STR: 58
TEC: 45
VIT: 45
AGI: 41
LUC: 48
Skills: Damage resistances:
100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 125%
Disable resistances:
50% 100% 50% 50% 0% 50% 50%
50% 50% 10%
50% 100% 100%

Take out these nuisances quick unless you want the turns where Overlord uses elemental attacks to become even more painful.





Since Flavio dodged an attack, he can now use Hazy Arrow. If you're trying to get the most out of that skill, stick Flavio (or your Survivalist if you're playing Classic) in the front row so they'll be targeted more often and can dodge more attacks that way. They're durable enough that they can survive a few hits, anyway.



Might as well whittle down that Killer Satellite, but I'm honestly not too concerned about it.



Flavio has a much better bow and more AGI, so his damage output is closer to Chloe's now.



Please keep attacking Flavio.











Overlord is essentially a training dummy for this party.



And let's keep Transform going.





Great, another summon.

Overlord Core
Level: 60
HP: 2800
STR: 59
TEC: 48
VIT: 50
AGI: 39
LUC: 53
Damage resistances:
100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 125%
Disable resistances:
0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
0% 0% 0%
0% 0% 0%

The Overlord Core is just a timer. All it really does is slow the fight down. If you don't kill it before Overlord uses Dance, say hello to the Game Over screen.







The Overlord is completely helpless. All because the party decided to eat some shaved ice before the fight.







Impending doom approaches...



Since the blind wore off, I turn on Flavio's Force Boost so he can keep throwing out Hazy Arrows.



Same with Chloe. Overlord doesn't have much HP left at this point.



Fortunately, all Overlord will do at this point is spam Dazzling Sunlight for a few turns.





Why not? Arianna has nothing better to do this turn, anyway.





I probably could have left the Overlord Core around, but I didn't want to risk anything.





And Knight prepares to rev up the pain train.



Nope.



Yeah, that's not gonna save you.







Overlord doesn't have that much HP left. I don't know if this will manage to kill him, but if not...





I have backup plans.











And down he goes! I'll be honest, his first form put up way more of a fight than he did. Never underestimate the power of deserts, kids.





And I even got an extra copy of his drop as insult to injury.

Now in Classic mode, this is where the game would end. Story mode has a bit more to go through.





You hear only the Overlord's voice from the collapsed form before you.

...You have demonstrated that your power exceeds mine. The Grail of Kings... or the Elixir, as some call it... I grant its infinite power to draw out man's vitality to you... Accept it... The power of the Grail!



Sir Knight?
I have given you the power of life which exceeds that of humanity... Neither she nor I could accomplish it... But perhaps you two... If you desire peace strongly enough, its power may awaken... Go, Knight. When you face the Calamity, this power should awaken, and you will be reborn as something inhuman. Use that power to slay the Calamity...



With those last words, the so-called Ruler of Heaven dissipates into motes of light... Within you begins to stir the power that the Overlord had been researching. The power to destroy the Calamity... You rise up to slay the Calamity, cause of so much tragedy throughout history!

The Calamity sleeps in the depths of Ginnungagap, correct...?
Let us go there, into the depths of the earth, at Sir Knight's side!



Let's put an end to this!

You firmly voice your determination to the rest of your guild.

Yes!
Let's do it!
This old man'll be with you to the end.
I'll do my best.

The energy from your guildmates lifts your spirits as always. You have one final task: to descend back to earth from this heavenly keep and put an end to the long strife!



Hey, stairs!



However, you have a more important task right now: defeat the dread Calamity! Return to town for now, and when you are ready, head to the depths of Ginnungagap!

Yeah, no going to the post-game just yet. For now, the Calamity must be dealt with.