Part 138: The Original Sin: The Shit Show Begins

The Original Sin: The Shit Show Begins





Well, no point in putting this off for any longer.

Takin' that one, eh? Guess nobody else would've taken it anyway, since it's intended for Guild... So this comes from the Grand Duchy. Seems they've discovered some kinda pillar of light 'round the forest entrance. And, from what I'm hearin'... it's connected to the Forbidden Wood. Accordin' to the palace, the place the pillar leads to has some terrible monster they're callin' the 'deepest darkness'... Anyhow, they want yeh to drop by the Palace before yeh set out on this one. ...... ...Yeh've accepted the quest, so keep yer guard up, and dig yer heels in. Yeh're strong, and yeh got experience, but yeh can't just assume that yeh're always gonna be better than everythin' else. ...Oops. Guess it's kinda weird for me to be talkin' all serious like that. Well, hurry up and get goin', then. And make sure yeh come back with a hell of a story!





If you have come here, then it must mean that you have accepted the request. The Yggdrasil Labyrinth that exists in High Lagaard... We have uncovered a new book with a legend regarding it.
A new legend, you say?
Yes. Along with that, we have also found some manner of transportation device that was mentioned in this legend...
Transportation device... What, kind of like the Geomagnetic Poles? Where does this one go?
Its most likely destination is the Forbidden Wood--the sixth stratum of High Lagaard's Yggdrasil. ...According to this book, in some hidden chamber within the Forbidden Wood, the Labyrinth's 'deepest darkness' sleeps... A place hidden deep within the Forbidden Wood... surely this lair of 'darkness' must be the most dangerous place in the forest. I understand that it's odd for me to request an investigation of such a bizarre nature... But it seems possible that, within this hidden grove, something may exist that could threaten all of High Lagaard. If true, then naturally we cannot afford to ignore it... And, naturally, you are the only ones who might be able to aid me in this...
Yeah, I get the picture. You can't send in just anyone for a case like this.
Mm. Leave it to us. Right, Knight?



In milady's name!
My, thank you very much. However... when you phrase it thusly, I fear I may blush.



Behold, the best Arianna expression. Probably the only good part of this DLC.

Ooh. Arianna is jealous. How rare.
Huh? O-Oh, my, no... I-I'm not...
*chuckle* Arianna appears to be quite fearsome when provoked. I shall endeavor not to cause her any distress.
O-Oh, even you, Lady Gradriel!? Really, you mustn't tease me so...
...Ahem. It seems we've gotten somewhat off topic. Everyone... Please, allow me to say it once more. Thank you for accepting this request. I will... pray for your safety until you return... I bid you good luck, members of Guild Guild.



A new destination is available to us.







So this DLC isn't just a boss fight, it's an entirely new floor.



Looks like we're here, but...
The scenery itself hasn't changed much.
I guess this won't really be anything special?
We can't decide that on a snap judgment. Seriously, this forest is full of enough unpleasant surprises already.



Don't get too tensed up, though.
Yes. If our bodies are stiff, we won't be able to move and react when we need to. We should stretch periodically as we go.
I'm not so sure about that either...

Apparently satisfied that you should continue on as normal, you move onward on the path.

So this floor has no random encounters whatsoever, but that's to make the floor gimmick slightly more tolerable. You see, the FOEs here have completely random movement! There is no guaranteed way to get past them and reach the end of the floor. The only thing predictable about them is that they will chase you when they spot you, and even knowing that doesn't help much. This shit show is off to a great start.



Anyways, here's the FOE in question.





Anomalocaris
Level: 99
HP: 32399
STR: 99
TEC: 76
VIT: 70
AGI: 62
LUC: 74
Exp: 240000
Attack Type: Bash
Skills:

• Snaring Tentacle: Uses the arms. Deals 210% ranged STR-based TP damage to one party member. Attempts to completely bind the target and inflict fear on them, with an 80% base chance. Has a 90% speed modifier and 120 base accuracy.
  
• Greed: Uses the head. Deals 150% melee STR-based Bash damage to one target, with splash damage. Attempts to instantly kill hit targets, with a 60% base chance. Has a 60% speed modifier and 99 base accuracy.

Drops:

• Normal: Thorny Barbel. 100% chance. Sells for 8800 en. 1 needed to make Ancient Tendril (+199 ATK, 10% chance to inflict head, arm, and leg bind).
  "Barbel developed from a thorn for capturing prey. It would then swallow them whole."

Damage resistances:
125% 125% 125% 125% 125% 125%
Disable resistances:
50% 50% 25% 25% 25% 50% 25%
10% 10% 10%
25% 50% 25%
Description: A wriggling crustacean that made its home in the forest, where it has no shortage of prey...

Anomalocaris are just annoying FOEs. Random movement patterns and they're massive nuisances in battle. They can drain your TP, and instantly kill off one of your party members, forcing you to waste resources to bring them back.











Standard setup stuff. Gonna try to blind the FOE so I don't have to deal with it.



Well that didn't work out.





Geez, look at how much TP that took off!





And Arianna is really in a pickle right now.



Flavio lands the blind on the next turn, meaning that this thing is now just a sitting duck.





It goes down shortly.



Now the fight isn't too bad if you blow your Force Breaks and stuff on it. The problem is, that's not really a feasible strategy for dealing with every one of the critters. The Anomalocaris has a really short respawn time, so you can't dilly dally in a room for long. Not only that...



They respawn the instant you leave the Labyrinth! So yeah, no going back to take breaks. And these fights are really annoying if you don't abuse Force.



There are also fog rooms on this floor, which do reduce their sight range. But again, that's not really helpful depending on how fickle the RNG is. In fact, I can't actually tell you how to get through this floor because someone thought random movement FOEs were a good idea.

Well there is one way. Turn the difficulty down to Picnic, and try to rush through the floor, killing any FOEs that get in your way. That is the only tolerable way to get through this bullshit. And to think we're not even at the main attraction yet.



Oh and this is what the only chest on this floor contains. Might want to stock up on these, just saying.

Anyways, you might have noticed a Take spot on this floor. The materials you can get from it are Bloody Dew, Solomon's Seal, and Antler Fungus. Those make some very special items. Let's go back and see what our loot makes.





The Thorny Barbel makes the Ancient Tendril. Which is a whip that has a 10% chance to bind all body parts. Yeah, not that useful.



The Bloody Dew makes the Eye of Time, which instantly revives all FOEs and bosses when you go back to town. Handy, I suppose.



The Solomon's Seal makes the Healing Remedy, which fully restores the party's HP and TP. The catch? It can't be used in battle, only on the field. Pass.



Antler Funguses makes the Over Somas, which are probably the most useful item from this. What it does is it heals the party for 100 HP, however it can also overheal them up to that amount as well. It's handy for this DLC's boss, especially if you have party members who max HP totals under 501. The overheal only lasts for the turn this gets applied though, and the effects don't stack with other Over Somas.

We'll confront the Deepest Darkness next time.