Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard Part #102

Part 102: Wyvern: Agnea's Guardian

Wyvern: Agnea's Guardian

The choice you make here barely matters. For the most part it just changes the flavor text.

: Go for the box!

: But-

: I said get the box!

: Ugh. Okay boss.

: If you believe this is the right choice.

Thinking it best to oblige the winged one's wish, you take the box and evacuate the vault. The moment you exit, the walls finally collapse... The winged one is certainly dead. You are not at all certain you did the right thing, but you must return safely with the box.

Now if anyone dies on the way back to Canaan, you'll fail the quest and have to do it all over again.

: Yeah, but one of your people died while we were getting the box.

: We... we couldn't save him.

: Hmm...? You were unable to save one of our own?

: Yes. His last request was for us to retrieve the box over saving him.

: I see... Then I thank you on his behalf. Our values are perhaps different than your own. A single life means little in the flow of Isa. The larger progression of things is all. In doing your duty, you saved him. Now Nuh, Father Ish, and Mother Ishsha will stay with us. You cast aside sentiment and followed the will of Isa. That is rare in earthbound ones.

Now what if we saved him instead?

: We're getting him out!

: But-

: You heard me. I'm not leaving him here to die.

: Grr. Fine.

: I hope Canaan doesn't get too pissed at us.

Your conscience will not allow you to leave the winged one in a collapsing vault! Moments after carrying him out, the vault crumbles... There is no hope of retrieving the box. You hope the winged ones will understand your actions in light of the circumstances. The unconscious winged one is safe. You must take him back to his home.

How this choice differs from the other one is that you aren't penalized if someone dies. So opting to save him essentially completes the quest.

: We will tend to our wounded. His injuries are not severe, and his life will be saved.

: Umm... Yeah, sorry about that. I just couldn't leave him there.

: It was one or the other.

: You seem hesitant. Do not be. You have your own teachings, and you followed them this day. It is Isa's will that his life was spared in exchange for the box. We live in different ways, with different beliefs. That is natural. Let us acknowledge our differences and live in harmony. Your beliefs and our own are all part of a vast, unknowable whole. No one is an "outsider."

: Whoahoho, seriously?

So yeah, Canaan is a cool guy who understands what cultural differences are. At any rate, no matter which option you chose, the dialogue continues as follows:

: We will think on what you may consider worthy compensation. I must tend to our wounded and inspect the treasures. Perhaps later, we can--Ah! Don't you usually report after you finish a quest? Why don't you return here once you have reported? We will have something for you then.

PC-88 Version

: Ahhh, yeh're back. I've got another letter for yeh here. It's the same handwriting as before... Must be the client. It thanks eh for yer efforts. So, out with it... who was this client, anyways?

: Ehhhh, I don't see why we should tell you.

: C'mon... yeh know I'm curious! Yeh did the job--yeh have to know who it was!

: Mmm, nope. Our lips our sealed!

: Argh! Wipe that bloody grind off yer faces! Fine... forget it. But if yeh want to talk about it later, I won't be listening! Take yer reward and get out!

: Didn't Canaan say he was looking for something to give us?

: Yes. I believe he should be ready by now.

PC-88 Version

: In the name of Father Ish and Mother Ishsha, I welcome you. Now then... you're investigating Klanvaline, aren't you?

: Who?

: Hm...? Ah, you must excuse me. Klanvaline is our word for it. Among the earthbound ones, the golden monster is known simply as the Dragon. Its true character is unknown... But if it has attacked, it must have been an act of god. But if you plan to oppose it, such is the will of Isa. I shall tell you what I know. The documents you carried not long ago happened to contain a legend regarding Klanvaline. Take these. They may help you investigate the monster that attacked your town. They may be of limited use, but they should contain enough information to aid your task. It is written that the one who appears with thunder howls with rage on the heavenly seat. The legends say that now is the season when the beast's wrath waxes. It will not end soon. You must act quickly to quell its rage. If you would defeat it, then move swiftly.

: Thank you.

Now that we have more info on Dragon, we can turn in The item trade IV.

PC-88 Version

: O-Oi, yeh're back! I heard the story... Yeh found that fiend who attacked the city. The reconstruction's moving along, but I hate to think it could strike again anytime.

: Take a look at this.

: Eh? What's this dirty old book?

: The winged ones gave it to us.

: From the winged ones...? What's it have to do with the monster? Yeh know, an old thing like this from the winged ones could fetch a tidy profit...

: Really, dude?

: Not the time for that, Cass!

: ......No, no, I understand. I've got to take this to the Grand Duchy, right? I won't get greedy when the fate of the city's at stake. Here's the reward. If something else comes up, we'll be counting on yeh.

When you complete The item trade IV, this quest pops up. This is the real fight with Dragon!

: They're done already? The Grand Duchy works fast.

: I guess they don't mess around when the city's on the line.

: Oi, yeh've got another request from the Grand Duchy, about the monster who attacked Lagaard.

: You're not letting the other guilds take that, right?

: Don't yeh worry, I wouldn't give this to any guild but yeh. And even if I did, no one but yeh lot would take on a suicide mission like this! Haw haw haw! Yeh can ask the Minister at the Duke's Palace for the details. Go get 'em!

PC-88 Version

: First, my compliments on investigating the monster that destroyed the city's west side. We were able to identify it with the documents given to us by the winged ones. The fiend in question is a dragon that has been feared since ancient times. There are also references to it in our own histories... It seems to appear in cycles.

: We pieced this message together from our histories and the scriptures of the winged ones. According to their calendar, now is the season for it to grow violent and wreak havoc. It has not moved since the initial attack, but if we leave it be, it will strike again. Guild Firefly... Will you defeat this terrible dragon for the good of Lagaard? It is on its throne of thunder on the 17th floor. Get there via the north of the 18th floor. Like all living beings, it returns to its home in order to rest each night. You are the only ones we can turn to. Be careful... We are all relying on you.

We'll do that later. For now, let's finish up The waiting Wyvern.

PC-88 Version

Remember that door we couldn't open earlier? That's where the ultimate gun is.

PC-88 Version

Artlelind bows in appreciation, as the old marksman silently stands beside her.

: Yep. So, where is this ultimate gun?

His gaze turns to the interior of the Labyrinth, then falls back upon you.

: Then you're on the right path. The flying dragon is up ahead, along with the ultimate gun.

The old marksman falls silent once again. The black-haired witch asks you a question...

: Wondering how Agnea, the ultimate gun, ended up in a place like this?

The question hangs in the air as you try to decide whether you really want to know.

: Yeah. Why's a dragon guarding a gun?

She began to speak, as if she had expected your answer...

: You remember how I told you about my friend who explored the Labyrinth with us? She died in the third Stratum, and got transformed into a demon...

She trails off, pained, as the old marksman picks up the tale.

: Another in the girl's party was a gunner. He mentored me when I was young. He searched for the fiend that took her life... Alone, he entered the Labyrinth... He chased the demon through the pain and injuries and untold despair he faced... Until at last, he cornered the fleeing demon. Just up the road, that gunner fought the flying dragon alone... and met his end. The gun he wielded was called Agnea. The greatest, strongest gun I've ever known. Originally... I was meant to carry on after him, and use Agnea to defeat the dragon... But I haven't the strength anymore. You are the ones who must take up his cause. Go forth, if you're brave enough, and defeat that flying dragon.

The old man looks to the Labyrinth's interior and allows you to pass. You may fight the flying dragon now, or return to Lagaard first in order to prepare.

So there's the rest of Guild Esbat's and Scylla's backstory, and the last appearance that Guild Esbat makes.

: Hmm. Well, I guess having the ultimate gun would make exploring the new Stratum easier. Come on.

And now that we know what awaits us, we can open this door now.

Video: Wyvern

: Uh, is that the Wyrm you were talking about?

: No, that's Wyvern. It's not as much of a threat as the other dragons.

: So, can we take it down already?

: Yeah. Let's get on with it!

So Wyvern here turns clockwise every 4 steps you take. You can abuse this to get a preemptive strike on it, which is what I do. I advise bringing a Volt Mist before engaging it. Other than that, don't worry about it too much, it's a pretty easy fight.

So easy that I'm not gonna use Force Skills for the fight, or come in with a 1 HP Aliara, since that would be complete and utter overkill.

PC-88 Version

So, here's yet another boss returning from EO1, although this game was the last one it appeared in.

Wyvern
HP: 8000
STR: 90
TEC: 90
VIT: 90
AGI: 85
LUC: 65
Exp: 0
Item Drops:
-Common: Tough Fang - Unlocks Hymn Cloth. Limited stock.
--Fangs from the undamaged head of a winged dragon.
-Rare: N/A
-Conditional: Tough Wing - Kill within 7 turns. Unlocks Kerykeion (Staff.) Limited stock.
--Dragon's wing with various resistances.
Description: An ancient dragon that soars through the skies. It can scorch the earth with its intense heat.
Weakness: Stab (??%)
Resistance: Volt (??%)

Skills:

Talon: Uses the arms. Deals a severe amount of damage to a single target
Tailwhip: Uses the legs. Randomly hits the party 2 to 5 times with moderate hitting Stab attacks. Has a moderate chance to inflict Poison which ticks for 100 damage.
Tornado: Uses the arms. Randomly binds the party's body parts.
Sky Ray: Uses the head. Deals a heavy amount of Volt damage to the party. Has a high chance to inflict Paralysis.

Wyvern is a joke. For the most part, its moveset is completely and utterly pathetic. Talon is guaranteed to kill a squishy member, but it's a single target attack, so you can easily revive anyone that gets killed by it. Tailwhip isn't a threat. Tornado would be threatening if Wyvern actually had better skills to capitalize on the binds. But bring Therica AXs just in case. This boss wouldn't be worth talking about at all if it weren't for Sky Ray, which is the big thing to worry about. It's an AOE Volt attack that hits hard and will probably cause a wipe if you don't defend against it properly. Wyvern only starts using it once it gets below 50% of its health. But Volt Mists or Antivolt will make Sky Ray a non-issue, bringing it back down to a joke. You really shouldn't have trouble with this thing.

I'm not using Dampen since Wyvern doesn't resist anything, so instead I'll be using Frailty to amplify the party's damage.

: Eh, it was worth a shot.

: You will fall!

Frailty is basically a reverse Bravery, and is best used in situations where the enemies don't resist anything. Dampen's resistance elimination unfortunately takes effect after everything else has been applied, which means the two debuffs do not stack.

I should probably put a Haste Pin on him or something. Or start leveling up his AGI. His miss rate is driving me crazy.

Now that Wyvern will actually start attacking, I have Nick prepare counterattacks.

And Aliara's job is done. She's going to be useless since Revenge won't do anything.

: I'm wide open!

970 damage. Yeah, getting that conditional drop isn't gonna be a problem.

Uhhh, okay?

This may be the confirmation bias talking, but it feels like whenever you get hit by a random target bind move, it tries to aim for the most inconvenient body parts to bind. Like, Aliara's completely useless right now.

Since Wyvern's near half health, I have Aliara put up a Volt Mist to prepare for Sky Ray.

: HAHAHAHAHA! I'll be right back!

: You just made a big mistake.

Well this was possibly the worst thing Wyvern could have done on its end. Yeah, Aliara couldn't apply the Volt Mist, but now Aliara can use Revenge once I revive her.

I expect Wyvern to be spamming Sky Ray, so I have Nick ready up a Magibait.

I have Frederik use the Volt Mist since Aliara couldn't.

And I'm going to revive Aliara, although just to show mercy, I'll use a Nectar II instead of a Nectall so Revenge won't do as much damage.

: Come on! Hit me with your best shot! I'm perfectly defenseless!

: I uh, don't think he's falling for it.

: Damn it. I knew I should have just used my special techniques.

: Wow you suck!

And then sometimes enemy status moves do absolutely nothing at all. I'm not sure why, Tornado's infliction chance isn't that low.

: Miss me?

: Not really.

: Oh come on! The one time I actually want to feel the pain!

Yeah, Wyvern never used Sky Ray once in this fight. Which is weird because it normally spams that skill when it starts getting low on health.

: Sheesh, next time I'll be the one on top of things!

PC-88 Version

I think the EO1 version of Wyvern was more interesting, because you could fight it much earlier, and at the point where you could go toe to toe with it, it was actually kind of threatening.

PC-88 Version

As you look upon its mountainous body, you see a shining gun nestled in its humongous fangs.

: Now this should come in handy.

: You know, we spent a long time exploring this place. I'm surprised that none of us actually bit it like that guild's members back there.

: Funny to hear that, coming from you.

: Heh. Oh, shut up.

Somebody try to convince me why would I want to give up the ability to spam Riot Gun every couple of battles for a few extra points of damage. Because this piece of junk is going into storage.

At any rate, we're now completely done with the 2nd floor, and the 1st Stratum! Took long enough.

PC-88 Version

: Ahhh, glad yeh're all back safe. So, did yeh find this ultimate gun? I admit, I never thought such a monster'd be on the 2nd floor! I assume yeh got the gun?

: Heh heh heh. I got it right here. Wrenched this beauty out of that Wyvern's mouth.

: You may want to wash it thoroughly before using it.

: Unbelievable... Yeh lot must be stronger than any monster that calls the Labyrinth home. Anyways,,, fine work. Make sure yeh don't lose that gun, okay?

Oh I couldn't throw it away even though I really want to.

The Tough Fang unlocks the Hymn Cloth, which is the Troubadour's ultimate armor. I probably won't be buying this.

The Tough Wing unlocks the Kerykeion, which is the actual ultimate staff. I don't buy it for Aliara because it doesn't provide an HP boost for Revenge, like her current staff does. It would be handy for Bellamy, but he's unlikely to see any action in this part of the game. Anyways, let's finally get to exploring the rest of the 6th Stratum.

PC-88 Version

So here's the gimmick for the 28th floor.

One way passages. Lots of them. You have to check all the walls for the way forward. Pretty tedious and annoying. There's also one more gimmick here that I'll cover later.

PC-88 Version

Carbuncle
HP: 624
AT: 53
DF: 58
Exp: 6345
Skills: Scorch
Item Drops:
-Common: Giant Horn - 1 needed for Amrita II and Gungnir (Gun.) 20 needed for Spine Whip. 30 needed for Wild Chain.
--Crown-shaped horn of a giant lizard.
-Rare: Maroon Fur - 10 needed for Unjoudou (Bow.)
--Elegant, scarlet skin that's highly flexible,
-Conditional: N/A
Description: Supposedly a good omen to behold, its fire breath is nevertheless something to beware.
Weakness: N/A
Resistance: Fire (0%), Ice (0%), Volt (0%)

There's nothing much too these guys, but if you see them in groups you might want to run. Scorch is a Fire AOE that deals a light amount of damage. Not too dangerous by itself, very dangerous when it gets used four times on your party. This is actually kind of a thing with EO2's postgame random encounters. The enemies by themselves aren't too threatening, it's the combinations of enemies that can make things hair raising.

The worst part about them is that you have to kill at least 30 of these things to fill out the Gear Registry, which is easily the most tedious part about 100% completing this game. There's a reason why the later games dropped that, especially since Scavenge got nerfed.

PC-88 Version

There's nothing interesting in this section of the map, apart from this exit.

: No good. I can't cut through them.

: I'm not gonna look for the doorknob in that thorny mess.

: I suppose we better look around for a way to open this.

There seems to be nothing you can do here. You give up on the door and walk away.

What an exciting and riveting way to spend our time.

PC-88 Version

: Nope.

Ebonail
HP: 1200
AT: 65
DF: 59
Exp: 9360
Skills: Dance
Item Drops:
-Common: Ruin Talon - 5 needed for Arcana Rod. 20 needed for Tyrfing (Sword.)
--Black monkey claw that can cut through anything.
-Rare: Jet Fur - 10 needed for Great Helm.
--Ash-colored fur from a black monkey.
-Conditional: N/A
Description: A brutal ape capable of overcoming the hardest armor and inflicting deadly curses.
Weakness: Fire (150%)
Resistance: Ice (50%), Volt (50%)

Dance is an AOE that has a decent chance to inflict Curse. Not really threatening by itself, but if you get tagged with Curse in the wrong circumstances, it can be painful.

PC-88 Version

This one way passage is actually the way forward.

There's actually a couple of flower patches strewn throughout the place. Some of them mark the entrance to the one way passages, others mark the exits.

PC-88 Version

: Man, why are there so many monsters? This place was peaceful when we first got here.

: Something's got them riled up. But what?

Wait, what!? There aren't any FOEs on the map! How's that possible!?

PC-88 Version

ATLUUUUUSSSSS!

: Where did that thing come from!?

: How should I know? I didn't hear anything while we were busy with the ape!

Hexgourd
Type: Invisible
Behavior: Ambush
Aggressive: Yes
HP: 3500
AT: 81
DF: 81
Skills: Hellfire
Item Drops:
-Common: Thorn Bone - 5 needed for Megido Gun.
--Bony vines that grow from monstrous gourds.
-Rare: Pale Bone - 3 needed for King Staff.
--Chills one to the core when touched.
-Conditional: N/A
Description: A pumpkin-headed messenger of Hell. The fire it breathes can melt even steel.
Weakness: N/A
Resistance: Physical (0%)

So here's the gimmick for this floor. If you take too long to finish up a battle in certain areas, these guys will join in and ruin your day like the crabs on the 13th floor. Unlike the Killclaws, you won't know they're trying to join in on a fight until it's too late.

I said that the random encounters in this Stratum aren't a threat by themselves. That goes out the window when they get paired up with these guys. Hexgourds are very dangerous enemies, and depending on the fight they joined in on, they can turn the tide against your party. Hellfire is an AOE that deals a moderate amount of Fire damage, but has an extremely high chance to inflict Terror. When these guys pop in, eliminate any monsters that happen to be left in the fight immediately before trying to take out the Hexgourds. Because imagine trying to kill the FOE when you can't do any damage to them thanks to defense buffs and attack debuffs. Or being forced to hold off on attacks because your damage dealers got Cursed. Or when they get restored to full health every single turn. Or the worst case scenario, which is all of that at once! Thankfully this is the only floor they show up on, but there's a ton of them hiding around.

Okay, now that's one problem gone.

Oh, and the Hexgourd's regular attacks hit incredibly hard on top of all that.

I show absolutely no mercy because you do not want to get into any prolonged fights with these things.

Really? I don't get its drops?

PC-88 Version

I'll mark any Hexgourd spawn points we come across from now on. Now there is kind of a way to tell where they'll spawn. Sometimes the flower patches on the ground don't mark any secret passages. Do not get into any battles around those areas. Those flower patches usually mark a Hexgourd spawn point.