Part 31: Death Montage

Death Montage

Let's start off by exploring that area on the 4th floor we skipped over last time.

PC-88 Version



There's a FOE patrolling the hallway here.

: There's more dinos!?

: They don't look docile like the one on the first floor originally did.


Raptor
Type: Normal
Behavior: Patrol
Aggressive: Yes
HP: 600
AT: 22
DF: 22
Skills: Fangs

The Gashtor was a much weaker version of these enemies. While we were able to take that thing on without too much trouble, trying to engage the Raptor will just turn our party into dinosaur feed. Even if we had a max level Climax, we still wouldn't be able to handle these in a fight. Climax is broken, but it does not completely invalidate the FOE system in most conditions. (Although in any other EO game, it would.) The only way we can take on FOEs headfirst at this point is to go in with several Force Skills ready and just unleash them on the poor monster.



This thing just goes up and down the hallway, and will chase you down if it sees you.

: I think it saw us!

: Hurry, in here!



You can hide in here for as long as you need to, and then sneak by once the Raptor passes the door.



While double Evil Eyes can be scary, they aren't guaranteed to blindside you so you have a turn to set up or just run away.

: More of those lizard things.

: I think I see the stairs over there.

: Too bad we can't climb over walls.



There's some Slaveimps in this room that patrol in a pattern in this part of the map. Also simple to avoid.



Just hits an enemy with a Volt spell. Lame.

: Man, when can we start getting the awesome stuff again?



The Take Point is right at the end of this path.

PC-88 Version



Oh, I am not dealing with this.



: The plague has you.





: Oh yes! All will suffer!





Aliara's Poison is pretty decent for problematic encounters now.

: Uh, anyone concerned about a girl that revels in causing pain and misery to everything?

: Nah, not really.

: A bit, but she is coming in handy.

PC-88 Version



Eh, could be better.

: Well, we've seen everything that we can over here. Now let's get over to the stairs.

PC-88 Version











Our party is a lot stronger now. Solo Ladybugs are no longer a threat. It got killed before it got a chance to do anything. Most things aren't really a threat now.



Uh.



: Oh dear, I believe I'm having another heart attack.

: Hold still Frederik.







: Ah, much better!

: Aren't gunshots supposed to hurt people? Not heal them?

: Don't question my skills.





: Why does everything in this Labyrinth hate me!?

: God. Damn. It. Nick.

: We really need to get him some better armor.

: No don't! I have to win that bet!

: Well I was looking to explore the rest of this floor, but lugging a body around will just slow us down. So, back to town.

After restocking and going back in, this happens.

PC-88 Version







: I think I see light. Or is that fire?

: Times that Aliara died, 1! How do you like it now?

: Come on Nick. Don't stoop to her level.

One restart later.

PC-88 Version





: Oh, hello there!

It startles the guard from his activity of looking around the forest anxiously.

: Oh...! You must be Firefly, right? I heard that many guilds were sent to defeat Chimaera.

: Yep, that's us.

: But I must tell you, Beowulf has already ascended to the fifth floor to challenge it.

: Aw, what? They're gonna get the mission done before we can get there!

: Calm down Nick. Flausgul's probably the one best suited for this job anyway. He seems to be pretty experienced. It'll be less work for us.

: You see... some time ago, they lost many of their comrades to the king of beasts.

: Wait, what?

: The remaining two decided to press on in the hopes of defeating the monster someday. But if they couldn't do it with five, I don't see how they'll manage it with two...

: Oh dear. This is bad.

The guard shakes his head worriedly.

: Beowulf's leader, the one called Flausgul, is an amazing man. I only hope the worst is not about to befall him...

: We'll make sure it doesn't happen.

The guard looks up into the forest again anciously. If you would challenge Chimaera, you must hurry and pursue Beowulf to the 5th floor.

You can talk to the guard again.

You attempt to strike up a conversation with the guard.

: Please, Firefly... Look after Beowulf...

The guard's voice is small and plaintive, and his gaze does not waver from the forest sky. You must hurry and pursue Beowulf to the 5th floor.

: That idiot is gonna get himself killed! Come on! We need to get to the next floor!



Huh? But that's the name of an enemy from the 6th stratum. What happened? Memory overflow or something?

: Oh we do NOT have time for this!



Even if the party is in a rush, that doesn't mean we can't celebrate with leveling up a few skills.



Overhead's leveled up to 6. Yawn.



Climax's HP threshold is increased to 16%. Meh.



Warmight now gives a 40% damage boost, which is really nice.



Medishot's TP cost is lowered to 9. I did this mainly because Gunners have really terrible TP pools, and I want to make the most out of it.



Aliara's Poison now has an 87% chance to land.



Another Slaveimp in the area, just make sure to avoid getting into a battle in its path.

PC-88 Version





: Dammit.

: Not the time Ken!





: Not good.

: I'm wondering if I should be more concerned about Guild Beowulf, or you two.

: Flausgul's gonna be dead by the time we get there.



: Back to town. Again.

PC-88 Version



We did gather enough materials to make a new bow at least.

: Are we going back in there?

: What do you think? While we're in the higher floors, I've sent in the gathering team to hopefully make enough money to pay off the hospital bills you two racked up.

In my frustration at these deaths that were costing me money on valuable Warp Wires, I decided to make some of it back by gathering stuff.

: Wow, it's been a while since we've been in here.

: At least we're doing something.

: Did you talk to Fedot?

: Oh I think I've convinced him. I've dazzled him with my talents.

: Yes that's... really great.

PC-88 Version



I find two of these here.

PC-88 Version



: Whoa! A moving cactus!

: Oh yeah, we saw some on our way to some part of the second floor. Careful, they hit hard.



: Taken down by a cactus. How humiliating.

: I did say careful.



: Slain by a cactus. This isn't what should've happened.

: What part of being careful didn't you understand?

Yeah the farming team is only wearing their initial equipment, so this was to be expected. Since they're only level 1, the costs to revive each person is only 5 en, so I don't mind too much.

PC-88 Version



I find two of these here.



And one of this.

PC-88 Version



Selling off the Sour Fruits unlocked Guard Soles for sale. These reduce the amount of damage we take when we walk over damage tiles. Which we won't see until the next stratum.





Selling off the Amazonite unlocks these two items. Leg Guards just increase leg bind resistance by 30%.



Aragonite unlocks this, which increases luck by 10. Could be handy for a Hexer or Dark Hunter.

PC-88 Version





: You know, for being a Protector, you're not really good at your job.

: I could say the same for you.

: Really guys? Man, I wonder if Fedot has to deal with things like this often.



: Sorry, boss.

: Okay, this is just getting ridiculous.

I got a bit frustrated at this, so I decided to grind the gathering team up so they could survive any more gathering trips. Nothing interesting happened in this trip anyway.



I quickly abandoned that plan when I realized how long this would take.

: Okay, 5th time's the charm.

: You said that about the 3rd and 4th times too.



: Slowly now...











: Whoa, those things don't look good. What did you do to them?

: Just you wait.



:

: That was sick!

Okay, I might as well talk about Poison now that you've seen how powerful it can be. At level 10 it has a 105% base chance to land while dealing 295 base damage. This means that anything that doesn't resist it is guaranteed to get poisoned. And since it's AOE in this game, it's super good for random battles. What's that? When does Poison fall off?

AhahahahahahahahaHAHAHA! Okay it does fall off. In the postgame! For the main game though? Poison is essentially an “I win” button in random battles you can slam for just 15 TP. You do have to smack each enemy once when you get to the 4th and 5th strata, but Poison will still take off a huge chunk of their health. Granted there are enemies that are immune to poison, but those are pretty rare. Someone in the thread mentioned having Poison is like having the Arcanist's max level Poison Circle from EO4. While number wise that's true, power wise it's more like having a Nightseeker's 100% chance Auto-Spread max level Venom Throw this early into the game. The reason for this is because the HP values of everything in the game is the lowest it's been in the series. It's made up for everything having higher defenses, but when you have abilities that can bypass those defenses, it just breaks the game. And this is just one of many things that's broken about the Hexer. But at this point, 15 TP is a pretty hefty cost, so we can only use Poison for emergency situations, or for encounters I just don't want to deal with.

PC-88 Version



Accidentally ran into a Slaveimp here, but let me just show you how weak they are.

Video: Slaveimp















: Is that really the best that thing's got?

: Please don't hurt me anymore!

: Maybe those deaths are finally getting to him.

: Nah, he's always been like that.

Slaveimps have absolutely pathetic damage.



: This FOE isn't really that tough.

This is Ken's normal attack. He's pretty much the best damage dealer in the group right now, and he's gonna hold that position for a long time.



Sadly, despite Aliara's Poison having a really good chance to land on regular enemies, FOEs are pretty resistant to status effects.



Didn't even need Climax for that one. That's how pathetic they are.

PC-88 Version



: Oh, I think there's a path through here.

: We really can't waste any time- get back here Frederik!



There's another Raptor here, but it only walks down this hallway unless it notices you.



: Oh dear.

: Great job, now a dino wants to eat us!

: Run!



: Maybe we can hide in there?

: No, that's a dead end. Come on!



: Goddammit, not now!

This is a pretty tense moment in any EO game. Getting into a random battle while an FOE is on your tail can be a bit scary. Stuff like that is why I like the series and the FOE system. I really think the FOE system adds a lot to the game without being too obtrusive in the dungeon design. It definitely keeps you on your toes.

PC-88 Version



: Aliara, can you poison them?

: Okay!



: Oh no oh no oh no!



: Please tell me there's a way out of this!

: I'm sorry. But I think this is it for us. Then again, we knew the risks when we signed up for this whole thing.

: Actually, I didn't sign up for-

: Hold on! Here's a way out, follow me!



: Okay, now what? We're still sandwiched between a wall and a dinosaur.

: Look, there's a path over there!

PC-88 Version



There are five tripwires lain, and all but one will set off the trap. It's a simple snare, but a difficult one to see through...

: Not one that we can get through easily, I'm afraid.

: Hang on, I've got this. Just keep away from me.

As you give up on the trap, one by one, your ronin waits for a chance to step in. Once the way is clear, the ronin sits in a meditative position and closes both eyes.

: Uh, Ken?





Before you can blink, the blade is back in its sheath, and the trap lies exposed to all. Thanks to your ronin, the trap has been destroyed, and you may proceed down the trail.



: Whoa! How did you know which one was the right one?

: Oh, the same trap was used in this comic-

: I've heard enough. Try not to blow away what little dignity you have left.





Meh, it just increases arm bind resistance.



But it is immediately apparent that doing so will be no simple task. A monstrous, grey spider whose web is strong as steel waits for you there... The metallic strands are spun far and wide. You wonder if there's any way through... You take turns trying your hand at cutting the web's strands. But the thread is harder than you expected, and you make no progress whatsoever.

: Really, Ken? You can cut through a trap, but not a spiderweb?

: I don't know why! This web is really tough to cut through. If I keep trying, I'm just gonna break my katana!

: My sword spear isn't enough either. Not even stabbing or cutting it is working on this web.

: What about that sword chick in our team? Can't she use both swords and axes? Maybe that can get past this.



We need Emilia for this passageway. No explanation for why a Ronin can't do it, but the only explanation I can think of is that a Landsknecht can dual wield a sword and a axe and use those to cut through. I dunno.



: Cornered again.

: Another passageway here.

: Wait!

Just as you are about to take your first step, a rabbit darts past your legs into the path. You gape in horror as the leaves attack the rabbit, devouring its meat in an instant! It seems the plants are not only carnivorous, but vicious as well.

: Okay, any ideas?

: Not to worry, I have a mixture that can deal with these kinds of plants. Hold still everyone.

You blanch after the gruesome sight, but your war magus steps forward fearlessly. The war magus produces a vial and applies the purple liquid from it to your bodies. It seems the salve will mask your scent, making it safe to walk down the path! You will have to suppress your gag reflex, but you may now continue down the hidden path.

: Ugh, you couldn't have made this smell better, grandpa?

: It's either that, or being eaten by a dinosaur. Take your pick.







The Headdress is a very nice piece of headgear. I put it on Nick because his defenses are really lacking.



Suddenly, arrows fly from all directions, piercing the ground near your feet! It seems that the hidden passage is riddled with traps.

: Hey Ken, you're pretty tough, why don't you get past this for us?

: What? Oh hell no, I'm not going through that! You do it!

You argue over who will brave the gauntlet of traps, but no decision can be reached. It's useless to discuss any further. You abandon the passage and return to the investigation.

: Break it up you two. Just forget about it for now. I'm thinking we'll need our Protector for this one. We have more important things to be concerned about. Like, oh, I don't know, Guild Beowulf?



Aegis is needed for this one. We'll come back here later. Also remember this secret area for later. We'll be in here for a quest later. For a long time.



: Whoa, what's wrong with the trees?

: I've never seen trees wither like that before.

: Hmm, I wonder if the Grand Duchy should know about this. Mark this spot down for later.

Despite me writing all that, there's actually nothing in here in the game. But you do need to remember this spot later for a quest. Which the game also doesn't tell you about.



Another Raptor down this path.



Just walks in a straight line until it catches sight of you.



When you've aggro'd it, walk all the way around the area to get past it.



You can also hide in this room to lose the Raptor. The last of the gathering points, the mining point, is in this room.



: Finally, something good for once!

This is gonna come in really handy for the next floor, or the boss. Therica BX is essentially Medishot, except it can cure everything, even petrification.

PC-88 Version





The Headdress makes Nick a lot tankier and he can even survive hits from Evil Eyes now. Where otherwise he would've gotten killed again.

: Haha! It hurts, but I'm still standing!

: Congratulations Nick. You've reached the point where I'm actually applauding you for not being taken out by monsters.

: Oh come on, no need for the sarcastic clapping. Did I really get knocked out that many times?

: Aliara?

: 8 times total!

: Grr...

PC-88 Version



Aside from those two passageways, we've seen just about everything on the floor.



: Oh my, I believe there's a Submagnetic Pole over there!

: Geomagnetic. And thank god. We could all use a break over those disasters on the 4th floor.

: Wait are you serious? Finally! Some resting time!

: What about Flausgul?

: We're in no condition to keep going. We'll go back to town, rest up, and try to catch up to him. Hopefully it's not too late.



NO NO NO THIS IS THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME!

PC-88 Version



Oh. For a second I thought I would get into a battle with one of the worst enemies on the floor.


Cube Gel
HP: 114
AT: 13
DF: 14
Exp: 427
Skills: Acid
Item Drops:
-Common: Gel Core - 2 needed for Warhammer (Staff) and Hell Claw. 5 Needed for Tabarzin (Axe.)
--The nucleus of a cube-like gel.
-Rare: N/A
-Conditional: Fiber Hide - Kill with Stab. 1 needed for Plume Boot.
--Thin, stretched cubic tissue.
Description: An unusual lifeform made of viscous liquid. Normal attacks have little effect.
Weakness: Elemental (200%)
Resistance: Physical (50%)

These enemies are uninteresting. They're basically, do you have an elemental attack? Y/N? And that's it. They're not threatening, they just take a while to kill if you don't have elementals available. Acid does do a bit of damage, and heals the Cube Gel for half the damage it dealt, so it can take a while to get the conditional, but really it's not a threat.







Fedot used Fireshot here, while the other two just kind of struggled to cut through it.



We take it down easily.



: Okay, time to head back to town and resupply.

PC-88 Version



We killed so many Woodmais that we finally unlocked this weapon.



The TP boost is a really good benefit, and as much as I would like to buy it, I'm saving up my en for the Kurodachi for Ken, once I unlock it.



: It's a new sword... Made of a super-dense metal... Urrgh...

: Oh, here! I got it!

: Wait, no! Oh... I'm sorry... You didn't have to... I-I didn't mean for you to... W-Well, thank you very much for helping me. I didn't have any idea how to move that thing. *sigh* I shouldn't do this to customers, or they'll never come back... I'm really sorry!

: No no, it's fine!

: W-Well, I'll be cleaning up, but just call me if you need something!

PC-88 Version



: Beware of that place. I've heard too many stories of explorers losing their lives there. I'm sure you'll be all right, just... use extreme caution.

: And if we don't hurry, Guild Beowulf is going to join them.

PC-88 Version



: They say you've even reached the 5th floor. If so, take even more caution than before. There's a fierce monster at the 5th floor's end. Don't take it lightly, or you'll regret it. That's all the advice I have for you. Never underestimate the Labyrinth.

: Oh, no need to remind us. The Labyrinth reminds Nick of that all the time!

: When did I become the butt of every joke?

PC-88 Verison



: How are things going? I'd say your careers are taking off nicely. The inn's owner came by here the other day for a scheduled checkup on her daughter. She told me you were some of the better explorers staying with her. But you should still be careful, and look after yourselves.

: Huh, actual recognition. Barely got any of that back in Etria.

PC-88 Version



: Be careful, though. I hear there's quite the beastie up on that floor. This one lot nearly got wiped out by the thing, before they were saved by another guild. And I'll tell yeh, they knew what they were about. The fiend was just too strong. If yeh're planning to go up against it, be careful. I don't like to hear about guilds dying!

: Can we really take down Chimaera?

: We'll have to or it's gonna cause problems for everyone in Lagaard.



: What's this one about?

: Oi... I'm not so sure yeh should take that one. It's a bit... fishy.

: Come on, tell us the details!

: Yeh want to hear the details anyway, eh? I knew yeh wouldn't be satisfied... All right... There's a geezer lives far from the main city, name of Chapman. More commonly known around Lagaard as Braggart Chap. His story is that he was an explorer once, but no one believes it. Insists that there's a spring that collects the moon's tears. Swears up and down he saw it. Nice story, sure, but this is Braggart Chap. I doubt the man's been as far as the 5th floor. But if yeh're going to chase tall tales, I won't stop yeh. Just don't get your hopes up.

: Who knows, it may be worth looking into.

We need to go to the 5th floor at night to tackle this quest, so the guild will have to sleep in.



: Ahh, yes, that one. Say... When did yeh lot become such good friends with the guards?

: Uh, what are you talking about?

: I got this request from one of the Duke's guards. Quite the gentleman, that lad. He waxed eloquent about all this guild had done for him... And judging by his description, he can only have meant yeh. The young guard over at the Duke's Palace can tell yeh more about the job. Get going!



: But what about this one? It looks like they're wondering about they dying trees too.

: Ahh, that one? It's from the healer from before. Yeh know, the man at the hospital. Apparently, the trees in the Labyrinth have been withering abnormally. He wants yeh to find the cause. I dunno much about it, but it sounds pretty serious. Check in at the hospital to get more details. G'luck!

And this is the start of a quest line that I really really hate. Well let's check in at the Duke's Palace first.

PC-88 Version

: Mm? Can I help you, sirs?

: One of your guards called for us. He made a request at the bar.

: Ah... yes, a quest, I see. It must be someone from the guard corps. Please wait here.



: Who are you?

: Huh? Don't you remember me? Oh... I guess we all look the same with our helmets on, haha. I'm one of the guys you brought those supplies to in the Labyrinth... remember?

: Ohhhh! Yeah, I remember! You were on the 4th floor.

: Yeah, exactly! Well, I've got another favor to ask of you. The roads of High Lagaard are decorated with a beautiful mineral called Amazonite. Some roads are in need of repair, and we were going to fix them, but we don't have any Amazonite left. It's usually no problem to get some more, but we're pretty busy now, so could you help out? All you have to do is Mine at an item point in the Labyrinth. Once you collect five chunks of Amazonite, just take them to Cass at the bar.

: Sounds like another job for the gathering team. Sure, we'll do it.

: If you don't have any questions, I'll get back to work now... Hope to see you soon!

Basically a fetch quest. Yawn. We'll do this later.

PC-88 Verison

: Hey doc, Cass told us to come here about something.

: Oh, this is about the request isn't it? Sorry, it's strange to see you at this late hour. We've been getting strange reports from explorers and guards about the matter... Have you seen it, too? Parts of the Labyrinth are withering away unnaturally. I hope I'm overthinking it, but I'm afraid I'm not. There must be some reason behind it. No one's too worried about it yet, but it could lead to some very serious consequences. I'll turn over whatever data you collect to the Northern Academy.

: The what now?

: Oh, I guess I should explain that they're an organization of healers across this hemisphere. But to get the ball rolling, I need you to verify a few specific instances for proof. There are currently clusters of trees on the 5th and 6th floors that are withering away. I think samples from three areas should be sufficient to begin. Oh, just to let you know, this request has nothing to do with the hospital or the Grand Duchy. I don't want to spread rumors without evidence to back them up. Please keep this a secret. Once you have the samples, can you turn them in at the bar? I'm counting on you!

: Will do, doc!

Okay, so some quests have a minimum requirement to finish them, but you get the biggest reward for meeting the maximum requirements. While we can turn in 3 samples, we can actually turn in 5, and I'll show those all off. That spot I marked earlier on the map? That's one place we need to go to for the quest.



: Chimaera? Yep.

: One of my guests told me about it, and I know they'd never lie. It gave me a real scare to hear about all those different types of monsters mixed together! Are you sure you'll be okay? Don't overdo it... You can't explore if you're dead!

: We'll be fine. I hope. Get some rest now, cause we're going back in as soon as possible.