Etrian Odyssey Part #3 - Early Encounters

Part 3: Early Encounters

Part 2: Early Encounters

The Green, Green Woodland

Alright, look lively everyone!

Mmmmyeahhhhh...

We can definitely see who's a morning person.

5am is a little e-e-early. Uwah, excuse me.

It's the perfect time to go out, so no slacking!

There's still plenty of the first floor to explore, including this dead end! Woo!!!

EOU Classic mode adds a use for this dead end, but that's neither here nor there.

EO1 is actually very rife with dead ends that have nothing in them. The map design in this game is considerably different compared to the later games. It actually does feel like an actual labyrinth, for one. While in the later titles, the maps are typically a lot more linear in a sense.

Each tile of the labyrinth will increase the encounter rate by a bit, from blue to green to orange to red, but sometimes by being quick and stepping on the right tiles, you can make the ORB skip some, such as going from blue to red. Still, we've gotten used to the encounters now, so we should be alright.

Alright, treasure!

It's possible they were left by fellow explorers of the Labyrinth. Then, too, they may be part of the treasure rumored to litter the Labyrinth... The boxes sit ready to be opened, offering no clues to their nature.

Always got to get into an encounter first. Treasure rooms tend to have annoyingly high encounter rates.

A fact that persists throughout the entire series.

It does kind of make sense in retrospect. It's a way to add an element of danger to what's essentially a free prize otherwise. That said, none of the games in the series mention this fact for whatever reason.

Phew, that was close!

O-Of course, it's what I'm here for.

We still can't rest easy, but worry not friends, there will be death in this part!

Another level up, but first, our prize.

Huh, guess we don't need this.

Oh whoops, I forgot we got one so early, so I didn't need to buy it. Guess we can sell it.

We'll pick up Tornado later, but right now he'll only have the TP to use it once, so I'm not that bothered.

Level 3 is all you need for Defender, but F. Guard is still useful, so I'll get it up to 5, not like Gerson has the TP to spam Defender soon anyway.

Soon we'll have all our basic skills to use!

This stretches on for a while.

At least we're back in familiar territory!

The clear, cool water seems extremely tempting after your arduous hike. You hesitate, unsure of whether to slake your thirst or to pass by the water.

Hmm, best to check, though running water is usually safe.

You reach out and put your hand into the spring water flowing from the rocks. The icy water cools your heated skin. You wonder whether you should try a sip or leave without taking action.

Now that I've started thinking about, I'm way too thirsty!

Agreed, a sip won't hurt.

Cupping your hands in the stream, you bring a sip of water to your lips... the clear, cold water quenches your thirst. Feeling much better after drinking the spring water, you decide to move on.

While that water was nice, I'm about tapped out here.

Saaaame, you guys keep getting injured. Not that I'm complaining!

Yeah we should probably head back.

Get used to doing this a lot in the earlygame of any Etrian Odyssey title. Typically for the first few floors, you have to sort of "chip away" at it instead of being able to get all of it done at once since you typically don't have that many resources to spend. And this is especially true for EO1's earlygame. Feel free to compare those TP pools with the starting TP pools of classes in later games and see for yourself how tiny they are.

5 Bug Wings required for Theriaca A (Medicine, removes the target's binds)

Hey, I could've used that sword.

U-Uh, noooo, you should focus on defending.

Hmm, fair enough.

Yeah, whoops, I'm so used to my tank having spears or guns, but it's fine, Protectors only have the highest tied STR out of all classes. I'll upgrade later.

uuuuuuugh that color depth reduction behind the dialogue box

Alright, let's finish up this floor already, we can't stay here forever!

Please stop leading us down dead ends.

Just gotta make sure there's nothing here!

I'll tell you if there is, so keep walking!

Like here. Look up.

You consider for a moment whether or not to eat the fruit...

It's easy enough to reach, it's nice and big too, looks tasty.

Have you never seen an apple before?

The heck's that?

Aren't events pretty neat? The person is the first slot will usually get chosen for these.

What's this doing here?

You step into a dead end at the forest's edge, covered with brush and brambles. An old rucksack, seemingly abandoned by a past explorer, is lying at your feet.

Nothing bad surrounding this one, so sure.

Cha-ching!

You contemplate whether to rest and enjoy their sweet smell, or leave immediately.

Uh, I dunno, flowers give off sweet smells for a reason...

Ah c'mon, we've done a lot. The monsters on this floor aren't much of a threat anymore.

Karin and Gerson have already sat down.

Ahhhhhhh~

You decide to relax in the fragrant clearing. However, you aren't the only creature in the forest lured by the sweet floral scent. Before you can react, a pack of woodflies swarm around you.

Hmm, guess we should go fight them.

Wait... OH NO! Everyone get up!

Woodflies...? Nay, these are the extremely poisonous breed known as venomflies! Knowing that escape is futile, you brandish your weapons and prepare for battle!

Initial Strike

Venomfly

Level: 6
HP: 41
STR: 22
VIT: 18
AGI: 13
LUC: 13
TEC: 13

EXP: 39

Skills
Poison: Uses the Legs. Attempts to inflict Poison on a single target. Has a 50% infliction chance, deals 25 Poison damage and an 80% speed modifier.

Damage Vulnerabilities

100%

150%

Disable Vulnerabilities

100%

100%

Drops
Normal: Bug Wing. 29% chance. Sells for 10en.
5 required for Theriaca A (Medicine, removes the target's binds).

Rare: Tiny Petal. 15% chance. Sells for 8en.
1 required for Tweed (Clothing, DEF+1, AGI +1)
10 required for Petal Ring (Accessory, DEF+1, TEC+1)
10 required for Medica II (Medicine, heals the target by 100HP)
1 required for Remembrance of a friend

Conditional: Insect Eye (Kill with magic damage). 70% chance. Sells for 20en.
5 needed for Fashionista I

I hope you weren't getting too comfortable. These are nasty monsters, especially to encounter like this. Poison damage has a very simple formula of Poison Power * 2 + 3, so Poison skills will always do the same damage. 25 health is A LOT and right now these guys hit pretty hard as well. Is this where someone dies???

Your second introduction to Labyrinth events having really nasty results, and probably the most memorable one of the series.

This is a very infamous one among the community due to how brutal it can get. There's the bait and switch about this being a healing point, so if your party is low on HP, they're in for a nasty surprise! And if you happened to beeline straight to here, they're likely at a low level as well. Worst case scenario, these Venomflies have a 5 or a 4 level advantage on your party, which would be quite the nasty buff to their regular attacks. And that's not even getting into the Poison. Enemies hit for single digit damage at this point, but that hits for a whopping 25! It's very likely to have some party members die at this point, or to outright get a game over here.

Woah, these things are fast!

Liana, I don't feel so good.

Ohnonononononononono

Nice try, but this doesn't seem like it'll be easy.

What are these things made of?

That's what I wanna know!

How did that not die?

I think I'm about 20 exp from Volt, but hey, might as well make things interesting!

A level 1 Volt wouldn't have been able to one shot them here. This event can also serve as a nasty wake up call that no, your Alchemist can't solve all your problems.

OH MOMMA, you're gonna regret that!

So brave, even while coughing up blood.

Fun fact: in EO1 and EO2, if multiple entities are poisoned, they all take their damage on the exact same frame. And the game plays the damage noise for every entity that is poisoned. All at the exact same time.

They fixed that auditory nightmare in EO3 and on by staggering poison damage ticks, having one person go at a time.

Ah god this is really bad!

Just keep hitting them, they're not invincible!

Yeah, they don't seem too tough.

S-Shut it, ya weirdo!

...

So that's what it feels like, urk!

Great, ain't it?

aaaaaaaaaaaaagh there's a space after the value in "Character's health was recovered by x!"

Is it over...?

Mugwort. 50% chance. Sells for 20en.
1 required for Bravant (Medicine, increases the target's ATK by 110% for 5 turns)

Hardwood. 25% chance. Sells for 13 en.
1 required for Shortsword (Sword, ATK+15)
5 required for Hand Axe (Axe, ATK+18) Required for A favor to Shilleka I
5 required for Wazikashi (Katana, ATK+20)
10 required for Aspis (Shield, DEF+2, VIT+1)

Red Fruit. 15% chance. Sells for 25en.
1 required for Red Charm (Accessory, DEF+1, TP+5)

That could've gone a lot worse. We'll get round to gathering soon enough, but there's no way we're coming all the way over to this one.

This game sucks.

Yeah, that's the thing I mentioned last update, with the map not having buffer space.

EO1 laid down a lot of good groundwork, but boy does it have quite a lot of jank in it.

Let's never do something like that again...

It was worth it, we've finished the whole floor!

Ugh, I can still taste it.

Would've been nice to have this. Deals 140% base damage to one enemy and 100% to adjacent enemies. Now onto Allslash.

Defense skills usually fall off really hard past level 5, so it's usually not a good idea to go further. Cure III is a full heal to anyone for a lot of TP, we'll keep levelling Healer for now.

Elemental wizard, complete! Multihit has 100% base damage to start with, but hits 2 times, so, barring damage variance, it does 200% damage, which is pretty great. Liana can only use this twice before running out though.

Skill scaling is really weird in EO1. Like for the Landsknecht, they would have to level up one of their attacking skills to 10 to get to or close to 200% damage, while the Survivalist can get this right off the bat. Granted it eats up a ton of TP right now, and this attack goes after random targets instead of a single one, but you have to admit it's a great value point. Oh and while in later games, that would actually deal 200% damage, it's not quite that much in this game due to how the damage formula works here.

We've still got to get back, but Moles are now decidedly less threatening.

Haha, pretty cool, right?

...

A-Ah, right. I'm sorry I shouted at you, I was panicking and was doing so little damage and then you just lit one up like it was nothing! Uh, that's no excuse.

I get it, you don't like magic.

...it's true, I hate the stuff, even when I was little. B-But I don't hate you, it's cool how strong you are!

Really? O-o-oh, I... I...

He's gone all red.

Hey you lot, don't get left behind, we've gotta make it back in one piece!

i will not stop until all EO LPs have at least one (1) queer relationship

Little too late there considering my EO2 and EO3 LPs don't really have much in the way of romance...

The soldier stands to one side and waves you through, as if passing the torch to you. You ought to report your success to the Radha, but the thought of going deeper is also tempting.

Hey, isn't this a different crystal to earlier?

Correct, meaning we'll need to find two different ways to get past them.

EO1 is also kind of weird in that there are 2 different kinds of locked doors in the game, compared to the one locked door from EO2 onward.

We should go back, Karin's about to fall asleep again.

I know, but I just wanted a quick peek!

I hope there's only a couple more floors...

Festival of Worship

We acknowledge and recognize your stats as true explorers from this point on. You belong to the Edda Guild, correct? Let me give you the standard reward. Take this to Shilleka's Goods. She'll sell you items necessary for your adventure. Stock up there and work hard to explore the Labyrinth for us here on out.

AWWWW YEAHHHHHH

Ah, she's still awake...

Alright, seems good so far, but there's a record missing.

I guess ordering them by price is a good idea.

I'll be doing this steadily offscreen, cause there's a lot to catalogue, if you ever scrolled down all the way. Of course, it only gives you basic info, so it's not all that helpful.

Yeah, this doesn't really tell you all that much, and unless you know the damage formula, these numbers are kind of meaningless. And it leaves out the most important stat from the bios there.

As they say, even oaks grow from small acorns. Everything must begin somewhere. I have high hopes that you'll one day solve all the forest's mysteries.

Aww shucks, you say that to everyone!

The Lounge Where We Speak of Tomorrow

Hey, Karin, where did you put it?

Zzzzzzz

Oh not again.

Oh, really? I was sure t'ey meant you guys... well, don't fret. I'm sure t'Radha will give you y'license soon enough.

Ah, it was in her bag!

Even wit'out it, I wanted t'sell you my goods, but I promised Radha Hall, and I stick by t'at. Here, t'is is Warp Wire. If y'lost, or about t'die, use it to warp outta t'Labyrint'. I tell everyone t'take some before t'ey leave for a trip down to the Labyrint'. But don't go t'hinking t'ey're free... how many do y'want?

5 Small Fangs and 5 Soft Hides required for Fang Whip (Whip, ATK+10)

Ah, the Warp Wire, it's a necessity, otherwise you'll get stranded in the labyrinth with no real out other than die. ALWAYS make sure you have one of these, so get into the habit of going to Shilleka's after a trip to sell your drops and then buy a Warp Wire. It'll save you a lot of headaches.

There is no reason to not have at least one on hand at all times. The last thing you want is to accomplish something, but get beaten down badly in the process, only to have to go all the way back up to the first floor to leave.

So, am I right in thinking it's time to talk business? Here at the Golden Deer, I hear all sorts of problems that only adventurers can solve. Gathering materials, wiping out monsters... you name it, I hear someone sobbing about it. And when I do, I pass the requests on to kids like you. You're welcome to take them on.

It's pretty worth doing, or so I've heard.

Are you guys still here?!

We never left, it has been an excellent place to read up on my tactics.

There's plenty of rats and mice to experiment on.

And I siiiiiiiiiing on open nights.

RIGHT, you four are going out into the labyrinth now!

No they're not, we've still got plenty of fight left in us, they can explore later, since we've got more initial firepower than them.

Gah, fine! Get me the biggest drink you've got...

Let's look at the requests!

I'm only doing these because I have to.

Hide goods are in high demand, and his supply is running low. You shouldn't have a problem getting some Soft Hide from the forest critters. Good luck!

Get some spares for me, I sleep better on fur.

An... ex-explorer, I guess you'd say, wants you to get some Holy Water from a forest spring. Supposedly, you can get some of this water deep within the east side of the 1st floor. Careful not to slip, okay?

I don't remember that water being all that special.

Perhaps I could imbue it?

Shilleka's Goods is the only place in Etria to get weapons and armor. When her grandad ran the place, he'd gather materials himself to make all kinds of stuff. But ever since she inherited the place... well, the kid tries, but it's not the same. She's got her hands full just running the shop, so she could use a hand. Could you help her? Go see her and ask if there's anything in particular she's looking for.

An axe would be real nice!

Ooh, then I could have my share of swords. I'm not using the other weapon, OKAY?

G-Got it.

alternate universe sigrid

It may be bizarre to those of you that used Dark Hunters in later games where Whips were typically the better weapon choice, but in EO1, Swords were by far considered to be the better option to go with for them.

The job this time is to enter ten unique monsters into the Monstrous Codex. Remember, kids: copying off someone else's list is cheating!

Sounds interesting, I wish to partake in such cataloguing in future.

Ooh, I have much to teach you.

Alright, let's get go-

Zzzzzzzz

That's why it was so quiet...

What t'ey need is, five piece o'Hardwood and five Hard Shells. As you get all t'junk, just sell t'em to me and I'll pass it along. You don't have to do it all at once, hear? Bit by bit is jus' fine wit' me.

Already we're starting with two fetch quests (always fun), one stupidly easy quest, and another one we can't complete until the end of floor 3. Great.

EO1 quest design, everybody. It wouldn't get better until EO3.

Hmm, it's giving off a different feel to before.

You can only do this quest at night, but it's too out of the way to actually make use of.

I thought I saw these earlier!

Clawbug

Level: 4
HP: 45
STR: 25
VIT: 16
AGI: 9
LUC: 10
TEC: 8

EXP: 34

Skills
None

Damage Vulnerabilities

50%

250%

250%

Disable Vulnerabilities

100%

100%

Drops
Normal: Hard Shell. 55% chance. Sells for 12en.
1 required for Shortsword (Sword, ATK+15)
5 required for Hand Axe (Axe, ATK+18) Required for A favor to Shilleka I
5 required for Aspis (Shield, DEF+2, VIT+1)

Rare: None

Conditional: None

I'm really surprised I didn't encounter this earlier. There's a fair few enemies that are miserable to get through normally, but an absolute breeze if you have elemental damage. Otherwise, they hit hard for when you're supposed to first encounter them, and that's it.

These are an archetype of enemies I personally like to classify as "floor bullies." Enemies on a particular floor that are just heads and tails above all the other monsters you can run into there. Clawbugs are hell to deal if you don't have an Alchemist. Look at their STR stat! They'll pretty much tear into your party, while you'll be dealing piddly damage to them thanks to their resistances. But if you have an Alchemist, they're nothing.

Well I hate these things already.

You've just gotta think outside the box.

...so cool.

Lavin's still a while away from actually making use of axes, but you should get Crush anyway since it does so much single target damage.

F. Guard is now a 65% reduction and will only be 60% by level 10, so don't bother. I guess I should go for B. Guard now, even though I've never used it.

Next level can't come soon enough. Toxins would increase Poison damage by 110%, but it's bugged and does literally nothing, so oh well.

Welcome back, kids. Glad you were able to get your hands on that Holy Water. The client said her grandpa discovered this stuff back when he was an adventurer. He was on the verge of death when he found it, and thought it would be his last meal. Then it happened... he suddenly felt revitalized, and safely made it all the way to town. Looks like everyday well water to me, but it saved him... no wonder he thought it was holy. I bet that girl will be thrilled to hear you found it. Thanks everyone. Think there really is some mysterious power in this stuff...? Ha! Nah, can't be.

Hopfully I can replicate it, I need it more than anyone!

Then, if we're all set, it's time for the 2nd floor. Look lively you lot!

The Green, Green Woodland

Hm? You hear that?

Shh, don't move!

We can't end things just yet, there's something real important to show first. I did promise death, after all!

Something seems to be inside the tall grass before you. You peer futilely into it, wondering whether to chance it or leave the sound alone.

Come out, whoever you are!

Don't, you idiot!

GAH!

Suddenly, Lavin felt a sharp pain on his hand! The noise seems to have come from a small snake. After biting Lavin's outstretched hand, it slithered off into the forest.

Aww, man...

It wasn't poisonous you big baby.

Why does this event exist.

Hey, you never know! That 5 HP loss could mean the difference between- no seriously, why does this event exist?

Ahhhhhhh!

If it's just the one, we'll be fine.

EarlygameAlchemist.png

Man you're making us look bad.

Oh, hello there.

Ho, there. Explorers, I see... how goes your adventure thus far?

Doing alright, hand still throbs though.

Are you always this whiny?

lmao, I didn't notice that during recording.

The soldier offers to sell you any of his tools you find yourself in need of. Choose the item you believe you will need most from the following:

Weapon.

Medicine.

Ah, uh, I guess the medicine? We don't have much variety compared to weapons.

This medicine should serve your restorative needs. As for the price... since you're licensed explorers, you may have it for 100 ental.

That cheap? There must be a catch, no wa-

WAIT, if that's what I think it is, then I need it. Here you go!

Hey, don't take my, uh, the guild's money without asking!

Best of luck explorers, and I hope to see you again on your journey.

The transaction having been completed, the soldier bids you farewell. You return to your own business of investigating the forest labyrinth.

Well now, that is quite rare. This is the path we'll take, but what if we chose the other item?

ZA WARUDO *cough* Ah, uh, I guess the weapon? We don't know how dangerous this floor is yet.

You inquire of the soldier if he has any strong weapons. Upon hearing this, the soldier removes the sword from the scabbard on his back.

Will this serve? It's a small sword, but I believe it will do for your purposes. As for the price... since you're licensed explorers, you may have it for 500 ental.

What a beautiful weapon, I'll tak-

Eh, actually, that's a Shortsword, which is definitely not worth that much, sorry.

Your response elicits a disappointed nod from the soldier.

If we have no business to conduct, then farewell.

Having delivered these parting words, the soldier leaves. You return to your own business of exploring the forest labyrinth.

Well, it was worth it for the medicine. Somas can't be obtained for another sixteen floors and are ten times the price, whereas the Shortsword is something you can have right now if you got 1 Hardwood and 1 Hard Shell and is sold for 350en. This is a one time event, so if you say no, he's gone forever. Definitely pick up the Soma.

Bit annoying, but Alchemists make the early game so much better.

Why am I only just noticing all these typos?

That is quite the intimidating aura.

L-L-Let's be cautious now.

We'll be fine, hooved creatures aren't much to worry about.

What did you call it? Formido Oppugn- gak, I bit my tongue!

Just call it an FOE and stay the hell away from it!

FOE?

FOE.

FOE! FOE! FOE! FOE!

Well that was weird. Let's take it down!

Gerson, no!

GERSON YES!

Ah geez

A Sudden Gust of Wind Before Your Eyes

Wait, what.

Ragelope

Level: 12
HP: 330
STR: 45
VIT: 26
AGI: 27
LUC: 27
TEC: 18

EXP: 297

Skills
Scream: Uses the Head. Attempts to inflict Confusion on a single target. Has a 25% infliction chance and a 60% speed modifier.

Damage Vulnerabilities

75%

100%

200%

Disable Vulnerabilities

25%

50%

50%

Drops
Normal: Horn. 90% chance. Sells for 18en.
1 required for Ocarina (Troubadour Accessory, TP+10)
1 required for Enamel Bow (Bow, ATK+9)
2 required for Short Bow (Bow, ATK+15) Required for A favor to Shilleka II

Rare: Large Fang. 15% chance. Sells for 250en.
1 required for Boar Spear (Sword, ATK+29, STR+3)
1 required for Bone Mace (Staff, ATK+15, HP+7)
1 required for Beast Bow (Bow, ATK+24, STR+2, TEC+1)

Conditional: None

Definitively. FOE. Little cute orange balls that patrol the labyrinth or hunt you down. As you can see, DO NOT FIGHT THESE MONSTERS, they are definitely obstacles to puzzle around, or you will be in a lot of trouble. I'm just showing the stats so you can see how dead everyone is about to be, we are not going to beat this thing.

The start of the battle demonstrates a weird quirk of DS FOE mechanics: the game rolls for preemptives/blindsides like normal, regardless of your positioning. This can result in being blindsided even though you deliberately walked into an FOE, which is...great.

If you've seen a certain music video (the one Crosspeice just linked to) and were wondering where it came from, this game is it. Anyways... Ah, the FOE. A major part of the Etrian Odyssey series. I'll talk about them a bit more later, but allow Crosspeice to demonstrate that the game really meant it when this enemy is deadly!

Urk, you're loud, sure, but whatever!

We're all gonna die I'm so sorry my brothers this is all my fault I can't believe this complete idiot led us into this

She can't even hear it.

Aw, man...

I don't think I have the stamina for this.

Diediediediediedie

GAHHHHHH

Oh god

HRRRRRRRRK

where'sthewayoutthere'sgottabeawayoutofthis

I should come up with a way of healing this mess.

AHHHHHHHH NOOOOOOOOO- hm? THIS WAY YOU IDIOTS!

Not even going down with the ship? Coward! No but seriously, if a situation looks bad, use the escape option to get out. That's what it's for, and there's no shame in just getting the hell out of dodge when things go south.