Part 73

Chapter 60



So, you see this passageway?






It actually doesn't lead to the last part of the original's final dungeon!



We still have a bunch of fiends to go through after all. So of course we're going to travel through element-themed floors to progress.




This is also where we start getting a bunch of brand new enemies again. I don't remember if the White Dragon is new, but a lot of the other enemies are, even though everything's just a palette swap. Considering every other game is guilty of this, I can't really fault the game for this instance of recycling.



I also want to show that this particular floor is actually pretty great looking. Screenshots probably don't do this area justice, but the layout is actually well-done.




Yeah, the damage seems bad, but consider that this + Edge's attack means a dead enemy. Since Edge can't solo these foes, Palom softening them helps out Edge and Golbez quite a bit.



We also collect another piece of Dragon armor. Golbez gets the Dragon armor, while Cid gets Genji hand-me-downs.




And this pretty much sums up the enemies on this floor.




Today, we're actually going to do the cutscene before the boss.





Yes, for the third time in a row, Luca's in a cutscene. The good news is that Palom's name isn't brought up once during the entire thing.

Wh-wha? Huh? We under attack?
It's me, Master.
Oh...oh! Luca! Don't sneak up on me like that!
I'm impressed you can sleep so soundly in a place like this.
You kiddin' me!? I have to rest up while I can, y'know! We've got some serious work to do!
Wise words from your decades of battlefield experience!
You got that right... Hey! What do you mean, "decades"!?





I mean, look at this moon...
How d'you mean?



It...it's almost like a gigantic craft, of sorts.
Glad to see you noticed.

So the moon is now a giant spaceship. Welp.

Perhaps Cecil and the others can deal with this foe...but can I? Can either of us, for that matter?



Master...
The knowledge and skill you possess is far beyond anything I could possibly hope to achieve, Luca. Cecil's a great man, no doubt about that, but look at you...and look at Ceodore. At your age, you still have infinite potential waiting ahead for you!
Y-yes, sir!






Hmm. Looks like something's on the fritz with 'em.
True. They could both use some maintenance work.
Here, lemme take a look!



Why not?
These guys... They're really fragile! You can't hammer away at them like you do the ship's engines!









We better fix this, fast!
Yes, sir!




All things considered, not a bad cutscene.



Alright, time to fight Cagnazzo.



Him!? No, it's someone else!
Dah! Too afraid to show us where you are?
Not again! There must be no limit to the number of monsters they can resurrect!

There is a limit, which happens to be the number of monsters from the original game. And we're almost at that number.

(You!)







Heh! Imagine seeing you again!
The Drowned King, Cagnazzo.




Cagnazzo... He's probably the only boss so far that I never really adapted to.




First thing to note is that he naturally isn't weak to lightning, but rather ice. Unfortunately, I didn't know this until reading a FAQ after the battle. So Golbez ends up doing damage equivalent to Edge's physical attack. It's still stronger than Golbez's physical attack, so I stick with it. Palom Bluffs and uses Bio because he can't really do anything else, Edward heals/buffs, and Cid just wishes he was useful.






He never did get to use Tsunami on me.



Thundaga does hit a weakness when Cagnazzo is surrounded by water.



And this is where the battle starts becoming a huge pain.




He likes to heal himself once or twice while in his shell. Sometimes he'll counter attacks with Heal. Just let him be.

My guys can kind of outdo one Heal. Two is just a pain, and the battle becomes a stalemate for awhile. I honestly don't know a better way to handle him besides just going all-out offensive and hope you can outdamage his healing.




He also messes around with status effects.

I thought I was stuck in a deadlock, but eventually I beat him somehow.





Sleep in peace...for I, too, may join you in your hell someday.






(There's no doubt about it... He has to be nearby, too!)
That leaves two archfiends!
I knew it! The archfiend who impersonated our King!
(The wind and fire archfiends cannot be far behind...)




The two treasures Cagnazzo drops are the Sage's Staff and Sage's Robe. The Staff casts Raise and gives a hefty Spirit bonus, while the Robe boosts Speed and Intellect. I prefer the Robe myself, plus it helps Palom out a bit and he's still too underleveled to use -aga spells.

So next time, we face the wind archfiend.