Part 49: Grust to Grust (Battle)

Chapter 20: Grust To Grust (Battle)

Time to take down our first major villain.

What do you mean I said that about Jiol? I take it back.



: All right, Marth. As you wish. When the Dolhr-Grust allied forces seized control of Archanea, the entire royal family was killed, save me. I was given into Grust’s custody- the custody of the Sable Order, to be more specific. I am told Dolhr wished for my execution- and with it the end of the holy lineage of House Archanea and Grust was willing to comply.

Just in case you felt bad that we’re about to overrun these guys.

: But you are not dead.

: That is right. I was not put to the sword.





: …!

: Camus protected me, knowing he risked incurring the wrath of the Shadow Dragon. He was the one who eventually arranged for my escape to Aurelis.

: …I had no idea. That certainly explains Dolhr’s displeasure with him.

: I hated him, too, at first. But in the time, I found my hatred tempered by the compassion he showed me, my feelings…changed. And now, all I wish is to see him again…But not if it means you and he must fight.

: Nyna… Do you… I cannot make any promises. But I will do what I can. I hope you can accept that.

: Marth was incredulous that Nyna would ask him to just randomly walk up and have a conversation with a named enemy soldier, an impossible occurence.

: Thank you, Marth. I could not ask for more.



Immediately removing this Ballista with extreme prejudice.




So Caeda doesn’t get totally outnumbered here, I’m sending Barst across the river to give this general a whack with Hammest.




As for the other enemy ballista, this is why I brought Beck along. Remember the Thunderbolt? It’s a one-shot.




...Or, uh, rather, it WOULD be a one-shot if it hit.




It’s okay, I can salvage this. Putting Caesar in Paladin range to bodyblock a little bit.




The other General chose to run directly into a Hammest Barst. It wasn’t great for him.




The enemies on this map are worth respecting, since they come in groups and don’t have totally laughable stats like the goons from the Fane of Raman.




There are three Paladins here, each of them do eight damage. Even if they all hit Caeda, she’ll live, so I’m just going to park her here with the Wing Spear and let her solo this pack.




This went much worse in the take where I tried to make Barst do it.




He’s better at jobs like this.




Second time’s the charm.




Strength actually matters for Beck, so I’ll take it. We’ve still got Paladins to worry about, though.




Linde is starting to hit “I can’t Aura Double everyone” territory. That’s a little worrisome, I might toss her the next Speedwing I get my hands on.




Also, here’s Tiki in battle. I’m using the Firestone to conserve Divinestone uses, but it comes at a price. This Paladin would have done 24 damage to her. She starts with 18 HP.

Be careful with Tiki.




Since there was a lot of scattered damage this turn, I’m popping a Fortify. By the way, the Starsphere’s bonus doesn’t apply to Staves, unfortunately.




Let’s allow people who aren’t fliers, Barst, or Marth to get up here.




Those Paladins are worth a lot of experience.




Now that the initial charging Paladins are finished, I didn’t do much this turn except move Abel into a range where he can rush down the Ballista.




Oh yeah, Cord can Heal now. That’s handy.




I’m sorry I didn’t actually use this on the actual Desert Map, but here it is now.




With the Ballista’s cover down, Marth can freely hop into the village.




: Tell me, have you seen my granddaughter Lena? Is she well?

Nobody tell him about the 3 Magic.


: If she happens to find you, would you see she gets this Hammerne staff? It’s a staff of repairing passed down through our family. I’m certain she’ll make good use of it. Of course, not all items can be repaired; be sure to caution her about that.

This is a good find.




Hammerne has 12 uses and instantly restores any weapon to max durability. It is locked to Lena only, making her again the best cleric in the game as long as growths don’t screw her over. Unfortunately, we have to actually deploy her to use it. You can’t use it on the menu between maps because fuck you.




So, uh, this conversation triggers as soon as one of your units gets close to Camus. I sent Catria up to kill a thief, and now Marth is standing at the village gates, screaming over an entire mountain range.

: I must speak with you! Please, show yourself!





: YOU’RE WHAT?

: CAMUS OF GRUST

: General, I have no wish to fight you. You know this battle is pointless; surely you must!

: So long as Grust continues to support Dolhr’s ambitions, it does not matter what I know or think.



Here’s Camus’ entire character in a nutshell.

: But surely-

: Prince Marth, there is nothing you can do or say. I am party to your father’s murder. Are you a man or not? Draw your sword.



: Princess Nyna…

: WHAT?

(okay I’ll stop)



This peaceful hamlet in the middle of the battlefield!

: I know, I know… But please, Camus, listen to me… Camus, you gave me back my life. And Marth, he gave me back my kingdom. I do not wish to see that the two of you fight. It is…it is unbearable. Please, Camus, fight with us. We need your strength. …I need it.

: I am sorry, Princess.

: What? But, Camus!

: Were my heart my master, I would do exactly as you say. But what sort of knight abandons his kingdom- his king!- now, when they need him the most? Would you have me toss away the life I have built as if it meant nothing at all?

: No, Camus, I… I don’t know.

: I have lived as a knight, and I intend to die as one. There are no other roads left for me to walk. Farewell, my princess. I shall never forget our days together at the palace, few though they were. I pray you meet someone who can bring joy back into your life.

So, yes, Camus is actually totally unrecruitable. We’re doing this for keeps.




Also, ouch. The Pachyderm is the most powerful all-around Ballista.





He dropped that Devil Sword. I’m sealing it away.



So, at this point I’m turtling up, because I don’t really care about my turn count, and since this is a late-game map, we’re getting reinforcements.




Like this guy! Did you notice that fort? I didn’t! Whoops! Thankfully Julian can take the hit.




The other Reinforcement Knight doesn’t have nearly as good of a game plan.





There’s the stat I want!




Don’t mind me, I’m just on my way to cause ~shenanigans~.




Camus will be a hard fight with Ballista support. I’ll poke down the Pachyderm with Beck’s Thunderbolt.




Turn 9 brings with it a Paladin and three cavaliers. They’ll rush immediately.




Both of these Curates will spam Fortify, but it’s not quite enough.




The Pachyderm still goes down. Maybe I should have been using Beck.




My hubris!




This is a good prize. And yes, you totally can sit outside Camus’ range and Ballista plink him to death, probably breaking both Fortify staves in the process.






Honestly, I was overpreparing for the reinforcements. They aren’t too tough.



The right Armory up here has a few interesting items, namely the Ridersbane and Yet Another Rapier. The other shops have nothing out of the ordinary, and you’ll want to save money for Something Good next chapter.




Alright, last set of guys. Two Cavs here, and a horseman to the north and south. You can see their dots on the map.




Or right here.




Barst is still good, this should come as no surprise.





Now that the reinforcements are dealt with, let’s take on the boss himself.




The way I have this set up is using Caeda with a Javelin to lure Camus out. Cord and Catria are standing by. Every character here has a C Name and that was not intentional.





Camus is pretty damn .




It’s a Caeda double, but Gradivus is really dangerous and Camus needs to go down ASAP.



This is why I packed the Ridersbane. If this missed, I’d have Healed Caeda with Cord and gone for the Wing Spear.




It did not miss but I did so anyway. Just without the healing.




: And he was so dead he never, ever, ever showed up again, ever.




And that’s all the Regalia.




The Gradivus is probably the best Legendary Weapon in the entire game, just for that sweet 1-2 range. This is probably getting glued to Caeda.




This is just anticlimactic after all that.




Cord’s speed is really starting to pull up.




Now then, the only (damaging) enemy left is the..other boss, Lorenz.




Caeda or Marth can talk with him. Also note that Caeda has already capped speed, permanently. At...23.

Damn you, Shadow Dragon.




: My father has told me quite a bit about you.




: Your father was a good friend to me, many years ago.

: General, I heard you opposed Grust forming an alliance with Dolhr. Why didn’t you try to stop it?

: You think I did not try, Princess? Our king is meek; in the end, Dolhr proved better at cowing him than I did.

They sure do like talking about Cowing that guy.

: Ah, but what makes a country?

: Pardon?


: Is it one man- your king? Or is it the countless innocent people who make their home here?

: Well, that’s-Hmm...


: My father has a saying:




Was that supposed to rhyme, Caeda? I think you fucked it up.

: If you disobey your king to ensure his subjects’ safety, how is that a betrayal? You are protecting his reign.

: Protecting his reign? …Aha ha ha, ha ha! Ahh, that mad logic! I feel as though I’ve shed twenty years and I’m talking to your father again. You win, Princess. I yield! I will join you, in the interests of king and country. Har!



And so, with all the power of a Philosophy 101 course, we’ve recruited Lorenz. Lorenz is awesome. Look at that eyepatch. I mean, stat-wise he’s awful, he’s somehow got 3 Skill and 2 Luck, so really only his Defense is worth it, and his growths are subpar (Aside from a really cool 35 in Strength.) But, that eyepatch!




Since Caeda’s already proven herself MVP of this map about three times, I let her kill off the last Curate for a level up. Eh.









: No, Marth, I…I should not have made such a selfish request. I am sorry, so terribly sorry…

: ...

: The worst part, Marth…the worst part is, I knew it would come to this. Ever since I gave you the emblem, I just knew…Have you heard the story of Artemis’s Curse?

: No…

This is the response of a man who has just been informed the magic thing he’s been hauling around for like 15 chapters might be cursed.

: The last time the Fire Emblem changed hands to save House Archanea, it was not without cost. There was a princess named Artemis who loved your ancestor, Anri, with all her heart. He loved her as well- but when Medeus appeared, the two were parted forever. She cursed the Fire Emblem- called it the end of war, but also the end of love. Now the emblem has changed hands again, and I am the one who is cursed…

There’s more to that story, but like so many things in Shadow Dragon, not until the sequel.

: Nyna...

: Look at me, so quick to fall apart… You lost loved ones in Altea and took it so bravely; but I cannot be so brave… Please…leave me for a moment. This is too much to bear. I need to…to confront my feelings…

: …Say no more, Nyna… Princess. I will step out. Send for me if you need anything.



This wasn’t a cropping error, and for once I’m not joking about that. Nyna just plunges herself into the inky black void for her last line here.

: And so, Camus the Sable’s long history was ended, thanks to the actions of our heroes, Catria and Caeda. Marth was there too.

: So next you marched for Macedon?

: Yes. As we set course for Macedon, we...oh! I nearly forgot! Lava Town!

: Lava Town?

: Lava Town.

Next time, Lava Town.

Bonus Content



Black Knight, Camus