Part 34: Agile Arachnids

Chapter 6: Agile Arachnids



: 'Look over there.' That was your plan?

: Less talking, more running!





: ...Alright, I'll do it.

: Ahahaha! I knew you'd say that, so I...wait, what? You will?

: Yes, I'll give you the bracelet! Just don't harm my brother!

: What? Your brother? I-I mean...Yes! Yes, I have your brother. He's over there. In the fog. I...will go get him. Hold on a moment, please.



: Oh dear, that princess of yours...She just gave me everything I wanted, and now I have no incentive to keep you as prisoners.

: So we get to go free?

: Yes...or I could let you get eaten slowly by spiders.

: Wait, why? You've got that...teleporty thing. Why not just go back to Grado and rake in the accolades? You could be a hero to your people. You could be famous!

: That's true...but spiders are cool.

: Why do I even bother?



Poor lass. I hope we can save her.



As you might expect, a fog of war map means Colm. We'll be advancing slowly and mostly letting the enemies come to us piecemeal, since we'll be easily overwhelmed otherwise.



It's good to have at least one capable unit around for situations like these.



Positioning is key for this. You might even call it trial and error.



Knowing which soldiers come from where is essential for weathering the initial wave. I would normally call that sort of thing a jerk move on the game's part, but as I mentioned in normal, there are forests to help.



Even so, I had a close shave there. Mercenaries are no laughing matter in hard mode, since they're hardier than myrmidons, but usually just as skillful.



Doesn't matter to Franz. He'll just get luckier.



I'm also using this map to whip Lute into shape. She's a bit behind, and needs to get her training in too.



Got the Antitoxin this time. Not that I'll use it.



The cavaliers up top are an issue. Due to the obstruction presented by the mountain tiles, they'll often come around the mountain two different ways, presenting a nasty pincer.



No levels here. I just wanted to illustrate how weak our thief of choice is right now.



By contrast, here's Franz tearing through some knights.



While Goofus here can't even scratch a cavalier.



Oh yes, and if you're comfortable hunkering down from the east side, here's another trio of cavaliers from the west, courtesy of hard mode.



I wouldn't normally have promoted units chew through base enemies, but we've got enough problems on the front line without being flanked like that.



Especially not these guys. They're using the basic iron, but they're still not worth trifling with.



Oh, Intelligent Systems.



Sometimes I feel like they're playing a joke on me.



Not the funny sort either.



Right, time for something daring (which is to say, stupid).



On the enemy phase, I nearly have a heart attack, but I shouldn't have been that worried. Even with effective damage, he's still got to hit me.



And jumping out into the open goes...



Surprisingly well for Eirika, given the hit rates.



And then Colm provides the punchline.



You may have noticed, but there are two healers on this map: a troubadour and a priest. They're both a tad obnoxious.



Vanessa would love to help, but she's got her own mission.



Besides, we can handle ourselves.



More or less.



At the very least, Joshua's his old self for this map.



Although he seems a tad confused about his class.





Oh, never mind. He was giving his growths to Eirika. How gentlemanly of him.



And the hits just keep on coming. We're thinning them out, though.



And Seth's got his corner in good shape.



Keep building up that magical power, Lute.



Colm can't even beat up a troubadour. That's...special.



Oh yes, our celebrity guest has arrived.



Not what you'd call the deadliest of beasts, but it's being assisted, dodge-wise, by the terrain it's on.



And the eastern segment is all cleared out.



But no magic.



Maybe I should just forget about combat entirely for Colm.



...Well, at least he's got more pickpocket. That's all that really matters.



Colm's feeble attempts at killing a holy man have revealed our boss.



Novala's still as deadly as ever. We'd be in real trouble if we didn't have Seth with us.



So let's deal with this spider. We're pretty evenly matched, so it shouldn't be too big a problem.







...Right?



: Not really...helping me concentrate...



Good thing I thought ahead for just this possibility.



Meanwhile, Garcia shows Colm how it's done.



Strength, Colm. That's the key.



Lute: matching a mage for damage using an inferior tome. There really is nobody better than her.



: Enough of this!



That's one way to speed the process along.



And the girl's finally tired of screaming. Thank goodness for that.



With the spider almost dead, Vanessa scales down a bit and gets...



...



Right, let's get this over with.



Good to see that somebody's keeping himself strong.



: You don't look like my brother.

: That's because she's a little girl, your highness.

: ...I knew that.

And for rescuing the family, we get an Orion's Bolt. Maybe I should start building up Neimi some more.

Next Time: The penultimate chapter of this act, and the gimmick is really large bows. Inspiring.

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