Part 20: Mission #19: Miho Does Not Approve

Chapter #19: Miho Does Not Approve



As we last left our heroes, they had just crippled the Dagat Ahas.
: We lost contact with the engine room! The engine is stopping.
: ...How is the flight deck?
: No response!
: ... That was quick.
: Yes?
: It's nothing. ...Tell the main headquarters. Dagat Ahas disabled; prepare for enemy invasion of Luzon.
: Yes, sir!
: The flagship will defend us. Send the surviving fleet to defend Luzon.
Well, that takes care of that. Now, it's time for the daring escape. As you might recall, we were torpedoed onto the Dagat Ahas by submarine, meaning that we'll need a different way out. How will Kazuki and friends get off of the super-fortress, you might ask?



You couldn't handle the pulse-pounding adventure, so the game, in act of mercy, decides to spare your heart the excitement and skips directly to the party getting back to a rebel base.



: What's the situation, Bamarm?
: There's no problem. All we need to do now is land on Batangas. How about you? Is the DHZ fleet on its way?
: Don't worry. They're on their way.
: We'll begin the mission as soon as they arrive. Tell the fleet to back us up in the landing process.
Can someone explain to me how the DHZ sending a fleet to back up a rebel invasion of the Philippine capital isn't a act of war?
: Roger that.
: Just another step to Manila. I can finally free the Philippines from the OCU!
: We're finally landing in Batangas!
: We're not landing in Batangas.
: Why? I thought we were going to retrieve MIDAS.
: We are. But we're taking a different route.



: We will detour around Batangas Harbor, move north to Taal and directly attack Taal Base.
: Just us!?
Well, seeing as we just took out the mightiest fortress in the Philippine army by ourselves, I'm not sure what the big deal is.
: Man, what kind of fool plan is that...?
: When we begin landing, the government and OCU armies will concentrate their forces at Batangas. Taal Base should send forces there also.
: Sneak into the base while they're gone? That's a good idea! But as a police officer I can't approve...
Miho's already killed dozens of wanzer pilots since she's been on the team, but trespassing, that's a misdemeanor too far!
: Yeah, I think the plan sounds good, too. It should be no problem for just us!



: Taal Base is an air force base. The main group will leave the base, but the defense group will remain. This will not be an easy mission.
: That's what I'm telling you. We can't possibly do this!
I like how Ryogo thinks it's either going to be cakewalk or impossible, with no middle ground whatsoever. Interestingly enough, he's right. Normally, it's not so bad, but with your wanzers....
: ...Ryogo, that's enough.
: Ryogo's fun to watch.
: Because he doesn't have any intelligent thoughts?
You know, Alisa, seeing as your intelligent thoughts have left the party in a death struggle with two superpowers over a weapon of mass-destruction that you helped build, I'd lay off him.
: Take care of MIDAS. Good luck!
: Sure, I'll go with you. What, do you have a problem with that?
A huge one, actually.
: I must go with my lady and protect her!
And by this he means that, for the next few missions, if Pham is in your party, Pierre will come along as an NPC.
: I'll explain the details on the submarine. Everyone ready?
At this point, you can go to a shop and upgrade your wanzers, or, in the case of this thread, create six designs that range from 'glitchy' to 'No, Fuck you, Nick Buntline!'



Time for another presentation from Liu.



: As you can see, Taal Base is built into the mountain. They hollowed out the mountain to make a natural fortress. MIDAS should be in the lab inside. First, get in the front gate, then destroy the radar to blind the enemy. Throw the base into confusion, then break in and steal MIDAS. After stealing MIDAS, meet up with the DHZ fleet off Batangas. That is all. Any questions?
: You're saying, charge into the base and take back MIDAS...?
: Is that a problem? I hate being sneaky. It's the perfect plan for Kazuki!
: Yeah, I hate being sneaky, too.
: Kazuki, you're in no position to brag.



: Follow the young lady's instruction when handling MIDAS. Pham! Be sure to listen to everyone. We'll all die if we're not careful.
Yeah, it occurs to me that any mission that puts Pham or Kazuki within ten miles of a gigantic bomb is probably not going to end super-well.
: Fine. You guys do your job, too! I don't want to die because of someone's dumb mistake.
: ...
: Alright, alright.
: Comrade Liu, we're approaching the landing site.
Remember, technically, we are helping the communists gets their hands of a new super-weapon. I'm pretty sure this is the only game where you do that.
: Okay. Let's begin!



: What's the situation on the rebel forces!?
: They're fighting our defense force in Batangas.
: They waited until our battalion left the base...They're heading toward the lab. MIDAS must be their target.
: Incoming! It's the second torpedo!
This conversation will make a bit more sense in a few minutes.
: Stop them! Use whatever force necessary.



: Here? How do you plan to get in?
: Be careful! There are security cameras.
: ...Be quiet. Pierre!
: Yes, my lady?
And then Pierre shoots out a security camera with his wanzer-sized gun...the noise of which almost certainly negates the entire point of destroying the security camera in the first place.
: There should be no complaints here. Let's hurry!
: ...
: Pham, you've been so strong lately...
Is this really the time or place to try and get in her pants? Anyway, an alarm then goes off, it's either the base alarm, or the alarm that monitors my irritation levels.
: What? An alarm? Strange, finding us so easily...
Shut UP, Pham.
: Of course!
: The enemy's on the way, so don't get sloppy!
: I already know! Don't waste your breath!!



Okay, it's time for the debut of your new wanzers, but first, Liu has something to say.
: The base is destroyed!? Is somebody already in there?
Actually, whoever is first in your party will make this observation. Most of the quotes are the same, but Miho probably has the best one.
: Hey, this base is so run down, don't they have money for repairs?
Oh, Miho. Anyway, the reason Liu is first is because of an AI exploit I haven't really been using up until now. For whatever reason, the AI will tend to concentrate a disproportionate amount of its attacks on whoever you pick first. Now, most of the time, that's Kazuki, and that magnified his defensive shortcomings. Since Nick Buntline was so kind to supply me with a wanzer that can't do much except defend, though...



...That is what I will have him do.



The Good Friday is the only wanzer that is, for the most part, relatively unchanged. It still hits for a ton, and it still has no HP...then again, at this point, none of my wanzers have any HP.



It's the same standard assortment of Jinyos, Genies, Kasels and couple of tanks for good measure. The Genies are no longer much of a problem because almost everyone has a shield, and Liu has two, and they'll run out of ammo eventually. The Jinyos, on the other hand, are not truly scary, because I have exactly one wanzer, out of six, with a mid-range weapon.



The power of the grenade launcher. Grenade Launchers can be pains in the ass to use, because they work very differently than other weapons. Think of a grenade launcher this way, it's like a low-power, low-accuracy machine gun that can hit multiple wanzers at the same time. That's not so bad, is it? As a general rule of thumb, never fire a grenade launcher unless you can hit multiple enemies.



The glass cannon strikes again!



Since I took Pham along, I also got Pierre, which would be great, except the AI got it into its head that the Genie on the far edge of the map was an existential threat that had to be dealt with immediately, making him essentially useless.



A quality day for the Berzuki, if not spectacular. It managed to lose another arm, though. The good thing about the design is that it still has a weapon.



It also gets a new battle skill that is...mildly useful much later in the game. At the moment, the enemy has no chance of evading a melee attack anyway, so it's of little use.



That's about as good as I'm going to do with this lot. Ryogo gets the MVP for having the only non-melee, non-shoulder weapon.



: I don't know, but someone's entered the base for sure.
: Of course, they're heading for MIDAS?
: Yes, most likely.
: Do we stop them?
: No, we wait until we're certain of the situation. Whoever they are, they're making our job easier.
Uh, fine, but is there any situation where we aren't going to have to eventually stop them? I mean, isn't the goal of the party to stop everyone from getting MIDAS?
: It's to our advantage that way.
: What do you mean?
: It will keep the enemy occupied.
: We sneak off while they duke it out. Let's go!



: ...
I think the game, with its usual amount of subtlety, is trying to tell me something...about someone in the party perhaps not being quite what they seem. I choose to ignore these signs!

Next Time: America, Fuck Yeah!