Part 27: Surprising Offer

Might as well move on to the next screen, since we've done everything else so far.

We are heroes, so it's time to trespass on private property.


: There's so much garbage...
: This is where they dump all of the garbage from this area. All the garbage sorting is done by the SorterBots. The place I want to show you is just up ahead. Let's go...



Instead we're going to pulse in. There's more interesting things to do here than watch another cutscene, after all.



The City Dump is pretty neat, and has a couple of new viruses. This entire chunk of Wave world exploration is going to have a bunch of new fights, which is fun.



This is the full group of viruses we'll encounter on this screen. Mettenna3 is as you'd expect, just a more powerful version of Mettenna2. Junk-O, on the other hand, is a new virus entirely.



It'll hop around the battlefield a bit, then put down a cube of junk. When MegaMan steps in the same column, the junk cube will launch itself down the column at him. There's also a small chance it places a regular stone block instead.

Right here is the first time it really comes up, but there's a two-object limit on the battlefield. As soon as Junk-O tries to place the third cube, the first one shatters.

The counter timing is right as the Junk-O tries to place the cube.




Not an S. Do better Yeti.




The cards those two drop. At this point, GroundWave3 is pretty good for getting good ranks on virus encounters - it moves fast and can hit multiple enemies.



There's an exit to the main area to the east, but we'll ignore it for now. I'll get to it before pulsing out, but I'd like to clear this screen first.




Better Gatling, sure thing.

180 damage with no boosts? Nice.


: ...got deliveries to make!




This one's less important, though.



The north exit won't let us leave (obviously, since we still have plot flags to trigger here) so let's just move deeper into this area.



The closer ramp leads to a small area with a GMW spawn location looking over where Pat wants to meet.



The further leads to a shop and more road.







I grab a pair of HPMem20, and an IceBurst. I'll also grab a TidalEdge on a separate trip here later. PoisonApple, like usual, is a lower priority since it's a match-only card.






At the end of the path, we have a Comp Space to explore.




It's an okay weapon, but I prefer the faster charge I have right now, so I'm not changing my weapon.



This screen is also relevant now, thanks to getting a few Brothers and beating some SP bosses. We can see Geo's base HP, as well as how much bonus I'm getting from Sonia and Luna (100); we can also see the passive boosts I'm getting from them, like FirstBarrier and Float.

The other stats aren't going to change much, so I'll talk about them when they do.



We've also got a list of all SP bosses that I've killed, as well as how much damage their SP card does. "MY" is my personal time, and "BST" is the best time over all my Real Brothers' saves; the card's power draws from the "BST" time, so you could theoretically be Brothers with someone who's beaten all of the bosses sub-10 seconds and have super-powered SP cards from the moment you get access to your email.

This game doesn't exactly care for balance at times.

Don't recall if you have Icestage or not, that would be a free encounter S-rank if you get those two together. Not to mention it can put you at a faster TaurusSP time. You're looking at 720 damage no boosts, so more than half his HP. Getting a sub-10 second S-rank is a pain sometimes, but it's a kind of endgame challenge I enjoy. You'll have to learn the boss' counter frames on their first move via counting spaces, then attack to score a counter. Follow it up with a big attack. Or just cheese with a B.Combo because you're a scrub.


: HUMANS SURE ARE QUICK TO THROW THINGS AWAY! LOOK! THIS IS STILL BRAND NEW! *BEEP BEEP* IT'S SUCH A SHAME! PEOPLE NEED TO LEARN NOT TO WASTE SO MUCH!

I agree! We need to throw this Hertz away.





The next rank of the Craggy virus also shows up here in this comp, so I picked up a few of their cards.



That's it for the junkyard, so let's head back to Dream Island.




MORE viruses! Good news is, these ones are are just powered-up versions of other ones, so we've gone over them before.






We've seen TimeBomb2 before. But, these two are new.

Cloudshot is gucci. And Yeti got Chainbubble2. I expect to see ChainBubble+CloudShot/StunKnuckle on Cancer Bubble SP


: We are your neighborhood Delivery Navis!

The general layout of this wave road is a big horseshoe, with the connecting bits large bridges like the one I'm standing on.


: ...second-hand shop on Dream Island! Can you please move out of my way!?



: ...world-class gourmand!



I'll check out the three NPCs on this screen since they're all right here.






If you're curious about what healing cards there are in this game, Sell Again has all of them as her favorites.

Well, not all, I don't see Recover 200 or the cool 300.

It's hard to tell thanks to the game quality, but her 6th card is the Recover200.



: ...my Transer!



You can probably guess, but this guy's another one of the Quiz givers. But we'll deal with him later, like usual.



We've seen these before, but I have to wonder, does it stop the MonoSword viruses from taking one damage? (not that it matters since they walk right up to you when you step into their column)

Not sure. I know the player can't guard with their shield at all, but I'm not sure what that means for viruses. Try it out against MonoSwords and use an indirect attack like that CloudShot2?



Fuck you, Yeti.

Oh, shit! Another one!? I've never seen these things before, to the point that I didn't even know they were in the game, and now I've gotten two in a single playthrough.




...Oh. Okay then. Just, a free QueenOphiuca, sure thing.

Guess I'll take care of cleaning up that SP boss this update then.

It's cool to see a Yellow Data. The rewards are less cool. You can score this chip easily and there's no point to having more than one, so?



All of the truck NPCs are very busy. Not sure what exactly they're transporting on this island that has four people on it, but it must be important.



Tucked away down on the bottom left of the screen is another Comp Space, so let's take a quick peek.

A fucking rowboat Comp Space. Wat.




See, now this is useful. (Kinda.) You still shouldn't be getting hit, but if you do, this will keep you safe.


: IT'S A GREAT DAY, ISN'T IT? IT'S A GREAT DAY TO GET ON A BOAT AND RELAX. THAT'S THE LIFE BOOYA![sic] *BEEP*

This guy's not quite as sea-sick as the other boat Hertz. Better construction, probably.



There's also some new viruses here. More level 2s, which means more cards.






Some pretty good stuff. I take the chance to shuffle around some of my cards, since that 160 damage comes out quick.

Excuse me, dat 160 card is juicy as fuck. You can freeze people now, can't you?



A nice card to have, but like usual I'm not going to use it in my folder just yet. But, we've seen it in Luna's favorites before; on use, MegaMan turns into a tanuki and will counter-attack with a WideSword slash if he's hit.


: Wow-whee!!

...Apparently they're hauling apples. Huh.




The upper right of the area leads back to the park. Nothing for us there, though.



The last thing we have to do is check out the refrigerator Comp Space.



Free JunkCube. Turns out, this reward is Junk.


: I ALWAYS RECYCLE! *BEEP BEEP* HEY YOU! DO YOU CHERISH YOUR THINGS? YOU KNOW THE USE-ONCE-AND-THROW-AWAY ERA ENDED SEVERAL HUNDRED YEARS AGO! RECYCLE, RECYCLE! *BEEP BEEP* YOU RECYCLE! I RECYCLE! WE ALL RECYCLE! COME ON!

Japan is very big on recycling, so this area isn't a surprise, but I wonder why we don't take out all the Hertzes? They're just junk.



Enough of that nonsense. Back to looking at trash.



I was being literal, by the way.


They probably use this for the heavy stuff.

Yeti is a backhoe.





Time to talk to Pat.


: This... This is where I was thrown away.
: What!?
: Are you shocked? I was abandoned.
: Abandoned...


: I was left here, in this very spot. I heard it was a SorterBot that found me, wrapped in a towel. The name "Pat" was written on it, and that's how I got my name. After that, I was sent to an orphanage, and grew up to be what I am today...

Sudden backstory drop. It might feel a bit abrupt, but remember that Geo was talking about his dad a little bit earlier. It's still a little fast for real life, in my opinion, but this is a Battle Network game so I'm not surprised.

We have properly lowered our standards, so this is still good within BN's standards.


: You must really be shocked by what I said...
: Yeah, I am... Hey, Pat...? Do you hate your parents for what they did?
: No, not really. I'm alive now, and I have to keep on living. That's about all I think about.

Part of the problem, I think, is that Pat is relatively a non-entity in the game so far (he's talked to Geo what, a grand total of three times?) and now they're trying to make him seem relatable and get us to like him.

The scenario-style of Battle Network really doesn't lend itself to this kind of storytelling that frankly needs multiple scenarios to sell something. Danged anime episodic writing.


: N-Not really... I don't think so myself... ......Well, thanks for listening. It really means a lot to me. This is the first time I've wanted to share my story.
: Really?
: It's because I honestly thought that you were someone I could tell...
: Pat...

If Geo were a little bit more stunned and needed to process, then it'd make sense. Instead he just accepts it immediately.


: We talked about a lot today, didn't we? There's still so much more I want to talk about, but it's getting late, so we'd better go home.


I bet they use this to move the big pieces.

Hey, a crane. Neat.



: I've got a call. Hello?
: ...Yo.
: You're that guy from before! What do you want now!?
: Ha ha ha ha. Listen good. I'm gonna tell you something. Be careful not to get trashed out there. Ha ha ha ha.

Yeti's favorite pun.


: He hung up. What the heck is that supposed to mean? "Trashed"?
: Trashed? I have no idea either.

Great, Slim Shady here loves making garbage puns.


: Let's just go home.
: Yeah...

Mega, saying what everyone playing these games starts to think near the end of the game.



: INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT!


: Intruder?
: BEGIN IMMEDIATE DISPOSAL.

Fuck you, Slim Shady.

: Disposal? They don't mean...

I think I know what 'Trashed' means now.


: Me!?



Geo they're garbage collection robots, how did they outflank you.

Japan is really serious about garbage collecting. You will be a social pariah if you do not follow it. If I were to live in Japan, we'd likely never get along, honestly. My only recourse would be to challenge them all to NetBattles.

I visited once as a kid with my family, and we went to the Japan Disney. It was surreal to walk around and not see a single bit of spilled popcorn on the ground.

: I must be the one they're after... But why? Ack! And Pat!



He's probably fine.


: No... They didn't "dispose" him, did they!?
: Geo! That's a dead end!


: Gotcha!



: A wavehole!
: We can escape to the Wave World for now! Hurry!!
: Roger!



: Don't relax yet. Those robots were after you. So someone's probably controlling them.
: The person on the phone?
: I'd say there's at least a connection. He's probably still nearby.


: Yeah...

Geo's still worried about Pat, probably.



We can't leave the screen, and we saw a control panel earlier in here. That's probably what's controlling those trash bots.




Well we're in the right place.


: Hmm?


: You're MegaMan!
: Wh-Why are you here!?
: What should we do...? Should we retreat?

I'm... pretty sure it's each of the Jammers saying one line.

Nah, it's one guy talking to himself and the other two are just doing nothing.


: This presence...





...Oh. That's, fast.


: Yes, right away, Lord Gemini!
: G-Gemini?? You're Gemini? So you're the one who's been butting into our business!
: So you are Omega-Xis. This is the first time we've met face to face, but I've heard lots about you. Such as...

Shouldn't it be face to face to face? Gemini is the Twins, after all.

Yeti pls. I'm more concerned why Gemini isn't helping. MegaMan kicked most of the big troops' ass. Some assistance would be nice.


: I've heard plenty about you too, bub. But I can't say any of it was flattering.
: If you've heard the rumors, then you know what I'm about to do, right? You will go down! And the Andromeda Key will be mine!!


: Raaaaaaaaaawr!!

Rawr.

No furries allowed.



They're starting to ramp up the difficulty a little bit. Jammer and Junk-O move pretty quickly and are constantly putting damage down columns, and Craggy locks off two of MegaMan's squares every few seconds.

Of course, I pulled RadarMissile2 and CloudShot2 in my opening hand in this fight, so the Junk-O got erased immediately. Followed swiftly by the Craggy. Turns out, paralysis attacks are good.



: What a useless bunch.

You let them die, asshole.

Hey, remember how we always yell at Geo to just shoot them?



He's gonna do that.

: Right hand to the FM King!
: H-He's that high up!? Isn't that a bit much for us...?
: Maybe, but... right now, he doesn't have a human host. And as you already know, we FM-ians can't use our full power on Earth. So we do have a shot at beating him.


: I am a bit vulnerable without Rey here.
: Rey...? Isn't that the person on the phone?
: So that's who you're leeching off of...

Wait, this guy already has a human but hasn't started causing trouble directly? Weird.

I dig it. It's nice pacing that leads up to the eventual fight with the fused boss. Also shows that the villians are more proactive.


: Why doesn't this Rey person show themself!?
: Ah, Rey is not fond of others, you see. Why don't you two try to find out who Rey is? Ha ha ha ha. See you around.

...Partner, huh? Interesting.


: Rey, huh? We're gonna have to be really careful.


: Let's see, if I push this, it should make the SorterBots go back to normal. Here we go.


: OK, pulse out!

Gemini's been causing a lot of trouble even without a human host. Those plus/minus things earlier were electrical charges, remember.



: What happened to Pat!?
: Hey, Geo!

Speak of the devil.

Hm, who could the partner be? I have no idea.


: That was awful! The SorterBots suddenly started going haywire...
: I'm fine. What about you?
: ......I'm OK. I'm sorry for bringing you here...
: Aww, don't blame yourself, Pat.
: Thanks. Today really wore me out. I think it's about time to head home.





: ...so this is where I say goodbye. I had a lot of fun today. Thank you.
: Yeah, me too. Well, see you...


: ...?

Geo forgot something. Probably his wallet, empty as it is.



: Well, I've been thinking... ever since you told me your story... Uh... Um... Will...



So, this is a huge step forward for Geo. Both Sonia and Luna were the ones to ask him, but now he's putting himself out there and asking Pat. He's finally coming out of his shell and actively reaching out to others.

Thing is, Pat is... kinda nobody, in terms of the story. I mentioned it earlier, but I don't really care about him for any reason. Maybe that'll change, but right now this offer doesn't mean much else.


: Yeah. It's like you said. Our situations are kinda alike. We understand each other's pain, I think... So...

Geo did you forget that your secret is that you're MegaMan? Yes your situations are similar but you also have an alien living in your Transer.


: We don't have to...
: Thank you, Geo. I'm happy you asked.
: Then you will?
: I've never made a BrotherBand before... So I'm very touched that you are offering. ...However.


: However... I... It's hard for me to say this, but I have a very important secret. Something other than the fact that I was abandoned...
: Something else?
: It's something that is very precious to me. If we became Brothers, I would have to tell you but if you knew what my secret was... you would probably hate me...

Pat, I really don't think whatever weird secret you could have would compare to 'I can fuse with an alien to get superpowers'.

Unless it's mostly the same secret.


: No matter what, I won't hate you!
: It's not that I don't believe you, I just don't have the courage to say it.
: Pat...
: ......

It does kinda suck for Geo here. He tried to be best friends with Pat, but got shut down.


: Please give me 1 day to think.[sic] about it. I will try to decide in that time...
: Yeah, don't worry about it. Take your time!
: Thank you so much, Geo. Alright, it's time to really head home now!

Yes, time to immediately head home.



Wait no, Geo, this isn't home.

Geo forgot where his home was. Geo is sad. Cut him some slack.



Geo stop.



Oh well. Time to kill OphiucaEX. 1600 means that she's got more than one TimeBomb's worth of health, but you can see I have TaurusFire so she dies on the first turn anyway.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IkBMT1KnCE

Incidentally, this is why you can't draw GigaChips in the first turn ever since Battle Network 4. The game generally makes sure it can't be in the first 1-2 turns. They didn't carry this over to Starforce and this is the result.



Six seconds seems about appropriate.



After running around, I fought the SP version twice for the other two cards.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubiG-ektFzk

If you feel like fighting RNG, put in a GrassStage and pray you draw it with breaktimebomb. One turn kill, gg. In case Starforce 1 only makes it 3x damage instead of 6, 300 damage should be easy enough to kill.







The SP version is going into my folder for reasons we will see in a little bit.




Like usual, there's an SP card for free if you use the message.



And now, as per tradition (that I got yelled at for breaking) the bed is the end of the update.