Part 16: Where we kill a bunch a shit in a tree

Today we're cleaning out the Giant Tree. Sure, it's a pretty obvious piece of filler, but it's fucking packed with monsters, and we'll gain like 3 levels by the time we're actually done with it, and it's not that long. Same music as Level/Alive Forest.



First new enemy is the Live Oak. I actually have no idea what these guys have gained, because they're still weak to axes and I got a first strike on literally every one I fought.



The Giant Tree's gimmick is that there are a ton of little posts set up, that just so happen to connect with our shiny new Dragon Claw. So yeah, we'll basically be hookshotting around the dungeon.



Another treasure chest ripe for the taking.



Snipions are the big brothers of the Scorpions from way back when. They've picked up a particularly annoying toy with Doom Powder, which has a small chance of instantly killing a party member. It's not very accurate, but it always finds a way to hit when you're petrified or in a similar situation.



Mad Toads are dicks. They're strong enough that Kaeli can't kill them, they've picked up Poison-touch as a counter, and they've also gained Stone Gas on top of already having Body Odor and Poison Fluid. Yeah, enemies get to be assholes in the late stages of the game.



This dungeon also has a tendency to put you through these stupid little maze rooms where you have to cut your way through with the axe. This one contains a bunch of Mad Toads.



Our reward is the next Wizard Spell. Meteor is pretty bitchin' in terms of damage, but it is Earth-elemental. That's not a problem for a majority of enemies though.



Of course, we have to try out our new toy immediately.



These vines will take you down one level. It's necessary all of once in the entire dungeon.



These faces are the "doors" of the dungeon. Stab them to get them to open up.



Leeches are the top tier of the Sandworm family. They've picked up Fireball which hits fairly hard (and Kaeli even moreso), but are still weak to axes.



Another maze room. This one is stuffed with Leeches, and it's very likely that you could get a level from this room alone.



This is the one time you'll need to fall down one of these holes. It takes you to an elevated section on the second floor which brings you back to third floor.



That brings you up to this, where you have to let go of the wall and catch it at a lower point. I don't know why they decided to have all these claw "puzzles" all of a sudden.



Skuldiers are the second big asshole in this dungeon. They've still got confusion, and they get Doom Powder here. A bit of a pain the ass, especially since Kaeli stopped being able to one-shot things way back with the Mad Toads. At least they're weak to wind.



Ooze are the top tier slimes. They've got fairly powerful attacks, and are weak to bombs, but they've gained a huge dick move.





Try and throw a spell at them, and you'll get it reflected right back in your face for full damage. This is not a problem when you're using it on everyone and take 200-300 damage. This is a problem when they're the only one left and thanks to the menu memory you target it for full damage and eat 800+ damage.



4F has another maze room underneath there with mostly Oozes.



Top floor. There's a few Skuldiers around to slaughter for some extra experience if you want it, but you can pretty much just go straight to the boss.





Speaking of the boss, he's just kinda chilling here. He won't initiate a fight until you actually talk to him. And yeah, this place has a ton of experience.



God, I get it, I'm going to kill him now. Christ, just be a little patient.



Gidrah is really, really easy. He doesn't have that much HP, and he's got a painful weakness to Wind (to the extent that Kaeli's Aero does comparable damage to our White Spell).



As for his offense, he's got all the usual suspects: Stone Gas, Poisonbreath, and Bad Breath, plus Tornado (landing for about 400-450 damage) and Three Heads (which does about 280 with just two hitting).



That weakness just does him no favors though. He lasted about 4 turns for me.


Allow me to carry you!



Go on kid? Uh, sure. Thanks for the encouragement, trees.



Yeah, he just kinda gets up and literally walks us to Windia. That part of the forest sure isn't alive anymore after he's trampled it, though. Fun fact: if you go back to where he should be in the Alive Forest, he's not there anymore.



Last stop of the day is this little temple. Why?





To get more vague bullshit from CE, of course. What is the prophecy, you ask? Something far stupider you're imagining, I promise you that.

Next time: The Windy City