Part 40: 07/26/09 - 07/28/09: Yabbashah The Dry Land (Part Two)

So, our summer stay-cation begins today but right now it's just another Sunday.

Iwatodai Dorm



Tanaka's not selling anything worthwhile today, so we'll keep our money.



I'm a little nervous about living here...

Almost everyone is hanging out in the dorm, but only Ken has updated dialogue here. A bit unusual, but whatever.





And before the news begins, Feather Condor has a message for you all!

Hopefully this one isn't just lies. I'm still sour about last time.



Feather Condor: After all, you've got me looking out for you! So don't worry! We'll meet again next week!

...And now, the news.

Oh, it was just about Apathy Syndrome. I guess it is getting close to the Full Moon now...

But, hey, remember how I said almost everyone was inside? There's one exception. Yes, just one.

When The Moon's Reaching Out Stars / Way of Life



I dunno what it is about that guy, but my "Junpei-sense" is going crazy around him.
Either he's a little punk, or he's WAY more mature than I am...
I dunno, man, is it just me?

Well, I mean, I don't have a Junpei-sense so that might very well just be you. Don't really know the kid well enough to say one way or the other on the rest, though. Depends where we're setting the bar, maybe?



...Oh right, it's Sunday and all so we should maybe just see what Maya wants. It, uh, can't get much worse at least.

Joy



Although we initially planned to allow "Innocent Sin" to run indefinitely...
...recent feedback has shown that player participation is not adequate to continue.
We are terribly sorry for any inconvenience this causes for active players.
However, the servers will remain open until the official end date.
We hope that you understand and that you enjoyed your time with "Innocent Sin."
Sincerely, -"Innocent Sin" staff

You mean an SMT MMO is closing?! Say it ain't so. I can't IMAGINE anything like that.



> Maya faces away from you.

it said their cancelling innocent sin. ...think its for real?
No way!
i know rite!? how dare they! >=/

> Maya is getting all worked up.

i finally found a place to let out my frustation and now this!!!

> Maya gets closer to you.



I, uh, I'm fairly confident in this one...

I think so.
yeah... we can meet each other in different ways I guess >_>
maybe there will be another MMO or we could hook up irl, but still =S

> Maya seems sad.

NO! we have to stop wasting our tiem!



You're... gonna stop playing before the servers go down?

What are you planning?
...oh dun worry tatsu. i won't do ne thing dangerous >_>

> Maya seems a little happier.



Given some of the things you've casually admitted to, this surely falls under the banner of "dangerous." Not for me, mind, but hey.

if they knwo this game is important to us, maybe they'll reconsider =D
even tho tatsuya's just some lonely kid and maya likes to bitch too much...
that shouldn't matter!!!1



Something tells me you might be in for a bit of a surprise...

don't worry, maya will protect u! we'll always be partners, k?

> It seems Maya cares about you.

> Your relationship is stronger now!





don't mess w/ maya & friends or u'll regret it! MwahAHaHhaHa!
next time we'll celebrate our victory, k? bai!

> Maya's player signed off.

> You decide to log out as well.

Y'know, I get the impression Maya using her chatlog won't really help much on this one. I'unno, call it a hunch I guess.



July's dark secret reveals itself today, I guess. Sort of. It already did before though.



Namely it repeatedly has extended periods of time where you can't do whatever you want!

Want To Be Close (Reincarnation) / Time



I can only hope that this one is going somewhere. For all its fault, Yakushima did give us a lot of things implicitly. And Aigis.



You won't win a point off of Mamoru Hayase like that!

But right now all it's doing is reminding me that we haven't spent time with Yuko in, like, ages.

Iwatodai Dorm



Mercifully, it only steals our daytime slot and not the whole day. We can't really do too much during the daytime since we don't have school anymore, but we still have options!

No sweat.
...Oh, yeah? You're tougher than I thought.
...If you think you can handle it, let's go to Tartarus tonight.
We have less than two weeks to get ready, and I'm sure the next Shadow will be stronger than the last one...

...What do you mean "if"? Of course I can handle it. Just who in the hell do you think I am?!



But it's kind of weird when a little kid is doing it...

I see that Akihiko and Ken are... bonding...? Sure, let's go with that.



I heard you're undefeated with them on.
Yeah...
It's no big deal, really...



But, I can totally understand how he feels. I mean, Akihiko-san's won his last 16 boxing matches.
Every little kid should look up to him. He's like a hero, don'tcha think?
Totally.
*sigh* I wish I was a hero.

Don't worry, Junpei, we already knew that.



I am not heavily equipped, and my damage output and accuracy rating are both average.
Because a gun is a long-range weapon, I will not fall during an attack.
A gun is best suited to those who require stability in their weapon.

That's certainly one way you could look at it. Another is that no one else uses a gun to avoid unfortunate accidents, or because this is Japan and getting a gun is both really difficult and hella illegal. Doubly-so when you're a high schooler.



Today's subject is Trish's type of guy! He's smoking hot, and still in his 20s!



...Next is news. Pain, pain, go away!

Ooh this one's easy!



Tatsuya Suou is the main protagonist of Persona 2 as a whole, being the player character of Innocent Sin and the deuteragonist of Eternal Punishment. On its own that doesn't make him the protagonist, no, but the duology's subtitles do. The Innocent Sin is something that Tatsuya does, and the Eternal Punishment is something that only he truly goes through...

But, this isn't a Persona 2 thread so we'll leave it there (for now?). His Primary Arcana was The Sun and his initial Persona was Vulcanus.

Oh and also he's bisexual, and because Persona 2 is rad this is just a minor thing that isn't a major character trait or a thing that he gets mocked for or anything. He's just a guy who happens to be bi.

The Voice Someone Calls



But, anyway, Tartarus! We don't have anything to talk to Elizabeth about yet, so we'll just gather our party, switch some gear around and head on up.



The Mage's Mark restores a fixed 3SP a turn which sure doesn't sound like a lot but it helps way more than it sounds. Giving this to Mitsuru for sure.

tartarus_0d03



So, we're on floor 73 which means that this isn't true. Thanks, Fuuka.



Before we carry on, though, we're gonna pick a fight with something. This'll do.

Mass Destruction / Wiping All Out





"Orgia" here is most likely referring to the ancient Greek practice of overly ecstatic worship in some sects. This was particularly true when it came to gods like Dionysus, and it may or may not have involved rigorous amounts of sex.

...why yes, it IS also where we get the word "orgy" how did you guess

Yes, please.
In this mode, my limiter is temporarily disabled.
Thus, my offensive capability increases significantly.



Furthermore, once Orgia Mode has been activated, it cannot be canceled until I overheat.



Orgia Mode only lasts for a short while, so timing is crucial.
That concludes the tutorial.

We don't really have a frame of reference to how much of a "significant" increase it is, but it's just a flat 150% damage boost. It lasts for about 3-5 rounds and then Aigis is thoroughly useless for a while.

I, uh, I don't really use it all that much personally. We'll see it in action later at least once. Possibly not much more than that, though. We'll see!

tartarus_0d03



So, y'know how last time we got the Pleiades in a rare chest? Yeah, uh, it turns out...



That's pretty much par for the course with the regular weapons we can find too. The Pleiades is only rarer than stuff like the Silver Saber because it has ~10 Attack more and +4 Magic instead of the +3 here.

We're still totally gonna be giving this to Mitsuru immediately though.



On Floor 76, Fuuka opts to let us know that, yes, there IS a boss fight to be had. But it's quite a ways away. Thanks, that's helpful.



Skipping on up to the 78th floor wherein we hit another thing with a bus stop sign. Because that's awesome.

Mass Destruction / Wiping All Out



Namely because 78F is where we get the newest batch of enemy Shadows. Devoted Cupid here is both the rarest and also the weakest, so whatever. It's hilariously weird how it has regular old Dia though.



Jupiter Eagles aren't quite the most common, but they have some fun potential to be annoying if they ever got turns. Mercifully, they don't so they don't get to use that Masukunda at all.



The most common new Shadow is the Golden Beetle, which kinda stretches the definition of "new" a bit, yeah. Significantly weaker than it was the last time we saw it, for sure, but it's still the tankiest normal Shadow around these parts.

Well, excluding the Avenger Knight but that's weak to Hama so I think that's fair.



And lastly, we have the Ardent Dancer who on the one hand has both Marin Karin and Sexy Dance. On the other hand...



This is very common. Very, very common.

tartarus_0d03



On the 80th floor, Fuuka figures out where the boss fight is. The 85th floor is a bit more a trek after the previous fight on the 72nd, but it's not really that big a deal.



The Two-handed Sword gets a weird buff in Portable, as you may or may not recall at this point.



It's not so much that it's made stronger, per se, but it's available WAY earlier for some reason. We'll be giving this to Junpei later on if I remember.



And, well, that's all that happens until we hit the 84th floor. Normally I'd skip this one too but we get a rare treasure here...



Namely, this thing. This is sort of decent armor, but it's particularly noteworthy in that it is also what Liz is gonna give us when we make an Orthrus with Dodge Slash.



Yes, really. It's kind of a downgrade over what we already have, even! I'll be giving this to Makoto though, so that his vest can go to Mitsuru. That way she gets a proper upgrade and also returns to having a decent character model again.



...Or I could've waited like a minute longer and given her this instead. It's 64 Def so it's less than the Bulletproof Vest though.



But I'll still give it to Makoto for convenience. The lack of a +2 Strength isn't that big a deal.



And that's that, so now we have our fight on the 85th floor.



This is normally where we'd check in with Liz but the only remaining sidequests, that aren't Orthrus, require us to get past this Shadow so let's get right to it!

Hierophant Fanatic Tower (Portable)

Master of Tartarus / Danger Zone



Honestly? No, it really kinda isn't.



It's kind of a bit of a slog to fight, but that's not at all the same thing. For example, this? This is the most damage Mitsuru will ever manage to contribute.

This guy resists Slash and Pierce, sure, but he reflects Ice. And Fire. And Elec. Fucking hell, that just leaves Strike and Wind...



So, what can the Tower do? Well, not a lot that's really threatening. Sure, it can Poison Mist to try and Poison everyone with his 20 Luck (his worst stat)... and he has Poison Boost for good measure... but it's such a non-issue I wouldn't care.



It's basic attack might very well be the most on-paper dangerous thing it has, which is really weird. And that's mostly because it can Crit for less than the previous musclemen.



Everyone who isn't Mitsuru is going to be helping out with their (de)buff capabilities sometimes and also Strike attacks mostly. Which is a problem when this annoying boy also has Dodge Strike to just mock you when you try it.

Realistically you're gonna be fighting this guy with Wind spells and basically nothing else, because he doesn't have Dodge Wind.

Unfortunately, I only have Garula on Pale Rider which isn't necessarily a problem but...



Oh and of course he has Mind Charge. It sure seems like every Tartarus boss lately has had a Charge skill.



Notably, the Fanatic Tower is lacking in that he doesn't have a Heavy tier skill. He only has Zionga and not Ziodyne.



Which is fine with me, but it doesn't really make a difference because I'm packing an Elec nullification. Thank you, Take-Mikazuchi!



Oh and of course he has Mazionga as is required.



The lack of Ziodyne just means he can't maybe seriously injure Mitsuru. Akihiko is, well, Akihiko so he takes barely anything. I'm immune so this guy can't really kill me barring bad luck and... Aigis is weak to Elec but takes sub-50 damage anyway. Granted, this IS after a Tarunda but that's still sub-100 whereas Mitsuru loses nearly half her health.



This may or may not be because Orgia Mode was enabled at the time, but I don't think that gives a defense buff as well. I can't say I've played around much with it, though.



...Oh and Overheating is a bad thing for Aigis since it takes her rad defenses and completely and utterly demolishes them. Yikes!



Sometimes when the Fanatic Tower is feeling particularly smart, he'll cast Elec Break on someone and... forget to capitalise on it entirely.



And that's it. The Fanatic Tower is a long fight because of his 2000HP and his array of annoying resistances but he sure ain't a hard fight.

Noteworthy is that so long as you have Emperor at rank 3+, you can kinda just not give a shit and remove his Ice repel entirely.

He's also clearly weaker than most at this point since he only has 24 Strength and 25 in Magic, Endurance and Agility. Weird.

End

tartarus_0d03



At first blush, it sure looks like we're only getting the one treasure this time which is a bit of a weird decision, don't it?



Compared to the last few, this is definitely a good thing. It gives us another cleared request when we're done, potentially nets us a lot of money later and, uh, acts as a buffer to any nasty instant kill game overs that aren't "and then it crits for eleventy billion damage." Again.



Around the corner from there, we have the requisite Soma as well. This was apparent on the map as well, I think.



We just have a bit more to climb as Fuuka remains perplexed by the most simple and obvious pattern. It's almost like this happens everytime we near the end of a block...



And sure enough! We're not gonna leave just yet though.



We need to collect this, since it IS the entire reason we're here at all right now.



I'm not at all sure why Elizabeth cares about whether or not we collect these. They serve as sort of markers for our progress through the tower, sure, but...

The Poem For Everyone's Soul



We are one step closer to the truth.
You know, it seems like people write about both good and bad experiences in their diaries, doesn't it?
Have you ever thought about that?
Please accept your reward.



The rewards for these sure don't seem to match just how much of a time consuming ordeal they can be, huh. It's just, like, spend ~3 hours running through Tartarus for 3 full revivals is nice and all but it's not at all proportionate.



An artificial creature created by man...
It lives only to die, unaware of its sad plight...
Thank you for showing me such a rare thing.
Please accept your reward.



This is technically the same amount of effort, sure, but it's a better reward. And also it was part of a chain so we got a bunch of stuff, really, there. I dunno, it seems weird that the game always gives you a Soma but expects you to do it in a time limit for something worse.



Anyway, we'll give up Mithra and Lamia to make Orthrus now. We don't really need Lamia any more (we have Hermit at Rank 9 after all) and Mithra's kinda super outdated so...

Yeah, it's not a good Orthrus but I so don't intend on ever using him anyway so I don't really care.



You have fulfilled my request.
For your reward, I have selected a special piece of armor.
I think it will suit you well.
Please accept your reward.



Oh, Elizabeth, you shouldn't have.

No, really, you shouldn't have. It's not like this is ever gonna get used. We already have one, even.



The Homunculus request was the last one in that chain, but there's more fusions to be had. Like Oberon before him, Oumitsunu's request will just sort of solve itself once we hit level 30.

There's only one more request we can do right now, so we might as well since we're already here.



Just gotta grab one of these from Yabbashah first. It's easy to get despite being a "rare" treasure; it spawns on the 74th floor (and a couple others) which means we just use the Terminal to go to the 72nd, run up two floors and search there. Didn't find it? Use an Access point or Traesto and try again.



I heard that this katana, moving independently of its owner, lopped off a gangrenous limb in one swipe...
What a boisterous katana this is! I'd like to see that someday.
Please accept your reward.



+4 Strength and +2 Luck sure isn't bad at all. Could always just trade gems for it though.

But, hey, with that we're back to having every quest done that we realistically could right now. There's only 3 still open and they require grinding to level 30 (nah) or being at a later date than we are now.



Oh and huh the Kunitsuna is better than the generic Two-hander so I guess Junpei gets a bit of a HP buff again for a little while.



And we're done with Tartarus for now! Hurray!



...Sadly, we've still got this for the next few days so we'll just have to deal with that I guess.

Iwatodai Dorm



People seem to have calmed down a bit, despite the media... But, there will be serious problems if we don't end this.
We must defeat the last six Shadows, beginning with the one we anticipate on the next full moon.
If the number of The Lost continues to increase, this city will fall into chaos.
I don't even want to imagine what that might be like...
Y-You're just exaggerating, right?
...Then again, maybe not.

It... sure seems like an exaggeration, but it's really kinda hard to tell for sure to be honest. Could sorta go either way.



Then that means...
Shadows existed before Tartarus and the Dark Hour ever appeared.
So then, how long have Shadows been around...?

That's actually a really good point. The Dark Hour and Tartarus came into being because Mitsuru's grandpa decided to try and control Time and messed up. But where did Shadows come from...?



And we haven't been to Tartarus very often.
So please prepare yourself for the next full moon.



Have you noticed?
Yeah.

Kinda hard not to, really.

I wonder why... Maybe he just doesn't get along with kids.
I mean, Senpai IS kinda awkward in social situations.

And there's nothing on TV, so we're done here for tonight. But what to do, what to do... it's a Tuesday and we have options...



So for the first time in like a month or so we can spend time with Tanaka again!

This Mysterious Feeling



Sounds fun.
I had a splendid time! I still laugh thinking about it.



I doubt you'd understand how I feel, since you're still young, but...
A high school reunion is a very important event...



I, uh, I though for a moment there Tanaka was going to NOT be a dickhead and I got kinda worried. Fortunately(?), he managed to return to normal.

For example, I ran into a classmate who used to make fun of me for only having rice in my bento...
...and another fellow who once strung up my holey socks on the flagpole.
Now, they both look at me with envy. Their annual salary doesn't even compare to my monthly income!
My business is on a roll, and my private life is also very satisfying.



Don't think I would extend this offer to just anyone.

> You sense that President Tanaka has strong feelings for you.

> You feel like you understand him a little better now.





I actually had kinda forgotten. I guess when you have half a million in your wallet that tiny amount stops mattering.

...But half a million is also a paltry sum that I don't expect to last very long so...

My time is worth at least a hundred thousand yen per hour!
Think of all the free advice I've given you!

> President Tanaka left with a grin on his face.

Tanaka's definitely in a good mood, since he didn't even make a silly joke revenge threat this time. Weird.



And we just have to hit the books a little tonight before we go to bed. Can't stay up too late since we do have sports training to do for the next few days still. Yay...