Part 53: Update 51 – Let's Make History

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Last time in Skies of Arcadia, ships from all over the world came to join us in the fight against Galcian. This time, well...





The skies are clear, and we've got the wind behind us. Considering we're about to enter a battle over the fate of the world, the weather is pretty good.

Hurry up and give us the command to attack! My men are getting restless! This is the longest they've gone without attackin' someone! And they're gettin' jumpy!

Vyse, the Primrose awaits your command. We're ready to fight! And take good care of Gilder!

The Albatross II is ready when you are, son!

Captain Vyse! We're ready for some action! We've got a personal score to settle with the Armada!

Gilder's Crew: Captain Gilder, we'll take care of the The Claudia while you're gone! We'll try to get her back to you in one piece!

The Iron Clad isn't much of a warship, but it's the most manoeuvrable ship in the fleet. We're also hoping that they underestimate us.

Don't worry about a thing, Vyse. The Tenkou and the rest of the Yafutoman Navy are right behind you! This is gonna be good!

Boy...let's get movin'! The Harpoon Cannon is ready for action!

Vyse! The Delphinus is ready when you are!



This is a very special moment, folks. It's the very last Swashbuckler choice of the game, and another one with two correct answers. You can probably guess which of the two I prefer.

This day will always be remembered. How it's remembered is up to us! Right here, right now! Let's make history!

Alternatively:

Alright! Air Pirates...onward to victory! Full speed to Soltis!



Oh yes. Galcian is going to need something really quite special to get out of this one.





Oh.



The Hydra. Named after the Hydra constellation, which is itself named after one of the most terrible creatures in Greek mythology, and which either by coincidence or excellent writing ties in fantastically with Galcian. He has a serpent theme, and The Hydra constellation is often represented by a water snake. Not only that, but the constellation dates back to Babylonian times, where it was a lion/bird/snake hybrid, and is one of two snake-themed constellations that date back to the Babylonians – the other is Serpens, the constellation after which Galcian's former flagship is named .

It's also the biggest constellation in the sky. Appropriate.



See the insigna on the wall? That's Galcian's personal insignia, a pair of entwined winged serpents. Expect to see it a lot in this update.

My lord...shall I accompany you?

It is not necessary. If any countries resist, I shall destroy them with the Rains. I need you here to defend Soltis and to command Zelos to rain down on our enemies.

A wise decision...

Watch Officer: My lord! An unknown fleet of ships is headed this way at attack speed. I can't identify the fleet, but...leading the charge is the...Delphinus...

So, the Air Pirates have come to challenge me. It saves me the trouble of hunting them down...I shall purge the skies of their kind forever!

Lord Galcian...perhaps I should go as well...

No. We cannot lose Soltis. Return at once!



Oh good grief, he's like a psychopathic mass-murdering puppy. Just look at those eyes.

Do not worry. The Hydra will dispose of them. Air Pirates...it will rain today indeed. The skies will weep with your blood! All ships, full speed ahead! Destroy the Air Pirates...destroy every last one of them!



The Armada is closing fast!

Alright, battlestations!!! This is it!!!





So, uh, yeah. Our first opponent in the Battle for Soltis is a generic Valuan cruiser. It died in one hit with absolutely no ceremony. Next!

We've broken their front line, but reinforcements are closing in fast!

Galcian, I'm coming for you!



Galcian's Elite Vessel: All hands to battlestations! Do whatever you have to so, just make sure they don't get past us!

Now this is more like it. Galcian's Elite are from the line of ships the Delphinus was the prototype for, which makes them the most dangerous fleet in the skies. And if you need proof of just how dangerous they can be, well...



It took three whole shots for this to happen. If that's not proof then I don't know what is.




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Heh heh...well done, Vyse. You shall live just long enough to feel the destructive power of the Hydra! All cannons fire on the Delphinus!!!

There's an enemy ship ahead! It's huge!!!

No...it can't be!

Enrique, you know this ship?

It's called the Hydra. It was dubbed “The Flying Fortress”. Galcian must have had his own men complete it! My mother wanted its production stopped because of its magnitude.

Why, wasn't it big enough?

Galcian must be in there!

This battle won't be over until we destroy that thing! Alright, Galcian! It ends now!





Here we go! The grand showdown with the Hydra is upon us, and it's a doozy of a battle. For starters, just look at the first two rounds of the battle grid.



Yeah. And don't expect it to get any easier after the opening salvo, either. Not only does the Hydra hit harder than any of the Gigas, it keeps up the pressure more or less constantly, rather than just tossing out one or two attacks per turn. It's not going to be one-shotting the Delphinus any time soon, but woe betide ye if you get complacent and don't bother to keep your health up.



And here's the other issue with the Hydra: it takes hits like a medium-sized planet. Largely that's because it has triple Yeligar's defence, not to mention a full 50,000hp more. This is a long, long fight, which makes it all the more tempting to skimp on healing and try to squeeze out a few more attacks instead. Don't. You'll regret it.



See? I survived that attack with 30hp to my name. Out of 58,000.



An interesting choice. The upper part is the part with all the guns, so let's steer clear of those and attack the hull.



Uh.

Look! The ship's hull fell away and there's a giant cannon coming out!

Uh oh...it looks like Galcian's getting serious now. Alright everyone...it's now or never!



Ready the Hydra Cannon...



Ow. The Hydra Cannon (or Galcian Cannon in the Japanese version!) is the strongest attack in the game so far, just edging out the mighty Vigoro Cannon for the title. By this point in the game the Delphinus is so ridiculously tough that it can just shrug it off, but the threat is less the Hydra Cannon itself and more that it adds to the already formidable pressure the Hydra can put out each turn.



All the same, so long as you're not afraid to break out the Complete Kits, it's really just a matter of time.

The enemy ship has been severely damaged and is trying to flee from battle!

Galcian's trying to run away?! We can't let him escape! We've got to go after him!


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Alright, I give up! How is that thing still flying?!

Vyse...they're getting away!

Alright...looks like we're going to have to do this the old fashioned way! Alright everyone! Prepare to board the Hydra! We're going to fight Galcian face to face.





Three air pirates, a Silvite, and a tiny unarmed lifeboat. Galcian doesn't stand a chance.





I always get a distinctly Devil May Cry-ish vibe from this scene. It's pretty great.



Onward to victory!





So, the Hydra. It's largely split into two parts, the interior of the ship shown here, and the surface with all the cannons. The gist of the dungeon is that there are a bunch of ladders leading from the surface to the interior, and we want to find the one that takes us to the command centre where Galcian is.

Actually, scratch that. What we want to do is find all the paths that don't lead to the command centre and clean out every scrap of loot in this hulk.



Like the Moonberry that nets Fina her final Super Move, for example . Lunar Light is exactly as ridiculous as the description makes it sound: not only does it completely heal everyone, including KOd characters, and cure all status effects, it also has increased priority so it always goes first. The only problem is that if you're in bad enough shape to warrant using it, you probably don't have the 18SP it requires. Even with that drawback, there's still nothing better for recovering from a potential game over.



The Hydra may not have much in the way of puzzles, but it makes up for it with formidable random encounters. Expect to see clones of Carcer from way back in the Valuan Colosseum, the assassins from the attack on Crescent Island, suits of power armour and more besides. If you feel so inclined, you can get some of the strongest equipment in the game here, like the Hydra Wing and Marksman Gun. Thankfully those two both got added to the Moonfish quest so they're no longer permanently missable, but the Ominous Mask accessory is gone for good if you don't feel like grinding here for a while. Personally I don't think it's worth the time – it provides a whopping 75 attack and defence, but at the cost of the character gaining no SP.



On the subject of SP, the gang finally produces enough for Aika to use Omega Psyclone on her first turn!







And then everything explodes, because why not? It's just as nonsensical in motion, but still completely awesome.



Finally having pillaged everything of value from the Hydra, we're off to the command centre. The engine here has a distinctly...Silvite look to it if you look closely. I guess that explains how something so gigantic manages to stay in the air.


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The command centre. Note Galcian's seal embossed on the door.

That looks like the bridge...Galcian must be in there.

Well, I guess we'll just have to break that door down, won't we?



That will not be necessary.

Galcian!



I did not realise that there were still this many people in the world foolish enough to resist me. And you, Vyse, have caused me more trouble than anyone.

Thanks. It's an Air Pirate's duty to cause trouble...I feel so accomplished. But there's one more thing I'd like to accomplish...



Heh heh...very amusing...but this world shall be mine! It's a pity you won't be around to see it. Now, you shall feel my wrath!





It's been a long time coming, but here it is: the final showdown with Lord Galcian. Remembered what happened the first time we met him on the train? Since then we've defeated ancient horrors, circumnavigated the globe, plumbed the abyss, delivered fish and flown into space. If we're not ready now we never will be.



Galcian still has his Devolver from the first unwinnable fight with him, and it's still just Counterstance with a really flashy animation. The counterattacks are no problem, but the halved damage is a real pain in the Pirate's Wrath.



Neglora, his first new attack, is more dangerous. The damage may be negligible, but it has the nasty effect of purging all your carefully applied buffs. Think Lunar Winds, but with less floating blob-pets and more giant swords.

As for his third and final attack, well...



Kneel...



Kneel before me!



Taaaaaake THIS!





Terminal alone makes the video worth watching, in my opinion. It's just so gloriously over the top.

But you know, even after Terminal, there's still only one way this battle can end.




Click for video!

This video is compulsory viewing for this LP. Do it.

Your reign of terror is over!

I don't think so...you may have won the battle, but I shall have my revenge!

What?! The bridge!

Fools, when will you realise that you cannot stop me! Now I shall destroy every last one of you.



You better have a damn good explanation for standing around doing nothing while he got away.

I thought he was too arrogant to have an escape pod!

Huh. Ok then.

Vyse, he's getting away! We have to do something!

If he gets away, he'll retreat back to Soltis and we'll never get a chance to stop him!

The other pirates are tied up fighting with the Armada!

...Huh? Hey...what's that?!



It's Belleza's ship!

Hey...something's not right...no...you don't think...?!







Lord Galcian, so many innocent people died by your hand. Women and children...bled to death in the streets...as an Admiral in the Armada, I feel that I am responsible for their deaths...as much as you are.



Goodbye, my love...



What!?



And suddenly a whole lot of little hints Belleza dropped ever since we met her in Maramba make sense.

She...she sacrificed her own life to stop Galcian...

Oh, Belleza...





Remember the story about the Hydra? About what happens if you cut off one of its heads?

Whoops.

NO!!!



Yet another one of my favourite scenes in the game. Ramirez pounding his fist on the ground over and over to absolutely no effect. It's not often that a villain is shown as completely impotent, and it makes for a powerful image.



'Course, imagery only goes so far when you have the power to end the world at your fingertips.





No! Ramirez is going to use the Rains of Destruction again!!!

There's nothing we can do to stop him!

Ramirez...please...



…! Elders...oh, no...

What's wrong, Fina?!

Vyse! Look!







Elder Orbis: Fina...Soltis used to be our home. We created it...from nothing...and now we must destroy it...for a thousand generations...we have judged the people of the world...everything we have created...Soltis...Zelos...the Rains...was all because these people did not measure up to our standards...but...perhaps we were wrong. Fina, by believing in the people of this world, you have taught us a great deal. We sent you here to destroy the world, but now we are going to help you save it. There is no need to be sad...if we had not created the Rains of Destruction, the world would not be in jeopardy. Please...for the sake of the future...for the sake of this world...you must prevail!







There's far too much in this scene for me to show it off in screenshots, and in any case a lot of the power comes from the sound, and lack of it. I'm a great believer in the power of silence as a dramatic tool, and what can be even more powerful is a sound you weren't expecting. I won't spoil It for you here, though.



And there's our way in.

Fina...

...The Elders...they finally believed in the future...



I'll make sure their sacrifice was not in vain.

Boy...it looks like it's finally time to go to Soltis.

Huh? Captain Drachma!

We have defeated the Armada. Most of the ships fled once the Hydra was destroyed. It's time to go Soltis, boy. Look over there.

That's...Shrine Island!

Aye, a perfect fit.

So, Shrine Island was a part of Soltis, huh?

Maybe you'll be able to get into Soltis through there. I'll go with you. I may be old, but I can still fight better than most men.

The rest of us will wait here in the ship. If you want any of us to take the place of anyone else, just come back here.

Really? If you'll come with us, Captain, we'd be honoured.

Vyse, make sure you are well prepared before you head in there. You should never rush into a fight.

I know. Thanks, Gilder. Alright, everyone, get ready! We're going back to Shrine Island!

My friends, the end is near. But who's going to join us for the final curtain? This will be the final poll of the game, for real this time. We have all three options open to us now, Drachma, [/b]Gilder[/b] and Enrique, but only one can join us. Three men enter, one man leaves (the other two stay on the ship playing tiddlywinks).

Video List
Let's Make History
The Hydra
Taking the Hydra
Galcian
Galcian Falls