Part 22: The window that should still be here

All right, this time we can actually reach Iluya, so let's go see the carnage.



During the tip, Lazlo takes the opportunity to decorate his cabin with some of the antiques we've found.



That's nice!



Here's a Pot of Failure and a Pot of Razil, too, but I'll go with the good luck cat. Lazlo needs all the help he can get!



As we approach Iluya, it starts to rain.



This is where my recording died last time, but fortunately I didn't lose all that much. I forgot what all the chests around here contained, though.



Iluya probably looked quite nice at one point, but now it's all foggy and rainy and grey.



Also.



At least this time, we have Jeane to nuke the thing.



We're still not quite up to furball standards, though.



The prize this time is some very nice armour. The set bonus is +10% Defence, as well as Alert status after four turns. I think it's supposed to boost magic, but there's a rune that causes it as well, and putting that on Jeane did bugger all. I believe there may be a cap on how much you can crank up your magic damage.



Iluya is well and truly fucked.



However, there are still three people here we need to get to...


The window that should still be here... The window that is no longer here...

Slight window obsession aside, I can't really fault the wording here.

Was it because of the Kooluk attack?

Who are you people? You're fighting against the Kooluk now? I-If it would be all right, will you let me join you? Any window work you have for me, I'll do. I'll have to fix all the broken windows of this town, too... But for now, I would like to be of help to you.

Will you join us?

Yes! I will do my best!

That's one.





Not this again!



It's worth the effort, though. This is endgame level stuff right here! The set bonus is +10% Attack, Skill and Speed, which is pretty awesome, but the last piece is in the final dungeon, so we won't be seeing that any time soon.



Here's number two.

The place you passed through just now... That's where the village square was. But now...
So, who are you people anyway? I suppose you're fighting the Kooluk?

Sure am! So...

Let us fight together!

I won't mind, but I have a favor to ask. Sorry if this seems like a test, but will you bring me a Flower Seed?

God damn, get your own!



...is what I'd like to say.



So he plants it.





One more to go.




Blah blah strong blah tanky blah blah bad at everything else blah.

Then, I shall be going on ahead.



Our last recruit is a bit of a pain to find. Most of these paths have been closed up by collapsed buildings and rubble and can't actually be traversed. Fortunately, however, this part is not encounter infested.



Here she is!

My name is Lazlo...

You're not one of us, are you? Go on, get lost!

Not very friendly.



That voice... Is that you, Mizuki?

I have to know what kind of family you're from. First we get Mizuki... and then the dread ninja Kate. Maybe it's an alias?



That was in the past... Currently, we work for Sir Lazlo.

Wow... Things are getting interesting. So it was the Kooluk who blew up this island. I had no idea...
I never expected Kooluk to partnber with the Cray Trading Company. I wonder if they forgot about our contract... They ordered me to scout the island, then blew it up while I was here! If it was intentional, they're gonna pay!

We're still going to kill them even if it was completely accidental.

Perhaps something happened to the person you had the contract with.

Maybe... But I'm sure they considered someone like me to be expendable. Oh, what to do now? Say, Mizuki... Could I come along with you guys? I want to see where this chaps will lead us. How about it?
Oh, don't worrh. I won't turn traitorous and join the Kooluk side while I'm with you guys. If I suspect things are going south, I'll just leave without incident.

At least you're honest about it! Also, you're a ninja. Can't have too many of those _{even if pirates are better}.

Sir Lazlo... The decision is up to you.

In that case, come with us.

Thank you. Well, shall we go?




Kate's pretty decent. Not as quick as the other ninjas, but still well above average, and pretty good with magic as well.

Then I'll be going on ahead.

Can I just mention one more thing that bothers me? You can't take new characters with you with a full party. Why can't I just boot someone and send them back instead? It's not like that stopped them in the past!



Anyway, one trip back to the ship later, we replace Ms. Implausible Clothing with our newest ninja...



...and this conveniently allows us to see what Jeane does when she's at her store.



Iluya is home to a rather unique enemy, the Bloody Behemoth. You can't see much of them with the rain and fog, but here's one that got countered to death right in our face.



...and Lazlo after he tried to kill another one with Voice of Death.

The reason we care is because this creature is about the only reliable source for the crafting ingredient Horn in the entire game, and they'll either disappear or become ridiculously rare as the story progresses. Thus, if you want to make anything that needs horns, well, better get yo ass grindin'!



While grinding behemoths, the ninja crew learns True Ninja Attack.



It's the second three-character unite so far, and it... uh




it drops frogs on people okay



With Iluya taken care of, it's time to head for greener pastures... literally. Doesn't this look familiar?

The deserted island is basically in the middle of the map, so even teleporting to the closest port, it still takes a while to get there, and the enemies around the area are considerably stronger than they were when we were last here.



So here's this giant enemy crab...



Mizuki flips it over its back and... okay, that wasn't very massive damage at all. I'm disappointed in you!



That's better. Somewhere along the line, Lazlo gained his first fourth-level spell. Elemental unites make a return in Suikoden IV - this is Thunder God, a fourth level water and lightning spell combined. It deals 1500 damage to an enemy and fully heals the party - pretty nice! It also one-shots giant enemy crabs.



This is another rare crafting ingredient. It's used to create the Ogre set, which is probalby the best equipment in the game for... pretty much anyone who can use it.

It's also an utter pain to make, due to crab shells not exactly growing on trees. This fucker has a five percent chance to drop it. Even with treasure hunting skills, that's... not much.



We can make this, or alternately arm or leg gear (both of which increase strength by 5 each) - the armour needs another shell, which we don't have yet. Still, that's a pretty good boost! Not very defensive, but best defence, overused adage, etc etc.



This pearl shell is one of the rare materials we can pick up by fishing in the area. Great timing!



This is what we want them for.

Elemental magic rings boost your damage output by, or so they say, about ten percent. I believe the Thunder Magic Ring is the only one you can't also obtain in some other way.



Why is this important, you ask?



Because now Jeane can one-shot giant enemy crabs all by herself.



Back to the island, though. It looks just like we left it!



Can't say I missed these caves, though.



So we need to go back out again.

W-Wait!! I forgot! My clothes are outside the cave! Can you get them for me, please?

...so you went through this cave infested with hostile crabs, naked.

...

I'm going to stop thinking about all the things that are wrong with this.



This sure as hell wasn't here the last time I looked.


I'm a little embarrassed.

...



Going out to the next room isn't enough for him. We need to go all the way out.


I better note down its components...

And then go all the way back in again.

This is why I bought all those escape talismans in Obel.

Oh yeah, sorry about my clothes earlier. I totally wasn't expecting other people to be here... Hahaha... My name is Taisuke. How about it? Won't you let me on your ship? I'll build a bath on board your ship.

I'm tempted to tell him to go kill himself, but then my collection would be one part short, so.

Please, come aboard!

Yes! Let's go! Oh yeah, if you'll take me to all sorts of baths, I'll make ones just like them on your ship.

Don't care.



We're not done yet, though. After leaving yet again,there's another mermaid to pick up inside.

A friend of Lilin.

Lilin?! Lilin is all right? All right. I want to go where Lilin is, too.

At least she doesn't expect me to run back and forth for her.

Back to the boat... and the comment box.



so

why



I bet she's thinking about Snowe. I'll have to pick on her later.



Someone has a high opinion of himself!



But you're hanging out just outside his room. Why don't you just open the door and keep him company?

And finally, the best of the lot:



...I think I'm going to need a combination of and



Holy shit that is terrifying.



Anyway, before we move on, I'm going to need another nap.


Would you please check it out? It's very frightening...

...wait, what again?



No, who are YOU?



I have no recollection of you...

Um... Okay, well, if you ever want mint, just stop on by.

Nao and Mao basically work the same way with different products, but you can only grow one thing at a time, and we're already doing a mushroom, so this will have to wait.

...as for the shroom? Still not done yet.



We still have some stuff to take care of before we can advance the plot again. Somewhere around...



...here.



This is what the bottled letter in Nay was talking about.

Passed the test for what?

You saw my bottled letter, didn't you? You're amazing, since you were able to find this place with that.

In fact, they say you can't even find this island without first picking up the letter! Even then, you're pretty unlikely to find it, because as we've seen, it's fucking tiny and you have no reason to be out in these waters anyway. (Of course, I'm cheating and using a map because fuck the ocean.)

The truth is... I sense an incredible energy coming from the ground on this island... There is definitely something good buried here. That's why I came here... But when I thought about it, I realized I wouldn't be able to carry the treasure home, even if I dug it up myself... So, I've been recruiting people who will work with me. You were able to make it here, so you passed.



...that about the extent of it?

Oh, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name's Rene. I know quite a lot about treasure maps. If you find any suspicious maps, please bring them to me. Let's hunt for treasure together.

She hands us a map here.

If you fine a suspicious map, please bring it to me. Let's hunt for treasure together. I'm counting on you. Well, I have some matters to attend to, so I'll go on ahead. Later on, you'll be able to fine me on your ship... "The ship of OBEL", right? Oh, and I'll be fine with splitting the treasure 50/50. I enjoy the hunt, not the treasure itself. Goodbye.

So... now we need to go hunt her down on the ship.

And then we have to play her minigame. Double .

That's quite enough words out of Rene, so I'll be skipping all her explanations. They're boring anyway.



This is what it looks like.



Basically, when you're close to something, the rods will point in the general direction. When you get closer, they'll start to swish back and forth because we don't want this to be easy or anything, and when you hit the target, they'll stop in this position.

It's annoying and tedious and most of the places where you can dig have random encounters, and you can't move at a pace faster than a walk while you're searching either, so basically what I'm saying is fuck Rene forever, and this is by far the worst minigame in Suikoden IV.



At least some of the treasure is nice, but if you think it's all going to be this good, you're setting yourself up for disappointment.

Rage is the second tier of Fire Rune. Just as in previous games, high level orbs take the last three spells from the ordinary rune and move then down one rank, then add a new, generally more powerful, fourth-level spell. In this case, the Fire Rune has these spells:

1: Flaming Arrows - 100 damage / 1 enemy
2: Dancing Flames - 150 damage / all enemies
3: Blazing Wall - 300 damage / all enemies
4: Explosion - 500 damage / all enemies

The Rage Rune, on the other hand, looks like this:

1: Dancing Flames - 150 damage / all enemies
2: Blazing Wall - 300 damage / all enemies
3: Explosion - 500 damage / all enemies
4: Final Flame - 700 damage / all enemies

Not too shabby! That original first level spell was pretty bad.

We have more maps, though. Continuing the adventures on Doughnut Island, we pick up some Thief Shoes...



...which are pretty useless, a diamond (not worth the effort), and a Dragon Head Piece...



...which is sort of okay I guess.



Then, we can also dig on Mordo, and this place has the highest encounter rate so far. The Magic Canceller "nullifies magic once per battle" and I can't think of many things that would be less useful.



Let's talk to someone who doesn't make me want to commit murder. If you've played any previous Suikoden, you already know what she means by "windows" - it's the skin on our user interface.





I'll probably switch them up a little as the game goes on, or maybe put it to a vote or something. For now, I'm going with the second one, which is unexciting, but functional.