Part 94: Mission 41 - The Light of Hope - Part 1

Here we are again, upgrading the obvious ghosts of our incinerated people. Hopefully our upgrades will pass on as Sally, Mari (and Kaworu?), the International Dannar team, Garis and the Darius droids, and the Queen Fuji charge the moon to kick Gloria’s ass.
Now, despite Kira’s boost, Daiya has a pretty solid stake on the 2nd place (1st place for non-cheaters), so Jesus might be stuck in 3rd. Tragic.



Final round of upgrades: Jeeg was brought up to 50% (Squad Bonus: Accuracy +15, Melee weapons’ power +200) and the rest was used to buff Ichitaka as much as could be done. He’s nowhere near maxed out but that extra armor means enemies will have a real hard time doing lasting damage through Miu’s Barrier and the Laplace Wall.



No event units for the finale, but we do have 22 slots which is room enough for pretty much everyone important:
Dancouga/Hilde
Daiya/Deceive
Kouichi/Quatre
Lee/Norza
Kenji/Kyo
Jeeg/Micchi
Shinji/Rey
Kouji/Sawatari
Tetsuya/Canaria
Kira/Athrun
Iczer-3/Soubi
Goh/Yanma
Eida/Anna
Iczer-1/Iczer-2
Ozma/Luca
Heero/Yuu
Voltes/Combattler
Alto/Brera
Shinn/Yulianne
Asuka/Lou
Ichitaka/Miu
Eternal (In hindsight, I should’ve deployed Rei and someone else, but I only realized it was 22 slots, not 21, when I was recording, so I just picked whatever.)

Save the world, Queen Fuji!




: And so end the Guardians of Earth…
: Time and again they were an unrelenting shield against invaders; they were agents of justice… always the embodiment of hope for the weak.
: And that is precisely why news of their destruction should quickly sap the morale of any nations still fighting out there.
: There’s nothing quite as fragile as the hearts of people who’ve lost their anchors.
: Hah, you’re damn wrong. Even when they’re waist-deep in despair, the people can still pull themselves right back up…!
: What…?! That voice is…!





: Crooks like you won’t be running amuck while we’ve got something to say about it!
: LOTUS, the Champions of Justice, have arrived!
: Wh-What…?! How are you still alive after being on the receiving end of the Galtdeus artillery?!
: …! Wait, you didn’t…!
: Guess the other shoe just dropped. The Rushbird absorbed all the energy of your attack with the Laplace Wall…
: And the Straybird used all that energy to engage its Imaginary Road and warp us all the way to the surface of the moon.
: You absorbed all of that attack…?! Impossible!
: Yes, it’s possible! Ad libbing things is our specialty, you know!
: And using the Dimensional Converter as a warp device was my grandfather’s idea from the start.
: ‘Course, that was some real heavy lifting for the Rushbird, but it’s still got more than enough power to beat you up!
: Hrm, you stubborn pests…!
: And another thing. You were talking about how the people would quickly submit without us, right?
: I did. The people can only live by clinging to something else. With that something gone, they are helpless…
: Not at all. Because so long as justice is alive, there’ll always be those ready to stand up and fight. And those people will eventually end you!
: Right. You might even beat us today, but you can never snuff out the people’s spirit!
: That said, it doesn’t mean we’re leaving this mess for folks to sort out later!
: Yeah, absolutely… After what you did to Earth, we’d never be able to rest easy if we didn’t beat you into the dirt ourselves!
: … Hmph, the gall. Do you honestly think you’ve a shot at defeating me face-to-face?
: The Galtdeus is a mobile fortress, designed with the single purpose of facing and destroying Central.
: It is the fruit of all of Prof. Grife’s genius, and GreAT’s know-how and hard work… It personifies power, and I’m certain you can appreciate its majesty.
: Hmph… You call something you made by probing other peoples’ heads the fruit of your “hard work”? Don’t be ridiculous!
: To each their own, I suppose. But all this that I’ve accomplished… it most certainly is the crystallization of all my hard work!



: Blah, and here come all those mooks. I’m so sick of fighting these…
: But whatever the might throw at us, we can’t let ourselves be beaten…!
: You all know what’s at stake here, people. The enemy has quite the force waiting for us, but defeat is absolutely not an option…
: So my order for you is just this… take him down! I believe in all of you…!
: … Mission accepted…!
: We’ll whoop his butt and keep Earth’s future – our future – safe!
: The people of our world must be seriously dense to pick this guy as President!
: We can’t really give them crap since we chose Mishima. The politicians always keep their real selves way out of sight from the common folk.
: Ludo Gloria! Your defeat is what will really signal a new dawn for our Earth!
: This is it – the last battle of LOTUS! HERE WE GOOOO!


Mission 41 – The Light of Hope


Destroy the Galtdeus, don’t lose a ship. Last mission was the dry run – now’s the real deal. You’ve got a ton of mooks, MP Imperial Valleys and HL-1s, and Gloria ready to snipe down everyone on approach.
How easy this mission goes depends on the answer to this question: how many Confuse casters do you have? All in all, I’ve six which is actually more than what I think would be necessary to make this real smooth.
The reason I say that is because not only do the HLs have that high accuracy, the large amount of enemies makes evasion decay a real problem if they decide to gang up on people. Resource management, especially your SP, is essential to drop Gloria as soon as the game allows you (hint, hint).

Same priorities as always: take out the Strike Valleys ASAP lest they debuff your armor and, if there’s a Destroy by where you’ll be running people, take it out to avoid random MAPWs. You’ll want to spread your group in two wings, each going up the east and west sides of the crater and converging at Gloria because, as you might expect, he has a big MAPW he can use.
I find that the Imperial Valleys are more trouble than they’re worth and, with Confuse, there’s a decent enough chance your guys will be able to dodge them. Again, if they’re not directly in your way, consider ignoring them to conserve resources.


Galtdeus (Ludo Gloria)
Pilot Skills:
Counter
Break Morale Limit
Guard
Double Movement
Commander L4
Prevail L9
Support Attack L3
Attack Combo L3
Mech Features:
10% HP Regen
30% EN Regen

Gloria IS the toughest boss in the game by a mile, packing a full 300k HP, massive stats across the board, S ranks and a ton of range and firepower. Prevail L9 on top of Guard and a 3L size means damage will quickly start to drop against him – especially if you don’t use Size-Ignoring attacks like combos and whatnot. Yulianne’s Armor Down will be tremendously helpful in wrecking him in one round.
As I mentioned above, Gloria is more than equipped to snipe you down and his strongest attack, Revolution Cannon, has a reach of 3-9 and hits like a jet-propelled truck. Don’t let him get a clean him with it, or else. On the flip side, if you can close the distance, things become a lot better as he can only use his second weakest attack at point-blank.

Actually getting close to him is the catch, though, because Gloria has gone to Dvorak’s School of MAPW: a 4x4 AoE that he can set anywhere in a 2-8 range and it won’t even hit his own guys. Oh, and it also has a +30 accuracy modifier. THIS is why you’ll want to have Confuse up as often as you can, or at least have Daunt/Exhaust casts ready to push his morale back under 130 (Gloria has exceptional morale gains, though).
Oh, and you should know that Gloria doesn’t subscribe to the oft-seen trend of double moving bosses never using MAPWs back-to-back. He absolutely will tag you twice in a round – he’ll tag the same group twice – and that’s a recipe for dead stuff, especially with the mooks running interference. With Confuse up and a few command auras, though, it’s not too bad, but you’ll still want to keep your guys as spread out as can be on approach.
Don’t rush this because Gloria has some surprises, but don’t take things too slow that you’ll run dry. Keep a steady pace and, once your morale’s good, send someone to just tag the Galtdeus with whatever and trigger the plot.


Oh, and like in so many SRWs, this stage gets a unique map BGM.



















https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06lfTgBAOaw
And, hey, a Nuclear Windam finally managed to last long enough to put those guns to use!
It actually hurts a ton, as you can see.














And here he comes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J32D82FQDy4












As I said, just tag Gloria with whatever.



: With Central’s defeat, our Earth is finally coming together. I can do the same for this one as well, you know. Given the opportunity, I’ll unite all nations of this planet.
: Is defeating me truly what’s just? Oh, but I suppose this kind of questioning will always be too much for mere soldiers like you…!
: Hah, it’s always the worst folks who go around yelling of how in the right they are. And then they turn around and stomp all over everyone else to get what they want!
: The justice you brandish is as empty as your words. You’ve nowhere the sort of resolve Treize Khushrenada and Hisataka Katou had.
: And even nameless soldiers can still see the truth. The people were caught in the crossfire of your offensive, and the moment you accepted that, you became… evil.
: So prepare yourself! We won’t hesitate you put an end to you!
: For all your merits, you are hollow inside. The pain you’ll now feel is your just deserts for all those you’ve crushed underfoot!
: Final target IDed… Moving to destroy…!












Heero: “Ludo Gloria, not everything will be going according to your plans!”
Gloria: “Heero Yui… that’s the name of a legendary leader of this world, no? But I’m afraid I’ll be claiming that title as my own now!”


: Hmhmhm… Oh, how wonderful my Galtdeus is. No attacks can harm it, you see.
: Our weapons are having no effect…?!
: That’s… It’s using a dimensional seam as a barrier! It’s the same principle as a Fold Fault…!
: I told you: the Galtdeus personifies power, so it cannot be anything but indestructible!
: It had to rise above even the SDF-1 Macross, or it would be unable to win the people’s hearts and minds! And with that in mind, I made it so…!
: Emi, Rachel, we gotta do something or this’ll go just like when we fought the Glain-Neidr!
: We’re on it! Emi, you got a fix on where that barrier’s energy flow is coming from?!
: I do! It’s originating from…



: From these coordinates! I’m sending them to you right now!
: Huh? But there’s nothing…
: Look closer, Iczer-3! They’re not good enough to trick our eyes!
: Ummm… Ah! Found them!





: There they are…!
: So we need to destroy those and the Galtdeus’ barrier will disappear. Simple enough.
: And unlike those Spheres, it looks like we can attack those just fine. In that case…
: Right, we just have to fire everything we have and wreck them!
: Your targets are the enemy’s flying fortresses! Save dealing with President Gloria for after they’re down!
: Alright, now the way to go is 100% clear…
: But it would be rude to keep “His Excellency” waiting. Let’s wrap this up quick!
: Hmhmm, we’ll see about that…


And here’s why I told you not to bumrush Gloria. Before you can damage him, you must first destroy all 6 of these Core Fortresses and each one has 50k HP. Good news is they have no important skills to watch out for, being just big blobs of HP.
Still, that’s still another 300k HP you’ll need to wear down and Gloria will keep on pelting you with MAPWs while you run around wrecking the things. Keep running Confuse, spread your folks as best you can and see if you can’t take them out in two turns at most.


If you’ve been stocking SP, feel free to pop a Valor or two here to speed up the process.



Rey and Shinji just couldn’t move close enough with a single Zeal cast, but I’ll take four out of six.








Their 2L size cuts the damage a bit, but 12k on each one will help.



























https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jt2JeN1Xglk
The Core Fortresses come with a very special attack involving all GreAT mooks… which still counts as an energy attack!
















And that’s the last of them!

*Power dooooown.*

: We’ve confirmed all fortresses have gone silent!
: That should also have done away with the Galtdeus’ barrier!
: Well, well, you’re putting up quite the fight… but I’d expect no less from the Guardians of Earth. However, I still have a few tricks up my sleeve.



: Giant missiles…?!
: These are my divine thunderbolts – the Conquest Bombs – and they’re set to make a beeline for the PLANTs!
: You’re going to destroy the PLANTs?!
: All I want is Earth and all its resources. Agricultural colonies, I could be talked into keeping around, but residential ones? I don’t need those at all.
: But, really, the people of this Earth aren’t high on my list of priorities right now.
: How can you say that…?! There’s nothing more precious than life!
: So what will it be, young Champions of Justice? You can’t simply turn the other cheek and let those set out to the PLANTs, can you? We both know that.
: You understand that you’d be going along with my plan, but you cannot help yourselves. You simply MUST divert some of your forces to deal with it. And that is the greatest weakness of Champions of Justice.
: … Psh, talk about veneer falling off.
: So now you’re using the lives of everyone as a shield… For all your attitude, you’re no different from a random thug.
: You’d best watch your tongue! I’ll have you know that my Conquest Bombs also have more than enough firepower to reduce your units to piles of slag!
: And there’s the choice of the day: if you wish to save the PLANTs, then feel more than welcome to stop my bombs with your own bodies. Of course, if you do that, I’m afraid there won’t be much left of you to try and stop me.
: Death by willingly flinging themselves at an obvious trap… a suitable end for you Champions of Justice, I say…!
: Bah, listen to you… What’s gonna happen is that we’ll protect the PLANTs and take you down! Real CHAMPIONS OF JUSTICE can always manage to do both!
: And real Champions of Justice will never lose to anyone when it’s time to fight and defend others!
: Stay strong, everyone! I know you can pull through this!




Remember Mission 7 (Retreat Route)? It’s just like that. Gloria’s 6 Conquest Bombs will set off to the southern edge of the map and, if one gets there, you lose. But there are two problems with that plan: one, there’s quite the long distance for them to cover (might take 3-4 turns for one to reach the goal – more than enough to drop Gloria) and, two…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4yY_Yu2HCw
The Bombs not only have rather piddly HP, they still have only one attack: blowing up. Like Logos’ nukes, whether the hit connects, you dodge or, say, use Invincible/Iron Wall, they kill themselves regardless.
A shame that Gloria’s plan never accounted for us having spirit commands. Whooops!

Mind you, after the Conquest Bombs start to spawn, when the enemies are reduced below 20…



: Enemy reinforcements!
: Hrm, and they just don’t stop coming…!
: This really shouldn’t come as any surprise – I just have to recall the forces I’d deployed across Earth.
: You may be so very powerful, but the line that separates victory and defeat is determined by the size of one’s army – or lack thereof.
: Maybe, but you still can’t summon all the forces you’ve deployed on Earth at once… isn’t that right?
: …!
: Meyrin, have you ran the numbers on how many mobile weapons he can warp in?
: Yes. According to intel provided by Prof. Grife, the warp device can only transport about 30 units per jump.
: Then the total number of troops he has isn’t a problem. We’ll destroy each wave as they come in.
: And as he’s forced to pull more and more forces out of Earth, it’ll give the people still fighting a chance regroup and attack.
: Surrender while you still can. Your plans are all falling apart.
: Get ready to face the music, Ludo Gloria!
: We’ll make you apologize to the Professor and everyone on Earth!
: Silence! SILENCE!! How could I ever be beaten by insects like you?!
: You may be this Earth’s guardians, but I’m its conqueror! Nothing but victory awaits me!
: Come! Let the full power of the Galtdeus – the power that’ll rule over a new world –carve into your souls! And then prostrate yourselves at my feet!

And if you kill all bombs…

: All of the enemy missiles are confirmed destroyed!
: Your ace in the whole has been destroyed, Mr. President… What will you do now?
: Then I suppose you force my hand… I wanted to use these to persuade the people of the surface into playing nice, but…



: H-He has more?!
: It’ll be alright, Naoto! He can bring out as many of these as he wants, we’re still keeping the PLANTs safe!

As it turns out, Gloria has unlimited reinforcements the second you take out his Core Fortresses. When you get rid of the things, then, that’s your cue to drop everything and bash the Galtdeus into submission.
Ideally you’d have killed all but one fortress in a turn, taking out the last one with a ship or something and sending everyone after Gloria immediately as the endless respawns begin. If you don’t, however, that’s fine: pop Confuse, let the bombs run off, spread out as much as you can to minimize the threat of MAPWs and wrap things up in the next turn.

Before we get the ball rolling, here are the other attacks of the Galtdeus:



: I feel what lies in your heart… a cold flame that nobody would ever truly embrace…
: I can certainly see the logic behind banding together, uniting your strength… but what it all comes down to is that that’s a weakling’s train of thought.
: And it amounts to absolutely nothing when faced with one truly mighty person!
: That’s where you are wrong. What you are is a lone man, wallowing in the power he’s earned…!
: But we’re not alone! I got a bit of everyone’s flame burning hot inside my heart…!
: And you say the power that has “amounts to nothing”? Let’s put that to the test and see who gets burned!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYSTn1c2My0
Gloria vs. Daiya: “You saved the Darius, the surface, and next you mean to save the world? Think you can actually pull that one off?”

: And the Voltes V sets itself before me… though I’m afraid your claim as the mightiest of all is ancient history.
: You see, I’ve amassed tech from all the Boazans you defeated and finally created a weapon to surpass even your unit!
: Our parents made the Voltes and if you think you’re wrecking it that easy, you’re in for a reality check!
: You talk a good talk, but, at the end of the day, you don’t give a damn about anyone but yourself!
: And we’re not about to let ourselves be beaten by someone like that! Come and feel the power of the Voltes for yourself!

--

: My Galtdeus was built to rise above and beyond any of Earth’s weapons!
: You’ve absolutely not winning this one. Just lay down your weapons, nice and easy.
: You’ve got to be kidding. My father poured his soul into building the Combattler…
: And it ain’t getting trounced by this gold POS you had to force people to make for you!
: All that data ya got from us is already way outdated! Now grit your teeth and I’ll prove it to you, Ludo Gloria!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzZ-9dHuxkQ
And here’s Gloria’s strongest weapon in full.
Gloria vs Voltes: “Voltes V… things might’ve turned out quite different in our world had you made it back from Planet Boazan.”
Vs. Combattler: “You cannot combine unless all five of your brainwaves are in sync? Do you honestly think you can best me with that faulty system?”


Now we can go! L doesn’t have a JAM Project song, so I asked around and this was recommended!

: Your ambitions are about to come to a screeching halt, Gloria! And I, Tetsuya Tsurugi, am here to make that happen!
: Ah, the hero who’s defended Earth time after time… A shame that I must turn that pride and iron will to crumbs.
: I’d hoped that you would take up the mantle as a guardian of my world… but it doesn’t look like you’re willing to hear me out.
: Of course not – there’s nothing left for me to say to you. But if you insist, I’ll have to let my fists get my point across!

--

: Having a man like you in the front lines is a boon to your whole team. Your very presence bolsters everyone’s morale…
: You’re not an opponent to underestimate. I’ll turn you to ashes with the full might of the Galtdeus…!
: Hah, talk me up all you like, that won’t make me less pissed off at you!
: Step up, Ludo Gloria! Throw whatever you want at me, Kouji Kabuto always finds a way to bring home the gold!






Gloria vs Kouji: “Ah, the Devil Emperor; that’s quite the fitting opponent. Let us ante up the fate of the world, then! Come!”
Vs. Tetsuya: “I can appreciate your determination, but if you’ll bear your blade against me, I’m left with no choice!”



Ah, sorry. All these Projects confuse me – here’s the actual song!



: War does nothing but spread sorrow and hatred, and I’ll bring an end to it today!
: Indeed, it’ll end – at the moment this world falls squarely under my rule, that is!
: The way you look at the PLANTs like they’re nothing is no different from how the old Earth government treated us!
: And I’m not letting you call the shots with our world’s destiny! Earth is our home, so keep your hands off it!












Gloria vs. Shinn: “You do understand that I’m offering the world free of war that you so desire, yes?”

: Here’s a bit of wisdom for you, boy: justice does not equal victory. Rather, it’s the victors who determine what justice is.
: Good to hear! Guess our justice was the real deal all along, huh, Emi?
: Right, Kouichi! After all, victory will be ours… because we’re true Champions of Justice!








Gloria vs. Kouichi: “Champions of Justice, hm…? Then I suppose I’ll simply educate this world on how pointless it is to ramble about justice.”

: Come on, Goh! Let’s take that guy out in a hurry and put an end to all this fighting!
: Yeah! We’ll show him how strong the bonds between a husband and wife are!
: How the mighty hero of the War of Giants has fallen… What use is something like a bond between man and woman in the battlefield?
: All that time you spent spying on us and you didn’t learn jack, I see…
: I’ve Anna, and all my friends, here by my side! You might not realize the strength that comes from the bonds we share, but I can easily showcase it for you!
















Gloria vs. Goh: “I’ll give you ample proof that that the power of ‘love’ and ‘bonds’ is worthless in battle!”

: I don’t feel anything in your heart – not a person you care about, or an ideal you pursue… What a sad man you are…
: Everyone here has been fighting for something or someone. But all you’re doing is fueled just by your thirst for glory…
: I’m fighting for my people, thank you very much. Under my rule, our two worlds will complement each other’s deficiencies, and then prosperity will be ours.
: We’d share with you our advanced technology, and you’d share with us your abundant resources. Whatever is wrong with that picture, I ask of you?
: The fact you don’t mean anything you say! If you’re so good, then why’s your heart so empty?!
: Silence! How dare an android – a man-made automaton – talk about anyone’s heart?!
: The Nagisas were always so kind to everyone – androids or not…!
: And that’s your main problem, old man! You don’t know how to be kind to others, and that’s why your heart’s empty!

--

: I’m afraid Earth has no place for your kind, Warrior of the Cthulhu. Why not surrender and I’ll show you to the door?
: Do you think the Cthulhu still want to invade Earth? They’re not like you!
: I do regret having to do any invasion.
: What I truly want is nothing more than to bring the peoples of both Earths together under the rule of one king.
: If you claim to truly have what it takes to be king, then you’d best stop with your empty rhetoric!
: You have no pride as a warrior. Rather, you grasp so desperately at any power and political influence you can get your hands on… pathetic.
: Ludo Gloria… In the name of all those I hold dear, I’ll make sure Earth stays far out of your reach…!












Gloria vs. Iczer-3: “I’ve no use for an ignorant Iczer kid. Stand down or I’ll have to make you!”
Vs. Iczer-1: “You vagrants dare get in the way of my conquest of Earth…? You don’t know your place, I see!”