Part 144: The Radiant Winged One

This is it, everyone. We're finishing this today.


And what better way to do that than to beat up Duke again?






This goes as before, no changes.







But after his second phase...


Watch the cutscene & battle! / Baldurdash






























































Listen to the full conversation!

If you still intend to fight, then I have no choice but to unleash my full might!
Yeah, well, we're not done yet either!



It'd be an honor to face your full strength.
We have six people and a dog. Somebody will live.



Such strength... what is it that drives you?
The will to protect someone!
The courage to walk the path we choose!



Trust in our friends!
Passion, maybe? I guess?



The possibilities the future brings.
You have something driving you too, right?



It is all just make-believe. Delusions people have made. Soon, they will be betrayed and destroyed.
But they can be built up again!
Even if they are destroyed, we can rebuild them again and again!



If you trust someone, they will answer your call!
I don't care if they are betrayed. I can still be here and appreciate everyone.



I'm sure we can reach each other if we just talk!
Come on, you gotta understand, right?
Woof woof!



Come! Defeat me! Prove to me the strength of your conviction!



So this is it, the real final boss! If you go into the final boss battle with all Fell Arms and all Fell Arms related sidequest scenes done, you trigger Duke's third form, the Radiant Winged One.



He retains a lot of his second form attacks and gains quite a few new ones, based off your party's artes. It's a really cool fight, but can screw you over if you're not expecting it.







Big Bang still works as before: Does a ton of damage, but can't actually kill.















Since this is the final battle of the game and LP, I tried to be as fancy as possible with Mystic Artes.













Get used to Big Bang while fighting this guy, he'll throw it in every now and again to make you waste a Treat.













He also gets a second Mystic Arte, and it's quite impressive.





































Brave Vesperia combined all of your party members' Mystic Artes into one insanely long and complicated one that deals a lot of damage and heals Duke.







Unlike Big Bang, this actually can kill, but does have a maximum range -- Rita somehow managed to avoid most of it here.













Rarely, probably when he gets low on HP, Duke casts Stop Flow, which stops all party members in place for a few seconds.





I got lucky here and stunned him right when it started, so he didn't get to do much.





















And what better way to end it than letting Karol get the final hit with a Mystic Arte?




Getting to this boss fight upgrades your Fell Arms. You don't even have to beat it, as soon as the battle starts you can open your Equipment and switch to them.

The upgraded Fell Arms, like in other Tales games that have these types of weapons, have a unique property: Their base attack power starts at 0, but goes up by 1 for each enemy the character who the weapon belongs to has killed. This also applies to magical attack power, and counts all kills throughout the whole game.



Combo Plus 3: Adds 3 more hits to a regular attack combo.


Extra Combo I: Press the attack button after a normal combo to add an extra hit. Afterwards, press the guard button to sidestep, then the attack button for a final hit.
Extra Combo II: Press the attack button after Extra Combo I's first hit to add an extra hit. Afterwards, press the guard button to sidestep, then the attack button for a final hit.
Extra Combo III: Press after Extra Combo II's first hit to add an extra hit. Afterwards, press the guard button to sidestep, then the attack button for a final hit.


Attack Arte Charge: Able to use charge attacks for offensive artes. Must have Mighty Charge set.
Healing Arte Charge: Able to use charge attacks for healing artes. Must have Mighty Charge set.
Support Arte Charge: Able to use charged attacks for support type artes. Must have Mighty Charge set.


No Skills


Burst Hold: Over Limit will not end while using a Burst Arte.
(Has no skills in the 360 version.)


Burst Hold: Over Limit will not end while using a Burst Arte.
Limits Plus: When entering Over Limit, the level entered will be one level higher than the gauge used.
(Has no skills in the 360 version.)


Limits Plus 2: When entering Over Limit, the level entered will be two levels higher than the gauge used. However, the duration of Over Limit is half the normal time.
Burst Hold: Over Limit will not end while using a Burst Arte.
OVL Concentrate: Become immune to fainting when in Over Limit.
(Has no skills in the 360 version.)


Devotion: Receive half the damage of a nearby ally during battle.
No Artes Plus: Increases EXP earned for allies finishing battle without using any base or arcane artes.


Gamble Limits: When activating Over Limit, may enter Lv. 4 without depleting the gauge. May also exit Over Limit and deplete the entire gauge.


After that, the rest of the ending proceeds as normal.




















And that's Tales of Vesperia.





Thanks for reading.