Part 133: The Coliseum
Welcome to the Coliseum! Today's entire update is dedicated to Nordopolica's Hundred Man Melee event.
We're currently seeking challengers for Palestralle's famous Hundred Man Melee! Only true warriors need apply! ♪
Oh ho, so they finally brought back the Hundred Man Melee, did they?
What's that, old man?
It's a regular event here in the coliseum. Basically, ya got a single fighter goin' up against a whole buncha people. They say ya gotta have a whole lotta guts ta make it through.
Wow... I was wondering what would happen to the coliseum after Belius died... But it looks like they're going strong.
You want to give it a go?
Yes, that's a good idea. Revenue from the event might help with the reconstruction of Nordopolica.
Ummm... Wh-which of us should do it, you think? Not me, right?
Hold your horses. We still haven't decided if any of us will sign up. For now, let's just find out some more details.
Flavor text or subtle commentary on game development? You decide. This is where the PS3 version has the Team Melee, after all.
Anyway.
Before we can do the 100 Man Melee, we need to do the 30, 50 and 80 versions.
The way all of these work is that you register a single character, then head up into the arena.
In here, you get to fight one battle, with lots of enemies.
New enemies keep spawning in when you kill old ones.
You also have a time limit, but it usually isn't a problem.
The enemy list is completely pre-determined, no randomness or anything.
At specific points, special enemies will spawn, such as:
These guys! In shiny golden armor, too.
So far this sounds pretty neat, but there's one unfortunate caveat to this entire thing.
Namely: Later challenges are just extensions of the previous ones. In other words, even in the 100 Man Melee, you start with these exact 30 enemies. Considering the requirements here to actually get everything, this gets very tiring.
Alright, so enough of the mechanics, let's skip to the 100 Man Melee and actually show this off.
All of the "special" enemies in here have a in-battle conversation with some party member. To save us some time and sanity, let's assume we can switch characters on the fly to show these off efficiently. Most of these enemies require their corresponding Letter of Challenge in your inventory to actually show up.
If you want to listen to the conversations in the moment, here is a supercut of them. (Baldurdash)
The first special enemies are, as mentioned, Adecor and Boccos. They get a conversation with Yuri.
Listen to the full conversation!
I say, today is the day you lose!
We will take you back to the capital!
These guys never learn...
You should get an award or something.
Then go ahead! Praise us, I say!
All right, then keep up the good work! Too bad that's not gonna do anything for you in the real world. Hey! How dare you mock what we are trying to accomplish!
Second is Nan, who obviously gets a conversation with Karol.
Listen to the full conversation!
Karol, show me how much you've grown!
Okay, I guess. But... do we really have to fight? I won't rest easy until we do. I have to do this for myself!
I don't really get what you're saying... Doesn't matter. Come on! W-Why?
Shortly after that is Tison, who Judith shouts at.
Listen to the full conversation!
Oh you're the ones who played with Ba'ul.
What is your relationship to that monster?!
He's my friend. And he's not a monster.
I can't believe this... some monster's friend is preaching to me. Well then, I just have to beat some sense into you! Ooh, that sounds like fun!
Close to the end we run into Gauche and Droite, who only talk with Raven.
Listen to the full conversation!
I will avenge Yeager!
Sorry, I apologize, so let it go already.
Okay, fine. Shut up, Droite!
Aww, are you two breaking up? No no no, we never fight! Right. So shut up and start fighting.
Just like that? Looks like you got a little squabble going. Nope, we're done. Let's fight! Droite, we need to talk when we get back. Ugh...
And the final 100th enemy that spawns depends on who you're playing is.
If you're Karol you get another Nan.
Listen to the full conversation!
H-Hey, didn't I beat you earlier? I only lost cause I felt bad. One more fight!
Why do you have to fight me to prove yourself?
I... I like strong men, like master.
Okay... but, what does that have to do with us fighting? Take a guess, you idiot!
I don't know!
If you're Yuri, you get Flynn!
Listen to the full conversation!
So, the acting commandant is just killing time here?
I have an important mission! I watch and punish dangerous people!
Like me? Haha, hey, you're associating with a criminal like me, so, I guess you're dangerous too.
You just can't stay quiet, can you? I guess we can't just stand here yelling at each other! Yeah, I think it's time for swords.
And if you're anyone else, you just get... this guy.
He's just a random dude, but he's unique to this place, for some reason.
And that's the basic idea and progression of the 100 Man Melee.
But wait, there's more! By having the Letter of Challenge (Legend) and beating the 100 Man Melee with any three characters, so let's say, Yuri,
Estelle,
and Rita, we unlock:
The Mysterious Two Hundred Man Melee!
So as cool as this sounds, it just adds another 100 on top of the existing 100 Man Melee.
For the most part, the enemies here aren't very exciting.
But at around 140 enemies, suddenly:
Hello there, Dhaos! What are you doing here?
So for people not familiar, he's the big bad of Tales of Phantasia.
He's got a couple magic spells, as well as the badass Dhaos Blast.
And a fucking Laser, too! This guy's awesome!
Unfortunately, as you might have noticed, he doesn't actually do a lot of damage. You almost inevitably level up a lot during the multiple runthroughs of the Labyrinth of Memories, and beating it is required to access the 200 Man Melee. So that dungeon haunts us even after we've beaten it!
But hey, enjoy his attacks anyway.
He even has a Mystic Arte! Here's a video of it and the Mystic Artes of our remaining guests. (Baldurdash)
Roughly 20 enemies later, we run into another familiar face:
This is Shizel, the final boss of Tales of Eternia.
Guest number three is another major boss:
Barbatos, from Tales of Destiny 2. He comes complete with his signature item-hating trait in form of a Mystic Arte:
And while I'm usually all for English dubs, come on, you can't say no to Norio Wakamoto. We'll eventually hear him in some PS3 footage.
And to close off our cameo party,
oh, it's just Kratos again. I guess that's fine, but kinda boring after the previous three bosses. He has the same stuff as before.
And that's the Coliseum!
So what do we get from beating all of this? Well, the first time we beat the 200 Man Melee, we get a really nice set of items:
No Skills
The best of these is clearly the Dhaos Cape, because:
Hell fucking yes, so awesome! Look at that gigantic range!
Apart from that, every character gets something unique for winning the 100 Man Melee and the 200 Man Melee. Getting all of these takes a while, although you can make this sorta-automatic, if perhaps longer, by setting the difficulty to Easy and the character to Auto, assuming your character are high-level enough to let the AI that is not at all made for solo fights handle it.
The wins from the 100 Man Melee are:
Yuri:
Assassin: Increases attacks and lessen damage received against humanoid enemies.
One Man Show: Defeat all enemies single-handedly to receive extra EXP.
Loner: All status increases if last one standing on the battlefield.
There must have been some error here, why does Yuri get a Karol-exclusive item? Also the game doesn't tell you you get the Hyper Armor, it just shows up in your inventory.
Estelle:
Estelle gets a costume title! It's pretty cute and comes with a matching weapon set.
No Skills
No Skills
Angel's Tear: Automatically revive from KO once per battle.
Supposedly, you can trigger some special particle effects if you have this set equipped, but I couldn't figure it out. Whatever.
Karol:
Charge Smash: Guard Break enemy defenses during Mighty Charge. Super Armor excluded.
Rita:
Liner Shot: Basic attack will change to small energy shots. Capable of ranged attacks.
Resurrect: Occasionally revive from KO automatically.
Raven:
Resurrect: Occasionally revive from KO automatically.
Rebirth: Gradually recover HP equal to half the amount of the last damage received.
Judith:
Aerial Jump 2: Able to add 2 more jumps in mid-air.
Magic 3: Increases spell attack by 15%. Increase due to equipment not affected.
Judith also gets the Moonlight Talon arte if you haven't gotten it already from a sidequest.
Repede:
The individual character 200 Man Melee wins are, in comparison, kinda boring. Just some costume-less titles.
There's also a couple skits, one for beating the 100 Man Melee as Yuri and one for each character's 200 Man Melee win:
Skit: Congratulations / Baldurdash
Yuri, you did it! Hmph, it's not such a big deal.
Come on, kid, ya won! The least ya could do is cheer up a little!
Yeah, I won...but that's not really what I was going for...
Now, don't get greedy. What more could ya want than ta enter a tournament and come out on top?
Maybe what you wanted more than winning was the feeling that you'd really fought hard? Yeah... Something like that. Sounds like ya understand Yuri pretty well. After having known Yuri for as long as I have, at least that much is obvious. Really? I guess you two know each other...REALLY well...
N-no, that's not what I meant at all...! Skit: A Youth's Victory
You did it! Hey, you actually look a little happy, for once.
Of course he's happy! Yuri defeated a lot of very fierce opponents!
Yeah, for the first time, winning actually feels like something... That's the feeling that you really fought hard. You gave it your all, Yuri! Right. It feels like this means a lot more than the last time I won a tournament.
Hmmm, sounds like ya two are really gettin' close. How interestin'...
R-Raven, what are you talking about...! If you're happy for me, old man then you and me are getting kind of close, too, you know.
Oh. Uh. Heh heh...
Skit: A Princess' Crucible
Good job! I knew you could do it, Estelle. Thank you!
You twerp, you're only saying that now so you can look good. N-no, I mean it! Oh really...?
Anyway, congratulations, Estelle. Thank you! I'm glad I could spread a little joy. That's good. You looked pretty serious out there. I was worried. Well... I just felt like I was on display for everyone to see...
It's not a very good feeling to have people betting on whether you'll win or lose. Yes...but then I realized I should focus on my opponent, not the people watching me. The more you want to beat your opponent, the happier you are when you finally win! Yeah, I guess so. I'm glad it was a good experience for you, Estelle. Yes! And all of your encouragement makes me want to work even harder!
Skit: A Boy's Befuddlement Hey, nice work, Karol! You won! You sure have grown strong.
*WOOF!* Y-yeah, thanks!
I hear it's a great thing fer a guild's reputation if someone who won the tournament joins 'em. Yes, Brave Vesperia could become famous, thanks to you, Karol!
Heh, heh heh... M-m-m-maybe... You don't seem very happy, Karol.
N-n-no, I mean, y-y-yeah... What I did... I didn't know I... I was, like... Whoa...
I...
don't understand what you're saying... You're just flustered 'cause you're not used it. Come on, Karol, that's not like you. Heh heh. I dunno, that ramblin' at the end there sounds just like him ta me! *Woof!* Skit: A Genius Mage's Change of Heart Well, that's done. You're so nonchalant... Shouldn't you be a little happier?
Nah, that was too easy. Act tough all ya want, but it looked like ya were havin' a pretty rough time out there.
Maybe you're starting to get cataracts, old man. Perhaps I can help you blast them out!
Agh! No no no no! But you won! That's great! You could at least be a little bit happier... So what, I won. It doesn't change anything, really. But they give out a prize specially tailored ta the winner. That's right.
Oh... Maybe if I'd won more battles, they would've given me something useful for my research...
Guess I should've beaten more opponents... Ya already won the whole tournament... I don't think ya could've beaten it any more than ya did...
Skit: An Old Man's Dream ... ...What's the matter, old man? You won. Th-this is a dream. I mean, conquering the coliseum after all these years...
It was your dream to win this tournament?
Guild members across the world all hope ta achieve this once in their lives. Then your dream's come true! That's great! No, this can't be real. This is a dream, I know it.
If it's a dream, then you shouldn't be able to feel pain, right?
Let's test it out!Judith punches Raven off the top of the screen.
Gaaah...!
Whoa... If the old man wasn't dreaming before, he certainly is now. Skit: A Maiden's Concern That's all there is? Not enough violence for you, huh? Oh? Do you really think I'm that violent?
That hurts, Yuri.
If you're trying to make us think you're an innocent young maiden, you're not fooling anyone.
...Innocent young maidens keep their pretty little selves out of coliseum tournaments.
Innocent young maidens also don't win tournaments full of powerful opponents. Hah hah hah, that's right...
*Sigh* Don't tell me you just got yourself down. Ah, the melancholic sigh of an innocent young maiden... How picturesque! Oh? What, not violent enough for ya?
*Sigh* Skit: A Dog's Thoughts on Battle
*AROOOOOOO!* What was that? A victory howl? Yeah, something like that, I think. He's just a dumb beast, after all. He probably just thinks he had a successful hunt, or something.
*Woof!* He can hear you, you know. Repede thinks about all sorts of things.
You've offended him. What do you mean, all sorts of things? *Woof! Woof woof!*
The significance of him winning a tournament that's held by the world of humans, for example.
*WOOF! WOOF!* He's thinking about what a good chance it is to show humans how strong and proud the noble dog is.
What, your pooch is a philosopher? Don't make me laugh. *WOOF! WOOF WOOF!* So maybe you'd like to have a fight with Repede, with your honor on the line?
Hey, I don't wanna fight you!
Hey! Stop biting me, let go...! ...I've been wondering for a while, but... You understand what Repede's saying, don't you, Yuri?
In addition to the entire Team Melee section of the Coliseum, which we'll check out another time, the PS3 version hands you some costume titles for beating the 200 Man Melee with everyone. Guess the developers felt guilty for not really giving you anything substantial in the 360 version. All of them are references to characters from other Tales games.
Judas, from Tales of Destiny 2.
Chloe, from Tales of Legendia.
Lloyd, from Tales of Symphonia.
Mao, from Tales of Rebirth.
Ricardo, from Tales of Innocence.
Rutee, from Tales of Destiny.
Caius, from Tales of the Tempest.
Cress, from Tales of Phantasia.
Anise, from Tales of the Abyss.
They're pretty cool, and come with a special Altered Arte from the referenced character, which you can use while having that costume on or learn after using them a bunch, just like normal Altered Artes.
There's also a neat skit you get from having everyone equip their costume, but I don't have a good recording of it around, so we'll get to that during the inevitable "missed skits" update(s).
Apart from that, there isn't much change from the 360 version of the Hundred Man Melee and its variations. If you play as Flynn you get to fight against Yuri as the 100th opponent, and everyone gets to fight Clint shortly after the other two Hunting Blades members. Otherwise it's exactly the same, I believe.
Except for one thing, thanks wdarkk for reminding me. If you fight against Dhaos as Rita, get him to below half health...
Enter Over Limit 4 and cast Thunder Blade, and you get: (Baldurdash)
It's Indignation! Somehow this spell was absent from the 360 version of the game, but in the PS3 version, you can get it as a Mystic Arte for Rita by doing these steps. After doing this, you can activate it during normal battles by doing the typical "2nd Mystic Arte" combination of OVL 4 -> Arcane Arte -> Hold Attack+Arte. As appropriate, Dhaos gets instakilled and even does his
Interestingly enough, they actually recorded English voices for Indignation.
Before we end this, I just wanted to point out that I'm pretty impressed at the pretty big body of text they wrote for the Coliseum registration counter. Some of it is kinda funny, too. I mean look at this:
See the show! ♪ Have a go! ♪ Beat your foes! ♪ A fierce battle of many against one! A burly brawl of epic proportions! The Hundred Man Melee! We're currently accepting applications! ♪ You wanna give it a go? Choose a level to challenge! Choose one challenger! Then all that's left is to pay the entry fee and you're in! It's as easy as pumpkin pie! ♪ Challengers must cut down all their fierce opponents! Slice, dice, clang, kerpow! Fierce opponents will pop up like popcorn! The number and type of opponents you'll face will vary depending on the level you choose! And since it's boring for the audience if you just mosey along lazily, we've put in a fun little time limit to prod you on a bit! If you manage to beat all of your opponents in the time limit without getting beaten yourself, you'll be a wiiiinner! We have some fabulous prizes for winners! But if you get defeated before you beat all of the opponents, you get nooothing! And of course, we get to keep the entry fee! But we'll be glad to heal you, so no worries! Ferocious opponents will keep coming at you, and you can change your equipment during the battle. But, you need to hand over the items you have and we'll hang on to them. Please use the items we provide when you're inside the arena. Oh, you can steal items from your opponents and use those too, but we will exchange all items left at the end of the battle with the items we hang on to. Oh, you'll participate? The Thirty Man Melee, right? That level should be a walk in the park! All of the opponents are small fries! ♥ Who will be participating? All right! Good luck out theeeere! ☆ Umm, beginners...should start at the beginning. You need to try the Thirty Man Melee first. Otherwise, you could get in over your head! And we wouldn't want that, would we? Oh, you'll participate? The Fifty Man Melee, right? That level can be a little tough! I don't think you'll die, though. ♥ Who will be participating? You haven't beaten the Fifty Man Melee and you'd already like to try for eighty? Getting a little ahead of ourselves, aren't weee? You think the Eighty Man Melee will have a better prize, don't you? I can see right through your clever little scheme! Let's take our challenges one at a time, shall we? That way we make more money! ♪ Oh, you'll participate? The Eighty Man Melee, right? So you're going to go for it... No, I won't stop you... The coliseum's profit is more important... Who will be participating? Oh, I'm sorry! We're still making preparations for that one. You can't have a Hundred Man Melee without a hundred men, and we're still short! Arranging all of these events isn't easy, you know! We should be opening it up soon, though, so come back and challenge it later! Oh, you'll participate? The Hundred Man Melee, right? Might as well, right? It's the biggest, the best! We finally managed to gather a hundred people to fight in the battle, but we haven't had any challengers at all... ...Even though it's the fight that makes the most money for the coliseum... Who will be participating? Oh, I see... I didn't know you were such a sissy...Oh well, come back and see us again once you're brave enough! ♪ Oh... Th-the Two Hundred Man Melee... ...You're really going to do it? I see... The mysterious Two Hundred Man Melee...I'd like to see that, myself. Who will be participating? Yes, I think that's for the best. Every life is precious! What? I can't believe you don't have enough Gald! We don't have business with someone like that... Participate in the Thirty Man Melee and have your name in the world rankings. Your name will appear in the rankings just by signing up! ♪ Using a special data recording technique, your results will automatically be calculated and added towards the ranking. Just what is this special technique? That's a secret! ♪And with that, I'll end today's update. Next time: The Cooking Coliseum!