Part 2: CH2: A Draining Experience
CH2: A Draining Experience
: Jude had entered the laboratory, but finding Professor Haus would be far more difficult.
: Where'd she go? She must have gone ahead. There was something fishy about that sign-in sheet, too.
Anyway, I need to find the professor and tell him about the award.
Our first dungeon. No dungeon video for this because it's fairly straightforward. I may just not do dungeon videos for this LP since that describes basically every dungeon here.
: You might expect such a secure place to be guarded.
: And it totally was!Guard: Hmph. I should be taking you to security, but you seem courteous enough.
Come on. I'll take you to the exit.
: Wait! I'm looking for Professor Haus. I think he's still here. Guard: Oh, so you know the professor, do you? Yeah, he's still here.
You really shouldn't be wandering around here, kid. I oughta get in touch with your parents.
: My family doesn't live around here. They're all back in my hometown. 
: Well, that's brought this place up to the 70th percentile of "ethically questionable laboratories".
: What?! Guard: Relax. Come quietly and you won't get hurt.
: Why are you doing this? Wait, does this mean you're holding the professor, too?!
Guard: I said come quietly, kid.
And we've got our first fight.
It's also got an optional tutorial. You can cancel it if you don't need it, but I take it in the video.
Take note of the portrait in the upper left. Our characters and notable enemies have in-battle corner portraits for battle talk. IIRC it's inspired by Shonen manga.
I don't really have room here for a lengthy fight analysis, but the controls described are more or less the same as any late-model Tales game.
There's a second tutorial fight a bit further in that covers how back-step works in this game. Unfortunately by default we don't have Graces-style sidestep
Jude's gimmick is that when he evades an attack with a backstep, he reappears behind the enemy. It's called "Snap Pivot."
I'll also go over Jude's artes once we have a few more of them. Jude's pretty strictly a fist-fighter.
: Jude had escaped the sewers, but he had no idea what he was doing still.
: Guess I'll just have to check each and every room. : He saw someone who clearly didn't fit in with the guards or researchers in suits.
: Huh? : And he followed her into a dark room. OOoooooooOOOOoooo.
Yeah I know it's a little noisy here. I'm not rerecording this AGAIN.
: Where did that girl go? 
: P-Professor? 
: It was too late. Awww.
: And that was just the tip of the iceberg of frozen corpses.
: OK not actually frozen, but, you get my point, right?: ...... 
: So, you're the visitor I heard about? 
: What is this place?! What'd you do to the professor?! : Aha! : Who are you? : Your expression! It's priceless!
I love the look of fear in your eyes!
And it's our first boss battle.
I shall transcribe the in-battle talking.
: What's going on? Why are you doing this?: Ha ha ha you're such an idiot.
: Let me spell it out for you: you're gonna die!: What!?Anyway back to fight commentary. Everyone, guess Girl in Red's elemental affiliation. Burning Wheel hits in arc and in front.
If your attacks aren't strong enough enough, you won't stagger the enemy and they'll get that shield effect over them. Keep hitting, it'll go down eventually (unless you're being dumb).
So uh sometimes Snap Pivot is worse than regular backstep. This is one of those times.
360°.
Blue exclamation points notify you of the enemy using unblockable attacks, IIRC. Red ones denote Arcane Artes.
Lady in Red's weird tripod-sword-thing opens fully for blocking.
Flame Drill does what you think it does.
Flare Bomb is Milla's fire melee-attack thing. Feinne will tell you more about it since he's covering Milla's stuff.
: Ultimately this just wasn't a fight he was equipped to win.
One thing that I can't convey in screenshots is that this lady shakes like crazy whenever she's moving or emoting. I called her "the spastic" but that's probably rude to spastics.
: It's honestly really hard to come up with good last words. Or at least that's the way it seems to me from my end.: You don't have people call you a 'supervillain' do you?: A few, but we've made up since then.: Just making sure.: There has to be a way. I hope you're not bothered by upskirts but the Girl in Red is basically wearing no skirt at all.
: Sometimes miracles do happen. Especially when She's around.
: Ah-ha! So you're the visitor I heard about! : This guy's no fun. I'll kill you first. : Run! : That wasn't necessary.
: The girl started casting first.
: But you can't beat Her in casting.
: BOOOM! The look on her face!
: Unfortunately, knowing when to fold 'em, as they say, wasn't one of her strong points.: I'll rip that pretty face of yours to pieces! 
: I'd prefer you didn't. 
Round 2 is equally unfair, but in our favor. Notice the difference in HP between Jude and Milla. There's an equally massive difference in all other stats, and it's not from her equipment.
: She got knocked around a bit, mostly because she was thinking more about the Spyrix than the fight.
Milla pulls out Summons at random, but her stats are so high it's pretty much impossible to lose.
: Milla really should have reigned Efreet in there, he's so eager he forgot to check the target's elemental resistances.: That happens a lot.
The first time I did this Milla pulled out Sylph right away and ended the fight in 2 seconds.
Efreet: Raaaaa!
: Is that Efreet?
: You are correct. The Lord of Fire.: I can't believe you were able to summon him.
And we gain a level for each of us. Our HP and TP don't automatically refill when we level, we need a skill to do that.
: This time she'd stay down for longer.: Whoa. : I told you to go home. Don't tell me you live here? 
: No, of course not... I'm sorry... : Er, uh... : Is this the work of the spyrix? : The what-ix? There's a weird sound here that I'd assume is the Spirits communicating with Milla.
: Could it be connected to the disappearance of the lesser spirits? : Huh? You're losing me. Disappearing spirits? : You really need to go home. Someone might not swoop to your rescue next time you're in trouble. 
: Hey, wait. I'm kinda trapped here. If the professor were with me, they might've let me leave, but...
Can I come with you?
: Ha, I see. If you stick with the person who saved you, then you won't need any more saving. Clever boy. : Boy? You don't look that much older than me. : Uh, she looks five years older than you and you're fifteen. Silly Jude, always insecure about being so talented for one so young. You notice how he's the shortest guy at the Medical School?: My name is Jude Mathis. : I'm Milla. 
: Milla Maxwell. So we've got our first skits now.
Skit: Still Shaking
Note Jude's portrait's tilt. It's shaking.
: And for good reason. You were almost killed. 
: I'm a civilian! Why would she attack me like that? 
: I don't think she's part of Rashugal's army. : If she's not a soldier, then what is she doing at a military facility? : An ironic question for you or I to ask, don't you think? : I see your point. Did you... Did you kill her?
: I'm not sure. I tried to go easy on her, but humans are so fragile. I keep having to tell the Four not to overdo it. : I'm not really following you. Skit: Next Order of Business
: Huh? : I assume you had some reason for coming to this place? 
: I was worried because Professor Haus hadn't come back, but he's... : One of the people who died while connected to that machine? : Yeah. I can't believe it. The Professor had been so excited about the request from Orda Palace. 
: I see. : Hmm? Yes. Yes, I suppose so. Milla's portrait exits house-right.
: Huh? W-Wait for me!
: Outside, they encountered an odd phenomenon.: Hmm? What's going on? 
: I've been wondering what this thing is since I set off. My handmaid told me I had to carry it with me. : Well, it comes in handy if you face monsters. It gives you the power to fight them. I got one myself when I left home. Just in case.
: They're not... made from dead people's souls, are they?: No, they're just little mineral devices. They've got a bit of a story, but it's not really that important to anything that comes up. Except a little something.
OK so really the whole point of that boss is so that you'd gain a level so that you can do the leveling tutorial. In Tales of Xillia, each character has a network of nodes arranged in a circular pattern called a Lillium Orb, where they spend the points they gain when they level up. Each point unlocks a node. We can only activate nodes that are adjacent to the center or linked to a node we've already activated. Nodes between points on the lines are activated once we've activated all the nodes surrounding them. Those nodes are our main source of skills and artes. To increase the size of the Lillium Orb, we have to activate three special nodes in the outermost ring, including the one with a circle around it that designates it as the "key" node. You can see the key node off to the right.
: So that's how it works. This is actually my first time developing it, too. : I see. So it's a tool that taps into inherent abilities. I imagine that powerless humans never leave home without them. : You talk as if you're not human yourself. Skit: One and the Same
: Not at all. We are one and the same. : I'm sorry? : I am Maxwell, Lord of Spirits. : What?! Come on! You're totally human! You... Jude's portrait moves towards her, then moves back. I think this represents him oogling her.
: ...look just like a normal woman. : I would hope so. That is the form I created for myself. : The form you created? Skit: Proof of Identity
: You don't believe me? 
: A person claiming to be a spirit? It's a bit much to swallow. : Then how do you humans prove your identities to each other? : Well, by showing identification, I guess. I have a medical school ID card. : Ah. Then I doubt that I'll be able to prove my identity to your satisfaction. I wouldn't even know where to apply for a spirit ID card.
: Is it really okay for me to be following this person? Skit: Cold Comfort
: But now he's dead. : ...... Milla's portrait moves up against Jude's.
: What... What are you doing? : I'm cuddling you. : Uh... Why? : I read it in a book. When humans are upset, they feel better when you cuddle them. : What book was that? : "A Mother's Eyes, A Mother's Touch". : That sounds like a book about child-rearing. I'm not a baby. : This technique has no effect on you? : Humans are so complicated. : Haha, well, I guess I do feel a little better. Thank you. : Hm? So it does work. Skit: Going Deeper
: We're not heading to the exit? : No. : There's something seriously wrong here. Shouldn't we get out? : I'm aware of the danger, but there's something I must find. I'm afraid I can't escort you out before then.
: Sure. After all, I was the one who asked to go with you. : Heh. : What's so funny? : It's nothing. When my business here is done, I promise to see you safely out of here. There's no need to worry.
: Thanks. Skit: Sparring Time
: Yeah. I studied self-defense when I was a kid. : They say that even the best-trained soldiers may panic in the face of actual combat. Yet you seem completely together.
: Well, I had a friend I trained with who used to shout "sparring time" and attack me out of the blue. So it's probably thanks to her.
: I see. : I'd always wind up on the ground, covered in bruises. : I'm sorry to dredge up such painful memories. : What? No, it's not like that. : Don't all bullied children say that? : Bullied?! That's not what-- Wait... Was it? : They had finally found it.
: "The Lance of Kresnik"? That's the name of the sage from the Genesis Age. 
: Hmph. So this is what humans call irony. Naming this weapon after Kresnik. Listen up! We must destroy that which harms man and spirit!
: Haaaaaah! 
: It would have been easy to take it out, with the power of the four.
: If that girl wasn't absolutely nutso.: What are you doing here?! : You are really starting to make me angry! 
: Fool! Are you insane? Don't you know this is going to drain you, too?! 
: Yes, she's nutso, just FYI.: It's acting directly on our mana lobes. : This wasn't part of the plan. But it's nothing I can't deal with! 
: That's it.
: Milla! Look down! Huh...?
: Stop! Or you'll be dragged in with it! 
: Wait... Take Milla and then run? Huh? What? What are you trying to do?
: They would save Milla.
: No matter what it cost them.
: She finally pulled the control key free, but it was a bit late. Also a bit... energetic.
: She realized that she was without the power of The Four.
: Man Jude sucks at the whole "catch your buddy" thing.: Not like his grip would have held if he grabbed her. Only thing to do was go in after her.
: Oh, and he was there watching all this. I wonder who he is.So at this point the intro movie plays. If you're on a totally fresh install, this'd be the first time you see it. Here's Jude's again. Just ignore the title screen bit, since obviously that wouldn't pop up here. Also there's no sound because youtube's copyright thing nails me each time.
: Ughh! *POP* *Huf* *Huf*: Oh, you're not dead. I was getting worried for a bit there.