Part 67: XI - Close and Open, Demons and the Dead

Alright, it's Chinatown. We're entering the hot phase of the game, which is fitting, given that we're in the process of getting murdered by a big-ass heat wave over here in Germany. So with temperatures feeling like they're breaking 40° C, let's see how things are heating up for Victoria. We're going to be racing through the entirety of Chinatown in this update - I'm fairly sure we all just want this nightmare to end (I noticed a lack of replies towards the last update - probably because you've ran out of ways to say "wow this mod is bad", and that's really the only thing to say), so let's make haste.

I spend the first ten or so minutes exploring every alleyway in Chinatown for some extra encounters like in Downtown (and getting lost a few times, I still can't find my way around this fucking place sometimes), but no such luck. I find the guy getting a blowjob, but he's there in the regular game too.



First stop, Tzeng's. It's with him we find some interesting things - a handgun that packs a serious punch, which is always welcome, ammo for the grenade launcher, which will save us some time, and ammo for the AK-47, which will see a lot of use over the further course of the game, because it wrecks shit.



Next stop, Mr. Ox's. We get the quest to go grab some eyeballs...



...and grab some eyeballs. We then return them without further incident, and everybody is happy.



...of course that didn't happen. Instead, we get attacked by a Kuei-jin ninja. Why is a Kuei-jin ninja attacking us? I have no fucking clue. Also, the mod plays music from Ninja Gaiden for the NES when it attacks us. Because of course.



The ninja gets anticlimactically one-shot by the grenade launcher. This thing really does deal a FUCKTON of damage, and will probably make the endgame several levels more bearable - I hope. The mod could still swerve my ass like the unofficial patch did and give the bosses resistance (like with the flamethrower and Ming-Xiao in the UP).



As a reward, we get money. While it is useful, I'm starting to find it ridiculous just how much money you get in this mod compared to useful artifacts and shit. Money here, money there, we're still going to pick up the fat stacks from the hitman impasse, Victoria is going to be filthy rich by the end of this. The bad luck farmer stuff will have to wait until the massage parlor unlocks.



Then my finger slips on the trackpad while moving about and I blow up some grandma with the grenade launcher. Inadvertent roleplaying? Getting rid of the cops takes time, but doesn't cause any issue. Next stop, the Schrecknet job.



The new handgun packs a serious punch, and easily dispatches the security guards in about two shots. The rest of the job is practically trivial.



And of course, instead of the item we steal in the UP, we steal more fucking money. Holy shit, there is so much money.



There's a car out here with a trunk I can open, but there's nothing inside. This wasn't here before. Why is it here? I just don't know.



We have some chit-chat with half-lipsticked, fang-toothed Ming-Xiao and go through the standard claptrap to be allowed to progress.



We leave, Kiki gets kidnapped...



...we talk to Wong Ho about the situation and have to bring her back...



...we pick up more fucking money...



...and we're off to the massage parlor.



Now, I thought the massage parlor was going to be really difficult - lots of gunfire going around and all that stuff - but it really wasn't. I'm attributing that to none of the enemies having AK-47s, since at this point, it's only the most powerful guns that are the massive threat that I'm constantly scared of. I figured the AK-47 would be peppered around the game at this point, but it seems like some degree of restraint has been applied. Either that or they haven't worked over this area yet. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case.



Furthermore, I'm finding that now that I only have Edward along, he seems to be a lot more proactive in combat. I think there's some issues with companion AI if you're bringing along two, and having only one companion might actually be a better idea.



I spend some time chowing down on a masseuse/prostitute/whatever the girls here really do...



...but some guy with a gun disagrees.



So he gets dispatched...



...and Victoria resumes feed-



GOD DAMNIT EDWARD, STOP KILLING MY FOOD.



Anyway, enemies are dispatched, we find more god damn money, and eventually make it to Kiki, who is still a cunt.



And then we get attacked by Sub-Zero here on the way out. We of course never bring it up to Ming-Xiao that we've been attacked by Kuei-jin agents several times.



Since I don't want to use the grenade launcher here - I could just as well end up blowing up Kiki, though she's probably invincible, given that she's plot-critical, but whatever - it's good that the ninja gets hung up in a punch-up with Edward and I can just pepper him from behind with the AK-47, which makes him go down in short order.



While we're there, we drop off the bad luck talisman. Note that we can apparently make this guy into a companion, but he so does not fit the style of the Legion of Eternal Despair and Neverending Agony.



So we eat him instead.



We bring back Kiki, nothing else notable happens and we leave the Red Dragon without incident.



...of course that's not the case. Instead, some sort of strike squad busts into the room with powerful machineguns that deal some kick-ass damage. Guess the massage parlor was just a momentary respite.



I duck behind cover and take the opportunity to spend the 37 experience points I've accumulated on maxing Defense and raising Firearms, because we're no longer building a Vampire: The Masquerade character, we're building a Antitribu Mod character, which goes as follows:

1) Put points in combat skills and defense.
2) Fuck the rest.



Also, apparently one of them has something that shoots explosions. I wasn't curious enough to get hit by one of them, but I presume it smarts.



...is what I'd say if I didn't end up getting hit by it anyway. As you can see, it indeed smarts. However, through copious use of Blood Heal and blood bags, they eventually get taken care of.



After that, we kick off the goat rope that is the Hitman Impasse quest. Over the course of the update, I'll be going back and forth between the two, but we'll also be doing other things in the meantime...



...like chatting up Yukie and starting the Hengeyôkai quest.



Information from Ming-Xiao gotten...



...meeting set up. Also did another set of talks with the two hitmen while we're at it.



Off to fight the Hengeyôkai - note Yukie's new outfit, which is fairly spiffy. I like the jacket.



The scene of the two sneaking into the warehouse is not helped by Edward looking really, really out of place, like he forgot his stage direction.



The fight is somewhat trivialized...



...by the grenade launcher dealing about half his HP in one clean shot. By no means am I complaining about this turn of events.



Especially since his melee attacks deal about a third of our life bar in damage with maxed out defense.



After defeating him, we get the option to recruit Yukie as a companion, which I do because why not, some variety is always nice. Note that I said "recruit as a companion", not "dominate into following us" or the like. I'm fairly certain that Yukie is the first companion we have that wasn't either mindraped into serving Victoria or created to serve Victoria. Kind of interesting. With that, I send Edward back home, since I only want to have one companion around right now.



Also, here's the other outfit Yukie has. Fairly nice looking, but I prefer the first one.




And here's her stat block. Pretty good in combat, which really is the only thing we care about at this point.



Next up, we have the ambush at Zhao's place.



Again, the triads aren't much of an issue because of their sub-par weaponry.



Blowing up a car, however, turns out to be a bit of an issue. Still, nothing Blood Heal and blood packs can't fix. The thugs are dispatched with little problems.



The explosion also leads to Yukie busting out some levitation moves.



Moving on to Glaze, this bouncer is being annoying. And because it's been working so well this far...



...Yukie and Victoria shoot up the place, very much nondiscriminatory. Everybody dies.



I cut it a bit closer with health this time around, mostly due to an increased amount of enemies, but the almighty power of the AK-47 destroys them all.



Then Johnny gets unceremoniously punched to death. I send Yukie back to the haven because I'm pretty sure that going through the Mandarin's test chambers with a companion will break things somehow.



Then another one of these fucking ninjas shows up on the way out. He gets blown the fuck up like the first one.



It's only at this point that I finally remember that there's some better armor available at Tzeng's and buy it. Guess that might have helped a bit, but probably not a lot. Now, it's time for the Mandarin's test chambers.



The lasers pose an immediate problem because I can't be arsed to actually put effort into dodging them and instead just run through them, only noticing that they deal a fuckton more damage than I remember once it's pretty much too late to redecide. At least I didn't die, that would have been doubly annoying. Instead, it's just quaffing a few blood packs and back to work we go.



The spinning blades room isn't much of an issue once you know to just shoot the thing, though I seem to remember that the spinning blades stopped moving along the room if you disabled them, not just stopped spinning, whereas here they still go up and down. Don't deal damage though.



The combat room now has these barricades added to the top of the ladder, meaning you first need to waste some time shooting them to bits before you can head up and properly waste the mercenaries. Annoying, but not really a big problem. We also pick up a sniper rifle from one of the bodies, but I guess it'll be some time before we get more ammo for it.



The electricity room is again not a problem because you just shoot the thing...



...as is the fire room.



The Mandarin and his guards are dispatched without much trouble...



...and Barabus is rescued. I'm really not sure whether things are easy now just because I now have good weapons and have put a fuckton of points into defense and weapons skills, or because they're just lulling me into a false sense of security before the endgame comes along and pounds me into submission. Well, only one way to find out, I guess - pressing on!



There's a minor, minor dialogue change with this option - pretty sure it just kind of skips something but doesn't really do anything. Guessing this is what awaits me at the Giovanni mansion, just a minor dialogue option that skips a line or two.



Finally, we finish off the hitman quest and get our cash...



...and to celebrate, we max out Perception for the full 10 points in Ranged. We're as ready for combat as we're ever going to get beyond more points in Necromancy. So next time, it'll be the Giovanni mansion and probably some more. This probably won't be fun, but eh.