Part 9: Chapter #5: Nordilain Assault, Part 1

Chapter #5: Nordilain Assault

Briefing



: Maybe we can capture one of those filthy bandits and torture him until he explains how they hid from us!
: I like your way of thinking, Reyna!
Ladies and gentlemen, our hero! Also, that's it for the briefing.

Interview



As you can see, Zeira and Galvas are now available for interviewing. Don't waste your time on them, though, as the morale boosting properties of the interview vary from person to person. In the case of Zeira and Galvas, it doesn't help much.

: So, tell me, Bastion...you and Milea have a brother-sister relationship, right? So you're single, right?
Nothing gets Reyna hotter than talking about torture!

I....thank you, that will be all, Devlin,
: Sorry, Bastion, but I don't share my candy...the sugar content is too high. You'd be on a permanent buzz!
: There's nothing better than conflict to get one's heart racibg
: I still cannot believe Your Highness has been alive all these years, in the care of my honorable brother...

Mission



In the chambers of Nordilain Castle....but first, I want everyone to understand something. The translators of Working Designs were not evil people. What they did, they did because they thought it was the right thing to do. Whatever happens from this point on, I need you to remember that.



Meet Claire and Shion
: I must agree with your assessment of both his attitude and appearance, Claire.
: And he has zero respect for my dad! It's like, "Hello, you're talking to the Duke of Nordilain, okay?!" So did I hear his story right? The Empire invaded Araba Castle to set up a base in the Kingdom...And then they totally lost a fight with some ATACs from the Avalon Corps? That is SAD! Now they're asking us to help them clean up their mess? WhatEVER!
But....I...to....he...did....ggvsdcs
: I know Dad is allied with the Empire and all, but I wish he could tell them to shove off sometimes!
: I have noted your dissatisfaction with the Empire an average of 17 times per day, Miss Claire...Which is why I found it refreshing that you'd choose to complain about a rude, ugly man for a change. I often wonder why the Empire has chosen someone so lacking in social graces to be their ambassador. Perhaps they learned of your ability to acquire confidential information via shameless flirtation.
: Ha, ha, ha! Like, that is SO true! Boys will totally do anything I want when I act all sweet to them! That doesn't make me easy, right? 'Cause I won't do that any more if that's the message I'm sending.
I just wanted to watch giant robots fight each other, what have I done to deserve this?
: Not at all, Miss Claire. You are a kind and...er, innocent young woman.
: Thanks, Shion. I totally get the warm fuzzies when you say stuff like that about me.
: I consider myself your friend as well as your advisor, Miss Claire. I rather enjoy making you happy.
: I know, but I'd be even happier if Dad would let me do my own thing, sometimes, you know?
: I apologize if my constant presence irritates you, but I'm afraid it is mandated by your father.
: I know, Shion. I'm just having a wishful-thinking moment.
Oh, well, this scene may be irritating, but at least it can't get much worse...
: {I dare not confess the times I have dreamt of being more than a mere friend, sweet Claire...)



I assume this man is here to charge Shion with several violations of Megan's Law.

: Your Grace, I bring important news!
: So let's hear it already!
: Our scouts on the western border have sighted a group of foreign ATACs crossing into our country! The descriptions seem to match the Avalon ATACs that conquered Araba Castle!
: So, like, I wonder if they think those Imperial ATACs came here when they hightailed it from the castle. But it totally doesn't matter now that they've entered our country without permission. Maybe if we get rid of them in a hurry, that nasty ambassador will stop coming! And bonus! Dad will be SO proud of me! Maybe he'll build me a new ATAC or something!
: Please exercise due caution. The soldiers who reclaimed Araba Castle defeated Faulkner himself.
Err....sure, that's definitely an accurate description of what happened last battle.
: Anyone who can triumph over the Empire's most skilled warrior is to be respected and feared.
: I know, Shion! That's why I'm bringing you with me, silly!
: While I prefer the art of science to the art of combat, I am honored to fight for you, Miss Claire.
: Ha, ha, ha! Shion, you might be a total brainiac, but I know you can totally kick tail, too! So, like, let's get a squadron going or something, okay? I wanna go bash some enemy ATACs!



That must be one big-ass cave if six giant robots can fit inside it!
: I had received reports of a group of rogue Imperials based in this area, but discounted them as rumors...
: These bandits think they're going to end our lives and steal our ATACs? Boy, will they be surprised!
Surprised to find that the Pharastia Kingdom is not a signatory to the Geneva Convention most likely.
: Well, well. These are some impressive ATACs. They'll fetch a mighty price on the black market. I know those people from Nordilain paid us to report any strange ATACs, and to stay out of sight...But we'll make ten times as much money after we sell these ATACs! Begin the attack!
: Should we dismantle these thieves one ATAC at a time, or all at once?



Devlin's new ride. It's not great, but it's all he's going to get for the rest of the game.



The Bandit Chief is using the same model of ATAC as Kamorge and Ione used to. Not particularly impressive...



...but it's still better than his grunts, which are using the worst ATAC in the game. Although apparently they do offer it in two color schemes. The Andoras is equipped with an axe, a weapon type we will never have access to. The axes allows you to use an attack called Strike, which is notable for having terrible, terrible accuracy. In short, you should be able to glean from these Bandits that there's more to this battle.



Opening moves. I could have done this battle better. If you notice, I've split my team into two groups, which is almost always a mistake. This battle is also the first time you see another crippling flaw of the AI. Whenever the computer has significantly more units than the player, it is hard-coded to not move some of those units until a number of turns have elapsed. In this case, the purple ATACs won't move for a few turns, and the Bandit Chief will wait even longer. This is a problem in a game where numbers are everything.



Zeira still has the strongest ATAC on the field, and the AI still has control of him. Look at that damage, not too bad. Unfortunately, any XP he gets is wasted.



Devlin sends one of the bandits to the land of eternal silence. Note how the Bandit Chief is just standing around watching his men get slaughtered.



Bastion kills another bandit. This phase of the battle isn't too hard, the only real problem is preserving your characters' HP for the next phase of the fight.



Meanwhile, Zeira and the Bandit Chief are engaging in their own little, private, war.

[img[http://lpix.org/images/Smasher+Dyna...2011_201211.jpg[/img]

Devlin takes out another bandit and levels up. This is a very special level-up for Devlin, though. Why?



Because Devlin's POW, coupled with his level two fire stone, is now high enough to use Fireball, a quite useful attack that only costs 25 AP, which is helpful for when you need to move a few spaces to get into attack range against an enemy.



Which is timely, because Claire and her squad have finally arrived to fight both our ATACs and proper English grammar.

: That red ATAC belongs to Claire, the daughter of Duke Logan, and the heir to the Nordilain Forest!
: I knew Nordilain was involved with the Empire, but I certainly didn't expect them to attack us!
Yes, who could have predicted that Nordilain would attack a war party that invaded their territory?
: Hey, I totally recognize those ATACs! They belong to Zeira and Galvas! This is going to be, like, a better fight than I expected, you know? And my dad will be SO happy when I give their swords for his trophy wall! Like, seriously!



And I haven't even finished the bandits yet....Anyway, the Bandit Chief decides that Zeira plays too rough and goes for Bastion instead.



And the Nordilains are a-coming...



Bastion kills the Bandit Chief and levels up. Time to deal with Claire.



Claire has things to say to some members of our team if they attack her.

: Like, no offense, Galvas, but I hear you're totally ancient. So I won't feel guilty about killing you, since you're totally on the verge of croaking anyway.[/img]
: It appears I need to beat some respect into you, little girl!
Elder Abuse vs. Child Abuse: Final Conflict!

Zeira didn't get a chance to attack Claire, but if he did, it would sound something like...
: Duke Zeira, so, like, are you ready to rumble, or not!
: Duke Logan's daughter calling me to arms. THAT doesn't happen every day!



Anyway, so here's the deal, the Nordilains are geared towards doing damage, and so have relatively high POW scores. Claire and Shion also have fire stones, and, therefore, access to Fireball. This....is less than ideal, if only because getting people killed in battle has....consequences. The battle ends as soon as Claire or Shion loses half their health.



A smarter, or more patient, man would have tried to milk as much XP out of this fight as possible. But the Nordilain soldiers aren't that high-level, and the XP you can get out of Claire and Shion is limited....so, let's send in Bastion to hurry this along.
: You have an impressive ATAC for an Imperial soldier...let's see how long it takes for me to destroy it!
: Imperial agent?! Like, are you retarded or something?! I'm the daughter of Duke Logan, duhr boy!
Wait...'duhr' boy? That can't be right. Let me double-check...no, it definitely says 'duhr' boy. What the hell does that even mean?



Wait, I've got it. You've got to fight fire with fire, or, in this case, annoying character with annoying character. Go, Devlin!

: Miss Claire, your ATAC is perilously close to destruction.
: Oh, come on, Shion! I can totally keep fighting! You, like, worry too much!
: Miss Claire, I am sworn by a blood oath to worry about you! I must insist you leave this battle!
: Okay, okay. At least we totally know that Faulkner didn't lose by accident! Like, see you back at the castle, okay?

And the Nordilains flee

: It's over?
: It seems to be...We sure haven't made any friends in Nordilain. That may pose a problem later on. The best course of action would be to return to Araba and decide our next move, Bastion.

Next Time: Decisions