Part 3: Chapter 1-3: The Snowy Altar

Chapter 1-3: The Snowy Altar



These are Sagoon's new stats. They're a bit better, at least.



Just in front of the entrance to the Labyrinth...





Shit! I'm gonna strangle him! This ain't no sword that can kill anything! It's just a plain sword!

Kobolds are shouting at each other in the distance.

What are we gonna do? We used all her money... Ms. Virgo is gonna kill us...

The Kobolds are approaching you.



- Or else, we'll eat you for breakfast!

(2) - Oh, I got it! Let's get money from these guys!

- Ahh! You're a genius!

The Kobolds have attacked you!





Welcome to the main combat screen. It's pretty self-explanatory for the most part until we get AAs. I'm going to warn you ahead of time that most monsters are constantly twitching and moving about, so their appearance in screenshots may look a bit unusual.



For example. Each time a monster physically attacks, it literally teleports a certain distance until it's right in front of you, then smacks you.



Similarly, characters attacking monsters run all the way to the monster and slash, bash, or what have you. I also want to point out that Kobolds are the only enemy weaker than Slimes, so this battle is pretty easy. Their only advantage is that they attack twice, giving them the wondrous ability to do two damage instead of one.



After battle, we get the results screen. The first battle gives everyone just enough experience to gain their first level.

(2) - D, damn...... We'll remember this!

- Next time we meet, you're not leaving alive!!

The Kobolds ran off with their tails between their legs.



- For those who reach the required Exp, the status panel on the bottom of the screen will illuminate. When your status panel illuminates, try staying at the Lodge! After you stay at the Lodge, you should be able to notice that your character(s) have leveled up!

Right then. Let's go.





This unsettling music is the general backdrop to the Labyrinth. The first half of floor 1 consists of large outdoor areas...



...As well as indoor areas that almost look like mines.



Monsters will typically be wandering around the Labyrinth with you. You initiate combat by touching them. The one colored red is moving faster than the other; this is always an indication that the monster sees you, and it will often run at you by the most direct route possible. Non-red monsters either haven't noticed you, or don't care that you're nearby.



Our first encounter is against some orcs. They're one of the "friendly" monster groups. Basically, there's a semi-random chance of a monster you encounter being friendly. You can let them go 100% of the time to skip battle entirely, no matter what the monster itself is. Or, if you're feeling evil, you can attack them anyway.

Orcs themselves are not a very big threat. They can be a hassle in large numbers, but most melee characters can kill an orc in one hit from the beginning.



The next monster we encounter is Slimes. Slimes are weaker than almost every other creature in the Labyrinth. However, as is traditional in RPGs, monsters can randomly ambush you or be ambushed by you to give a free round to whoever does the surprise attack.



It's also not uncommon for monsters to drop treasure chests. Oftentimes they drop components for spells, which can be used as-is for one-time spell effects. They can also be combined back at Vigger's to make Magic Stones, which teach you spells.



Surprisingly, these Slimes dropped a Feal Magic Stone. Feal is the basic Priest's cure spell. Since Kyo is the only one who can use Priest spells even marginally, we can either use it on him now or wait until we get a Priest. I decide to hang on to it for a bit.



Let's return to the inn briefly to gain our levels.



Each person in your party costs 50 gold. So, a full party of six would cost 300. Not bad.



Here's Sagoon's new level stats. I'm going to skip over NPCs, but I'll try to track the PCs' levels as well as possible.



Returning to the Labyrinth. First, let's check out the main menu. Again, most of these commands are self-explanatory. When we can use AAs, we can check which ones are equipped using the currently grayed-out option.



Pushing Square also brings up the system menu. Like I said before, you can use this to make a quicksave in case you need to quit in a hurry.



Treasures are randomly scattered around the floors of the Labyrinth. Each time you exit a floor and return, chests are laying around in different places. Blue chests like these are always safe to open, and usually contain fairly basic items like Transfer or Healing Potions. Transfer Potions, incidentally, allow you to return to Duhan instantly from wherever you are in the Labyrinth. Useful for emergency escapes.



Several boxes were aligned neatly to form a desk. And carpet was rolled out as to welcome guests. The room contained a scent of liveliness, something that did not exist in the Labyrinth.



We'll be back in this lively room later.



Monsters will often attack in groups with differing numbers and combinations. However, there are also front rows and back rows in monster parties. Unless they use ranged weapons, magic, or are flying, monsters in the back row cannot attack unless they move to the front row. Party members in the back row are similarly constrained, but sadly there aren't any flying party members in the game.



We come to a three-way split in the main path when...



- Sorry... but, can you wait a moment? I'm ashamed to say, but my legs won't stop shaking. I almost lost my life just up ahead. I know it's all in the past. But, I still can't seem to forget that fear.



Naturally, this is one of those alignment choices. Let's be nice to Kyo and encourage him.

- Sorry to cause unnecessary worry.

- Don't worry about it... we're a team! Hey, Sagoon... Don't you think we should go to where Kyo almost died? If you keep avoiding that place, you'll never be able to recover from your fear of the past. So, Kyo. Where is that place?

- If we keep going straight ahead, there should be an altar in a snowy area. In front of that altar is where I was laying.

- Got it. The snowy altar, right? Then what are we waiting for?





We're going to make a slight detour to the left before we go to the altar.



This almost featureless room has something important in it.



Gahaha! You people have fallen for my bait!





We get jumped by two Rogues. They hit fairly hard at this point in the game, about 7 damage. Still, just two isn't much of a threat.



Gah! Didn't I see him in Resident Evil 4?



Ricardo pounded him into hamburger.



Sometimes I love the random screenshots I take during combat.



You got a Small Steel Shield!



The name of the person it belonged to was engraved on the shield. Scott Bain, the Wolf of Gascogne. Those thieves must have killed him.





Ricardo held the shield and gazed at the engraved name.

Ricardo approached the dead body and crouched down. He examined the body to look for something.

- I thought so... That dead body... He was the leader of the team I used to be with. I had no idea he was dead. He wasn't somebody who would get killed easily by thieves. That's sad that he doesn't even have someone to claim his body, especially when it's this close to town. What a pity...

- I really wanted to confront him because he was the one who kicked me out... But, it's strange how nothing will come out of my mouth, now that he's right in front of me. Damn! And I wanted to teach him a lesson one of these days. Sorry guys, I didn't mean to get you guys involved.



The Small Steel Shield is an actual piece of equipment, so let's give it to Ricardo.

We retrace our steps, and head to the snowy altar down the middle path.





- I was laying here by the altar.

Kyo walked slowly toward the altar.

He gazed at the cracked and worn altar.

Kyo's whispers were audible.

- I was frightened as the cold and fatigue numbed my senses, one by one... The sharp claws of death held me firmly as it tried to pull me into the darkness.

- I struggled. I desperately pursued the light in order to fend off the darkness. I tried to recall the bright memories I felt in my life...

- But I had nothing. I was always alone in my memories. Not even a memory of a friend filling my mind with nostalgia... Nor a loved one who warms my heart just by the thought of her...

- No, I had nothing. The only thoughts that existed were of despair and regret.

Kyo lightly brushed the snow off the surface and walked back.

- Since then, I have been plagued with nightmares. I thought that if I returned to this damned place, my fear would return to haunt me. But in reality... it hasn't... All I see is a chunk of stone.

- Maybe I was wrong. Death cannot be overcome. It is a fate no one can escape. Then trying to fight death may just be useless. For darkness is always buried within my heart. I'm afraid I have wasted your time.

Completing both of these events leads to the conclusions of Kyo's and Ricardo's quests.



Scattered around this area are three treasure chests.



Yellow chests like these are locked but not trapped, so disarming them is fairly simple. You have three seconds to enter the button combination on the screen, or else your attempt fails. With traps, this can be very unhealthy for your party.

Inside the three chests here, we find...







They end up being a Gauntlet, a Metal Shield, and a Battle Axe. We'll end up selling the axe since it imposes a 20% accuracy penalty to attacks, but the armor pieces are useful for Sagoon and Kyo.



We also meet one of the most dangerous monsters on this floor, the Bogey Cat.



Oh, this can't be good.

Bogey Cats are very fast, dodge a lot of attacks, take a lot of hits to kill, and inflict two hits on whoever they attack. It takes a couple of rounds, but she goes down without causing significant damage.

Going down the right pathway back at the split...



To go to town easily... use a Transfer Potion! You'll be there instantly!

The Mighty Warrior, Odom

Right... There's a door just past this bit of graffiti.



Oh gosh, what should I do?

A priestess stood bored in the room.



- We met at the Lodge, right? Are you here to get a pass also?



Yeah, I... guess so.

- I see. But, nobody's here right now. I was pretty sure this is the room to get a pass. I've been waiting for a while, but nobody's shown up.What should I do now? The party members I hired just took their money and ran. That totally sucks...

- Looks like you don't even have a priest with you... How about a deal? If you allow me in your party, I think we'll both benefit from each other. ()



Hey, at least we won't have to make Kyo the healer. Sure, let's have her join us.

- I'm relieved that you all seem like really nice people. OK, we've got a deal! I'm Sara McDuff. Nice to meet you.

Sara joined your party.



No tutorial fairy to explain what makes Sara angry. Oh well. Her stats are pretty good all around, but we'll have her in the back row. She's got a throwing knife, so she can still pew-pew at enemies if she's not busy doing something else.

...That really didn't sound right.



Returning to the inn for a brief respite, Sagoon gains another level!

This is a good place to stop. See you guys next update.

Videos:

The First Battle - http://miketopus.blip.tv/file/4371615/

Scary Door - http://miketopus.blip.tv/file/4371562/ (Don't be scared)

Kyo's Dilemma - http://miketopus.blip.tv/file/4371592/

Ricardo's Friend - http://miketopus.blip.tv/file/4371577/

Kyo's Memories - http://miketopus.blip.tv/file/4371591/

Disarming Traps - http://miketopus.blip.tv/file/4371597/

Meeting Sara - http://miketopus.blip.tv/file/4371580/