Part 13: Update -XI- Pleasure Cruise

This is another short chapter, so let's take a quick opportunity to go grab some optional Mirages.



First, it's time to take on that Behemoth from the tutorial area.



Not so big now, are ya? I love that feeling of returning to an area that used to kick the crap out of you and then just lording your new later-game power over everything.



You have to deal a significant amount of damage to create a capture chance. Even then, the bastard puts up a lot of resistance. Takes like 5 attempts to catch it.

Behemoths started as a boss in FFII, and were later relegated to a normal enemy. They've appeared in every main title since, as well as a lot of the side games. They are super popular. They're usually late game enemies that hit like trucks and have a high defence.



I also return to the Watchplains in order to take care of that random Cornelian citizen's quest of Goblin culling. While I'm there, I get the missing Goblin types.





Done with that. I make a pit stop at Chocolatte's to scope out the new items that are supposedly in stock, and...



You suck Chocolatte. 30k for Drain/Confuse/Sleep? The few times I need those I'll use items, and by the time it gets too expensive I'll have Mirages that can do it (or I'll just find one of these seeds).



Back to the hunt. Here is the Maxima added Murkrift I pointed out in the last update. Time to see what special Mirage it's hiding.



It's a pony! It also has a really annoying capture condition!

Landing a critical hit is one of the worse capture conditions to have to meet. There are some attacks or board spots that can boost Crit chance, but you're still mostly relying on luck.





They aren't insanely powerful, but unstacking to get more chances at a critical is a bit risky. Take out one of them first, then try unstacking and swinging away. Of course, if you manage a critical in the process of taking one of them out, then just give Imprisming a shot. Never know, RNG might decide to smile on you.



Ponini is a new Mirage made for the Maxima expansion. It's a pony, not a unicorn. That's... that's about all I got. Into the Prism Case with you.

That takes care of everything for now. Back to the story stuff.

Update 11 Highlights - Meeting Quistis


This technically starts right after the save opportunity (after that whole Faris event), but I wanted to get those Mirages out of the way first.



Well... (I don't know... Are we really just gonna follow some random prophecy word for word?)

Do you have a better idea? You do an awful lot of useless pondering, Reynn.

(But, what other leads do we have?)

Exactly. If you don't have any alternatives, then zip it.

Fine. I guess we'll run with it.

Huh? What?

Captain Faris, can you tell us how to get to the Low Seas?

Hmm... Perhaps. But I'll not be lending you this ship. For one, she can't venture down sea, even if I were feeling generous.




[Moogle]: Guest, kupo?


You know who. Oi. The lass in glasses.


[Moogle]: Oh, from the League, kupo! She might be, kupo. I'll go look, kupo.




World of Final Fantasy Music: League Melody


It's Quistis! Quistis is voiced by Kristina Pesic in English, Miyuki Sawashiro in Japanese.



Quistis hails from FFVIII. She's one of those "I'm your class' 18-year old teacher because I'm a child prodigy" characters. You know, the bullshit ones for when you want a teacher that's still young enough for the main character to possibly be paired with without it being weird, although it is still incredibly weird because of the power dynamic.

We'll talk more about Quistis' job and history later on. For now, all you need to know is that she's a teacher that has a fan club of groupies called "Trepies" which is a really weird and Japanese thing I don't understand (my other LP had a teen aged girl teacher with a fan club as well).

So she's a blonde haired teacher in glasses that uses a whip as her weapon. This is how the game introduces her. Oh Nomura, you crazy.

Sorry to detain you.

I thought we were done with our transaction. Did you find some sort of problem with the cargo?

No, the goods were sound. I've another quandary... if you'll hear me out.

What's that?

These gents here have business in the Low Seas.

Who are they?

The Jiants from the Hills. In the flesh.









Yeah. There are a bunch of other Mirage Keeper Jiants from somewhere that's a reference to hills that it could be.

*One more explanation later*

Very intriguing.

So, they need a boat. And as I recall, you've got one.



then we don't owe him anything. Which means... that the boat is up for grabs.

Aye.

Wait, "up for grabs"? What do you mean?

Oh, my group had some business to attend to in Saronia, so we presented the thane with a boat. Some might call it a... a bribe.

You don't need to wheel and the-deal with a bunch of no-good monsters like that.

Yeah!

You're not even listening.

Yeah!

So you're absolutely certain? You saw the thane undergo a transformation?

Aye, and then Syldra let him have it!

After we beat him to within an inch of his life. I'm willing to forgive you for the lost EXP though, since I sort of robbed your crew of nearly 10,000 gil. We'll call it even.

Okay. Well, don't get me wrong. I can see that they're Jiants...



Ha. One splash in the Low Seas can't stop a prophecy.

...Well, I guess you win. You can take the fastcraft down to the Low Seas.

Oh, sweet!

Thank you so much! (Although, that whispering wasn't very encouraging...)



We get a chance to go take care of stuff if we want, although there's not really a reason to do so (for me anyway, since I already did it all through the magic of LP time travel).



Godspeed, gents.

Thanks! Oh, right... Where's my manners? Sorry we tried to rob you!

I'm not! Sweet sweet gil.

We really didn't mean to cause you trouble.

You can make it up to me. Perhaps... If you survive. Farewell!

Huh?!

Come on! This way.



The other road is crawling with Mirages. Nobody uses that one anymore.

Considering the number of ships docked on that route as well as the houses/huts we passed with lights on inside as well as there being no signs up around the nearest entrance, I call bullshit on that.

Dude! Oh, I so wish we knew about that coming in.

Well, that figures. I thought something about these docks smelled fishy.

Oh, shut up the fuck up Reynn. You thought no such thing. You can't just second guess every single thing and then later go "Oh yeah, I knew all along."

But at least we found some good the-Mirages! No worries, the-right?

Yeah! No worries at all! *whimper*





This weirdly shaped vehicle is from FFVIII, just like Quistis. It's the landing ship that the party takes during their "final exam", and by that I mean they use it during a Normandy-style beach assault. The reason for that will have to wait until I get into a discussion about what group Quistis belongs to, which will be when the other FFVIII rep shows up.

*Lann and Reynn board the ship*

I set the helm to autopilot, so it'll take you right to the Low Seas.

Another autopilot ship? Is this going to be a reoccurring theme for games I LP? That I never get to have fun actually driving these things? Laaaame.

Now get going, before the thane or the rest of the Federation catch on.

How many times do we have to put that guy down?

Wow, you're just as nice as a peach.

Thank you for everything!



Huh?

What?!

Update 11 Highlights - Cruise Conversation


I can't the-believe they loaned us this great boat! We really lucked the-out this time.

Dude, I know, right? We don't even have to steer it. I love the easy life.

Could you guys speak up a bit? I'm getting some background noise.

But Lann...

Hm?

Aren't you just a little worried about what Faris and Quistis said?

What did they say?

Now that you mention it, they did kind of make it the-sound like we weren't gonna live out the day.

Pretty much.

Wonder why.

Hmm... What's so bad about the Low Seas? We're just going south... right? You know, somewhere lower down on the map or something?

Pause for a moment and think about what you just said Reynn. You overthink everything else, so why not this? I promise you, the answer is quite obvious.

What if they're called "low"... because of all the lowlifes living the-there?

That could be it.

Hey, uh, Reynn?

Huh?

Is it just me, or is the river getting more whooshy?

Y-you think so?

You guys might want to get inside rather than hang out on this weird sofa deck space.

Reynn, all of a sudden, I am suddenly getting this really bad sudden feeling.

Yeah, me too.

Bad feeling? About the-what?

Update 11 Highlights - To the Low Seas Cutscene






Note to self: the Low Seas are not south.













Tama's havin fun.







Oh sweet, they're dead. Maybe I can track down the League of S people and start following them instead.



Crap.

Gaaah!

Agh, jelly sandwich!

H-how are we alive?

Tama, you still with us?

Never been the-betterer...

You can fly, how did you even end up in the water?

*Tama starts shaking herself off like a dog*

Hey! Don't do that on my head!



This is a small area, but it does have a gate for us to go back to Nine Wood. Seems to be something going down in the foreground though. Should check that out first.

Now that our boat's busted, how are we supposed to get where we're going?

Ugh. Don't ask me.





Hey! Cut it out! Nobody likes a bully!

Looks like snakes need to be taught a lesson!



Sea Snake just needs a splash of water to capture. These things aren't really difficult.



Sea Snakes show up in the first FF, although they looked like actual snakes in that appearance. Other than that, they are entirely unremarkable.



Pretty sure this is a food chain situation.

Update 11 Highlights - Meeting Adamantoise


Reynn, c'mon!

Huh? What?

We're Mirage Keepers! If you're gonna let 'em just swim away, then--



Then you are... you're... doing exactly the right thing!








[Adamantoise]: Hmm?


*We fade out as the little turtle tells the big turtle not to crush our heroes and explains what happened*


[Adamantoise]: Young Mirage Keepers. My minimantoise here tells me that you saved his life. I thank you.




It... it talked! With words!

Hwooow... A talking the-Mirage!

Seriously?

Your regular reminder that Lann is a moron. Also, Tama apparently drifts in and out of it too.


[Adamantoise]: Now, tell me what a pair of Keepers like you are doing all the way out here?


Uh, well...

*Another fade out and explanation*


[Adamantoise]: Hmm... Then, I shall help you find this "Babil." You are free to ride on my back.


Dude!

Are you sure?



So now we can talk to Adamantoise to hitch a ride. I'll get into Adamantoise when we actually get one as a Mirage. We'll be getting our hands on a minimantoise soon.



You wish.



Despite getting control of the Adamantoise, this area is just a long corridor. Our objective is to avoid the Mega Sharquals patrolling the route, but I'm going to immediately ignore those warnings and go straight at the first one we come across.


[Adamantoise]: I know little about the world above, let alone this "Babil" you seek. If you don't mind, I'll leave you to navigate.


Something's swimming around over there.

I don't like the look of it one the-bit.

Why not?

Lann, does this not remind you of anything?

Bruce?

Hey! Let's try touching it!

Oh, please don't.

Too late, we're totally touching it.



It's hostile!

And really the-strong!

These Mega Sharquals have 4386 HP. That's not that bad.



It's fairly strong, okay. Still not worried.



It has incredible defence, okay. That's slightly more of a problem. Still not worried. I can easily circumvent that.



I am not leaving this thing behind. It will be ours.







Suck it high natural defence + Protect.

So the Mega Sharqual and one of the minimantoises have to go first, then we can focus on dealing damage to the remaining one and catching the little bugger.



These things are almost as strong as the Mega Sharqual, so it takes a while, but it is definitely doable.

Also, here's a wordplay joke that works on multiple levels, not all of which the description writers may have intended. I think this one works a little better than "Hex Life."

Update 11 Highlights - Low Seas Mega Sharqual Fight + Minimantoise Capture


There's some dialogue that happens if you lose to these groups. It's kind of a funny response actually, just in terms of delivery.



Lann, what are you doing?!

Now despite what I just did, you should be avoiding these things at all costs, or running from them if you accidentally hit one. The Mega Sharquals would be fine on their own, but the addition of two minimantoises turns this into a dangerous encounter. They are more than likely slightly faster than you, and all of them are capable of dishing out 700+ damage per hit. The only good damage dealers to them at this stage of the game is the Cactuar 1,000 Needles attack, since it bypasses defense and deals a flat 1,000 damage. However, with 4,000 HP each you will probably be overwhelmed before you can take one of them down.

They pay out about 10,000 experience, but that's not really worth it for the amount of effort you have to put in. You'd be better off going to the secret area of Nether Nebula.

Anyway, after moving ahead a bit and dodging some Mega Sharquals, we get a scene.

Update 11 Highlights - Meeting Rikku


Aaah!

*Something comes flying out of the water*

Whoa! What was that?



Uh, who are you?

Oh! My bad. My name's Rikku!



Rikku is voiced by Tara Strong in English, Marika Matsumoto in Japanese.

World of Final Fantasy pulls some weirdness with the characters for their appearances here. The Rikku we see here is based on her FFX-2 appearance, but according to the "Who's Who" she is 15, which is the age she is in FFX.



Oh well. Artistic license and all that. Rikku is originally from FFX, where she is an Al-Bhed that tried to kidnap Yuna in order to "protect" her by forcible confinement. Al-Bheds are this ethnic group or some shit that believed in the power of scavenged ancient technology rather than the shady world religion that everyone else believes in. They also have weird swirly eyes for some reason, which you can see in Rikku's chibi appearance here.

So Rikku joins the party almost immediately after this kidnapping attempt, because only Tidus realises she was piloting the kidnapper robot and she kind of saved Tidus' ass when he first wound up in the world. We learn that her and Yuna are cousins as well, which is... okay? There is supposed to be some conflict related to some people *coughWakkacough* being racists and coming to terms with Yuna actually being part Al-Bhed, but it really ends up being a minor and not important detail.

Then FFX happened and everything that entailed. She shows up again as one of the three heroines of FFX-2 as part of the Gullwings, a group of treasure hunters. Apparently when the Gullwings were coming together, Rikku saw what Yuna was up to with her rebellious wardrobe change and went "Bitch thinks she can upstage me? Not a chance!"



And so she found a way to somehow wear less clothing than Yuna, which is the appearance you see here. She doesn't have as big a role in what follows, which is probably for the best since she probably would have shown up in the buff if she had.

That's enough about that, though. The horrors of FFX's EU are still a ways off, peeking out just over the horizon and waiting for its moment to strike.

Man, I wish that Mirage hadn't come along and trashed my boat, 'cause I was having a great day of treasure hunting. I'm a good swimmer so it's no biggie, but I was really starting to get pooped. Then I spotted you guys sailing along on top of old Adamantoise here. So, is there some story behind all this?

It's kind of not your business, but there's nothing better to do while we sail so Lann and Reynn will just explain it all anyway.



Thank you! Man, how totally awesome are you Mirage Keepers! It can't be easy befriending an adamantoise!

Honestly, I think we just happened to bump into a really nice one.

Hmm. Oh! So you're trying to get to the Babil region, right? You need to set a course thataway!

*And so they went "thataway."*



Take it away!

Let's the-go!

Which is the same direction we were already going. Thanks Rikku.

We've got a bunch more patrolling Mega Sharquals to get past. If one connects with you then just spam the Escape option until you slip away. Some Mirages also have the Flee ability which guarantees an escape. The sharks get faster as we keep going, so the timing will be trickier, especially since they start layering themselves in such a way that you can get caught between them.

Just stick to the right or left and wait for them to head off towards the opposite direction.



Well...

And that conversation just kind of peters out there.

*A little further ahead*



And then that conversation just kind of peters out.



The Rainbow Shore is the stopping point for Chapter 9. Next time we'll be on our way to Chapter 10, where we will have to slog our way through the mountains.