Part 30: Update -XXVI- Bahamutian Beatdown

Hoo boy. Get ready for some story. There's like a straight 30 minutes where I just set my controller down and leaned back.

So if you got bored during the last two updates then get ready, because these next two are basically all plot all the time.

Update 26 Highlights - Chapter Opening




Very pretty.

Huh?

Whoa. Check it out. This place is...

It's the-beautiful.

Something about it makes me...

Feel safe.

Y-yeah... You think... Mom could be here?

Maybe. Let's find her.

Only one place to go, so just head for the big platform.



*Lann then gets hit with a memory punch*







*Whoever the blurry figure is is saying something, but it's so static-y that he can't be understood*

...!

Lann?



You are here.



Are you the king? Of the Bahamutian Federation?!

Federation? How very quaint. Is that the tale Segwarides has been spreading? So be it. Then you have found me out, boy. I am king of the Bahamutian Federation-- Brandelis!



Brandelis is voiced by Tony Amendola in English and Hidekatsu Shibata in Japanese.

He's the one. The villain behind it all.

In the cage there-- is that Lusse Farna? What did you do to our mom?

Is that why you have come?

What?

Tell me why you have traveled all this way.

You have our mom, right? Give her back!

Yeah. Start by setting her free.

Yeah!

Naive fools. Still. I will play my part.

Update 26 Highlights - Brandelis Fight
World of Final Fantasy Music: Giga World of Battle


Reynn, you have to snap the-out of it and stay focused!

Yeah, she's right! Since when are you the one to space out at a critical moment?

B-be quiet! I'm paying attention, okay?

Good!



Brandelis is actually capable of putting up a good fight. He has no weaknesses or resistances and the only ailment he is susceptible to is Slow (for good reason, he is very fast).



He has elemental attacks called Blaze, Tsunami, Earthquake, and Whirlwind. These are essentially just the -ga versions of elemental spells (such as Waterga/Firaga/etc.).

At least one of them is likely to hit you pretty hard. Unless you've specifically fine-tuned your stacks for elemental coverage then you'll probably take a good hit from two or three of them.

Either way, Brandelis is probably going to be quite a bit faster than you, so he'll be spamming them repeatedly.



He'll cycle his way through all four of them, and on top of that he has a standard physical attack which can hit for about 700.

Before you go into this fight, it's a good idea to have an ample supply of Spider Silk or the Slow ability (Spider Silk is better as it doesn't have the AP cost of Slow). If you can't slow him down then it's going to be tough to keep up with healing while also trying to wear down his HP. Getting Slow on him should drop his speed to be roughly on your level, so you'll be able to get both Lann and Reynn's turns in for every one that he gets.

Champion Medals can help here, since the attack type Medals will bypass defence and deal a solid chunk of damage. If you have been training up the Behemonster then he should prove useful as well. Behemonster is a very physically strong attacker (when trained), can get Counter, and also has a move called Meteor Stance which will counter an attack with the Meteor spell.



Those are just some suggestions. The fight isn't necessarily hard because of how predictable it is. Brandelis doesn't really have any surprises, he's just very fast and has multi-target moves, which messes with the usual 2-on-1 strategy.

Update 26 Highlights - Brandelis Defeated


Suck it, Brandelis.

Huh? You mean we... won?

Honk YEAH! And here I thought that was gonna be hard.

That was the-mazing! Think of all the people across the-Grymoire that you just saved from their plight!

Yeah, but I bet those nutcases who sided with the Federation are gonna sweat.



What is that pose, Lann?

Oh, right! Reynn, come on! We gotta bust Mom out.

Oh, right. But, how do we open it?

Chuck a rock at it? It looks fairly fragile.

You again?



Huh? Sorry?

Only Mirage Keepers are permitted to use that mighty portal-- the Ultima Gate.



Ultima Gate? Guys, maybe don't go opening that shit up or activating it or whatever the fuck you do with it. Ultima Gate doesn't sound like a good thing, it sounds like an incredibly ominous thing, like say... Pandora's Box.





Flashback again. Things are a tiny bit more clear this time, although we still can't understand the blurry figure.



....! I think I'm... starting to remember... The portal... it started to shine... And then the cage appeared.

Then, that means this isn't your the-first time seeing it!

Yeah... It's hazy, but I've seen this gate before.

Then you know what to do. Use it.

W-wait! Who are you?

.....







OH MY GOD! IT'S....uhhh.... future Sophie from Tales of Graces maybe? I'm drawing a blank here guys, feel like filling us in?



.....?!

Oh good, seems like Reynn recognizes who the hell this girl is.






[Child]: What? But I didn't do anything bad at all! You shouldn't go saying stuff like that about me, okay Hauyn?


[Hauyn]: Hey! What'd I tell you? We're like sisters. Since you and I are close, why don't you call me Wyn?


I know I'd prefer that. Hauyn's name is pronounced like "ow" and "in". Wyn is so much simpler.


[Child]: Hee hee! Okay, I will, Wyn.




Ah, the typical Japanese head pat. Always a pleaser.



What? Did you just say... "our sister"?

I didn't know you had an older the-sister!

Let's reminisce later. Save Lady Lusse.

So then, that really is our mom in the cage?

Well, okay then. Let's hurry up and activate the Ultima Gate thingamajig and bust the cage open!

R-right!

Guys, at least try my rock chucking idea before you go activating giant celestial gates. You don't even have to chuck it if you don't want to. Just give Tama the rock and have her fly up and bash on it a bit.

Update 26 Highlights - The Ultima Gate


No? Okay then.











Alright... I admit that it did look pretty dangerous there for a second, but now it looks super beautiful.





Mom!





Oh, awesome! Job well done, then. ...The Crimson one was the good prophecy, right?

Mom!





Hweh?!

Wh-what? How can this...







How could you do this... twice?

What do you mean?

You opened it again.

World of Final Fantasy Music: Exnine Melody
Ha ha ha ha ha! The Crimson Prophecy has been fulfilled!



I commend you all. You may dispense with the illusion now, Ywain.











What is going on...? Reynn, tell me what's happening!

How am I supposed to know? Wyn, what is this? What's going on?



*And then she falls down*

I thought Segwarides' laborious narrative might never end.

I share that sentiment. Should we do this again, you will keep your prophecy more concise.

Hee hee hee hee! But you cannot accuse me of excess. Every step was necessary to the plan. Hee hee hee ha ha!

Tell me, what of the soul crystal? How much of the populace have we harvested?

If I had to offer up a guess, then just about four souls in every ten.

Is that all? After a whole century?

I have been selective, and discreet. With Champions awakening again, we're lucky to have pulled off such a feat. Hee hee hee hee!













So this keeps going from bad to worse.

Now what is it?!

Aaah! We-we've really the-done it now!

Done what?!

I know you. You're the...the...the Order of the Circle!

Ah! I have not heard that name in some time.

Were we acquainted in those ages past?

If so, she would have served our enemy.



You bastards! That dance sucks! How dare you bring that evil into the world!

Nooo! Wh-wh-wh-what are we the-gonna do?! Lann! Reynn! You've gotta-- you've gotta the-hurry up and do something quick!

Tama! You've got to calm down!

How can we do something? We don't even know what's going on!

Update 26 Highlights - Everything goes to shit
















Not liking this...



















Probably not a good thing.





Definitely not a good thing.



















Yeah... you two done fucked up fiercely.

T-Tama?!

Rrrgh!







Oh, hey. Tidus isn't dead. Or maybe he is and just doesn't know it.



Also, where the hell do those Blitzballs keep coming from?











Okay, that puts a stop to the giant Gundam motherfucker that was on its way through the portal. There's a positive.

The Champions have rallied here to try and intervene before things go awry. Too late. The Cogna have passed through the portal. The fateful arrow has been loosed. Rejoice! For the end of an A-World-- No! The beginning of something greater is now upon us!

*And then the antagonists take off to do whatever, but not before Brandelis' line gets cut off at "upon"*

World of Final Fantasy Music: Mad Dash Melody


We still have a problem on the other hand.



Go how?!





They're here. C'mon!

Let us take care of them!

Okay!

Thanks.

Lann, you get our sister!

Uh... okay!









Cloud is using his Finishing Touch Limit Break in this scene. It's his last Limit Break before Omnislash.







And this is Lightning using the Overclock ability from Lightning Returns.





Chibi Tidus' arm waving looks super weird.





Wh-- Aaah!





Mmkay, so that could have maybe gone a little better. Everything kind of went to shit at Warp 10 there. Ultima Weapon is now roaming free, a mechanized army has flooded the world, and there's also those creatures that have been popping out of places where we grabbed keys. On the plus side it looks like everyone made it out okay. Well, everyone we care about (or tolerate) at least. Can't say the same for the people in those towns that got exploded.