Part 49: Episode XLVII: Elhaym Van Houten in Too Little, Too Late
Episode XLVII: Elhaym Van Houten in Too Little, Too LateMusic: Knight of Fire
I believe somebody on the Xenogears staff decided that the last gauntlet against the Gebler Goobers + Proper Boss Fight combo was sort of bullshit. To make up for it, this time we not only get to save and equip ourselves before fighting the main event, but we get a free HP and Fuel topping off on our Gears. Hey, I’ll take it!
We can take a gander at Stier’s equipment for the first time here. Most new characters’ Gears from this point on come equipped with better equipment than currently available in stores. Which is nice. Though right now it is not a bad idea to slap a Beam Coat on both Stier and Weltall in preparation for the upcoming battle.
Back in the skies of Nortune...
”Eh. You know how it is with women...” “...” “...Well, maybe not.”
“Were you expectin' me to do all the dirty work of clearing away these punks for you, alone?" "Sorry about that... Oh, but I see you've made a girlfriend... If we can defeat her, we should be able to change the course of this ship. Let's go!"
“Just one more extra runt isn't going to allow you to down the 'Ship-Bomb Hecht'!" "Of course not! We're not gonna take 'this ship' down. We're gonna take 'you' down!"
*makes jerking off motion with Weltall* “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Solaris folks are king of shit mountain. Haven’t heard that one before... Just shut up and let me punch your stupid robot’s head off!”
Alright, time for the main event against Hecht. Or the silly looking Gear sticking out of the top of Hecht. As this is the last challenge of this segment of the game and we’re all maxed out on resources, it’s definitely a good idea to immediately flip on Booster for both of our Gears.
Hecht only has two attacks and they come in clearly defined phases. The first phase has the bomber Gear spam Aerods on a single character. Dominia’s Aerods aren’t nearly as damaging as Elly’s as they only take off less than 150~ HP for Weltall and less than 100 for Stier. The Beam Coats definitely help take those numbers down.
Hecht’s second phase has it summon forth a gigantic cannon. At this point it completely stops attacking with Aerods and just hangs out charging its super attack. Our Gears have the option of attacking said cannon. But it’s a better idea to just completely ignore it and take out Dominia before she can even fire the thing off.
If it does get the chance to fire (straight into its own hull, I might add) it does a massive 1000-1500 HP of damage to both Gears. Which still honestly isn’t a big deal given we begin within the ballpark of 5000+ HP. But still. Who likes getting hit with super attacks? It’s just embarrassing!
In any case, just concentrating all fire on Dominia’s Gear with Heavy attacks and Level 2 Deathblows will take her out long before she gets the chance to fire her big cannon. And so concludes the battling portion of the Night Purge.
Fei Fong Wong - 4
Gebler – 0
This is just getting sad.
“One day I'll pay you back for this... I promise!!"
”Oh come on! You just exploded! You cannot come back to be a reoccurring boss after exploding! That’s cheating!”And so Dominia escapes...I guess... After the battle...
Xenogears: Rico and Fei’s Bogus Journey.
Weltall and Stier try their damnedest to prevent Hecht from crashing into the city center and...ya know...nuking the entire town...
Meanwhile, Elly has apparently been just dicking around continuing to be wishy-washy and useless while staring at the carnage in the city for the last ten minutes. Thanks for the help, El. You’re swell.
”We’re having no effect! On the mass... Eh, Wrex?” *groan*
Elly decides to finally show up in Vierge to lend a hand. No, I’m not even going to dignify that with an “Elly out of fucking nowhere”. Fuck her. That was a like seven minute boss fight and several minutes of cutscenes afterwards. She could have afforded to get her ass up here ten minutes ago.
"Hold on! We can avoid a direct hit on the reactor with three Gears." ”Are you gonna fly there looking surprised or are you going to push?!” "Ah, ahhh."Music: Steel Giant
Hey, what do you know? It does take exactly three Gears to push the world’s slowest falling suicide bomber off course. Wasn’t this thing half-way across the Nortune city limits over twenty minutes ago?
"But, now it's heading right for the residential district!" ”I don’t think we planned this out very well!” "He's right! We need to bring it down somewhere where it won't cause so much damage." ”Rico, you think we can turn this thing around toward D Block?” “...” “C’mon. You know nobody would miss it!”
"No! We've got to hold it up as long as we can!" "What are you, deaf?" ”We’re already crapping all over physics as it stands! We do not need to push our luck here!”After a few seconds, Stier and Weltall’s engines fizzle and cut out...
”What?! That’s a real thing?! I thought that was just part of that stupid mini-game!” "Damn! Not now!" "There's nothin' more we can do! Hanging on anymore will just be suicide!" "But..." "That's it, I'm bailing out! C'mon!"
No longer being able to fly beyond a hover, Weltall and Stier both give up on pushing the Hecht any further. However, Vierge is nowhere to be seen. This is because Elly is, of course, going to have a drama queen redemption scene pushing the thing by herself now.
"Don't worry. My Gear is from Solaris. It's still...all right." ”I think it’s more ‘your Gear hasn’t even fought today’ than that, but...” "Elly! What are you doing? If you keep going you'll...!" "But......what else can we do? At least it will reduce the damage. ...... Sorry. It's better than doing nothing." ”You’re not even moving the thing anymore! You ARE doing nothing!”
Saying this, of course, causes Vierge’s engines to immediately cut out. Good to see Solaris technology allows its Gears to operate thirty seconds longer than those scummy Lamb Gears.*
Disclaimer: This statement may be invalid if said Gear is not in peak condition due to inactivity.
Music: The Wounded Shall Advance Into the Light
Fei and Rico’s Gears overheat? Oh well, call it a day, say you gave it your best shot, and hover back down to the ground safely. Elly’s Gear overheats? Immediately start dropping like a rock in super slow motion while choir music begins playing. Elhaym Van Houten: All Drama. All the time!
”Dumbass...”
“ADAAAAAAAAAAA!”
While Elly continues her dramatic descent and the Hecht veers toward what I can only assume is the completely unpopulated B Block that nobody ever talks about, a giant flash of light appears in the sky...
A Winged Gear flies over the city toward the falling craft... Sure...why not?
The Winged Gear is feeling particularly chivalrous and protects Vierge from the blast. And here I thought they were going to kill off female lead less than half way through the game.
Oh...hey Grahf. Uhh... Nice demon wings? Did those come free with THE POWER or are they only for special occasions?
Oh? Just going to fly off now? That’s cool. Grahf knows how to work the dark and mysterious angle with the ladies.
“Who...?” “...Elly!” “You're...”
“Fei?”Music: Shattering Egg of Dreams
"Fei?" "... Stupid... foolish..." "...Are you...crying? ...Sorry." "... It's okay." "Can you......forgive me?" "...It's not your fault, Elly. It's not your fault..." "Fei..."
”It’s kinda...ya know...explodey here...”Weltall takes off with Vierge...
Well, that was a thing. But hey! We saved...most of Nortune... I guess that’s something! But most importantly...we're coming toward the end of our time in Kislev!
Vierge’s Fall
Hecht Concept Art