It's been a month since we've started, but we're almost back at Anpo.
Anyway, we'll talk to that old man later. Let's see what's at the base of this cactus first.
...oh.
Huh. You know, I'm not playing this totally blind, but I don't watch everything in advance either. I honestly had no idea this was coming.
When you hit it, it splits into three whirlwinds. They bounce around for a while before reforming.
Sometimes it sticks a big muscly arm out and tries to grab you.
It hits pretty hard, and there's a lot of stuff moving around at high speeds when it's in the smaller whirlwind form. I take it down eventually, though.
This one's definitely going to take editing, but I'm excited to do it. Metamode bosses often neglect the use of black as a color/shading tool and not just an outline.
Heading south:
"Hey! Kools girl!"
She runs up.
"You came to help!
Thank you...
Another of my friends is hiding from a monster, I don't know where...
No, Grandpa's worried! I have to get home!"
She runs off, leaving me with these Tanuki Seeds.
Wait, I could go north before. What?
I try reverting to a slightly earlier save state and going up. It doesn't seem like this is anything except an alternate route to get to the boss arena. Weirdly, coming down that way still closes off the cacti behind me.
Old Man:
"What? I'm in your way?
Well, I'm sorry about that. I guess I'll be going now."
Yep, here's our path.
Another, smaller house.
Girl:
"Only older people still live around here. So when monsters attack, there's nobody to help. We need the people of Kools."
Old Man:
"I can't believe she was attacked...thank you so much."
Another house, I think I have to pass through this one...
Old Man:
"Well, well. Thank you very much, Miss Kools."
Old Woman:
"Most of the people who live around here are elderly. There are only two children."
Through the back door are...more old people.
Old Man:
"What? You walked here from Douji Village?
I knew it. Kools are capable of amazing things."
Old Woman:
"The man who lives in the south part of this house is the oldest guy in our neighborhood."
North of here is even more housing!
Old Woman:
"My grandson...
He went out to play. He hasn't come back."
Goodbye, long house.
Sign:
SHOP AHEAD
Oh, flowerpots. How I used to dread you.
Totems...
Here's the shop.
It confirms my suspicions that only melee weapons can be shiny, although there does seem to be a new kind of gun. I assume I can't equip it and leave it alone. They also seem to be selling a headgear (armor?) that's wings and a halo?
We pass more totems.
I could actually bail to Anpo at this point. Nothing's stopping me, I tested it out in a different save state. Nothing except JUSTICE.
It's time for another boss fight.
Totem is odd. He comes at you with a few bodies at a time while others just chill out in the center. Each one always returns to the same place, so sometimes there's a gap when the lower bodies are attacking.
Also, each body is only vulnerable some of the time, and if it's telegraphed then I'm not 100% clear on how. Flickering is a tell but sometimes they're vulnerable anyway even if they don't flicker? I don't know.
At low health they each move to a corner, then back to their stack in the center, and loop through that movement, sort of trying to bump you in the process.
Eventually they die. I don't know....I compiled a sheet for them, but the more I look at it the more I think it's not worth it. I sort of like the idea of a totem pole based boss in theory, but if I ever draw one it's going to be from scratch. I don't see much point using this one even as a base.
I take the leftmost lower exit, and that brings me to that underground path.
Boy:
"Huh? You're a Kools? Aren't you a kid...?
Well, I'm a kid, too.
Wait, the totem pole monster is gone?
No way, you did it? No way! I guess even a kid Kools is still a Kools.
I can't do anything for you, but if you talk to my grandpa, he might give you something. Why don't you come visit our house?
I backtrack my way over to the long house, where the boy I saved is waiting.
Boy:
"Hey, thanks for what you did back there!
We're practically the same age, but you're so much stronger...
Kools are so tough!"
Man, I figured I was at least like a teenager or something. I'm going to choose to assume he's just identifying with me because he's constantly surrounded by grannies.
Most of the people in the long house have the same dialog, but the old man in the south room has something new to say!
Old Man:
"Well, well, Miss Kools.
Thank you for helping the only two children we have.
I should do something for you, too. Please take this."
Ami got the Beard Ribbon!
"Please take it to Shokuan. You'll be surprised."
Anyway, I start to make my way out.
I don't really love grind-based level-up systems in general, but in this game constantly accumulating skill points does do a lot toward taking the edge off the backtracking I've been doing. The actual level ups I completely fail to notice, even though mechanically they're probably doing way more for me than my skills are.
This screen here, the top part of the right branch of the cactus, doesn't seem to do anything. Odd.
And here's our exit. Anpo, the place this all started, is just ahead.
A boy runs onscreen as I enter.
Boy:
"You know, I never thought the Kools could be such cowards."
Girl: "Yeah.
I wonder what would've happened to this place if the Bobbies hadn't come when they did."
Boy: "It's such a mess."
Girl: "The Bobbies are even better than the Kools...maybe it's time for them to take over."
Boy: "I'm gonna join the Bobbies. I'm gonna join them and be a Metamode specialist."
Girl: "Me too! I'm so done with Kools."
We have a lot of work ahead of us.
But first I'm going to see my family.
Dad: "Oh! Ami!"
Dad: "Where on Earth have you been??
You didn't come back after training, and when I went to Tiger's Den you weren't there...
We were so worried!"
Mom: "Are you talking to me, sweetie? Speak up..."
Mom: "Ami!"
Mom: "Where have you been?! The Kools have gotten into so much trouble since you disappeared!"
Dad: "Monsters suddenly appeared in our town, and there were so many! But the Kools didn't do anything about it.
And then, out of nowhere, a group of people called the Bobbies showed up, and dealt with all the monsters one by one.
And now everyone in town supports them over the Kools!
...So all the Kools decided to become Bobbies instead.
And now all the Bobbies are a town over, in Ronef storming the Kools headquarters there!
We were so happy for you when you joined the Kools...
But if you're safe now, that's all that matters to your mother and me."
Mom:
"I'm just so glad you're okay.
By the way, I heard Knack joined the Bobbies...
He loved the Kools so much, I wonder what happened to him......"
Dad:
"Kools or Bobbies, it doesn't matter. You'll always be my daughter, you know."
I honestly really love the dynamic between the protagonist and their mom and dad in this game. They're always so supportive and it shines through.
I hope Knack's parents are holding up okay. They've also lost a kid...
Knack's Mom:
"Oh, Ami. You're still a Kools...
I don't know what happened to Knack, but he's joined a group called the Bobbies. Do you know what happened to him?"
Knack's Dad:
"Why is Knack working with the Bobbies? Why did he quit the Kools...?"
As a silent protagonist, I can't tell them anything. I'm not actually sure I know about the hypnosis in character, actually, I was already teleported to Douji at that point. Maybe Ami is just as in the dark as they are.
Let's take that Beard Ribbon to Shokuan's.
Shokuan:
"Hmm? That's a Beard Ribbon, isn't it?
Let's see what I can do with this."
He shouts a few syllables, and the screen flashes.
"It's done! Go to the Transformations command and press the Select button. The rest is up to you."
I do, and a new transformation is available.
Normie...the male version.
Eat your heart out, Double Agent, I got there in the end.
Note that in the image before, Male Normie is at D-rank, while I made C-rank as a girl. I seem to keep most, but not all, skills that I unlocked from the female version when I unlock a male class. This is still enough to immediately unlock Kenshi and Doctor (male Nurse is a full doctor, wtf), but not Submariner. I go down the chain for a while, but stop short of unlocking every available class. Why have Oracle at E-rank when I can presumably level it up as female, and then unlock its counterpart and retain most of the skills?
(Also, I immediately feel compelled to use a savestate to go back and reexperience the family reunion as a dude, to see if Mom and Dad comment on it. They do not.)
I do intend to keep playing as a girl for now--that seems like the most efficient way to handle things.
Even though I have A-rank in both Witch and Bear, that doesn't seem to be enough to unlock Amazon for me. Blahh. I talk to Shokuan about it, and he tells me that I need to level up in Queen.
Wait. What?
Now I'm secondguessing myself. Maybe I just read Witch as Queen for some reason, and had a brainfart. They're both loanwords, I'm thinking I just saw the イ in the middle and stopped reading the word. Queen + Bear honestly makes more sense than Witch + Bear flavor-wise.
I guess it doesn't matter. I needed to get A rank in Witch for Oracle regardless.
I guess I'd better go into everyone's houses and hear them talk about the Bobbies some more, as is my duty as an LPer.
Left house:
Old Man:
"What's going on in the town of Ronef? Is the Kools building going to be reopened? I'm curious."
Old Woman:
"I don't like that Bob fellow very much. He always looks like he has something cruel in mind. He just has this nasty demeanor."
Right house:
Man:
"I never thought I'd see the day where the Kools were replaced.
Well, if they're stronger, I guess I'm okay with that."
Woman:
"I love Kools. We're not going to let the Bobbies get the better of us."
So I guess there's some loyalists, at least.
Woman:
"What? Ami! It's been so long since I've seen you! Where have you been?"
Left house:
Boy:
"I heard that if you go to Shokuan with a certain type of 'Card,' you can unlock a new transformation."
Woman:
"The locked hospital in the northeast of town....
I heard the old man who lives right next door has a key."
I guess I'll show a screenshot for right next door, then.
I don't see any old men here.
Old woman:
"My idiot son has been hiding out in the Anpo Theater lately. He seems to be playing at a very bad game."
Hmm...
Well, here's an old man, at least. Maybe it still counts as next door as long as their houses are on the same screen?
Old Man:
"What is Yang going to do? Bob's no chump."
Maybe I have to actually go establish some desire to get into this hospital before anyone will volunteer anything.
I think this is the last screen of multiple houses.
Old Man outside:
"I heard all the Kools in town joined the Bobbies.
With them gone, there's nobody left at Tiger's Den......"
Girl inside left house:
"Even when monsters show up, the Kools can't do a thing. I don't ever want to see those Kools again."
Boy inside right house:
"I'd never expect Knack to betray Kools. But if he's with the Bobbies, they can't be so bad!"
There's more of Anpo to explore, but I'm kind of winding down for the night, so let's cut things off here.
Guys I've been staring at this game so long that I've started reading into Knack's home life and his relationship with his family. His self-sacrifice at the beginning of the game suddenly takes on a darker nature.
Like they seem oddly hung up on Kools loyalty here--both his and, to some degree, mine--as opposed to how he's actually doing and if he's happy. They don't seem to remark on him cutting contact with them or anything...have they actually talked to him since he got hypnotized? Did they gloss over the monotone and the creepy ellipses? Do they ever hear him anyway?
Was it ever healthy for him to have carried Kools on his back to the degree he did, before all this even started? Would they still have loved him, if he'd failed?
Even when I rescue him, will Knack be okay?
I don't think the game ever intended for me to ask these questions.
"What are you going to do? Will you join the Bobbies?"
It seems like I've actually covered most of the town at this point without realizing it. There aren't as many NPCs outside these days. I don't need to cover Shokuan, the shop and the Mix house again. Of course, Metamode Labs and the abandoned Kools building are still there, and I should also look into Anpo Theater and that locked hospital, two places I couldn't access the first time I was here.
Metamode Labs first.
Woman:
"Bobbies, Kools, I don't really care. As long as I have Metamode, I'm good."
I try going into the building, but get stopped:
There's a poster.
METAMODE LABORATORY WILL BE CLOSED FOR A WHILE
Oh.
It's locked......
What about the theater?
Man 1:
"It's not like anyone who can use Metamode has to be a Kools."
Man 2:
"How 'bout we start our own group? We can beat out the Bobbies and the Kools both."
No theater, then.
Ronef is this way, but let's check the hospital, at least.
We couldn't take this path at the start of the game, but we can now.
The umbrellas are actually monsters lying in wait!
I can shoot them instead of getting close. They're a bit trickier to deal with on other screens where they have more diagonal room to maneuver, screens like this are a freebie.
This path takes me here.
Haven't seen this screen before.
Both of the monsters seem to just slowly edge toward me, and aren't hard to keep away through knockback. The balloon throws knives eventually, but only if I leave it alone too long.
Sign:
GHOST ATTACKS CAUSE CONFUSION
WEAR AN ACCESSORY THAT PREVENTS THIS
Good to know. Too bad it's locked.
Here's that house we could see but couldn't enter at the start.
Oh, hmm. Maybe this is the next door that woman in the one house was talking about? Next door as relative to the hospital itself?
Old Man:
"When will the creators come to check up on Anpo Hospital...?"
"Creators" is such an odd word choice, but that's literally the word he used. I try turning into a doctor and talking to him again, but this doesn't do anything.
I think that's everything I can do in Anpo. But I'm actually going to backtrack for a second, speaking of that anti-confusion accessory. There's a sidequest I missed quite a bit earlier in the game, and I've never had a clear chance to get back to it. This seems like as good a time as any.
I warp back to Tres no Mori, the forest just south of Douji village.
I go to the shop. I buy Rouge, an accessory that blocks four status effects including Confusion. (I also buy an Anklet, which makes me move faster.) Looks like someone from Besis is here.
I'm honestly not sure what triggers her arrival, she wasn't here when I came to this shop the first time. The YouTube LPer does the latter end of this sidequest in his LP, but he also did an absurd amount of offscreen grinding, and I don't think he ever shows this initial part.
Besisian Woman:
"My dream is to open a casino. If I ever get there, please come visit."
I warp to the Steppes, and make a beeline for the shop.
The casino lady is here, too.
Casino Lady:
"My sign...monsters...
I thought I could open a casino..."
It's cool, I've got this. This is what that boss arena I could never activate is for, by the way.
There's a wolf there now.
The wolf charges from one side of the arena to the other. Not hard to dodge.
Once its health is low, it starts creating projectiles, which move around in a kind of circular pattern. These are somewhat trickier.
Still, I'm kind of overleveled for this.
Interestingly, the frame in its charge here where it opens its mouth doesn't actually appear in the fight itself. It only shows up in its bestiary entry.
(If my count's right, the bestiary also seems to indicate that there are seven bosses left that I've yet to see. Good to know.)
Anyway, I got the casino lady's sign.
Back to the shop.
Casino Lady:
"That...that's it!
The sign...
Thank you! Now we can open the casino!"
Ami handed over the Sign!
"The casino is going to open in Besis, just beyond the mountain, if you'd like to be there."
Here's the inside of the casino.
Old Man:
"Today's not a bad day at all......"
Casino Lady:
"Oh, it's you! I'm glad you came to visit. Take your time."
Man:
"I can't stop laughing, I've been getting hits all day! Wanna know the secret?"
>yes
"There's good ones and bad ones. Try one for a while, and if you don't like it, you can always switch."
Prize Lady:
"Welcome! Here, you can buy chips or claim a prize.
What would you like to do?"
>prize
"You need chips for that."
I buy 1 chip for 10 yen, and she lets me see the list. It's nothing special. For 2000 chips there's a magic sword that drops your defense to 0, which is interesting, but not a thing that I would ever want.
Here's what a slot machine looks like, incidentally.
Anyway, that's it for this sidequest.
Next up: Ronef.
Spoiler
boy next to puddle:
メタモードを つかっているときに
わからない コマンドが あったら
スタートボタンを おしてごらん
せつめいを みることが できるから
I'm pretty sure this is the exact same thing he said at the start, except I wasn't comfortable with katakana yet, and I think I just pasted in the katakana for Kools where it clearly says Start. There is no Kools button.
man next to pond:
キミは どうするんだ？
ボビーズに いくのか？
woman outside Metamode Labs:
ボビーズだろうが クールスだろうが
わたしには かんけいないわ
メタモードさえ あれば
それだけで しあわせなの
trying to enter Metamode Labs:
はりがみがしてある......
メタモードけんきゅうじょは
しばらく おやすみします
trying to enter Kools - Anpo Branch:
カギが かかている......
path to Anpo Theater
man1:
メタモードを つかえるヤツは
ぜったい クールスに
はいんなきゃ いけないって
わけじゃないんだよな
man2:
オレたちも つくっちゃうか？
ボビーズと はりあって
クールスに かわる そしきをさ
hospital sign:
ゴーストの こうげきを うけると
コンランに なってしまう
コンランに ならない
アクセサリーを つけていこう
これ ここの ヒント
old man next door to hospital:
いつになったら
クリエイターさんは
アンボびょういんの てんけんに
きてくれるんじゃろう......
some shop accessories, not even close to all of them, there's like a million of them:
ルージュ Rouge:
ドンソク スイミン ピヨル コンランに ならない
Prevents some status effects, Confusion was one of them, there's 4 total, good enough for me.
ベール Veil
ドク フリーズ スロウアクト カナシバリに ならない
Another one that prevents four status effects.
アンクレット Anklet:
すばやく いどうできる
Move fast.
ゆびわ Ring:
おなじ がめんの トモダチにも どうぐが きいちゃう
On multiplayer, a friend on the same screen as you has access to your items.
These trash cans appear to be out for blood. Not a good first look for this town, I admit.
How many different garbage monsters does this place have??
I can't go behind the trees here. I hope that's not the only thing keeping the landfill separate from the rest of Ronef.
Man:
"Let's just have Kools and Bobbies both. I don't see the problem."
Girl:
"My favorite color is black, so of course I've always wanted to take Black Kenshi form! Isn't it obvious?"
Another house. At least, I think it's a house. I don't think I'd parse this building with its shiny glass doors as a private residence in any other context, it's so fancy.
Man:
"God, I want to see a newspaper! I can't wait to see what happens next!"
The trash does, in fact, have free roaming privileges.
At the very beginning of the game, there's this whole spiel on how monsters aren't malicious and only hurt people by accident, and we shouldn't kill them. It never really comes up again. Is this supposed to be a sign that these high level trash monsters are living in harmony with humankind?
Whatever it is, I don't like it.
I walk around in this back corner beating up garbage monsters for a bit. There's no reward for it. That's what I guess for not choosing peace, I guess.
Here's even more.
And here's the shop.
Well, a shop. There's a second shop directly under it. That one sells, um...teeth, claws, collars and bells. Werewolf positivity, I guess.
Man:
"I wonder why the Bobbies are trying so hard to recruit Kools. Something's not right."
The giftbox contains a sparkly axe.
Girl:
"Bobbies are amazing! They're even cooler than the Kools!"
Woman:
"I can see why the Bobbies are so great. But the Kools....I'm just not seeing it."
Man:
"When the monsters rampaged through Anpo, the Kools failed everyone. It's unbelievable, isn't it?"
Woman:
"Our son threw the newspaper away again. Stupid."
I was really confused on the woman's line at first, but I think there's a newspaper sidequest.
Boy:
"Oh...I made a mistake and threw out the paper..."
Since people here keep mentioning newspapers and it seems to be a recurring thing.
Surfacing doesn't work today.
This might be the one screen where melee is better than range. Ugh.
When I do make it to the woman, she says that she's curious what happened in "that case."
Man:
"A man can take female shapes. A woman can take male shapes. Did you know that?"
>yes
"Wait, you knew? So the rumors I heard were true?"
Turning into a guy right in front of him does nothing.
Man:
"There's a library on the far side of town.
...By which I mean, there used to be one, before it was destroyed. Now it's just a paradise for monsters."
Woman:
"My grandpa hates people who don't give back what they took."
Old Man:
"Why did Ronef Library have to fall? I have books to return..."
I was confused enough by the old man's line that I tried talking to him again--and got different dialog.
"What? You're going to return them?
I don't even have my library card. How am I supposed to get in there?"
Hmm.
Not really a plot-relevant screen, but if you wanted to rip tiles from this game, this is what the top of a larger house looks like.
Similarly, I think these hedges might be new.
The man inside the house says,
"Kools is dead. Anyone who's seen the Bobbies fight can tell that they're better than us."
I've got to say....obviously the Bobbies shouldn't have any power because they're actively sabotaging things and trying to take over the world, but, uhhhh. The Kools seem really incompetent.
Boy:
"The ace of the Bobbies is a guy called Knack, right? I heard he was the ace of the Kools until recently. Sucks for Kools that their best guy would bail on them so fast."
Girl:
"I wonder what they're talking about at the Kools headquarters."
I go to Shokuan's and unlock Foreman. I, um, actually typoed the class name and that translation would have made this even more uncomfortable.
...I'm still uncomfortable.
S*すっとこ Clean Break
Damage, don't care
MどっこいHeave Ho
ときを いちげきで やっつけるかも
Possibly one-shot enemies.
LこんちくしょSonuvabitch
Damage, don't care
Pガッテン Ganten
A little DEX, SPEED, TOUGHNESS.
PLicense34
すべての タオルを かぶれる
Towels, apparently.
PLicense18
すべての トンカチを そうびできるし とくいになる
Use all the hammers.
PガッテンナGantener
DEX, SPEED, TOUGHNESS.
PガテニストGantenest
Lots of DEX, SPEED, TOUGHNESS.
I can't remember, but I think I'm currently using Speed + Dex, and if so Gantanest is a straight upgrade. But eh. I want to unlock more double classes more than I want this.
Boy:
"I don't believe we're losing Kools. They've been keeping the world safe since forever, I don't believe it."
Girl:
"I wonder if Kools is disappearing forever......"
Old Man:
"I think it's time to rethink the Kools. If they can't control monsters like this when they do show up, we're doomed."
Old Woman:
"I heard most of the Kools's best people jumped to the Bobbies. I guess we'll just have to make do with the Bobbies, then."
As usual, I pass the Mix shop without bothering, and find another house instead.
Old Man:
"When I was a little boy, everyone longed to be a Kools. But one day, they'll all long to be Bobbies instead..."
Woman:
"Bob and Knack both used to be Kools themselves, right? I wonder if it's really okay for traitors like that to take the place of the real Kools."
Ronef also has areas like this. After a bunch of screens of this, we reach:
Sign:
RONEF LIBRARY
Doesn't look like I'm getting in.
I think that's everything I can reach right now, aside from the Kools building. Tune in next time, where we head for the one place where we were supposed to go!
Spoiler
sign:
クールスほんぶの あるまち
ロヌフのまち
house
man:
オレは クールスと ボビーズ
りょうほう あっても
ぜんぜん いいと おもうんだよね
girl:
わたしの すきないろは くろ
だから あこがれの すがたも
もちろん くろけんし！
とうぜんよね？
smaller but still unhouselike house
man:
おお！ しんぶんしを みたい！
あの じけんが
きになって しょうがない！
man on bench:
ボビーズは なんで クールスを
かいさんさせようと するんだろうな
なんか あやしいよな？
gift:
れいこおの
girl in the middle of conveyer belts:
ボビーズって スゴイんだよ！
だって クールスよりもね
つよくてね カッコいいの！
larger residential
woman outside:
ボビーズが スゴイのは
みとめるわよ
でも クールスが スゴイない......
とは おもえないのよね
inside, first room
man:
アンボのまちで モンスターが
あばれたときに
クールスが まちの ひとたちを
すごえなかった......
なんて しんじられないよな？
woman:
ウチのコったら しゅうかんしを
すてちゃった らしいのよ
ホント バカよねえ
boy in the room behind:
おお...... しゅうかんしを
まちがって すてちゃった......
woman who made me fight my way around a pond to get to her:
Before we go to the main Kools headquarters, I stopped by Shokuan again. The trash monsters are actually a ton of skill points, so I A-ranked Timekeeper and Rose Lalonde both, and I get to learn what a Dwarf is.
It's this. This is a Dwarf.
S*ヒノプシス Hypnosis But Misspelled
てきに ダメージを あたえつつ ねむらせる
Damages the enemy while putting them to sleep
Mバキューム Vacuum
てきに ダメージを あたえつつ ゲンキを きゅうしゅう
Damages the enemy, absorbs HP
Mスローモ Slow-Mo
Guessing the rest of these are all damage with riders.
MパスPass
Lキリム Cross Swords?
L ホメオパシーHomeopathy
Lシンドローム Syndrome
PヒマンFat
A little AGILITY and MAGIC
PせつやくSaving
トクシュを けっこう せつやくできる
Make better use of MP.
PおんぞんConservation
やられそうになると トクシュが マンタンになる
MP becomes full when you're about to be hit.
PヒマナFatter
AGILITY and MAGIC
PヒマネストFattest
Lots of AGILITY and MAGIC
I don't really care about agility or magic, and while MP regen might be nice, this is not that.
Anyway, here's our destination. We have to approach from the south.
Kools?:
"We're currently having a very interesting discussion, here at Kools HQ."
He stops me if I try to pass.
Kools?:
"Excuse me.
Are you a Kools member?"
>yes
"Let me see your Metamode, please. If you're a Kools member, there should be a lot of forms you can take...
Oh! This is perfect! You're a very powerful Kools!
.......so I'll be taking this!"
You motherfucker.
(If you say you're not a Kools, he just doesn't let you in, of course.)
Imposter:
"You shouldn't give other people your Metamode, you know! Sucker!
If you want it back, I'll be at Anpo Theater!
Good luck getting there, with no Metamode!"
And he's gone.
This cuts off most of my menu. The only ones left are Options, Save, and the link cable option I can't use. I'm stuck in Queen form without the ability to change my skills, equipment, or check a lot of things.
But modelocked or not, I can still fight.
Kools:
"You've come to help? There's not a lot of people here right now, we could really use it.
Huh? Hey...
You don't have Metamode? What kind of Kools doesn't have a Metamode? If you're telling the truth, go get it back right now!"
So be it. This bitch ran back to Anpo, that's MY home turf.
And the road is finally clear.
I am angrier than these knife-balloons, and that means I win.
Sign:
AN...... THEA......
I can't read it clearly because of all the dust, but it looks like it says "Anpo Theater."
Bring it.
It locks me in the first room. That ghost in the south, incidentally, seems to be prone to floating off-screen. I have to wait for it to come back before I can shoot it.
I am fond of these walls and the color scheme, I have to say. Unlike Zelda, Metamode walls tend to take full advantage of the fact that GBC tiles are really 8x8, not 16x16.
There's a lot of coloring decisions Metamode makes that I'm not fond of--that bell monster looks incredibly flat and that could have been easily avoided if it had used a base color and a highlight instead of two base colors. But seeing environments like this one is still a joy.
Another room.
Seems to just be a linear gauntlet, though.
And here's where it ends. This was another screen that locked me in, and beating the monsters created this warp.
"Hey! Help me!"
There's three of these dorks.
"Huh? You? You really came all the way here to get your Metamode? Wow, Kools members really do have a lot of guts.
...Whatever, not important. Your Metamode is in the back room. If you really want it so bad, go get it!"
They start to warp out.
>"There's a phantom in the inner sanctum...
Watch out!"
He warps out.
>"Hit the legs!
That's my hint, good luck!"
And the last one's out too.
It's time to take the stage.
The phantom magician is there.
As I watch, he pulls out a saw and cuts himself in half.
And that's this fight. The legs stay up on stage out of reach, and the body spins around in the very narrow area where you can move and tries to bonk you.
It's rough. I'm really, really glad I have a gun.
Eventually he dies, and I can take my Metamode back.
I'm not going to make a sheet for him. It's not a horrible idea for a boss fight, but I just don't like these sprites as a starting point.
Queen is actually pretty expensive in terms of skill points, and this doesn't get me to A-rank. I do pick up Leave It To Me, that skill that that one NPC recommended, and the one that lets you wield weapons two-handed.
I do make A-rank on the walk back. That should get me both Amazon and Dianthus/Yamato Nadeshiko.
Dianthus.
S*つくつく Severely
MきるSever
MはらうBanish
てきを ころばせて マヒさせる
Paralyze your opponent.
MえんぶDance
LほうおうぎりNot totally sure, but searching it on Google Images gives me phoenixes.
じぶんのまわりの てきに ひのダメージを あたえる
Causes fire damage to all enemies around you.
Pキラン Kiran
A little STR, TOUGHNESS, SPEED.
PLicense10
Wield all the spears. I hate spears.
PキラナKiraner
STR, TOUGHNESS, SPEED.
PキラネストKiranest.
Lots of STR, TOUGHNESS, SPEED.
Pりゅうけつ Bloodshed
すべてのどうぐが すごく おかいどくになる
"All your gear will become very toxic." I have no idea what this means, but it's an 120 point skill. Hmm.
EDIT: Actually, it looks like it makes it cheap to buy.
Amazon. Ugghhh.
S*えんずいぎり
Sじごくぐるま
Mのうてんわり
Lメガトンボム Megaton Bomb
Lアマゾンわり Amazon Division
Pマッスル Muscley
Max HP goes up a little.
PLicense12
PマッスラMuscular
Max HP goes up.
PマッスレストMuscularest
ゲンキの げんかいが すごく あがる
Max HP goes up a whole lot.
I also check what I can unlock from here.
くろけんし Black Kenshi, via Queen + Witch + Dianthus
てんぐ Tengu, via Warrior Monk + Foreman + Amazon
スパイ Spy, via Rogue + Ninja (the only one of the original 5 I haven't unlocked)
シャーマン Shaman, via Hunter + Dwarf
Man, I want all three of these new ones. I want Black Kenshi because I want to flex on that one girl in Ronef and see if she reacts. I want Tengu because the male version was adorable and was one of the reasons I resolved to play this game and rip the sprites no matter how much Japanese I'd have to wade through to do it. I want Shaman because it progresses from Hunter, so it might be where that upgraded gun comes from?
Back when I was trying to unlock Amazon the wrong way, Shokuan changed his instructions from Queen + Commando to just Queen once I had Commando in A-rank. I wonder if I have to max these classes out completely.
Spoiler
kools?
ただいま ここ クールスほんぶでは
じゅうような はなしあいが
おこなわれています
trying to pass:
ちょっと しつれい
あなたは クールスのたいいん？
>no
このさきに すすめるのは
クールスの たいいんだけです
おひきとり ください
("Only Kools members are allowed beyond this point. Please step back.")
>yes
なら メタモードを
みせてください
クールスの たいいんだったら
へんしんできる すがたも
おおいはず......
おお！ すばらしい！
あなたは まさしく クールスの
たいいんです！
......ということで
このメタモードは もらっちゃいます！
(he runs away a bit, and takes off the Kools disguise)
メタモードを ほかのひとに
わたすのが いけないんだよ！
バーカ！
かえして ほしけりゃ
アンボげきじょうへ きな！
メタモードなしで
これるとは おもえないけどな！
actual kools:
お？ てつだいに きてくれたのか？
クールスほんぶの けいびは いま
ひとが すくないから たすかるよ
ん？ あまえ......
メタモードを もってないな？
メタモードを わすれるなんて
クールスとして はずかしいぞ！
いますぐ とりにいけ！
shokuan can't help me either:
メタモードは どうしました？
メタモードを おもちでないと
どうすることも できません
anpo theater sign:
アン...... げき......
ほこりだらけで ハッキリよめないけど
アンボげきしょうって
かいてあるみたいだ
---
>ひー！ たすけて！
(the three men run in)
>あれ？ おまえ？
マジで メタモードを とりにきたの？
ひとりで ここまで くるなんて
やっぱ クールスの たいいんって
ゆうきが あるんだな
......なんて かんしんしてる
ばあいじゃねえや
おまえの メタモードは
この おくのへやに あるぜ
どうしても ほしけりゃ
とりにいきな
じゃ そういうことで！
(he warps out)
that guy's friend:
おくのへやには バケモンが
いるッス......
きをつけるッス！
(he warps out, too)
last one:
ねらうは あし！
これ ここのヒント
じゃ がんばって！
Next time on Metamode, I do a bit of bookkeeping and then head to the Kools HQ, but for real this time.
Since I'm in Anpo, I check in on that old woman, the one who was talking about her idiot son hanging out at Anpo Theater.
Old Woman:
"Oh my. You're the one who gave my idiot son a wakeup call, aren't you?
I'm really sorry about that. This is a little dull, but please take it."
Ami got the Calling Card!
"This is from my grandfather's side of the family. He was a great Creator.
Meanwhile, my son is...well..."
Talk to her again, and she'll say:
"My idiot son seems to have gotten over it. He doesn't go to Anpo Theater anymore."
Another NPC talked about cards like this. I take the card back to Shokuan.
Shokuan:
"Oh? You have a Calling Card, don't you? Let's see what I can do with it."
He shouts a few syllables, and the screen flashes.
"The rest is up to you, when you transform. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
So please try it out."
Creator. (Or at least, Crea-ko. Weirdly, the class name is in hiragana even though other people referring to it used katakana.)
It doesn't have any active skills. It's all passives here.
P*License48
かいしゃいんの あかし どこかの かいしゃの なふだをつけられる
Er...labels you as an office worker? I'm not sure, but it's worth noting that nothing in my inventory is something that this class can equip. Unless it can use guns natively.
I'm not taking my gun license off to test this. I'm an American and I know my rights.
Pオマケ１ Bonus #1
ゲンキと トクシュの げんかいが ちょっとだけ あがる
Slightly raises max HP and MP.
Pかいどく１Decoding #1
ひみつの てがみが よめるようになる
Lets you read secret letters. Odd. Have we seen any of those?
PかいものけんShopper
にちようひんが ちょっとだけ おかいどくに なる
Daily necessities become a bargain.
PめすセットWomen's Set
おんなのこの アクセサリーを そうびできる
Equip girl's accessories.
I...didn't realize that there were gendered accessories? Or that I couldn't already wear them? I'm honestly not sure what to make of any of this. I guess the ability to switch to a class just for shopping purposes is already not the worst thing, although I'm not sure it matters. I think Dianthus can already do it anyway.
It also seems like I can't access the male version of Creator, which is odd.
I'm starting to wonder if I should just get all 28 Normie skills just so I can use consumables in the menu. At this point that's probably more helpful to me than almost any passive, although it doesn't help my progression, so ugh.
Just for completion's sake, I jump back to a slightly older save slot and grab the male Creator, and make sure I have all his sprites saved somewhere. I THINK there's got to be some way to get both versions, since there game lists how many classes you've unlocked out of 90.
His skills are slightly different. He gets License48 and Bonus #1. But he gets Decoding #2 (which has the same descriptive text), and:
PおすセットMen's Set
おとこのこの アクセサリーを そうびできる
Equip guy's accessories.
PクーポンけんCoupon
そうびひんが ちょっとだけ おかいどくに なる
Equipment becomes a bargain.
...Both of these seem more useful than the female equivalents.
Spoiler
old woman with the idiot son:
なんと！
あんたが うちの バカむすこを
たちなおらせて くださったか？
ホントに すまんかったです
これは つまらんもんですが
うけとってください
[name] got めいし!
それは じいさんの かたみですじゃ
じいさんは りっぱな
クリエイターじゃった......
それにくらべて あのバカむすこは......
talking to her again:
うちの バカむすこも
はんせいしたらしくて
アンボげきじょうには
いっとらにょうです
talking to Shokuan with the calling card:
あら？ めいしをおもちですね？
だったら いいことをして
さしあげましょう
えい！
やあ！
とお！
あとは へんしんするときの
おたのしみということで
じゃ ためしてみてください
I'm pretty sure that class will get me into Anpo Hospital, but I'm not going to worry about that right now. I want to continue the main game.
And it looks like my path is clear.
>"What to do..."
>"Hmm? You? Aren't you Knack's cousin, Ami?"
She runs up to me.
>"We met at Tiger's Den, not sure if you remember.
It's not important. What are you doing here?
You've come to save the day for the Kools, am I wrong?
You're too late. The Bobbies are already about to take over.
They brought a whole bunch of monsters with them, and the Kools were almost completely wiped out...
If you come in here, you'll get hurt. You'd better turn back."
Someone else shows up.
>"Huh? You?
I'm so glad you're here!"
>"It's me! It's me! I was at the Katol branch!"
>"This is perfect.
Now that she's here, the Kools are in good hands. I'm certain she can help save them."
She turns back to me.
>"Bob's in the back room, and we don't know what he's up to. We'd better hurry.
Best of luck."
Tiger's Den member:
"Knack is here, too.
Are you okay...?
Oh...I'm sorry. Don't worry about that."
I can move again.
Wait, didn't all of Tiger's Den jump ship to the Bobbies? I was waiting for a betrayal this whole time. I guess my parents aren't right about everything after all.
Tiger's Den Kools:
"This must be tough for Yang, too, seeing so many Kools getting hurt."
Katol officer:
"That situation back in Katol, I'm certain now that it was Bob."
Let's get going, then.
These are the monsters from the start of the game.
The plants hurt you if you bump into them, incidentally. Painkiller it is.
Seems like we're starting off with a review of the monsters we've seen across the world.
I leave that scared little shell guy alone, of course. Bob should never have brought the poor thing here.
Honestly, I wish we could get to the tougher monsters already. These are, what, 2 skill points? The random garbage monsters in Ronef are 16.
Stepping on the black tiles here shuts the lights off, although looking at the screenshot zoomed in, you can veeeeeeeeery faintly make out what's on-screen, it's not literally all the same shade of black. Stepping on the light blue tiles turns the lights back on.
Incidentally, if you leave the screen while it's dark and come back to it, the screen stays dark. The monsters are also practically invisible, it's awful. I'm not looking forward to any sequences where stepping on the black tiles is mandatory, although I suppose I can resize the emulator screen just for them.
Kools:
"Oh...you're Ami...
It's me...I'm the Anpo branch head. Are you here to help the Kools...?
You might be able to stop Bob and Knack......
But don't push yourself too hard. I'm here for you, so if you get tired, let me know.
I can at least help that much."
The path branches here, so let's check the map.
Let's try the right side.
Those floors are ice, effectively. Antislip, then.
Kools:
"Damn...you...Bob..."
After two rooms of one midgame monster each, I can loop around and step on that switch. This clears off one of those blocked floor tiles in front of the switch; I guess the other will be on the other side.
Now left.
Those bells are relatively recent, at least.
The gift is ターフー, which appears to be some kind of sparkly hammer.
Oh...back to Katol monsters, then. This did seem out of order.
I pass through this screen and loop back through the previous ones. I'm guessing those gaps will have bridges later.
This leads me here.
I feel like I haven't ever actually gotten an anti-conveyor belt ability? I've just gotten good at moving faster than they do. I continue this tradition here.
More switches and blocked warps noted.
I think I'm going to switch to Normie, actually. Dungeons in this game tend to restart from the beginning if you leave them, which means I might not see Shokuan again if I do this the first time. But the ability to use consumables from the menu could help when the going gets tougher than this.
Looping around to get to that switch is just one screen, and it gives me access to the lower warp. But I'll hold off on taking that to access the north exit.
Kools:
"It's over...
The Kools are done..."
There doesn't seem to actually be anything to do here, so I go back and take the warp.
Ah, it goes here.
Seems to be one-way.
Spoiler
entering Kools HQ
>どうすればいいの......
(Kools? girl appears)
>あら？ あなた？
ナックくんの イトコの
[name]っちゃん じゃない？
(she runs up to me)
とらのあなで あったんだけど
おぼえてないわよね
そんなことより
どうして ここに？
クールスの ピンチを
すくいに きたのね？
でも もう クールスは あわりよ
ボビーズが のっとってしまうわ
ここ クールスほんぶに
たいりょうの モンスターを
つれてきた みたいで
クールスの たいいんは
ほとんど ぜんめつ......
おくに いっても ケガをするだけ
ひきかえしたほうが いいわよ
(officer shows up)
>あら？ あなた？
きてくれたのね！
(she runs up to you, too)
わたしよ！ わたし！
カトルさばくの しぶちょうよ！
(she turns to the Tiger's Den grunt)
>よろこんで
このコが きてくれたからには
クールスは だいじょうぶよ
このコが きっと クールスを
すくってくれるわよ
(she turns back to me)
ボブは おくのへやに いるわ
なにを しでかすか わからないから
いそいだ ほうが いいわね
がんばって
(the officer steps aside, letting you move)
Tiger's Den member:
ナックくんも きてるわよ
だいじょうぶ？
あ...... ゴメンなさい
いまのは きにしないで
talking to the Tiger's Den member again:
ヤングさんも つらいと おもうわ
めのまえで たくさんの たいいんが
ケガを させられてるんだもの
Katol officer:
カトルさばくで おこった
ヘンな できごとも
きっと ボブのしわざ だったのよ
Kools Anpo branch head:
おお...... おまえは [name]......
ワシだ......
アンボしぶの しぶちょうだ
クールスを すくいに
きてくれたのか......？
おまえなら ボブや ナックを
とめることが できるかもしれんな......
だが ムリはするなよ
あいては きょうてきだ
もし つかれたときは
ワシに いってくれ
このゼマでも それくらいなら
してやることは できる
right side kools:
クソ...... ボブめ......
kools in the fancy room:
おわりだ......
クールスが なくなってしまう......
Next time we continue being the only competent person in Kools.
Blaaaaaaaah. At this point my passives are the gun license, a +SPEED/DEX passive, Painkiller, and Anti-Slip. I really want to keep the first two, range is too important and being slow is annoying.
I swap Anti-Slip for BecoBear and hope the two floor effects don't ever wind up on the same screen. (Now that Saffith's explained it twice, I know that BecoBear is better translated as Sdrawkcab. It's just, um, BecoBear is really funny to me at this point.)
Wasteland monsters. Seems like we're catching up.
Beating the monsters on this screen caused that bridge to appear, it wasn't initially there.
The giftbox contains a Jade Shield.
Back to Setto Mountains, for this screen.
Beating the monsters clears a path to that thing on the south wall, which I think is a button I can hit to open that door to the north. This also makes the south wall button disappear.
Beating the monsters lets me hit the switch. Hitting the switch lets me take the warp.
The warp is one-way. It brings me here, where my path to that other warp is now clear.
Back to Antislip, then.
The ghost teleported behind me at one point, so abruptly I wasn't sure if it was a glitch. I think it might do that if you try to hit it when you're too close to it, and I've just never noticed before because it doesn't activate at range. I'm not sure.
I'm glad that the monsters are stronger now so I can get skill points. I don't normally pay attention to the stats because I play every single class exactly the same regardless, but, um, Normie's stats are really low.
I feel like Normie might also be GAINING skill points more slowly...?
I got 14 skill points for the monsters on this screen. I could swear Umbrellans were worth more than that on their own.
The giftbox contains a Flamberge.
Whatever, it doesn't matter. I'm almost out of these self-imposed woods.
What an ominously empty room. Hitting the computer just opens up the door.
Checking it a second time returns the same text you get when you check shelves that don't have anything. I guess I should doublecheck computers in the future, then.
This screen sports invisible walls. I can't get at the right side of the room.
I'm really wondering about that sign on the wall here. This is the second time one of these has shown up, and this one's subtly different. I can't seem to interact with it, and it doesn't resemble any skills I currently have.
Could be a hint of something to come, tied to those floor patterns?
These lantern monsters are new, I think. They shoot balls of light at me. Like those ghosts in the Theater, they're prone to floating offscreen.
The invisible walls block off the south half of the room.
The wall's here, too, but it doesn't block off an entire section of the room the same way--I can take any of the exits here.
The giftbox contains a Jade Sword. The giftbox in the room to the left contained a Syrup.
Ah...need to beat the monsters in order, don't I.
...
Wait, but there aren't any monsters on this screen to beat.
(The giftbox here has a Jade Lance, and that giftbox we passed in the first of these rooms had a Jade Axe.)
Five floor tiles here...
(I can't get at the giftbox or the warp until I come at it from the other side, thanks to the invisible walls. When I do get it, it contains a Mail Dagger.)
They drop the invisible walls gimmick for these two screens, in lieu of "don't trip the lightswitch" This would be a pain without Antislip. There were monsters on the screen to the left, before I beat them to gain access to the switch.
From there, I take that warp.
This gives me access to that top warp we saw earlier.
I hate this room. The conveyor belt moves too fast to let me maneuver. Note that I have both a +speed skill and that Anklet accessory. Taking damage here is inevitable, although Dianthus has very high defense and it's not a lot.
Oh boy, more of this.
And more. This screen is actually much better because the bells move around, which ironically makes it easier for them to wind up in spots that are easy to hit. Also, their attacks don't home in on me.
I hope this is the last one. Unlike the bells and the security bots, I've been able to one-shot flowerpots for a while.
Hitting the switch opens up that door on the right. It does not appear to give me a way to reach said door.
God, even leaving the room is so goddamn slow. I hate these conveyors.
Oh.
This room is the worst one yet. The conveyors on this screen are so fast I physically cannot move against them, the lanterns' attacks home in on me, and I have to just stand up against the block and take it until they line up with me.
This one's comparatively better, by which I mean I can move.
The south exit is that door I opened from the other screen.
Looks like I'm finally out of the woods.
It doesn't matter what fight is coming up. It can't be as bad as that.
Today, we're locked in a battle with a symbol of American freedom.
As a statue, she doesn't move. Hitting her aborts any attack she was about to do. This is a very easy fight, made only slightly harder by the fact that I don't want to abort her attacks, I want to see all of them and add them to my spritesheet.
This stompy attack here shakes the whole screen, incidentally. I'm always pretty fond of that effect.
She has projectiles, but they're very easy to dodge.
Also if you stand to the side of her, she just unceremoniously baps you.
Eventually Ami prevails, and I, the player, get put on an FBI list.
Right out of the box, I love this sheet. I imagine I'll still have to fill it out with more frames, especially basic ones like a walk animation, but I'm definitely looking forward to it.
That's the image limit, and I think this is a good place to stop for the night. Next time, I think, will be our final confrontation to Bob, or at least the leadup to it. I'm looking forward to that, too.
By the way, I just wanted to post what DeepL has to say for Miss Liberty's bestiary entry.
"The hysterical eyes of freedom are as luckless as the gods themselves"
Fuck yes.
It's definitely wrong. I don't care.
Anyway, the door's open now.
Oh goodie. More conveyors.
I guess I have to press both of those wall switches, then.
Oh hey, these monsters are new. I'm not sure what the geriatric skeleton's schtick is; the mosquito charges me when we're lined up, and inflicts some kind of status condition. Beating them doesn't seem to change anything on the screen.
Once more, pressing the two wall switches opens the door. The rat runs straight for me, but is easily knocked back.
I can now loop around and hit that other switch we saw earlier. Then I can perform the fun task of walking back against the conveyors.
Kools:
"Someone...make...Bob...Knack...stop..."
Going north takes us to those stairs we saw on that earlier conveyor screen.
Straightforward screen. Kind of refreshing, really. Garbage monsters give a lot of skill points, aren't super mobile, and there's no conveyors in the way.
We're back here.
This path takes us to these stairs.
And the stairs lead here.
The gift contains Duralumin, a type of fancy armor. The switch spawns monsters on the opposite side of the room. Beating the monsters opens the path to the warp.
The top warp is a shortcut back to the start. I can heal up before the final stretch.
Back to BecoBear!
That thing pretty much rights spawns in my face and immediately beelines for me. Tanky, too.
Beating both the monsters here teleports me back to the screen I came from. But there's a third warp on that screen, now.
And that warp leads here. The chest of drawers is a mimic that charges me when I'm lined up with it. The floaty thing sometimes stops and summons a ring that orbits around it. Probably worse to deal with in melee.
Same thing this time: beating them warps me back to that main room, but now there's four warps on the screen I came from.
This time I go back to that screen and go north without beating both monsters, though. These two BecoBear screens are connected, and this gives me access to both giftboxes--the barrier for the second one opens as I approach the first. One gift is だてんしのわ, which I think means Lucifer's Halo. Interesting. The other is a Diamond Axe.
The new warp lets me go south, to yet another warp...
Yang: "Please! Please stop hurting my team!"
Bob: "You know what you have to do, right? When you disband Kools, I'll stop."
Yang: "Blah...
Fine...
It's dissolved..."
Bob: "Sorry? What was that?"
Yang: "Kools...is...disbanded......"
Bob: "You need to speak more clearly. This is important."
Yang: "Kools is disbanded."
Bob: "All right! We're going to make sure the whole world hears this important Kools announcement!
And the Bobbies will, of course, step up as a replacement!
Time to get the word out!"
Yang: "......"
Another Bobbie warps in.
>"Bob, sir! It's Knack!"
Bob: "What's wrong with Knack?"
>"...... ......
...... ...... ......"
Bob: "That's not good!
I'm on my way! Keep your eyes on Knack!"
>"Yes, sir!"
Bob turns back to face Yang.
Bob: "I have matters to attend to. Wait right here. I'll be back."
Yang: "......"
They all leave. Coincidentally, I arrive!
Yang: "Who's there?"
Yang: "Oh, you're, ah...Knack's cousin. Ami."
Yang: "I'm sorry. Kools is dead. The Bobbies are in charge now.
We might have been able to stop Bob, but we can't stop Knack. He's too strong...
...Hmm?
Oh, I see! You might have a chance against Knack! When he sees you, he might come to his senses!"
He walks over.
Yang: "Ami!
Get to Knack, right now! You're the only one who can save Kools!"
Yang:
"Take the warp in front of the computer to the left, and try to talk to Knack."
Hey guys! Hope I'm not interrupting anything. It's really hard to tell, not speaking Japanese and all.
Bob: "Hmm?"
He walks a little closer, to face me.
Bob: "Huh? You?"
Bob: "Ah! Knack's cousin!
You're the one who's been interfering with our operations, aren't you?
All you ever do is get in the way! I'll get rid of you, too!"
Bob: "Huh?"
Knack: "Stop...
Don't touch her..."
Bob: "Ouch...
This is too many people to take on all at once.
...So I'll meet you in the back room!
So long."
He heads north. Just me and Knack, now.
Knack: "Ami......"
Knack: "Long time...no...see...
You're...so strong, now...
No one else...can save Kools...
...Stop...Bob...
...no one else......"
The path is open.
Knack:
"Bob summons monsters...
Don't...drop...guard..."
Bob: "I knew you'd be the first one through that door.
I'll deal with Knack after you, and then I'll give Yang an extra beating for pulling this.
Hahahahaha! My chance at last!"
He starts off with...I don't want to call it a boss rush, because it's only three: this spider, that wolf that stole the casino lady's sign, and the martial arts bear. Between each of them he teleports in for a moment and raises a staff to summon the next. Nothing new, nothing hard.
Then he takes up the fight himself. This phase consists of him warping around, firing projectiles and then disappearing. He summons his most basic projectile pretty much the moment he appears, while for the fancier attacks he hangs around on screen a little longer first.
He isn't hard to deal with, with range.
Once I beat him, he takes his final form, which is some kind of teleporting water dragon.
Like the humanoid attack form he used, he warps around and shoots projectiles at you. Unlike the humanoid attack form, hitting him turns him into a big ice crystal that shatters into four more projectiles.
They don't all burst out at the same time, and they really aren't hard to dodge. Again, assuming range. Chumps who use melee might have a harder time.
He's bulky, but he just has no way at all of punishing range. At no point during this 5-phase fight do I need to heal. Miss Liberty might be dead, but the Second Amendment lives on.
Here are the Bob sheets. His wizard form is a bit goofy, but I just spent the first half of this update as the eighth dwarf and I wasn't even using it as a combat form, so who am I to talk?
Everyone else paces outside.
And that's Metamode. The main story, at least. You can watch the credits here if you'd like. (You can watch the fight itself, but I will note that I did this fight at level 33, and this guy's level is roughly twice that, with access to the strongest class skills in the game to match. It's an anticlimactic fight, but not like that.)
I'll check out postgame content and keep gathering forms from here.
After the credits sequence, the game returns me to the start of the dungeon. I'm still a Foreman like I was in the fight. I have 105 skill points from fighting Bob.
On the flipside, those two Kools's dialog is unchanged, and the HQ is still a monster-ridden mess.
Metamode resets all dungeon progress whenever you leave or quit, so that shortcut I had before is gone. I could check if Yang has something new to say, but...meh. With the progress reset, I don't see much point going through the whole dungeon again just to do that, without seeing if anything else has changed.
I didn't unlock Black Kenshi. I do have A ranks in all three of the required classes. Whatever, there's always garbage monsters.
I don't talk to every single NPC in Ronef, but of the ones that I do check in on, they all have the same dialog. Easier on me, I guess, but...
I don't know. I was enjoying this story, holes and all. I'm going to miss it.
When I have Witch and Queen capped, and Dianthus at A rank, I unlock Black Kenshi.
S*ストンピング Stomping
Sベノマラス Venomous
Mシロクンラナ
Lデスバレー Death Valley
PブラックBlack
A little STR, DEX, SPEED.
PLicense22
こっけんを そうびできるし とくいになる
Not sure. Could be a certain type of sword. DeepL thinks it's sovereign rights over my country.
PBlacker
STR, DEX, SPEED.
PBlackest
Lots of STR, DEX, SPEED.
Pりょうがえ Exchange
こうげきされるたびに トクシュが かいふくする
Gain MP every time you get hit.
Blackest could be nice. I figure speed > offense > defense >>> magic, so two attack stats is better than one.
I go check in on that girl who likes Black Kenshis. She has a very emotional reaction.
"Uwa! Black Kenshi! Sugoi! Sugoi!"
Sorry, I just...that's what it says...
"That was great, wanna hear something cool in exchange?
There's a trash can around the Mix shop! Someone threw out their weekly magazine there.
Why don't you go get it?"
......
Fine.
Ami got the magazine!
I have 32866 yen, you know. Surely there was an easier way.
I head over to the house of that guy who wanted a newspaper.
He talks again how how badly he wants to see a newspaper. This is the same dialog as he had before this sidequest.
I don't seem to have any new way to interact with him. I try that family where the son threw away the newspaper, instead.
I will realize later while editing this that the magazine and the newspaper are actually two different things. I have to go back and fix a few lines in the process.
Magazine Mom:
"It was still in the trash can behind the Mix shop...
......
...Why were you dumpster-diving anyway?"
Well, maybe her son will appreciate my GRACIOUS HELP.
Magazine Son:
"There it is! It's the magazine!
Wow, you really got it back. Thank you.
Lemme tell you something good. There's these small white boxes in front of Shokuan's. If you press the A button, you can check inside."
Here we are.
This is what we call "stealing."
I got a newspaper, realizing for the first time in the process that this is distinct from a magazine.
The other box also has something, but I don't take it because it's not a key item and I have to draw the line somewhere.
Newspaper Guy:
"Huh? You've got a newspaper...
Let's see...
...... ......
What the heck! This is insane!
I'm sorry, I need a favor. There's a woman on the edge of the city, at the waterside. You need to show this paper to her, she's gotta hear this too."
Woman:
"What? Look at this?
Let's see...
...... ......
Oh my god, that's awesome!
Hahahahaha! Ahahaha!
...Excuse me.
This is the best news I've heard in a long time, I really needed this. I feel so much better now.
Here's a little something for you. It's pretty hard to come by."
Ami got the Library Card!
I'm starting to suspect that all information in this city is heavily restricted.
I'm basically a drug mule, but for KNOWLEDGE.
Next up, the old man who wanted to return a book in an overrun library.
Old Man:
"What? You'll bring them back?
Okay, I'll trust you with these books. Here they are."
Ami got Borrowed Books!
Onward, to the library!
We have to get through some dangerous back alleys to reach it, as you'd expect for a place where knowledge is illegal.
This time, walking up to the door opens it.
Here it is.
I check the area behind it for a second.
There's a Bandanna in the box. Normally I don't steal people's packages if I don't need them to proceed, but I don't think anyone was going to claim this one.
Oh god, there are still people living here.
Next time, we explore this forbidden monster-infested underbelly of Ronef.
Spoiler
black kenshi fangirl:
うわ！ くろけんしだ！
スゴイ！ スゴイ！
くろけんしを みせてくれた おれいに
いいこと おしえてあげよっか？
あのね ミックスやの まわりにある
ゴミばこに しゅうかんしが
すてられてたよ
ひろってきちゃえば？
[name] got しゅうかんし
magazine mom:
ミックスやの うらの ゴミばこに
まだ のこってたんだ......
ひょっとして......
ゴミばこから ひをったの？
magazine son:
やった！ しゅうかんしだ！
わざわざ さがしてくれたんだね
ありがとう
じゃ おれいに いいことを
おしえてあげるよ
あのね ショクアンの まえの
しろくて しかくい はこ
まえに たってAボタンを おすと
なかを みられるんだよ
Shokuan's boxes, that rightfully belong to him, not me:
"I'm sorry. I can't use Metamode, so I'm not going back there. Could you take them back on your own?
Let's see...this one goes...
Oh, this is not your lucky day. These books go in the furthest room.
You'll have to bring them back."
She stands aside.
Did they install the slidey floors and spikey plants after the monsters took over, or were they always just a fixture of the library? Why do random inanimate plants in this game cause damage anyway?
Oh, we saw that floating blue thing in the tail end of the Kools HQ. Not hard to deal with.
The next room's not notable. It has those cute ghosts that sometimes hide past the screen barrier. Then we wind up here. Checking the left computer opens the door to the left. Checking the right computer opens the door to the right. I go right first.
Uggghhhh. Will this dungeon be the one that requires BecoBear and Painkiller and AntiSlip all in the same room?
The answer to that question is, "Moot point, the Dwarf class has BecoBear access natively." We saw the filing cabinet mimic back in Kools HQ. This time I deliberately took a shot of it right as it's getting hit, because THAT FACE.
Two screens of that, then we're back to the slidey floors.
Librarian:
"You have to press all the diamond-shaped buttons on the wall to keep going."
Do you...need anything? Are you okay for food? I have lots of food because I never eat.
Like the rest of its gimmicks so far, we've seen these wall-buttons, too.
Hitting all four buttons both opens the door, and also creates stairs. I go north to start.
Does the game intend for people do do this without equipping passives that let them trivialize it? Am I expected to actually be engaging with the slippy spikey maze presented here?
Nothing here except the angry filing cabinet...checking the computers doesn't seem to do anything either. Incidentally, these X tiles on the floor don't seem to cause the same blindness effect that the ones in Kools HQ did. They don't do anything at all, but I think that's because I have Painkiller equipped. I go back and take the stairs.
Hit the two diamond buttons, claim giftboxes. A Gasmask and a Mantle. I go back south to where that librarian was, and head up the ladder.
Librarian:
"Aah! My computer's in bad shape.
What are you up to? If you're free, could you check out those two computers in the north?"
Holing up with a computer and trying to pretend the monsters aren't there is how I would probably approach this too, to be honest. I won't refuse a fellow dork.
I don't see any computers here. There is no apparent point to this room. I go back to the librarian again. Librarian:
"How'd it go? 'No problems?'
Huh? My computer's back to normal. That's weird...
Well, anyway, thanks.
With the computer fixed, the door to the southwest should be open."
I think the north flowerpot room was completely irrelevant, but the game took note of me checking the computers earlier before I ever talked to this guy.
Sure enough, this door's open.
The warp is a shortcut back.
I could have gone to this room from the start. It's the left fork in that path at the beginning. The guy here offers healing. I probably should have known about this earlier. Then I walk into a boss fight.
This is apparently supposed to be a chess piece. I'm not seeing it. This fight is irritating because he doesn't really do anything except float around without even a second frame, so I hang around waiting for him to do something I could add to a spritesheet, and he just doesn't. Eventually I give up and start hitting him.
That turns him into this. I don't think it has any other frames either, but it's hard to say, because the instant I shoot him he transforms again. UPDATE: Actually I did this fight a second time, and it looks like he does face different directions.
I guess this is a queen. Again, she has a single frame. Sometimes she stops and shoots me.
This is the last form, and this one does have the decency to at least move around a tiny bit. Just two frames and a death frame, but still. He has an orbiter.
The orbiter gets bigger later.
Then I capture him too.
I only bothered compiling the forms that have more than one frame. Computer:
PLEASE INSERT FLOPPY DISK I can't get at the giftboxes yet. Not really a notable room. This computer also needs a floppy to proceed. This one, however, opens the door without a fuss... ...and then immediately locks me in as soon as I enter. Computer:
I WILL TAKE CARE OF METAMODE
...it says.
Would you like to give away your Metamode?
...... The AI has trapped me in a library, with an offer I can't refuse. Tune in next time.
I switch to a fresh class, make sure that Painkiller, BecoBear and AntiSlip are all equipped, and hand over the Metamode.
The door I came through opens. So does the path to those giftboxes. They contain a Floppy Disc, and a Hula Hoop. The Hula Hoop, incidentally, seems to be a type of halo.
I can take Metamode back, but it'll close the door and trap me in here again. (This was the only way for me to check what the hula hoop was.)
First I go to the north computer, to claim loot. It's a Blessed Happi, which if I'm remembering right is a kind of Japanese shirt, and a Jade Staff.
Then I go to the computer slightly south of there, so I can progress.
That path brings me here...
And then here. Oh hey, we've seen this monster with the orbiter before
Down takes us to the hub room with the two computers--this was the north exit that was closed off all this time.
North leads to stairs.
Ah, those lanterns from the headquarters are also native to this place.
There's not many monsters left at Kools HQ that we haven't seen, at this point. I guess there's that saber toothed rat, the geriatric skeleton, and the mosquito...
I equipped BecoBear before I surrendered my Metamode.
There's a lot of these diamond wall switches ahead.
See?
There is also, apparently, an expected order to press them in. The one in the corner just teleported me back to the start of this sequence.
Going back, I can apparently press the corner one first instead and that's fine. I think one of those first librarians we saw tried to give me a hint here, that I mistranslated. He was trying to talk about the pressing the wall-switches that face each other.
There's eight diamonds here, two facing in each direction. I try to pair them off, so that every time I press a north-facing switch I immediately press a south-facing switch next after that, and so on.
Success!
This man is a healer. I think the game might be trying to tell me something.
The doors slam shut and the boss music starts. The boss is a statue of some stately gentleman.
I watched two other LPers beat this guy, and both of them just launched into an immediate assault and trounced him with no resistance. I really didn't learn anything at all from that. I'm assembling spritesheets, so I just stand there for a bit and wait for him to make the first move.
He doesn't move.
I pace around. The statue stands there. I stand there. The boss music plays on.
When I get too close, he finally springs into action.
He has this helicopter attack, when you approach him from above. Damn 2D game perspective making me vulnerable like that.
Also he launches fedoras.
I have some data now, so I try shooting him.
He is impervious to my bullets.
I go to the menu to change my gun out for a melee weapon. I don't have my metamode. I can't change weapons.
It's okay, though. I think it's just that one stance that he's invulnerable in. I get closer, and shoot him again when he makes a lunge for me, and this time it works.
That's really the gist of this fight. If I get close to him, he'll try attacking and make himself vulnerable. If I keep my distance, he just stands there, being a statue.
I honestly really liked this boss.
Going right, I can reclaim my Metamode. Amazon's maxed out.
Librarian:
"Are you here to return a book? Then please stand in front of the shelf and press the A button."
Maaaaaan. I fought through a whole dungeon to get here, they really make you do everything.
Mission accomplished.
Back to Ronef, to report on my good deed.
Old Man:
"You brought them back for me? Well, I have to say you've earned my respect. Take this."
Ami got a Can Opener!
"I'm sure you'll find a use for it in time."
When owning a whole bunch of swords and knives and axes just isn't enough.
I also go to Shokuan's and get a new form: Shaman.
S*カモミール Chamomile
Something something multiplayer friend
Sラベンダー Lavender
Something something multiplayer friend
SベルガモットBergamot
Something something multiplayer friend
MライムLime
じぶんと トモダチの ゲンキを かいふくする
You and your multiplayer friend heal HP.
LジュニパーJuniper
じぶんと トモダチの まわりの てきに なにかわする
I think this might swap you and and the enemies around your multiplayer partner? Unsure, can't test.
LゼラニウムGeranium
つぎはかならず ロングに セットした わざをうかえる
I'm...confused about this, because I think it's talking about changing your set techniques. Do you need a skill for that?
PガリベンCram
Max MP goes up a little.
PLicense06
すべての つえを そうびできし とくいになる
Equip all staves, like a boss.
PLicense27
すべての たてを そうびできる
Equip all of the shields.
PガリンベンCramming
Max MP goes up.
PガガリベンCra-cramming
Max MP goes up a whole lot.
Pどけち Frugal
トクシュを すごく せつやくできる
Save a lot of MP.
I'm really wondering what Geranium is trying to say, and the large icon for the class is way cuter than most, but otherwise this is useless to me. I guess hoping to get a gun from something called Shaman was a long shot.
Oh well. Next time, Anpo Hospital.
Spoiler
giftboxes:
フロッピー
フラフープ
めぐみハッピ
ひすいのつえ
librarian:
ほんを かえしにきたの？
じゃ ほんだなの まえにたって
Aボタンを おしてくれるかしら
returning the book:
かりてたほんを かえした！
talking to the librarian again:
こんな ところまで
わざわざ かえしにくるなんて
あなたも そうとうな カワリモノね
talking to the librarian at the front:
1ばんおくの へやまでは
とおかったでしょう？
old man:
かえしてきて くれたんか？
なら おれいを しなくちゃな
これを もらっておくれ
[name] got カンキリ
つかいみちは
そのうち わかるじゃろう
Incidentally, we're now at over 1000 screenshots for this LP!
Back to Anpo. I take Creator form and go to the house of the old man waiting for the Creators to come back to the hospital.
Old Man:
"Oh! You're a Creator! I've been waiting for you!
Please conduct your inspection as usual."
Ami got the Card Key!
"No one's been in there for a long, long time. I'm sure it's all crumbling to pieces by now."
Talking to him again, he says:
"Incidentally, I've heard Creators use newspapers and magazines."
Odd. I still have the newspaper as a key item in my inventory, but it doesn't seem like I can do anything with it. This class can't equip anything conventional, and its stats are very low.
Back to the hospital. I can go in now.
I can't interact with the thing on the wall, but my gut tells me that it's related to that Decode ability.
Blah. 100 skill points in this thing, then I'm out.
Man:
"That jagged green floor there doesn't just cause damage, it also cuts the electricity. The only way to turn it back on is that bright blue pad next to it."
The old skeleton makes a lunge for me, at angles if necessary, if I get too close, but otherwise it just wanders around aimlessly. My range makes its gimmick irrelevant, I wouldn't have figured this out if I weren't actively curious.
I like these worn out desk/stair tiles. Nothing ambushes me as I pass through the room.
Yep, here's that rat. And another wall thing.
Incidentally, when the rat gets close enough to you it opens up its mouth like it wants to bite you. It's very cute.
We'll be back here, of course.
The room locks me inside as I enter. It is now, and only now, that I realize that those are doors and not hieroglyphs.
I loop around, right back to the first room where I came up the stairs. I guess something else opened somewhere.
Yep. Another path opened up in the first room.
Walking into those floor tiles seems to reset the room so that defeated enemies come back, and do nothing else.
On this screen it also warps me to the opposite tile, unlike the previous one, letting me cross.
Defeating the enemies here creates another of those warps. I guess the pair on the first screen was an oversight?
You know what, I'm just pleased to see a gimmick that Kools HQ didn't do first.
The left path is a shortcut--it takes me to that room that locked me in when I did the loop-around.
Ooh, beds. This place is too green to really feel anything like a hospital to me, but I'm glad that it still has sprites like this. I hope a ZC user decides to give the concept a spin someday.
The giftbox contains a Drink.
These giftboxes contain Ointment and Spray.
All three items are stat increasers, I think. I'm less clear on what Drink does than the other two, but I go for it anyway!
I also realize that I've been translating SPEED/AGILITY inconsistently throughout, so that's fun. Movement speed is, in fact, distinct from the stat that has some murky connection to defense.
Onward. I guess these flowerpots are more relevant for melee users.
Let's start the loop around, then.
More looping around brings me here, and more looping around from there brings me to those stairs we just saw.
The gift contains a Love Potion. Ummm. Apparently it improves Dark Resistance, which implies that the Drink was also for some kind of elemental resistance. Okay.
The stairs go here.
Metal shelf tiles! Otherwise, just a screen.
Looping around gets me to the other side of this screen. The lone warp tile just seems to be schmuck bait, it takes me back to the other side of the room. Not sure what the point of it is.
Another room that leans into the hospital aesthetic. I guess those wheelchairs will get moved later.
Beating the rats opens up the door.
The door to a boss.
This is the Ghost that that sign in front of the hospital was warning about. Fortunately, I have my Rouge ready to ward off confusion, so I don't have to deal with that. There's a good chance this guy would have messed me up otherwise.
Ghost is interesting. He has attacks like this, where he stretches himself out, spits out a pillow, and then dives into it and possesses it.
And then he floats after me and tries to smother me.
Just the hitbox and the fact that I'm trying to avoid the power-cutting floor tiles makes this rough, or at least it did until I realized that shooting him forces him out of the pillow.
But if you're holding fire and trying to see all his attacks, getting into a spot like this huuuuurts.
He takes this form sometimes--he takes it when I shoot him, and also sometimes just randomly when he feels like it. I wonder if this is a dedicated confusion attack that my Rouge protected me from, or just sometimes he likes to strike a pose for no reason.
He also sometimes spits out spirits like the form he took when he was mid-materializing at the start. Those are a slow projectile with a big hitbox, the kind of thing that isn't bad on its own but can block off my path of escape from other attacks.
We're scraping up against the image count, so tl;dr this is his sheet. I think he's a pretty cool boss, held back by the fact that most of his movements only have one frame that floats around and only changes when he's choosing a new attack. Should be a pretty simple fix!
Anpo Hospital isn't over just yet--tune in next time to see what's at the end.
The left side of this room takes us to the opposite side of the room with the stairs that took us here. Not much point in going there at all. South is the room with the large beds and the wheelchairs.
But the wheelchairs vanish from that screen as I enter.
I passed through the left side of this room earlier, I don't think I took a picture of it at the time. Not super notable.
Going right brings us here.
Up the stairs...
Beating the mosquito here creates a warp, which goes to that little island on the left-hand side.
IV pump tile!
The warp is a trap, it makes me cross a few screens just to get to the stairs at the start of this sequence.
The gifts contain Crude Medicine, and Herbicide.
Oh god. The game is expecting me to pop these pills as stat boosts, isn't it. It totally is.
Up the stairs! The weird tile is a shortcut back to the entrance, which I won't be taking.
The gift contains a Suppository. I don't appreciate this.
The next room locks me in with a giant beetle.
I might have caught it in the middle of something. The first thing it does is walk over to the wall. Throughout the fight, it moves back and forth along that wall, sideways.
It spits out beetle minions--at first just one at a time, then more as the fight goes on. These act more like projectiles than like additional monsters. I can't hurt them and they disappear on their own after a bit.
I watched another LPer fight it and in that one it eventually switched to the north wall, but it didn't do that for me. I saw it facing south at the start of the fight, and I don't think it used any new tiles that weren't just its main tiles flipped around, so I'm not going to worry about that.
Here's its sheet. Simple but functional for its own game, though it'll probably take a bit more work to get it in line with the Oracle games' style.
After that I receive gifts and another warp. The gifts are a Lozenge, Powder, Chinese Medicine, and Syrup.
As for the warp...
Hmm. I seem to be someplace new, called Badesu Forest.
