The abyss of the darkness

Just a little reminder...

ladyabaxa — Sun, 31 May 2020 13:48:54 GMT

I'm no longer updating this blog and haven't for some time. I moved over to Dreamwidth.

Beyond the Beyond Update 98 & Beyond

ladyabaxa — Sun, 03 Sep 2017 03:56:43 GMT

Since I'm not paying Photobucket a ridiculous sum of money for a service that has, quite frankly, been a pain in the butt over the last decade (I've already experienced them breaking all my embedded images and links once plus numerous site outages and serious bugs) I decided to provide the LP in what is quite frankly a form more convenient for me. I write every single one in an HTML editor and then have to copy that to a separate file to whack into something usable in a blog format like this. It isn't fun in any way, shape, or form. Actually it's a tremendous pain in the ass - especially on LiveJournal where I've had to manually fix spacing on damn near every line that gets posted.

That's hard on my hands. As in, serious pain kind of hard. I hate doing it. Anyway since I write everything in HTML to begin with and have a complete local copy of all my files I just went ahead and uploaded the whole thing to Google Drive. Just download it and read at your leisure in a browser. No more breaking up updates because of character count! (That's a big plus for me if I don't have to worry about that.) I has already backing up everything to Google Drive anyway so all I really had to do was move that folder to my already-established public one and delete stuff none of you care about anyway.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B8ZJOlGe_ecaRmpLSXo2TWJ3TFU?usp=sharing

Edit: 9/10/2017: Update 99 should now be available.
Edit: 9/17/2017: Update 100 should now be available.
Edit: 9/25/2017: Update 101 should now be available. Also, if you see that a file or folder has recently been altered the usual reason is because I do go back and fix typos and awkward phrasing as I find them.
Edit: 10/07/2017: Updates 102 and 103 should now be available.
Edit: 11/01/2017: Update 104 should be available. (Got delayed due to a bit of a medical emergency.)
Edit: 12/08/2017: Update 105 should be available. It's been up for several days but got some additional proofreading.
Edit: 12/12/2017: Update 106 should be available. A portrait from the common4 folder is part of this update so make sure you get that too.
Edit: 12/16/2017: Update 107 should be available. With the end of year holidays coming up I cannot guarantee that the next part will be ready before the new year.
Edit: 2/18/2018: After a preliminary release and some additional polishing Update 108 should be available. Three portraits from the common4 folder are part of it. In addition a major revision to Update 99 is also available.
Edit: 4/8/2018: Update 109 should now be available. This is only the first of the LP's end of game bonus updates.
Edit: 5/1/2018: Update 110 should now be available. In addition I fixed the title banner of Update 79 and made a major (and I do mean major) revision to Update 58 because I missed a bit of dialogue and had to restructure part of the update to include it. This means I had to add some new screenshots so if you want the revision make sure you've got all the updated screenshots as well.
Edit: 5/12/2018: Update 111 should now be available.
Edit: 5/27/2018: Update 112 should now be available.
Edit: 10/06/2018: Update 113 should now be available.

If it's your first visit there Google Drive has a helpful "Download All" button. Don't panic if you get to the end, see a link going to the next part, click, and get an error. That's just because I won't be putting work-in-progress updates or folders in this share. I'll edit this post with a notice about new updates when I feel they're ready for public release.

I have no plans to remove posts that already exist. They're still legible (and I do try to describe what happens in screenshots even if I have to do so briefly because of character limits) so for those who don't mind the broken images they're there. Unlike Photobucket I'm loathe to break links. If anything seems wonky just holler. Google Drive is a bit quirky and does sometimes duplicate files. I delete them when I catch them but any that pop up shouldn't cause problems.

Beyond the Beyond: Update 97: Final Village (Quamdar)

ladyabaxa — Mon, 08 May 2017 20:37:49 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 97: Final Village (Quamdar)

In our last episode the team ran across an old face and finally located the exit to the Sand Cave. I suppose they should find out what lies beyond it. Word of warning though: not much happens with the plot in this episode. This and the next episode are something of a breather where a whole lot of work getting the team ready for the end of the game has to happen.

Ahh yes. There's that glimmer of inviting sunlight that surely means safety and not another trap!

That was... something.
So do you think of Percy as your brother, Finn?
Sort of.
He's seven years older than I am so by the time we were old enough to run around and play he was in training.
Miss Sonya didn't just train him. She made him do a lot of the chores.
Then he got older and went to the castle to live with Dad.
And we got to do all the chores!
I'm sensing a theme here, kid.

Outside the Sand Cave the team finds a whole lot of actual sand! In fact part of the valley is a desert. At the end of a day's bitter walk they find a town nestled in between rivers.

I hope that's Quamdar.
Knowing our luck Shutat's just waiting for us in there.
Ugh, I don't even want to think about that.
If Shutat's in there we'll just have to kick his butt!
Tont, some days I wonder where you get all that enthusiasm.
Youthful ignorance?
That's one way to put it.
Besides, we came here to kick Shutat's butt. If he's in this village that just means we get to the butt-kicking sooner.

Entering town the team once again finds a grass-covered land dotted with hills and bushes. So much for the desert just beyond. There's no greeter standing at the ready but I suppose that is to be expected from such a remote location.

As they walk into the inn they find a man sitting at a table.

Hi there. Are you a traveler?
No. I'm just taking a break. And you are?
The mighty Tont!
Never heard of you.
Well now you have!
This is the village of Quamdar, the Guardians of the Abyss. But because of the Vicious Ones, we can't even go near the shrine. [sic]
Doesn't that mean you've failed to guard the abyss?
I try not to think about it.
Did they come here, to Quamdar?
No. A messenger came from the shrine to warn us that monsters were coming out of the Abyss. We're protected by a powerful ward but that did nothing to stop the monsters from heading north into the passage.
They wrecked Zeal by the way.
And did a number on Bandore while they were at it!
But no one can approach the shrine now because of the Vicious Ones?
There are a few priests there I think. They live there. No one knows it they're still alive though. Too many monsters roaming the valley.
It sounds like we have a mission!

Yes well that mission will have to wait until tomorrow because I am beyond tapped out.
Five hundred gold to stay in a tiny village?
That's my offer. Take it or leave it.
Eh, we can spare it.
Yeah we just steal all our money from monsters anyway.

A stay at the inn is a necessity after that long trip. I will say this, dungeons in this game are exceptionally good at draining the team's reserves.

The next morning finds Finn once again combing through the bushes.

Annniiiieee! Your brother's being all weird again!
When have you ever known him to be otherwise?
I just... wanna make sure I'm not missing anything.

Again, I'd be worried about his behavior if I wasn't the one making him comb through the bushes. And sift through the trees. And look under every table. It's easy to miss things in this game!

The equipment shop in Quamdar sells what are mostly marginal upgrades for the team but I am sorely tempted to buy an Earth Breaker axe for Samson. It would increase his attack power 35 points (going from 152 to 187). Knowing that I've got other characters in need of upgrades and the fact that the war chest is looking a bit grim I hold off on buying anything.

Quamdar has its own church for all the team's saving/reloading needs but it actually has a villager in it as well. Quamdar is tiny - inn, shop, church, and two houses - so NPCs had to be put in these buildings.

Hi kids. What brings you to a remote place like this?
Looking for a guy named Shutat!
I know who you're talking about.
You do? How so?
I feel sorry for Shutat. Since Marion's successor never came, he couldn't return to the Common World.
So he was trapped in the Abyss?
He grew tired of battling with the minds of the Vicious Ones. Before we knew it, he was under their control... Did he do something wrong?
That didn't actually answer my question.
I wish I had any answers to give you.

I find this man's dialogue a bit baffling. "Return to the Common World" implies that Shutat is originally from the Common World but there's been a distinct lack of horned people in the team's trek across the globe. There's not even a mention of them! There's a secondary problem in the following statement "Before we knew it, he was under their control..." Quamdar is part of the Common World. If Shutat couldn't return to the Common World (which would mean he was trapped in the Abyss) how could this random guy know he'd been battling the minds of the Vicious Ones, that he grew tired of doing so, and that they took control of him? I suspect that this is a localization error and that Shutat is actually from the Underworld - The Agreement and balance between the two worlds and all that.

I mean you'd think if Shutat was from the Common World then at some point in the library in Marion or in Simone there'd be a mention of him. In looking back to see if there's something I've missed I come across this: "When the balance between the two worlds becomes upset, the Abyss shall appear." If Shutat's been trapped in the Abyss this whole time does that mean the balance (however that's defined) has been upset? I guess it could mean Shutat's actually been trapped in the Underworld. Given other facts that seems unlikely. It's all a big, inconsistent mess.

To the northeast is one of the village's two private residences.

Oh, hey! You're from the outside! We don't have many visitors here.
Probably something to do with the deadly, monster-infested cave being the only entrance.
That? Yeah... There've always been a few monsters in there but they never stopped anyone in Zeal from visiting us.

In a barrel in the corner is a Gundalf Hood that Finn nabs in full view of the house's owner. He doesn't object so into Annie's pack it goes!

In the last building the team updates the running joke by finding the last Monster Bait under a table.

Visitors? Here? And so young...
Hi there! Who are you?
I'm Finn. This is my sister Annie and some of our friends.
You are a good person! I can tell, because when you talk to me, you have very kind eyes, just like Shutat.
Um, okay.
Shutat didn't seem all that nice when we met him.
Shutat is evil... though he shouldn't be. I think he became like this because of the Vicious Ones.
But he IS one of the Vicious Ones.
You must be mistaken.
You just admitted that he's evil.
Sis I don't think she's going to believe a word we say.
*sighs* We have plenty to do anyway. No sense arguing about this.

Viscious Ones, eh? With an RPG-size script (even if it is a barebones plot most of the time) typos are bound to slip through. Ahh, the days of Evil Spilit! As for the boy's dialogue it pretty much invalidates what that other man said about Shutat being unable to "return to the Common World." This boy must have seen Shutat to know he has "kind eyes" and I seriously doubt that means a trip into the Abyss for him.

Well there's a new team member. Let's warp over to Isla and pester him!

But it would be funny if Miss Sonya had him hogtied in the basement!
Mom's just not that kind of person.
Yeah she doesn't need rope. She'll just make you feel guilty for leaving.

Over in Isla stands Percy. And yet no one in the village bats an eye at or seems at all bothered by the heavily-armored man who's suddenly shown up. Sure it's a guy they know but you'd think someone would mention it.

At last! Finn! Can I join your party now?
That's the plan.
Please tell me you said hi to Mom. She's been worried sick.
As if I had any hope of avoiding her. You know how fast news travels around here.
FFIIIIIIINNNN!
Speaking of news traveling fast.
Hey there Steiner.
Don't think you can hide from this nose!
I never said I could but okay.
Didn't you want to show him your new sword?
That's right! I totally forgot. Again.

In order for Percy to join the team someone has to be sidelined and for once I opt to go with Sir Samson. He's earned a break although I'll probably be missing his damage output soon enough.

So here's Percy's stats. He's only a level 3 Black Knight and his equipment is exactly how it was when he left the party so long ago. His spell selection is okay with a basic heal. Slow and Defense are situational and with only 13 max MP I probably won't ever bother with them. Gone are the 250~ish hit points he had as a pseudo-boss. Oh well. That's normal when characters switch sides. Granted with 40 LP if he fully recovers his VP from groggy at 5 LP per use he actually has 360~ish health.

Ramue didn't give you anything decent to wear?
Half the time he was raining fire on our heads!
Raining fire? I don't know any such spell, Finn.
Are we totally sure Miss Annie didn't thwack him upside the head when we weren't looking?
As tempting as it was I kept a handle on my temper.
I still have no idea what you're talking about.

Then it's over to Marion to pick up Edward. If nothing else his equipment is in need of upgrading. I might as well do it now since I have to go shopping for Percy. This time Domino is benched and the team is almost all-kids once again. Technically Percy's 20.

The Magic Staff beats the Drain Rod in attack power by a single point so I leave Edward's weapon as-is. There's no downside to exchanging his War Hood with the Gundalf Hood the team found in Quamdar. Edward has enough trouble scraping together defense that he shouldn't turn down upgrades like this. Ultimately the row modifier can only do so much to protect him.

The next stop is Barbaros to pick up Lorele. She too has equipment upgrades to purchase. In her place I leave Tont.

Then it's back to Marion not because I need to pick up Domino or even visit Marion. Nope. I don't have anyone stationed in Mistrall and because Barbaros is surrounded by all that forest neither Steiner or the Flying Palace get warped there.

One of these days I'm gonna get to see all these new places!
We'll figure something out, Steiner.
Frankly I'm more worried about where he's going to stay after this is all over. Steiner can't exactly live in Isla.
Why not? I'm still adorably cute!
It's not a matter of cuteness, Steiner.
I'm not gonna burn the village down! Not on purpose anyway.

Whelp time to fly over to Mistrall. It's a short, almost direct line trip from Marion Town.

So this is the Flying Palace. I didn't expect it to be a giant machine.
That Finn seems to enjoy flying.
*hums a song to himself*

Before the team buys anything I sell off all the useless junk. The Thunder Vase the team found in the Sand Cave gives me a moment of pause however.

*gasps* How much did you say?
Fifteen thousand I believe.
...why?
Do you have any idea how rare these are?
Odd. I don't sense particularly powerful magic within it.
For fifteen grand this thing should be able to wash the dishes, pull the weeds, and take Steiner out on walks on the beach.
Well? Are you interested?
I think we need to mull it over.
I'm always here if you change your mind. Now is there anything else you kids need?

The real reason to visit Mistrall is to get Percy decked out in Mithril gear. A set of Mithril Scale, Mithril Shield, and Mithril Sword puts a dent in the war chest but it's for a good cause. I suppose one benefit of retreating from the Sand Cave is that I had to fight through a bunch of random enounters to get back to where I was and that's always good for the gold count.

Anyway I return to Marion to send Domino to Quamdar. I'm not walking all the way through that cave again if I don't have to. I've been doing this sort of thing since the team grew large enough to have someone on the bench but now it is necessary if I want to avoid needless time sinks.

Then it's back to Quamdar for more shopping. I buy Lorele Mystic Knuckles, a Power Scarf, and a Dragon Gi. Edward gets a Cloak of Light. I do find it a bit strange that Mystic Blades are for sale in Quamdar. Finn gets one for free (required by the plot!) and by the time Percy returns better swords are available.

At long last it is time to say goodbye to Edward's Wind Cloak. You've served the team well but the +Speed you offer just isn't enough to offset the benefits of upgrading. With the shopping done let's have a look at the reconfigured team's stats!

Finn hasn't changed much since his last appearance. He's covered in Mithril and no smarter than before. He's still inching his way to 100 Strength but it will probably take two more level-ups to get there. +4 Strength does happen but is rare enough to not count on.

Annie's also largely the same as she was before. She's still far and away the team's speed demon with enough Defense, VP, and LP to survive quite a beating.

Now decked out in Mithril gear of his own Percy's stats are more directly relatable to his peers and, honestly, he doesn't stack up too well in comparison. His base Defense is low for a melee character and he's slow. He also doesn't get much MP which renders his spell selection kind of useless. Still, part of that comes down to me having used stat boosters throughout the game and he obviously wasn't around to partake.

With the Cloak of Light and Gundalf Hood Edward suddenly has a respectable amount of Defense to his name. He might catch Finn in Speed if the next three or four level-ups roll in his favor. For a rather petite mage he's got a surprising amount of Strength - 11 more than Percy at the moment but his attack power is no longer as impressive as it once was.

And finally there's Lorele. I never know what to say about her except the fact that she's so darn slow. I suppose she is lucky and her Defense is looking pretty good.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - I get that treasure chest in the Sand Cave that I missed earlier.

Update Ninety-six | Index | Update Ninety-eight

Beyond the Beyond: Update 96: Ramue Strikes Back (Sand Cave pt. 3)

ladyabaxa — Thu, 04 May 2017 03:45:22 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 96: Ramue Strikes Back (Sand Cave pt. 3)

So the team's still struggling to find an exit from the Sand Cave. Well, okay, Finn could just cast Escape to take them to the exit they used to enter the caverns but that would be going backwards... again. Eventually the team has to go forward. Otherwise they'll never reach new sights and new events.

Or new treasure. If nothing else that gets the kids moving.

Speaking of treasure when last we saw them the team had just opened this chest and picked up a Thunder Vase. Given the fact that I had to backtrack halfway across the floor this is something of a disappointment. Ah well, maybe it will come in handy later.

I still don't understand how you fit a vase into your travel pack, sis.
As I've said before, Finn, very carefully.
It's only a powerful magical item just waiting to go off with explosive potential. What could go wrong?
Nothing's blown up on us yet so I'll take my chances.

The team thus begins the walk back around. Yes I know I missed a treasure chest but I forgot to check the west side while I was doing this. The team will have to come back later.

How much further do you think we have to go, Samson?
Why are you asking me?
Oh, just this nagging suspicion that you know more then you're letting on.
As if. I've never been here before.
If you say so...
Ugh! I keep forgetting that I should ignore everything you say.
We both know that that's not possible. You can't ignore anyone.

Especially when it might involve monsters.
That's just a distraction.
But it changed the conversation. Doesn't that mean it's a successful distraction?
I'd say it is. And you?
I want no part of this conversation.
But you never want any part of any conversation with Domino.
I'll also note that you're not ignoring me like you said you would.
Then allow me to correct that little oversight.

The walk back is uneventful. There were random encounters, as always, but nothing the team couldn't swiftly dispatch.

As soon as the team rounds the corner past the treasure chest a voice suddenly calls out to them. I must note that this speech is slow and comes one small phrase at a time with pauses in between.

You people, I must defeat.

The screen darkens and for once Finn actually has something to say in game. It's just his usual confusion but for once said confusion is actually on screen.

Huh?!
Someone's talking to us, Finn.
I gathered that.
Footsteps. Someone's just ahead of us.
Who?! Who are you?

The screen pans over to reveal an armored figure the team has seen before.

You people, I must defeat. I will defeat all of you... Defeat.

The camera pans back to the group.

Finn continues to have such poignant dialogue as the Black Knight approaches.

Then Ramue starts talking out of the blue.

Hehehe. Finn, you really want to get to Quamdar, huh? Well, it won't be that easy. The Black Knight will teach you the error of your ways.

The group looks around for the unseen sorceress. There's nothing to see though. She's literally phoning it in at this point.

Is that you? Ramue?! Where... Where are you?!
Rather than threatening me, you should worry about yourself instead. Hehehe!
But we're always worried about ourselves.
You're always worried about bats, Finn.
More to the point, Ramue isn't here? Bummer. Not much to worry about then.
She doesn't have the stomach to face us.
I see you still haven't muzzled that filthy barbarian.
I'm going to regret this later but for once I have to agree with Samson.
And now Samson has to change his opinion.
*grumbles something incomprehensible*
What did he say?
Probably just a slight against my mother.
Where is your mother?
She passed away several years ago.
Do you ruffians mind?! I've gone to a lot of trouble to prepare this little surprise for you.
I can't speak for the others but I don't mind at all.
I don't mind either. That guy's just standing there, staring at us.
I guess you don't care about Quamdar. How sad. I've wasted all this time for nothing.
You're still going to try to stop us? Now who's wasting their time?
People have been telling me for years that I'm good at wasting time. And goofing off.
Steiner helps on both fronts.
Seriously though we are going to Quamdar and Ramue isn't going to stop us.
Little boy you shouldn't speak so soon. You'll go no further.
?!
You didn't spot another bat, did you?
I can hear them above us. Probably watching us with their beady little eyes.
Maybe I chose the wrong kind of minion to bring...
Did Ramue say something?
I don't know. Kinda busy looking for those bats you're so paranoid about.
Damnit! What is wrong with you children? You're all going to be punished!
Not likely.
Yeah. Samson's been tryin' to whip us into shape for weeks and you see how that's worked out.
Shut up! Just shut up!
Whoa! Rude!
Why am I wasting my time talking to you fools?
You're bored?
You have nothing better to do?
You're scared of us?
WHAT?! Scared? Of you pipsqueaks? That's it. Attack my minion!
You people, I must defeat. I will defeat all of you... MUST!

With that a boss battle begins against the Black Knight. And here I'd thought Ramue's last trap was half-assed. She didn't even bother to send any monsters with her cursed minion. (Who is definitely not Percy.)

Must... fight.

Well it seems stalling Ramue didn't work.
We were deliberately stalling?
I was kind of hoping one of you would come up with some clever plan to avoid this fight.
Kind of hard without our expert on magic here.
But what are we going to do?
As much as I'd like to say a quick smack in the head might set things right I just... can't bring myself to do it.
Lovely...
Don't die! How's that for a plan?
It's a start.

OW!

Lacking any offensive strategy or other way to deal with the Black Knight (short of cold blooded murder) the team hunkers down in defense. While the Black Knight hits about as hard as the average monster in the Sand Cave he only gets one action per round. That, right there, should be a huge clue as to the nature of this encounter.

Hey it actually worked!
What worked? I didn't see anything.
I drained mana from him.
Um, okay. I guess that's something.
Why...? No, nevermind.
*shrugs* I figured it was better than doing nothing.

The Black Knight has MP and said MP can be stolen but unfortunately I couldn't land the spell with Annie. The low success rate... great when it's monsters trying to steal the team's mana but utterly infuriating when it's your casters desperately needing mana.

OW, OW, OW!
Tont, suggestion.
Yes?
Next time make sure you drain ALL the mana out of someone!

Oh and the Black Knight can cast Fire 3. Between magic resistance and the defense command it can't do much to the team.

Must defeat, all of you!
Miss Annie this doesn't seem to be working!
Tell me about it!
But I just did.
I'd say we should run for it but I'm not giving up just yet.

The Black Knight's attacks are relentless with my main worry that my band of carefully groomed warriors might counterattack and cause problems for everyone.

Annie's work as group healer is never done but she and Finn actually trade off from round to round because her MP is so low.

Maybe you can heal him back to sanity!
If I had magic like that don't you think I'd do something about Finn's paranoia?
It's not paranoia if they really are out to get you.
Whatever you say, Finn.

One advantage of sitting around just waiting for time to pass is that I get a clearer view of AI behavior. In this instance it means watching as the Black Knight ruthlessly pursues whoever his attacks can drop the lowest in VP. That means Domino and Tont are pretty safe but Annie, being both in the frontline and not on defense like Finn and Samson most turns, gets hit repeatedly.

AARGH!
Is that pain or the sound of your blood pressure rising?
BOTH!

Unfortunately there's no avoiding getting hit by multiple Fire 3 spells.

Did Ramue teach him that spell?
If she did she's going to answer for it.
She's already got a lot to answer for.
Then I'll be sure to get my licks in first.

I might not like using Healing Rain in battle because it heals for less per person but this is one of those cases where it is justified. I could just let people fall into groggy status. They've got plenty of LP. As a matter of pride though I avoid such a tactic.

I'm about tapped out here.
Maybe he is too?
Haven't heard anything from Ramue.
Of course she's not going to hang around to watch whatever she had planned fail.
She's got more important things to do!
Like finding new ways to annoy us.

I could still do without the light show!
For all the hype from Ramue he's not that strong.

Strong enough to hurt me over and over again.
Then he really is your brother!
Your remark is so on point it hurts, Tont.

Meanwhile, elsewhere...

(1) Mistress Ramue is gloating again.
(2) Should we tell her we, uh, finally found that set of armor she made?
(3) After we lost the whole set and replaced it on the cheap?
(2) It's not my fault! That wave came up on the battleship out of nowhere and swept it all overboard.
(1) At least she didn't notice the totally different sword we found.
You're welcome, mortal.
(1) I know, I know. I still owe you a favor.
Yes you do.
(3) Hey where's that guy with the mask? Isn't that armor for him?
(1) ...umm, you know what? Maybe we should just leave Mistress Ramue be.

Then suddenly on the 12th round the Black Knight turns tail and runs away. Or jumps away as the case may be in this game.

Uh, that just happened.
So a man cursed by Ramue has more good sense then most of the monsters we run into?
Good! Then he'll feel it when I slap him!

I wouldn't count my chickens just yet.

With the battle complete the Black Knight stands where he was before. So much for running away. He just sort of stepped back. Ramue's dimmer switch apparently turned itself off with the transition to combat. I suppose I should be glad the team wasn't forced to defend itself in darkness.

The screen flashes and suddenly the Black Knight's mask breaks. I hope Ramue didn't pay for the extended warranty on that thing.

Percy??

Then the maskless Black Knight spins around and falls over.

Percy? My brother!

Annie yells the obvious then the team runs to surround the fallen Percy.

Are you all right, Percy?
He's just lying there shaking.
Is he hurt?
If he doesn't say something he will be!
Well it's good to know Miss Annie feels fine.
Umm.. this... what happened to me?

Shaken and more then a little bit stirred Percy then leaps to his feet.

Finn! I remember now. After we were separated, Ramue imprisoned me in the tower of Marion Castle. Then, when Marion Castle was about to be recaptured, Ramue placed that ominous mask on me.
Yeah we kind of walked in on that.
Just a moment too late to do anything!
*sighs* Well, yes. I guess it could have been worse.
Compared to what Ramue put Samson through this was tame.
*grumbles something under his breath*
That's right! Percy, you were the one who saved us at Bandore, right? Though the mask controlled your mind, you were still resisting them.
I remember now. Sort of. I heard Ramue and Shutat talking about their trap and I knew I had to do something.
You saved us from having to break down a couple of doors!
True. It wasn't much of a trap. That big green guy, whatever his name was, had a better plan.
Yeon. He and Ramue don't like each other so he came up with his own scheme, I think. Finn... I tried... to save Lord Kevins... but I, I wasn't strong enough. Please forgive me.
It's not your fault.
Yeah. You set Kevins loose and he fell into the volcano with Yeon.
To save us from our own foolishness I might add.
We couldn't see through Yeon's illusion. At least he's gone now.
No. He returned to Shutat a couple days later. Something about the Abyss. I don't know. Wizard stuff.
So we'll see him again? Lovely...
So does Ramue know you've broken free?
Probably. I doubt she cares.
Why do you say that?
She didn't seem to have any idea what to do with me. Then there was all that stuff with Dagoot...
And you kept messing up their plans!
She'll come up with a new scheme soon. They all will. To save this world from ruin, we must defeat Shutat! [sic] Please let me join the party. I owe him...
But Ramue's the one who cursed you.
Everything she does is for Shutat. He calls the shots.
We're after Shutat anyway. He's caused plenty of damage he needs to answer for.

Finn hands a piece of the Light Orb to Percy (with the game still not bothering to explain how that's possible) in order to return our wayward knight to the fold.

I for one am glad to have you back.
I'm glad my mind is my own again.
And should you lose it Miss Annie will, uh, help you find it.
I will admit this day has tested my patience.

Final team member reporting for duty!

Let's go! But wait... if I join the party, there will be six people. We can only fight effectively with five in the group. Why don't we choose who to exclude?

And of course the game has to remind the player of the arbitrary party size limit.

Knowing that Percy's not really up to traveling with the group where they are (we'll see in the next update) I opt to send him to Isla. At a bare minimum he should check in with his mother and assure her that he's fine.

All right... You wish to leave me out. Then, I'll wait in town. [sic]

Finn steps aside and Percy walks away - further into the Sand Cave. Don't ask where he's going because I'm pretty sure he has no idea. Oh well. No random enemies jump him so maybe they still think he's on their side?

And just around the corner is the exit the team's been searching for.

-- BONUS CONTENT --

I didn't want to interrupt the narrative flow with what is ultimately a digression into history so here it goes. During this update we saw a trope that Camelot has used a whole bunch in previous games: Mind Control.

Someone on the dev team LOVES this trope. As should be immediately obvious this is going to involve plenty of spoilers for other games. Thou hast been warned!

Kane: Arrgh! My mask is...breaking!

Kane: What have I done? He even made me fight you! Forgive me, Max!

In the first Shining Force there are several recurring antagonists but none so thorny as the head of Runefaust's military apparatus: Kane. He appears early in the game when he attacks Guardiana. In typical villain fashion he considers Max and company too weak to warrant his direct attention. That changes in chapter 6 when the Force heads to Dragonia to find the Manual of the Seal. The dragons who have long protected the seal have slowly succumbed to a curse with only young Bleu left. That means Kane can just waltz in with his forces and thus Dragonia becomes a battlefield.

When Kane is defeated in battle the game throws a curve ball that was a genuine surprise for the time that Shining Force was released. His mask breaks and with it the enchantment that has corrupted and twisted his mind. One detail that didn't make it into the game (but which is touched on in Final Conflict and the remake) is that Max and Kane are brothers. That's why, when Kane realizes what he's been doing, he says "He even made me fight you!". Being forced to kill a whole bunch of people one doesn't know is a different sort of emotional punch then being forced to attack a valued family member.

Adam: Stop! You are Chaos. You have been reprogrammed by Darksol. Revert to original function.

Later in the game Max meets an android named Adam as part of his task to create the sword, Chaos Breaker. They are stopped by another android named Chaos. Adam immediately recognizes the fact that Chaos has been reprogrammed by Darksol. So apparently Darksol is a leet haxor in addition to being an evil mastermind? Anyway there's no way to fix Chaos. It must be destroyed through combat.

Ramladu: I am dying...but my mind is once more my own. Darksol was controlling me.

In his dying moments the king of Runefaust, Ramladu, admits he was under Darksol's control. Darksol not only needed Ramladu's formidable army to achieve his mission but the underwater castle containing Dark Dragon is just off the nation's west coast. The exact means of control isn't stated but is implied to be magical. Nothing dramatically shatters when Ramladu runs out of HP but Darksol might have had time and access enough to lay the enchantments on thick. Still mind control though.

Colossus: None shall pass Colossus, the eternal sentinel! Leave now!

Colossus is the last example I'll bring up because although Shining Force never says how Darksol got past Colossus in order to reach Dark Dragon more reprogramming was probably involved. This is after the battle with Chaos and if Darksol can reprogram one ancient bot then why not more? In fact Darksol has a small army of killbots at his command. They might be machines but since Darksol forcibly alters their minds so he can command them I'm including it as instances of mind control.

I'm not including Balbazak or General Elliott because although they have their misgivings about Darksol and Ramladu they fight for Runefaust of their own free will. Balbazak begs for forgiveness when defeated but that's because he's a sleazy opportunist who doesn't want to die.

Astral: It's Lemon!

In Shining Force 2 it is Lemon who wears a mask but although he is a minion of Zeon, the dreaded Red Baron, and given devils to command (or at least they're ordered to protect him) he himself is a feral berserker. He kills on command as part of the devils' reign of terror on Grans Island. When defeated in battle he runs off filled with remorse but it doesn't take long for the game to reveal that Lemon is immortal. He is called a vampire but aside from explaining why his attempts at suicide fail and why he auto-revives when defeated in subsequent battles the nature of his altered state isn't elaborated on.

I'll get back to this a bit later.

Adam: That swordman's mask....

Odd Eye: Now I'll remove the mask that covers his face.

The first two Shining Force Gaiden games skip the mind control tropes but it comes back in Final Conflict. That isn't terribly surprising since Final Conflict's plot is basically a blender of fan favorite things from Shining Force 1 and 2. In Final Conflict Max is captured by Mishaela - the same Mishaela that works with Darksol in Shining Force 1 (don't ask) - and she slaps a mask on him in order to control his mind and force him to fight the player's team. Defeating him in battle doesn't break the mask though. Odd Eye has to show up to do that.

Woldol: A mere healer will not help your Queen. [sic] Queen Anri rests in an eternal sleep...

Regarding the first two Gaiden games they do include curses. At the beginning of Shining Force Gaiden (the chapter Towards the Root of Evil in SFCD) Woldol and minions force their way into Guardiana Castle and place Queen Anri under a sleeping spell, via a cursed chest, in an attempt to force Guardiana into becoming a satrap of Cypress. That sets the events of the game in motion with the main goal of breaking said spell. Obviously the last thing any villain should do is mess with Guardiana because in the end it never works out well for them!

<Nick's right arm was poisoned.>

At the end of Gaiden 1 the transformed Woldol poisons Nick's right arm. On a technical level this works because Woldol is protected by a powerful barrier that only the Sword of Hajya can break. When Nick attacks the transformed villain shrieks in pain and retaliates with venom. Don't ask me why a giant scorpion spits venom rather than using the stinger. Magic!

Gyan: Nick! Your right arm has turned to stone!

The result is Nick's right arm (his sword arm) turning to stone. This directly results in his capture in Shining Force Gaiden 2 and its remake/port chapter of Shining Force CD, The Evil God Awakens. Nick insists on leading Cypress into battle and, of course, falls into Warderer's hands.

On a quick side note there's no hint that Nick's uncle Edmond usurped the throne for any reason other than greedy ambition. He's just evil. With his dying breath he calls Nick a traitor to Cypress for doing the logical thing and fighting for the throne Edmond stole.

Hindel: Barbara! Take Prince Nick and go to the shrine.

In the second gaiden game the main villain Warderer has a masked, armored warrior in his retinue who is high enough rank to order other commanders like Barbara around. This is Hindel. When Warderer goes into the sacrificial chamber it is Hindel whom he takes with him. Hindel is not what he appears to be however.

Geppel: It was rude of you to keep me waiting, Nick.

Compare that with the character of Geppel. This masked warrior, a commander serving Woldol in the first gaiden game, is stationed outside the gates of Cypress Castle. He isn't possessed or cursed or otherwise forced to serve Woldol. He is exactly what he appears to be: a one-dimensional character who serves purely as a temporary adversary. There's no backstory, tragic or otherwise. You defeat him in battle, he says some stereotypical "You can't defeat us" stuff, he dies, and the team moves on.

Warderer: Hindel, I've raised and looked after you ...you betrayed me.

Back to Hindel.

He and presumably Deanna were raised by Warderer, king of Iom, but an event prior to the game's beginning leaves Deanna gravely wounded. He is found by Natasha and taken to Cypress to recover. His older brother Hindel is stuck continuing to serve Warderer. Throughout the game Hindel intervenes repeatedly to help his brother and by extension Cypress's forces who are trying to rescue Nick - although the fact that he is the traitor isn't revealed until the end. At that point Hindel really has no choice but to reveal himself. Otherwise Nick will be sacrificed and Iom revived.

This does not end well for Hindel. Within minutes of revealing himself to be a mole he falls prey to being a noble sacrifice for the cause. Unfortunately that cause is the evil god Iom's resurrection. Nick claims he and Gyan have known for some time that Hindel is angry with Warderer for sending Deanna into Cyrpress on what might have been a suicide mission. Warderer clearly doesn't care if Deanna lives or dies. Hindel repays him in kind. It doesn't pay to be an insensitive jerk in these games!

On another note Hindel has a line of dialogue that recasts the ending of Shining Force Gaiden.

Hindel: People of Cypress, by defeating the evil Warderer, his spells have been broken.

This is the explanation for why Prince Nick's right hand is suddenly no longer stone. Disregard the fact that Woldol clearly poisons Nick's arm and Gyan confirms his right arm turns to stone. In the second book it's suddenly just his hand. Woldol poisoned Nick but that poison was Warderer's magic! This is another recurring trope: defeating a magician/sorceror/warlock/etc. destroys ALL of their enchantments. Warderer does raise Woldol from the dead as Death Woldol but apparently Woldol was always a... vessel for Warderer's magic? All of Woldol's spells and power came from Warderer? Queen Anri is healed by killing Woldol so it might just be the giant scorpion transformation and everything associated with that.

Look, the plot requires that Nick's hand be unpetrified because he's the only character able to wield the Sword of Hajya and the game can't end without a fight against Iom itself. Dramatic final boss and all that!

Sir Mortred: I...I remember a sword, DARKBLADE. Melvyl's gift. It robbed me of my will.

Use of mind control in the Shining series goes all the way back to its roots. In Shining in the Darkness the main character's father Sir Mortred is corrupted by a cursed sword, Darkblade, and that allows Melvyl to control him. Sir Mortred kidnaps Princess Jessa and takes her to the Labyrinth in order to hold her hostage and force her father the king to submit to Dark Sol.

Sir Mortred holds the key to Princess Jessa's cell and the only way to get it is to fight him. He is a boss and there's no way around the encounter. Unlike the Shining Force examples I've already shown this is a battle to the death.

I should note that cases of mind control like Sir Mortred's are always through cursed objects. It isn't applying magic directly to targets. Instead it requires an attack vector or, if you prefer to call it, a proxy of sorts. For Sir Mortred this makes perfect sense. Not only did he not suspect anything was wrong with Melvyl's gift but it also made the kidnapping of Princess Jessa a complete surprise to the court. None of the other cases require this sort of treachery. Hell half of them are on screen and obvious to everyone who sees them!

That's not the only means of getting control of a character's mind in these games. There's also possession through hostile spirit. Shining Force 1 and Shining in the Darkness don't use the trope. In Shining Force 2 an evil spirit called a Gizmo emerges from the Ancient Tower at the beginning of the game in order to possess the king of Granseal.

In fact the game's attract mode reveals that Geshp casts a spell on the king within minutes of the seal opening. He sure was quick to rush out of that gate with a plan of attack! (Having played Final Conflict I can only conclude that he was shouting "Eat my dust!" to Odd Eye on his way out.) Geshp's scheme is foiled by Sir Astral but the Gizmo possesses the messenger from Galam. It forces the messenger to rush back to Galam where the messenger then dies. When the king of that land touches the corpse the Gizmo body hops. The possessed King Galam then takes his nation to war with Granseal in order to fully open the seal to Arc Valley and release Zeon.

When the Force finally returns from Parmecia a year+ later they have to fight Galam in the Ancient Tower. After that Zeon appears to be the game's final boss. Zeon however is immortal and after the fight he tricks Bowie and company using Galam - who pretends to be free of possession long enough to grab Ellis and use her as a hostage. At some point Galam transitioned from being possessed by the Gizmo to being a direct vessel of Zeon. The game never says when or how. It leaves it as a surprise.

I promised earlier to say more about Lemon so here we go. He is a loyal servant of King Galam and leads Galam's troops in their attack on Granseal but realizes something is terribly wrong with his king and switches sides at Sir Astral's urging. He moves forward with his remaining troops to try to rescue Princess Ellis but Galam attacks him with magic. The game doesn't explicitly say what he is subjected to but it is clear from his mention about being enveloped by a black cloud that bad things are going to happen to him.

It isn't clear whether Lemon is controlled through possession or a cursed mask. No spirit is banished by Sir Astral. We know Sir Astral has that power because he does it to King Granseal at the beginning then again to Higins when Geshp has a Gizmo-looking spirit possess the sick paladin. Then again cursed objects tend to lose their power once their owners get their asses handed to them and Astral has a habit of downplaying what he's doing so... could be either or even both.

That was quite a lot of text for one game but Shining Force 2 has a lot of mind control via evil spirits in its plot.

Back in Beyond the Beyond what happens if the team attacks Percy while he's the Black Knight? What if they don't know not to pummel the obstacle in their way? Say if they'd missed the clues and didn't know who they were attacking?

The Black Knight doesn't have particularly high defense so when the team comes out swinging the damage adds up fast.

In fact with double attacks from Finn and Domino the Black Knight dies in the first round of combat! He only has 250~ish hit points and that goes fast when he's hit for 40 damage a pop. After the long slogs that were the Water Demon and G this should be a HUGE red flag.

Percy's first line doesn't have his portrait in order to delay the reveal a tiny bit longer.

Annie... you all have... become much... stronger.

...Could it be... be... Percy? ...is that you?

The Black Knight's mask cracks.

Percy?!

I knew it! Percy, my brother!

Percy falls and the group approaches but everyone except Annie keeps a bit of distance to the fallen knight.

Are you all right, Percy?

Annie casts a Heal spell on Percy.

Annie, I... I don't have long to live.

Don't give up. I'll heal you! Don't say anything, just remain still.

Annie again tries to heal Percy with attached glowing effects but it does no good.

After I was separated from you, Ramue captured me... and I was imprisoned in the tower of Marion Castle. When Marion Castle was about to be recaptured, Ramue placed that deadly mask on me... Then... with my own hands, I... Lord Kevins...

No, Percy! You freed Lord Kevins, and he saved us. [sic] You're not a murderer. Didn't you help us in Bandore? While you were controlled by them, you still had the strength to resist.

... Thanks, Annie. That does make me feel... better.

Finn... please forgive me. I wasn't strong enough.

At that mention Finn approaches and nods.

I... couldn't... stop them... but I know... you can. Shutat and his evil group... Please rid the Common World of them forever.

His sprite animates one last time with a final set of death rattles.

And... save this world from being... destroyed...

The rest of the group huddles around Percy as he dies.

Percy!

Annie turns and walks away from the group.

My brother... Lord Kevins... the King of Barbaros and... all the others... For everyone's sake, we must... defeat Shutat... how cruel... I can't let this go on.

So true. We must get to them as soon as possible.

Well whaddya know? Violence doesn't solve everything. Given the fact that beating the stuffing out of mind control victims is the usual way of knocking sense into them this is an inversion. Granted Shining Force 1 and 2 aren't designed to allow anything else. Still, if you've played previous Camelot games you'd be used to outright attacking even if you knew the Black Knight was Percy. That's the wrong way to handle this situation. Ramue continues to avoid showing up as a real boss so kicking her butt and breaking the enchantment on Percy that way isn't an option.

Oh and if you reset to try again you'd have to redo the Sand Cave as well. Just thought I should mention that little detail.

Ramue doesn't bother to send any monsters to back up the Black Knight. I guess she figures if her pawn kills Finn and company she wins. If they kill Percy that's a lesser win since it forces her enemies to destroy a former ally. Either way she doesn't really lose anything. Percy's an unstable minion continuously fighting her magic. Yeon actually notes in his digust of Ramue that she has "weak magic." It might be true - at least relative to other magicians.

When Ramue curses Samson early in the game she does so by throwing a shawl at him. I should note it is a teleporting, target-seeking magical shawl that thwarts his attempts at dodging it. This is unique among all the cursing instances seen thus far. The shawl seems to be less a material object and more a solidified hunk of magic. It even transforms into an electric and light show when it hits Samson and disappears forever.

Now that I think about it this could explain why no priest in the game is able to break this curse. Every other curse in Beyond the Beyond comes from equipping a cursed item. All a priest does is break that bond. They don't damage the item in question either. The player can re-equip it and let the curse take effect again. With Samson's curse there's no object involved because the shawl is consumed in the attack. Ergo there's no bond to break and the usual method fails.

Advisor Glade is clearly in contact with team Shutat prior to Edward's arrival in Zalagoon. Ramue openly admits that he won't find help in Zalagoon when she opts not to pursue the prince past the Border Church. It's not much of a stretch to think Shutat had his flunkies searching for potential allies throughout the world while they were in Bandore plotting their invasion of Marion. Marion and Zalagoon have long been allies so breaking up that friendship has obvious military benefits.

The question right now though: is Glade under mind control?

I'd say there isn't enough information to know conclusively but the answer leans towards no. But (there's always a but, isn't there?) there's definitely some sort of enchantment waiting in the wings. When Samson does complete the challenge and Glade is accused of treason he flips out and starts babbling.

This is the screenshot that keeps on giving!

Then he swallows a pill which causes something to possess him and transform him into a large demon. He isn't happy about it either as evidenced by two lines of his.

Ahhh! Shutat! You said it would relieve my suffering!

No! This is my body! My kingdom! My world! You can't have it! Noooo!

Two things jump out at me. First, Glade is incredibly arrogant which explains why he'd cut a deal with Shutat. The second is that he mistakenly believed Shutat would heal some sort of affliction. No one in Zalagoon mentions Glade being sick in any way so this comes as a surprise. I suppose being taken over by a demon from the Underworld could qualify as being healed depending on how one defines such things. He attempts to resist but it is no use. The emergent demon is happy to explain why.

GuHaHa! Do you want me to tell you? Glade sold his soul to Lord Shutat.

I wonder what the going rate on souls is in the Underworld. I kid, but this suggests a magically-sealed deal between the two parties with some extra... insurance added on Shutat's part.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - Quamdar

Update Ninety-five | Index | Update Ninety-seven

Beyond the Beyond: Update 95: Trudging Onward (Sand Cave pt. 2)

ladyabaxa — Wed, 26 Apr 2017 22:25:27 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 95: Trudging Onward (Sand Cave pt. 2)

So the team's last foray into the Sand Cave was, technically speaking, a success. They fought monsters, claimed treasure, and managed to live to tell the tale. This time they have to return to that gloomy trek and hopefully reach the other side.

First though is a matter of resupply. I didn't bother to do that last time. Yup, that's right. I walked into a dungeon I knew was dangerous (and in fact is my least favorite of the entire game) without bothering to hit up an item shop. That's because I was fairly certain before I even entered Zeal that I was just going to grab treasure and port out. All that said, I sold Domino's Mithril Dagger for a nice profit - about the only time that happens in Beyond the Beyond. Then I bought half a dozen Healing Herbs and flew back to Zeal.

The team's stats haven't changed much since the last time I posted their character sheets. Here we have Finn at level 11 and decked out in Mithril. Will he break 100 Strength before the game is over? It seems likely.

Dang it! Now I remember what I forgot to do the last time we were in Isla.
And what is that?
I didn't show Steiner my new sword.
Ah, that.

Finn and Annie have managed thus far to keep their experience synced up but Finn has advanced to level 11 while Annie still needs 8956 experience to get there. That gap is only going to get worse over time. As for stats she's still far and away the fastest person on the team. Here's hoping she can keep Necromancers from causing trouble.

And here I was thinking it might be something important.
But it is important!

At level 10 Samson has as much Strength as Finn but 30 less attack power. That's entirely the result of sticking with the Tempest Axe. In battle he does 8 - 10 damage less than Finn per swing. The two have the same Speed but Samson goes first. I'm not sure how the game resolves ties like these but for now that's their turn order.

You can show him later.
If we get out of this alive.
We will.

At level 7 Domino's well behind the frontliners in Speed but his Attack and Defense are both respectable.

Strong words there.
And he only used two!
Do you have anything you'd like to add, Samson?
Hrmph!
I'll take that as a yes.

Tont's the slowest member of the party but manages to stay ahead of Domino in the turn order thanks to his Tempest Ring. With 78 MP max I'm less cautious then I used to be about using his magic in battle. Only a little though. He can drain that quickly.

Let's go! Quamdar awaits!
Should I be worried that Tont's all fired up?
Yes.

Maybe I spoke too soon.

So the team begins its march back to the Sand Cave and, of course, it apparently isn't a real dungeon crawl without a snake lady calling Thunder on the entire party. It's practically tradition by this point. I could just fly over to the southern edge of the desert but then I wouldn't get to show off desert encounters and, quite frankly, where's the fun in that?

Nothing of particular note happened as the team made its way through the first three floors but they did face the occasional risk of being Voided.

Oh and I blundered into this pit trap. South of this is the treasure chest that once held the Healing Jewel. That's why I missed the pits blocking the direct path earlier. Since I wanted the treasure and that's the correct path I avoided this trap without even knowing it exists.

Here's the staircase leading to the fourth floor. This is where the team aborted the dungeon crawl last time.

Oh and there are a horde of bats trying and failing to stop the team from reaching said staircase. It doesn't work. Not even Finn's constant freaking out at the sight of even one of them will slow this team down. Or even their repeated attempts to summon reinforcements. That only delays the inevitable a little longer.

Remembering how much they struggled to kill these same monsters while sailing the seas makes it clear to me just how much they've improved since then. Yes they all have better equipment but all the level ups since then also help.

4th Floor

We've finally reached uncharted territory.
But wouldn't that mean no one's ever been through here?
Have we seen anyone in this cave who didn't immediately attack us?
I'm the one who's supposed to dodge questions here.
Isn't that what you just did?
Well if you must know... hey look there's a dragon over there!

Tont what are you... holy cow there IS a dragon over there.
And apparently we're going to fight it.
I still don't understand why these dragons are all so small. Does being evil stunt their growth or something?
I'm not sure this is a great time to ask questions like that.
Why?

AAAAAAAHHHHH!
That's why.
OW, OW, OW! Burning! Pain!

As should surprise no one Red Dragons breath fire. Even without magic resistance Fire Breath 2 isn't particularly dangerous. It does roughly the same damage as a Titan spell. These dragons are also rare encounters in this cave so it's unlikely the team will ever face the risk of several dragons breathing on them all at once.

That comes later in the game.

Two can fight fire with fire!

I mentioned before that Tont's Summon 4 spell invokes the "use item" animation and apparently that isn't always true. I have no idea why. It seems random. Maybe there's a glitch that causes it? The spell works regardless so this is just a minor cosmetic concern.

That doesn't look like fire to me.
You, uh, just need to squint harder. Yeah, that's it!
I don't think you're going to win this, kid.
Just give me a moment. I'm sure I can come up with something.
Fire and lightning are different things.
Not if you're super careful about how you define them!
This is fascinating but we still have a dragon trying to kill us.

Just southeast of the staircase is a two tile wide passage that has a pair of invisible pit traps. Obviously this is impassable and only serves to dupe the player into making a costly mistake.

My strategy is simply to stay next to walls and try to take longer routes. It... sort of works.

Finn's all paranoid now.
When is my brother not paranoid?
I like to think it keeps all of us alive.
Until there's treasure up for grabs!
Never gonna let me live that down are you?
What kind of friend would I be if I did?
A loving and merciful one?

So much for not setting off another trap.
And the jaws go SNAP, SNAP!
I could do without the sound effects, Tont.
*chuckles* These must be for decoration.
Or a mage was really drunk when placing them.
I like that explanation. Let's go with that.
Happy to help!

Moving through the next passage the team finds an odd stone head formation blocking most of their path forward. This is a bit pointless though and only serves to waste a little of their time.

Moving around them they are set upon by a Demon and an Undead Lector. It's a no-brainer which target to hit first. The Demon dies before getting a turn.

It worked!
It did? I didn't see anything.
Just trust me, Finn.

Undead Lectors are one of the few good targets for the Steal spell. They're fast but their only ways to deal damage are to attack or cast a Holy Light spell. They spend most of their time healing their allies. Steal costs 0 MP and this attempt drains 10 MP which is exactly enough for a Summon 4 spell. Steal has a low success rate though and automatically fails if cast on something with no MP. How do you know if an enemy has mana to steal? You have to see them cast a spell!

In the northeastern corner is a small chamber with five marks for pits on the floor above. That seems a bit ominous. It's a veritable wall of invisible doom just waiting to spring into action.

Directly west is the staircase up and another pointless set of hidden stone heads.

Are these decorations too?
Yup.
I kind of like them. Maybe if I could get them to talk...
What would you have them say?
I don't know yet.

5th Floor

As soon as the team reaches the fifth floor my mind is on the ominous pattern. I do have a general point of reference with the stairs so I know those pits are somewhere east of this spot.

The camera reveals a treasure chest waiting to be looted.

Why is my treasure sense tingling?
I don't know. Why is it?
That's why I'm asking you. You're the voice of reason.
That thought should terrify you, Finn.
Sis that thought has ALWAYS terrified me.
Good! We see eye to eye then.

And there are bats. There are always more bats.

Always.

In all honesty though it's a favorable roll of the dice. In this dungeon bats only ever seem to appear with other bats. There are no mixed groups or, if there are, they are too rare to pop up for me. These bats can only deal damage by attacking and the team has little trouble mowing them down. I'll take that over firebreathing dragons and Void-slinging wizards any day.

To the southeast is a choice of turning west across a larger chamber or taking a chance on a narrow passage that continues southeast.

Finn's confused again.
You're not hearing more bats are you?
They're up there, sis. They're just waiting for the right moment to strike.
I think if we looked we'd find that most of them are sleeping or just don't care about us.
Sis...
You're letting this get to you.
I'm afraid I have to agree with your sister.
What about you, Tont?
You're not going to ask Sir Samson?
I already know his answer.
If I must give an answer I say stay paranoid. You're funnier that way!
I... was not expecting that reply.
You're welcome!

If the answer to the question of which way to go is "blunder into what should be an easily avoided pit" give yourself a cookie. Also, the team heads west because that's the general direction of the previously spotted treasure chest.

Then a Necromancer + Dead Armor pair somehow manages to ambush the team while they're in a large open space. I blame Finn. Ambushes have become rare at this point in the game but against an opponent like a Necromancer things could turn bad quickly.

Fortunately the Necromancer opts to attack then use their second action that round to cast Firedrake 1. Annie took a beating but with magic resistance Firedrake 1 doesn't do enough damage to groggy a character at 10 VP.

Ow, ow, ow.
You just healed us all. Why are you still wincing?
Because one of us was hurt a lot more than the others.

Another somewhat pointless diversion exists in the following chamber but since I was taking the longer way around anyway I managed to accidentally miss it completely. I suppose it is preferable that those are stone head traps rather than hidden pits.

The chest contains a Shadow Gi. Since Lorele's not around at the moment it thus gets stuffed into Finn's backpack. (It's cursed anyway. Bummer.)

On the way back a Demon managed to live long enough to take action and chose to cast Wind level 3. It hits everyone on the opposing side and for a decent amount of damage. I could have Domino use this spell but he's so slow and it's really only effective against large groups. I usually prefer to have him finish off something with a knife throw.

This is perhaps the largest chamber in the entire dungeon. It seems like there are multiple options but that's only because of the limited view. The team came from the northwest. To the south and southwest are immediate dead ends.

There's so much water in here. Where does it all come from?
And more importantly is anything dangerous lurking within?
Are you trying to make Finn even more paranoid?
Maaaaybe.
What are you guys talking about? I kinda got distracted looking around.
Oh just us joking around again.

GAH!
I saw that one coming.

Undead Lectors are faster than everyone but Annie. I would say having one land an Illusion spell on three party members is bad but, as if to demonstrate just how useless Illusion is Samson acts next and kills the Lector. These enemies have low defense relative to their peers so this one's Illusion spell was even more of a bad idea. (The only good idea being to immediately run away at the sight of this team of rampaging marauders.)

Eventually the party creeps its way to a passage that winds north before turning west. I hug the wall tightly not knowing (until I do some backtracking later) that I'm barely slipping by the menagerie of pits marked on the floor below.

Why do I always feel like my doom is only inches away?
Because it probably is?
That's what I thought, sis.

It can't be all that doomy if we keep defeating every monster we run across.
If we'd run into something we couldn't defeat I don't think we'd be standing here right now.
Nonsense. We have the good sense to run away.

Annie levels up and maxes out her Holy Light spell. One day I might actually think to use it. Unlikely though.

Is that doom or a staircase ahead of us?
Let's ask Finn's paranoia!
For the moment I'm going to trust that it's a real staircase.
So you do believe that one day a staircase will hurt you.
I'm pretty sure that if Finn tripped of his own accord he'd think it was a trap.
I deny nothing. Or everything. I don't even know anymore.

6th Floor

At first sight the sixth floor seems much like the previous five. I suppose I should be happy that the developers didn't put an invisible pit right in front that drops back to the beginning. Without any particular preference I pick a direction at random and keep moving.

It's a maze of twisty little passages all going in different directions! Northeast goes to a loop that is blocked by a hidden trap. South is a long passage that turns west.

Spotting a treasure chest the team cautiously approaches only to be blocked off by stone heads. For once the game wants the player to take a more direct approach.

By this point Annie's running low on MP so I try to steal some from Undead Lectors. It doesn't work. I'm not at all surprised because that's the usual result.

The Undead Lector then casts Healing Rain 2 to heal the Undead Knight they rolled into battle with. One nice thing about enemies being split across groups is that these group heals aren't as effective.

Miss Annie that ghosty fellow has the same spell that you do.
I'm actually kind of jealous.
How does a ghost heal another ghost anyway?
With ghost love!
I can do without that mental image.

Greater Demons are another rare enemy in the Sand Cave.

This is their first appearance and it doesn't even get a turn. I wasn't in any mood to risk disaster so the frontliners pounced as a group.

That treasure chest contains a Thunder Vase. The team had to backtrack a long way, careful to walk the exact route back in case of pits, so this is a disappointment. This episode's getting lengthy so we'll break there and hope the team can find their way out next time.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - finishing up the Sand Cave.

Update Ninety-four | Index | Update Ninety-six

I've Jumped Ship

ladyabaxa — Sun, 23 Apr 2017 22:26:10 GMT

I went ahead and imported the blog over to Dreamwidth. Updates for Beyond the Beyond will be posted here as well (the game's almost over as it is). I have no intention of deleting this blog unless my hand is forced but entries will not receive updates unless necessary.

Beyond the Beyond: Update 94: The Worst Dungeon in the Game (Sand Cave)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 02 Apr 2017 16:47:08 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 94: The Worst Dungeon in the Game (Sand Cave)

Having located the town of Zeal the team discovered it and its people are in a bit of a pickle. The game doesn't allow them to do anything about the situation so into the desert they go!

The valley has a ring of mountainous terrain surrounding the desert. North of Zeal it is possible to just barely scroll Bandore into view but not the volcano. There's no cave or anything to mark the entrance of the passage between Zeal and Bandore. It seems the developers never got around to creating what would presumably be a cavern dungeon.

Just south of Zeal the first random attack of the desert hits.

What's that sound?
That sort of fluttering noise?

It's... a Mirage Dragon!

Fluttering sounds about right.
Is it a ghost?

Maybe you should have asked that before we pounced, Tont.

The dragon does nothing before the frontliners kill it.

More fluttering? Maybe it's another dragon!
Doesn't look like it.
Dang it!

Oh and there are more Hippogriffs to waste the team's time. It could be worse.

Directly south of Zeal is a cave mentioned in town. This is supposedly the passage that Shutat used to enter the valley.

We're going in?
It's open.
Probably full of monsters. Then again every place has been full of monsters.
But this place should have new and interesting monsters.
And what do you consider interesting, Tont?
Something I haven't seen before, for starters.

1st Floor

Once inside the familiar tileset and open passage ahead seem to imply that nothing is wrong. That's a nefarious lie though. There are many things wrong that the team can't see at this moment.

Just around the first corner and everything appears to be fine.

What's that sound?
A sort of low rumble?

AAAAHHH!

Without warning a pair of stone heads shoot out of the ground and block the path.

What the hell just happened?
I think someone doesn't want us to go this way.
We can just climb over them. They're not that big.
They've got snapping jaws though. You really want to tempt those?
There's another passage over there. Before we risk being bitten let's try it.

Moments later a translucent skeleton digs out of the ground to stand around menacingly. The translucency is somewhat common for end game enemies. We'll see more of it I'm sure.

It's a skeleton... ghost? Does that mean it's double undead?

In a moment it's going to be just plain dead.
Aww. We didn't even get to say hello.

Needless to say with Annie's anti-undead rampage right out of the gate this Undead Knight does nothing but cough up some experience points.

As the team pushes forward they enter an open cavern with some starnge dark markings on the floor.

What is it? Water stains?
If I squint, maybe. I don't know, Finn. It's dark in here.
Nothing's coming out of the ground to eat us soooo...
Probably nothing then. I must be getting paranoid.

As the team heads south a solitary Young Dragon approaches.

This cave has dragons!
So does the desert outside.
But those are dragon ghosts. This one's got flesh and blood.
Not for much longer if it keeps snarling at me.

Hey! What did I just say about snarling at me? Do you have a death wish or something?
I don't think it's listening, sis.
Well it should!

The Young Dragon rushes to attack but only manages to scratch Annie. These monsters are weak and completely out of place in the Sand Cave. Either the developers couldn't think of a better place to put them or they just wanted to ease up the encounter rate a little.

The team makes its way around to the first juncture to find the stone heads are still blocking the path. This is the Sand Cave's gimmick. These barriers only despawn if we leave the floor or the dungeon entirely. They're not like the flip panels in the Flying Palace in that they're not temporary (but just like those panels they don't appear until the player steps next to them causing the game to pause while it plays the animation).

As they move further into the cave the team encounters a pair of creatures that are actually at home in such terrain.

Uh oh. Finn's making his choking noises again.
Are you okay over there oh brother of mine?
*makes assortment of throaty squeals*
Finn?
Bats... There are bats in front of us, sis!
Yes there are. And?
They're bats!

And they're multiplying!

These Bats can and will call for help to make more trouble.

Sheesh, Finn. I'll never understand what the big deal is. Just attack and we'll be rid of them.
I'm... trying, sis. They're so freaky though!
I can't take you anywhere.
Neither dragons nor skeletons phase this kid but bats... that's where he draws the line.

It doesn't take much longer for the team to find their first staircase.

Finn you can stop hyperventilating now. The bats are all gone.
You're right. They're gone. There's a staircase here.
It goes up. Wait, it goes... up?
Then that's where we'll go.

2nd Floor

A pond full of nasty-looking water is right next to the staircase. From where the team's standing it seems like there are paths in every direction.

Which way?
They all look the same to me. Just pick one.

South turns out to be a bad choice.

Why do I suddenly feel a breeze?
And what's that growling sound?
Look below us, Finn.
What? Craaaaaa...

aaaaaaaaappppp!

Here's the other half of this dungeon's gimmick - hidden pits! Their spots are marked but only on the floor below which is pretty useless without any frame of reference. This is another instance where tile counting can be helpful but the player either has to take notes as they go or have a good visual memory. Oh and that whole "frame of reference" thing I just mentioned which usually means blundering into a pit and remembering where it was later.

Everyone okay?
Bruised but still in one piece over here.
That pit was just mean!
Yeah what did we do to the ground to deserve that? Just walkin' around and it opens up beneath us.
I think I'm starting to understand why Shutat didn't bother to seal this cave.

The team climbs back up to the second floor but they manage to stumble into another pit trap while still within sight of the staircase.

Is this place designed to be like this? Who would do something so evil?
I would say Shutat but I don't think he or his flunkies stuck around long enough for that.
Oooooohhh! I wish Edward was here. I bet this place is oozing with magic.
That doesn't answer either of my questions, Tont.
I know. I was just wondering out loud.
If it's magical then it's probably deliberately designed.
Keep people out of Quamdar...
Did Samson just mutter something?
Maybe. Hard to tell sometimes. He could actually speak up for once.
Hrmph!
Like that?
I suppose so.

The camera reveals a staircase up that the team can't see or get to because of more hidden stone faces. Way to arbitraily block my path game!

If I listen closely it sounds almost intelligible.
Maybe it's a secret code.
Maybe Finn's just reading something into nothing.

Maybe they're just trying to warn us about the monsters?
There's nothing surprising about those three to begin with.

A pair of Manticore Elders and a Demon's Pet approach. None are a real threat but it is interesting to finally see a Demon's Pet in a dungeon more appropriate to its tier.

Seeing as how the team had barely explored the floor I turned back from the staircase. On the west side a big, shiny treasure box is spotted but it leads to only heartbreak from this side.

TREASURE!
Wait, Finn!

AAAAAHHHH!

The team dusts themselves off after falling yet again.

I should've known it was too good to be true.
It was just sitting out in the open, Finn. What made you think it was safe?
Well I wasn't thinking about safety.
He was thinking about TREASURE!
*nervous chuckle*
If you see any more chests please, for the love of Arawn, think before you start running.
I don't make promises I know I can't keep.
Oy, Finn...

As the team begins making their way back they run across a pack of four Bats.

This cave must have a lot of bats in it.
I know. I've been hearing them scratching and screeching above us.
And yet no screams? Are you going soft on us, Finn?
I'm okay so long as they're not a direct threat.

Less talk, more fighting.
The silent giant has spoken!

I know. I know. These things make my skin crawl but... ewww! Go away you creepy thing!
That's more like the Finn we know.

AAGGH! That's not an invitation to attack me!
Those punches hurt, don't they?

Two can play the pain game!
Tont that was terrible.
Maybe but I'm the one with the magic. Go forth my minion!

BWAHAHAHA!

For once it is the enemy who gets to bear the brunt of deadly snake lady magic. This Thunder 2 spell would groggy Annie and Tont if it dealt that much damage to the team so I'm glad they're both not the targets and have magic resistance now.

After a single round of battle the four Bats are reduced to only one.

Now that I think about it aren't these things kind of familiar?
They're bats, Finn. We've seen many bats since leaving Isla.
It's the colors. I swear I've seen it before.

Finn is right. These Bats are familiar and that's because the team ran into groups of them out on the seas. This is another instance of Beyond the Beyond's strange difficulty curve. With higher levels and better weapons Bats are still fast and can hit fairly hard but they also die quickly.

From the pond the team turns north only to find a one-tile wide passage is blocked by a stone head.

We should just climb over this one.
By all means lead the way.
Okay! *starts humming to himself* Aww! It bit me! Bad stone head! Bad!
I guess that answers that question.

Circling around to the eastern side reveals another passage heading north.

It also reveals a pair of small dragons and animated suits of armor. Since I figured I'd just walk around for a bit collecting treasure and getting a lay of the land (at least for this part of the dungeon) I decided to go ahead and use more of Tont's magic. He's got summon level 4 now and there's no sense in not seeing what it summons up when cast.

And my spell calls... a demoness!
I still don't understand where they're being summoned from.
It's probably best if we don't ask her.

Well she's kind of busy creating an ice storm so I doubt she'd hear the question anyway.

This Ice 3 is overkill, especially for the Young Dragons who are weak to ice, but it's to show off Tont's Summon 4 rather than to win the battle.

The eastern passage allows the team to approach this treasure chest from the correct side. That's a lot of work for a Healing Jewel they might never use.

Then two Manticore Elders and a Demon attacked the party. Yes, an actual demon.

Said Demon didn't live long enough to do anything. Given how high the encounter rate is I'm sure the team will be seeing more of them.

3rd Floor

Upstairs is a rather nondescript semi-open chamber. Knowing that hidden pits could be anywhere cranks up the tension though.

To the south is a branching path. At a glance it is immediately obvious that the branches rejoin but the question still remains - did the map designer put any hidden traps in either path? Or perhaps both? Without using a guide or walkthrough the only way to find out is to test one's luck.

Left or right?
This would be funnier if we just blindfolded you.
Yeah then you wouldn't have to agonize over all these decisions. You'd just go.
Right then. Or is it forward? I hope this is the right choice.

For once I manage to choose wisely. Hello there Source of Vitality!

Traps everywhere.
I did make the right choice. Woohoo!
Your treasure sense worked out this time, Finn.
Please, for the love of Arawn, let it keep working.

It turns out that this is the only way to approach this chest. Once I see it I remember it well because every previous time I've played this game I managed to stumble in from a different direction. Then I had to waste a bunch of time figuring out where I missed a turn for this loot. (I have just as much a weakness for treasure as Finn.)

Directly north is a somewhat obvious (if you hit the stone head first, that is) trap. I walked into it purely for this screenshot showing what NOT to do. Then I reloaded my savestate and continued with the dungeon crawl.

Just around the bend Tont reached level 6 and picked up the Steal level 1 spell. He entered the Sand Cave at level 4 and the experience has been rolling in alongside the damage. This spell isn't all that great as evidenced by the fact that Annie never uses it. Steal can be helpful but it is rather situational. I'll go over why later.

The next random encounter brings the team up against a Necromancer and a Dead Armor. Having seen a Demon's Pet earlier it should come as no surprise that Necromancers would also be prowling around. For those who've forgotten the team was able to find both out on the overworld north of Leaf Village.

The encounter tables in this game make no sense sometimes.

Oh and Necromancers can cast the Void spell. Just thought I should throw that out there. Fortunately Annie's always been fast enough to attack first. They do heal themselves but only once and only if they're at half health or less. In this instance Annie either just barely didn't do enough damage or, more likely, the game decided to ignore the usual reaction and go ahead with Void.

Moving right along the team walks past another pool full of murky green water and turns south.

This is a big cave.
Before you ask I can still hear the bats everywhere.
They're not attacking us though.
Good. Maybe they've finally learned.
I wouldn't count on it, kid.

*sighs* More stone heads. Who put these here?
Someone with way too much time on their hands?
If they are magical it means a mage put them here.
So a sadistic mage with too much free time. Lovely.
Maybe this is more of Arawn's work.
If it is then what's he testing us on this time? Our patience?
Why does it have to be a test? Maybe he just got bored one day.
I would say this is someone wanting to block the only passage to Quamdar but...
But if they were gonna do that they should have just caved in the entrance.
Well yes. That would be faster.

Ahh, here's the other side of that barrier. Goodbye treasure chest. I already looted you. To the south is just a small dead end chamber with nothing in it. Thus they head east through the passage.

Just then two Necromancers (split across two groups) and a Dead Armor attack the party.

These mages are human... right?
Why do you ask?
I was just wondering why they're attacking us.
Or why there are so many of them?
That too.

When there's only one Necromancer it's possible to keep them locked down but if there's more then one hijinks ensue. Titan level 1 hurts but it could be worse.

GAH! Maybe we should hold off until they stop summoning spirits to pelt us with rocks.
Argh, agreed, sis. Ouch.

Samson scores the first kill of the battle by finishing off Necromancer A.

One down.

Tont to the rescue! Go my minion!
Oww, my eyes.

Tont's Summon 4 spell calls another Ekidona (it loves to do that) who Thunder 2s the enemy. The spell doesn't do enough damage to kill anyone.

What? NOT AGAIN!

Then the surviving Necromancer cast Titan 1 again because Tont and Domino didn't deal enough damage to kill them. Yes, Necromancers get to act twice every round just like bosses. I'm pointing this out because, while getting hit with multiple Titan spells in one round is bad, multiple Void casts are even worse. It's rare but it does happen.

Hurray for magic resistance! Without it half the team would have been groggied by the second Titan spell.

For the last time Finn I don't see any dents in your head.
Are you sure? I swear I can feel one right here.
Yes I'm sure.

The team turns north (the south path in the above screenshot has a hidden stone head waiting to appear) and around to this path. Oh and there's a marker on the floor that hints at a drop above. That means there are at least four floors to this winding maze.

Just then a trio of Liches attacks.

Take that!
Finn I hit the other one.
Uh, sorry, sis. Head's still a little messed up.

For once the team's AI decides to split Annie's and Finn's attacks across a group. It has disastrous results. I suppose the Lich Samson finished off could have cast Void instead but the spell that did go off kills Domino and Tont.

Sis why did it suddenly go quiet behind us?
Look behind us.
What? Ugh, oh my... this is bad!
Understatement of the year, Finn.

Although the team is diminished by half two Liches (one at half health) still aren't much of a problem for them to clean up in the next round. Afterwards Annie raises Tont and Domino from the dead. Disregard the fact that the Void spell animation has targets sucked up into a black hole where they disappear. Through the magic of Game Logic life can be restored to their bodies. There is a penalty with the spell in that targets come back at half LP (which makes it easier for the newly-resurrected to die again) but it isn't permanent.

Tont! You're alive again!
That's what dying feels like? That was awful!
And here I was naively hoping I'd never have to use this spell.
Thanks Merlin!
What about Domino?
Give me a minute. Casting that's draining.

To the south is a staircase up. It (and a stone head blocking a passage) are partially obscured by the menu in the screenshot above. With three floors explored and their treasures looted Finn dials up an Escape spell.

That punts the team back to the entrance but their business isn't quite complete yet.

We're not leaving?
I just want to check something.
I hope it's worth it.
Me too.

I would say the journey back up to the second floor is eventful but it isn't.

But Tont does hit level 7 and upgrades his Titan spell to level 2. The chances of him casting it are still tiny but he has it!

I saw a staircase on the second floor that I diverted away from in order to explore. Since the team's leaving soon I head back to the maze of invisible pits to have another look.

The staircase leads to a small isolated part of the third floor which contains a chest. Inside is a Mystic Dagger which Domino immediately equips. Considering the fact that the Mithril Blade is better than the Mystic Blade it's a bit odd that the Mystic Dagger offers more attack power than the Mithril Dagger. Consistency, who needs it?

Finn then casts Escape again. MP is getting low across the team. Granted I've been more lax about Tont's reserves than I am normally but Annie's been tapped out by healing and resurrecting.

That could have gone better.
If I never die again that would be great.
Eventually we all must leave this world, kid.
Not if you have enough magic!
Your optimism is amusing.
Thanks!

How's the new dagger working out?
I like it.
Never misses its mark.
I don't miss, kid.

The inn in Zeal is a welcome sight.

Should I show you to a room?
Hell yes.
We could rent out the entire inn.
We could buy it if we really wanted to.
Is there anything stopping you?
That's money I need for my future lair.
Aww, I should have guessed.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - back to the misery that is the Sand Cave.

Update Ninety-three | Index | Update Ninety-five

Beyond the Beyond: Update 93: Valley of the Damned (Zeal Village)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 26 Mar 2017 06:07:04 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 93: Valley of the Damned (Zeal Village)

With the Ice Mines complete and the Mithril Silver claimed the team made a hasty escape via an Escape spell. Now they have a delivery to make. Off to Mistrall!

At least it's a short flight back to town.

I wonder why they want this stuff? Is it really valuable?
It's valuable just because it's hard to get.
Really?
Of course it is. If you want to make money get something no one else can.

I would say the team goes straight to the blacksmith but no. They go straight to the inn because they've been beaten up. All things considered the trip through the mines went rather smoothly. Yes, even though I got lost for a while. Everyone got out alive and that's a big plus.

My feet and hands are still kind of numb.
There had better be a hot bath in this deal.
Don't worry, Miss Annie. I can make any bath hot.
While I'm flattered by the offer I'll just take the cold bath if that's all they've got.

The next morning the team heads over to the blacksmith to turn in the Mithril. It doesn't exactly do them any good sitting in Finn's inventory.

We're back! Is this the stuff you wanted?
Hey! This is it! No one has been able to get this stuff lately because of the monsters!
So what's our fabulous reward, Mr. Blacksmith?
Hmm, I'm not exactly swimming in money. Wait, of course! I'll whip up a little something for you.
Uh, okay.
It will take me a while to make your stuff. Come back a little later! I'll have 'em done!
Make our stuff? I like the sound of that!
You said come back a little later? How long is a little later?
They're not ready yet! Don't rush me! Come back in a bit!
Okay, okay! No need to be pushy! We're leaving.

What the game means by "come back later" is to leave Mistrall and re-enter the town. For those who have played Shining Force 2 this should be routine.

What do you think he'll make?
I'm not so sure I trust the guy to make anything for us.
But we got him that mithril he asked for!
Then let's just hope he keeps his word.
Okay! *starts humming a song*
Well at least someone's chipper.

A minute or so of in-game time later and the team is back at the forge.

You've finally returned! I was done a long time ago. Here. I have a Mithril Dagger!
We've only been gone for a couple of hours. How are you done already?
Yeah we were just coming to make sure you were keeping your.... ah, ha, ha, ha, I mean we were going to, uh, provide some advice if you should happen to be, uh...
I think what my brother is trying to say is that we're very grateful for your hard work.
Oh it's nothing. So do you want the dagger?
I'm probably not the person who should be answering that question.
Let me see it.
Here. You won't find quality like this anywhere else!
It is a fine blade.

I'm glad you agree. I still have to charge you for it. After all, this is a business! I'll make you a deal. 4760 gold! How about that?
Aww, we have to pay? Boo!
It's not a bad price, kid.
If you're happy then I guess we'll take it.
Excellent!

Money changes hands and Finn receives the dagger.

Thank you very much! I put in a lot of work so please take care of it. I'll send the other stuff to the weapon shop. Now let me get back to work!
Other stuff?
HOW? We were only gone for a couple of hours!
Trade secret, human. Trade secret.

The blacksmith doesn't offer any more items for sale when spoken to again. Instead they're a bit snippy with the team.

Thanks to you, all my other projects are behind schedule. !
Sis, are you okay?
Let's... let's just go.

Well there's a third weapon upgrade for Domino in the span of an hour of game play. He's gotten up to 146 attack power. Considering where he started he's made out like a bandit from the whole escapade. I didn't plan this and any bit of luck in Beyond the Beyond makes me worry about what the next dungeon will serve up but I'll take what's on offer anyway.

True to what the blacksmith said there are a plethora of new items for sale over at the equipment shop. It's expensive but given how late in the game this is the cost shouldn't be any surprise.

Somewhere else in the universe there is only disappointment. Disappointment and a lot of wasted time spent running around. Beyond the Beyond managed a major improvement by just making a shop flag swap with the mithril turn in. I prefer that solution. It's faster, to the point, and lets me compare stats before I commit any money to purchases. Notably though the Mithril Dagger the team bought came with a discount. It's sold in the shop for 6,800 gold. Buying it directly from the blacksmith cost 4,760 gold. If Finn had turned the Blacksmith's offer down it would vanish forever and the team would be stuck paying full price.

Bought: Pirate's Leather, Summoner Hat, Mystic Cloak, Mithril Scale, Mithril Shield, Mithril Armor, Mithril Gauntlet, Defense Wand, Seraphic Cane, Mithril Sword

Sold: Hard Leather, Mystic Hood, Wind Cloak, Battle Shield, Mystic Mail, Mazin Gauntlet, Stun Rod, War Rod

I did hold onto Finn's Dragon Scale and his Mystic Blade. The Dragon Scale is just for sentimental value. It can be bought and isn't particularly useful but come on it's Dragon Scale. How can I just go and sell that? Maybe the team can modify it for Steiner... As for the Mystic Blade that's a precious treasure that gave Finn his class up. It seems a bit foolish to just sell it.

Finn can you not drool on that new sword of yours?
Sorry, sis. It's such a wonderful blade. I can't help it.
Say, do you know how the blacksmith made this stuff so fast?
(east) That's old stuff he's been holding onto because mithril's so hard to get.
(west) You're getting it pretty cheap too. The last person who tried paid ten times what you did.
So the blacksmith's kind of greedy?
Where else can one go for mithril weapons, Finn? He can charge whatever he wants for them.
Point taken.

Trading in gear as I bought upgrades brought in enough cash to buy everything I wanted on this shopping trip. I did trade in Tont's Wind Cloak despite the loss of Speed because his Defense was falling dangerously behind. Then I sold off unneeded gear like Domino's old daggers and that Gimry's Axe found in the mine in order to recoup some of the team's cash. I actually didn't expect to get everything in one trip but I guess my money hoarding ways and getting lost in the dungeon actually managed to work out in my favor.

Then it was off to Isla to put old things into storage. Let's just call them mementos.

Hi Steiner!
What's goin' on?
We went down into an ice-covered mine.
Practically froze our butts off in the process.
It was fun and scary.
Aww, I'm missing all the fun stuff now.
Yeah but you get to relax here in Isla while we do all the work.
It's so boring though!
Hang in there. We're dealing with Shutat as quickly as we can.

I did keep the Wind Bandanna in case Domino could use the +2 Speed later. Overall though the team's inventory is looking rather sad. They're in desperate need of resupply before tackling another dungeon. (Don't worry though. I'll be sure to wander in for a gander without doing that.)

Upstairs is Sonya. Nothing in Isla has changed. I thought the villagers were pretty chill to have baby dragon Steiner flying around but now they've got adult dragon Steiner lounging around with nary a peep.

Mom I'm fine. Really!
Hee, hee, Annie's gettin' babied.
That's enough out of you oh goey one.
I'm just delightfully soft and squishy.
I can't help but worry about you, Annie. You are my daughter.
I don't see you fussing about Finn, Miss Sonya.
I'm fine with that! This is already awkward enough.
Finn's a sweet boy but I worry about my little girl taking on too much.

Leaving now! Bye Mom!
We'll stop by later when we get a chance.
I'm sure you will.

This screenshot is primarily to show off the scale difference while moving about with the Flying Palace. Steiner looks so small as the team floats away. It's a shame we can't just take our dragon friend with us. Alas, poor Steiner the plot knew thee well.

We can't fly over the volcano? Phooey!
Why would you want to?
I'm curious what it looks like down there.
Want to lower a rope and climb down into the fire?
Uh, no! Of course not! That would be silly!

Southeast of the volcano is a town. Why hello there green village icon in the middle of a desert! When last we saw you it was back at Ophera.

This time though the town itself is as brown and dismal as the desert overworld surrounding it. Beyond the Beyond unfortunately only has one graphic for towns (and one graphic for castles) which results in this odd-looking mismatch. It's a small detail and one that ultimately doesn't affect the game play at all but still warrants a mention.

Welcome to the village of Zeal. It's been some time since we had any visitors.
So this is Zeal, eh? Didn't know it's in a desert.
This used to be a nice place to live, but now we are all trapped in this cursed village. Since Shutat and his evil horde came through from Quamdar, this place has become a wasteland.
So Shutat was here. What happened?
Just walk around town and you'll see. It's plain as day.

To the south is an open stretch of what looks like arid rock. All they need is for a few tumbleweeds to roll across the screen.

Hey mister what happened to this place?
Two months ago, [sic] a large number of monsters from Quamdar invaded our valley. They ate all of our crops and poisoned the water. After they finished here, they headed into the Bandore passage and blocked it off. Now, we are stuck in this wasteland. [sic]
That... sounds pretty bad.
I guess that explains why Shutat's goons blocked the passage.
Didn't want anyone in Bandore seeing what they'd done.
Yeah and to force the people here to starve.
So if the water and crops are gone how do you people survive?
We get water from springs out in the hills. It's dangerous with all the monsters but what choice do we have? As for food well we eat whatever we can forage.

A few feet away is a well emitting a foul odor.

EWWWWW!
Definitely don't want to drink that.
Not unless you're tired of living. This is just vicious.
Well Shutat's pals are called the Vicious Ones.
To think they could have done something like this to Marion...
Or Bandore but I guess Bandore was still useful to them.
Would have blown their charade with the emperor.
Yeah! That would mean killing him off ahead of schedule!
If it's all the same with you, Tont, I'm rather glad that Shutat couldn't stick to whatever schedule he had.
As we speak he's probably hatching some new scheme to slow us down.
He's welcome to try. Tont the Magnificent is here to stop him!
Famous last words...
Famous first words!

The building next to the well is the local inn. As one might surmise from a town sealed off in the middle of a reclusive, hard to reach valley there are no guests staying at said inn. Upstairs lying on the table is a Silence Orb. This nifty but hard to find item silences all enemies when used in battle. It can only be used once though.

In a barrel outside is a Source of Magic. I don't have any clear preferences for who should get this at the moment so I just stashed it away for a rainy day.

To the south is a rock ramp and more buildings. The entire town is surrounded by standing bare rock which gives Zeal a rather claustrophobic atmosphere.

You're strangers here. You shouldn't have come to Zeal! I don't know how much longer we can hold out.
Yeah we heard about the monsters and the poison.
That was one hell of a bad day for you all.
What did we do to deserve this? Arawn, why?
I'm pretty sure Arawn had nothing to do with it.
Is he still technically staying out of all of... this?
He fights by proxy through us.
Ok, okay. That makes sense.

Mere steps away the team finds a rather peculiar-looking sign. The game might say there's nothing out of the ordinary but it's telling dirty lies again. Folks, we have finally found a bar that is properly labeled outside its doors. This game was a launch title for the Playstation and coming on the heels of the Genesis/Super Nintendo generation it was quite a surprise to see genuine, if muted, references to alcohol. In that age when RPGs were localized this stuff was usually scrubbed out.

Naturally of course the team has to wander inside.

Visitors? When did you folks get into town?
And does that mean the Bandore passage is open again?
I'm afraid not. We sort of flew in.
Flew in? How?
Long story. I was there for only part of it anyway.
We're looking for Shutat.
He's gone. Went to Bandore with those strange creatures.
You know, no one in Bandore mentioned anything other than Shutat and his three goons coming out of the tunnel. If Shutat had a bunch of monsters with him then where did they all go?
Sent out to make trouble probably.
There are monsters all over the valley. We don't dare leave Zeal for long.
Just beat up the monsters and your town will be safe again!
How many monsters have we fought, Tont?
Lots!
And how safe is it for us to travel around?
Monsters can't reach us because we fly around!
He's got ya there, sis.
There's nowhere to go, anyway. Lately, many people have been coming here to drown out their worries. Unfortunately, we ran out of ale weeks ago. Do you have any idea when the passage will be reopened?
No idea.
I guess we could have Tont blow the passage open.
Oooooohh! That sounds like a challenge!
It'll have to wait. We don't need monsters escaping this valley and doing more damage.
Phooeey!
Shutat and pals came from the south, right?
The passage to the south? No one has gone there because that is where all the monsters came from.
So no one knows if it's still open.
We'll just have to go see for ourselves.

Elsewhere in the same room are an old man and a woman sitting at a table. I'd say they're having a drink but the bartender admitted to running out of anything worth drinking.

You seem awfully young to be travelers. What brings you to Zeal?
We're looking for Shutat so we can kick his butt!
Leave it to Tont to put it bluntly.
No need to beat around the bush.
You're searching for someone? I suppose that's a reason to come to a terrible place like this. This merchant came from Bandore, but now he's stranded here like the rest of us.
Bad time for a business trip.
I've come here many times over the years. I never expected anything like this to happen.
Neither did anyone in Bandore!
Will I ever get back to my home? I'm worried about my daughter... my grandchildren.
I think we met your daughter and her son. Just one kid though.
My son left Bandore several years ago with his family. Haven't heard from them since.
He's probably lucky to have missed out on, uh, recent events in Bandore. Probably.
Did something happen?
Nothing to worry about now. It's all over and done with.

By searching the table the two are sitting at the team updates its Monster Bait collection. I'm still never going to use these items but I have at least satisfied my curiosity.

Outside in a barrel is a Drain Rod. What does it do? Well I might find out if I remember to try equipping someone with it.

Sis, we're not going to tell him what happened in Bandore?
What good would it do?
He's gonna be in for a big shock when he gets home.
If he gets home you mean.
We could just fly everyone out. It's not like we don't have space.
I don't know what we should do, Finn. This is these people's homes.
It might be a death trap but it's cozy!
*sighs* Yes, as things stand now this place pretty much is a death trap.
I guess it's impossible for them not to see the Flying Palace. If they ask to leave that's what I'll do. Otherwise I guess all we can do is honor their wishes.

In the southwest corner of town, next to the bar, is a little house for the team to barge in on.

I thought I heard someone walking around outside but... you're new here aren't you?
Passing through.
So many odd things lately. Recently, a large object has started to fly through the air... I hope it's not a bad omen.
Was this before or after the wave of death rolled through the valley?
And wouldn't the monsters constitute a real bad omen, of stuff that's actually happening?
No this was recent. A large palace descended from the sky... was it you who was riding in it?
We might have had something to do with it.
And unless you consider us a bad omen there's nothing to worry about.
Shutat had better think us an ill omen. *grins*
He's running out of places to hide. Just you wait, Shutat! We're gonna get ya!
Now that half of the group sounds like deranged killers why don't we move on before we get the locals even more worked up?

To the north is the local equipment shop. There's a few new things, some old things, and in general little reason to buy anything. Since the team already took care of that side quest with the ice mine and dropped a small fortune in Mistrall they don't have much need of this shop. This exists in case the player doesn't find the mithril side quest or can't complete the ice mine.

In a barrel not twenty feet away is a suit of Evil Armor. If, for some unfathomable reason, I had become tired of not having a cursed character on the team I could equip this and change that fact. I like to think that someone just stuffed into the barrel like it was common garbage. "Suit of heavily enchanted evil armor covered in skulls. Meh. Trash!" A shame they didn't haul it out into the desert so it could be lost in the wasteland.

Wedged in next to the equipment shop is a little house with the last resident to pester.

I don't remember seeing you around here before. Wait! Does that mean the passage is open again?
Not bloody likely with all those monsters in and around the volcano.
Damn! For a moment there...
You got your hopes up?
Yes. The northern passage is like Zeal's lifeline. Since we can't get through the passage, what are we gonna do?
How did this village manage to not starve? I mean, before the water was all poisoned.
We could feed ourselves. We had crops, livestock, ponds and streams full of fish. That's all gone now.
I still don't understand how the passage was a lifeline.
I think they mean trade and commerce, kid. Villages like this get hit with a bad harvest or a natural disaster...
Or Shutat!
Yes. That too. When times get tough you hope to have friends backing you up.
Even when those friends don't say anything when they're backing you up. Or any other time for that matter.
*look to Samson*
*clears throat*
Eh, close enough.

Selling the Evil Armor snags an easy 8k gold. Slowly but surely the war chest is being rebuilt from the ashes.

With their business in Zeal concluded (not that they had much to begin with) the team heads for the only exit.

-- BONUS CONTENT --

The team got hit with myriad Thunder spells from Ekidona. A big reason for that is because taking out Liches first was always my highest priority. Liches are able to use the Void level 1 spell. As poor Finn demonstrates failing the resistance check means instant death! The astute might notice that Annie's not only groggied but no MISS!! message popped up for her. This wasn't planned. She just happened to be momentarily immune to the spell because of the way Liches are usually programmed to behave.

I had to spend a good twenty minutes running around finding Liches and dragging out fights with them to get a single Void cast. What they do otherwise is relentlessly attack whoever has the least VP. It's a bit hard to miss when it happens over and over again while you're stalling. Four or five rounds of attacks in one battle might be a statistical streak but having the same thing happen over multiple battles is programming.

Anyway, Void is nothing to laugh at. I've never had a Total Party Kill from a single spell but it is theoretically possible. Annie has Resurrect but that doesn't help if she's among the dead. It's also expensive to cast. I could have given the spell to, say, Domino (because I never have him cast spells) but I consider Annie an essential party member and Domino optional. The spell doesn't help if the person who knows it is on the other side of the world.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - into the valley.

Update Ninety-two | Index | Update Ninety-four

Beyond the Beyond: Update 92: Hypothermia (Ice Mine pt. 2)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 12 Mar 2017 17:23:56 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 92: Hypothermia (Ice Mine pt. 2)

The last time we saw them the team spent entirely too much time stuck on a single ice puzzle. This time they're going to spend entirely too much time stuck on a different ice puzzle. Progress!

4th Floor - the real way down!

Are we there yet?
Doesn't look like it.
You're not going to ask that every floor are you?
I hadn't planned on it but I can if you want, sis.
No thanks.

From this staircase it's just a straight shot south to the next floor.

Yet I still manage to eat a Thunder 2 from an Ekidona. Uh, progress?

5th Floor

At first sight is something new. Not the staircase or the ice patch. I'm talking about the ice ramp.

Do we really want to slide down this, Finn? Maybe we can walk across the ice.
Aww, come on, sis! Where's that adventurous spirit?
I think I left it back in Isla.
So that means Steiner's stolen it!
Ugh!
Don't worry. I'm sure we'll be fine.

Warning! Animated GIF ahead!

AAAAAAHHHHHH!
YOU ARE SO DEAD, FINN!

While not strictly necessary to slide down this ramp it is faster than tiptoeing across the ice. We'd have to take the same path we slid across anyway and this way we don't risk random encounters. Anyway, ice ramps cause the party to slide in a straight line. There are no random encounters while sliding, only upon stopping, so it's better to slide rather than walk if said encounters are a problem. Of course there's no way to control the party while it's sliding so there's no way to avoid pits if they happen to be in the way.

Just to the northwest of the staircase, situated on a big patch of ice, are several rock structures. On top of one is a treasure chest that the team cannot reach at the moment.

Are you calmed down now?
I'm cold, actually, which isn't the same thing but which I'm going to pretend is for the moment because I really need to get my blood pressure down.
There's another ramp right there!
No stairs though.
We didn't miss a vital pit up above did we?
No. I'm pretty sure we fell into every last one of them.
Dang it! We really should have brought some rope with us. Maybe Sir Samson can throw me up there?
Let's just keep looking. We're probably missing the obvious.

Moments later a trio of Liches appear.

I'm kind of surprised Tont hasn't tried to ask the monsters how to find all the treasure.
Why would dead people need treasure?
To better inflict vengeance on the living?

They collectively pummel Domino into a daze.

OW!
Like that!
Can we stop rooting for the undead for a moment and focus on the fact that we're getting thrashed here?

Don't worry, Miss Annie! Tont to the rescue. Take that! And that!
This is better than him summoning demons... isn't it?
I will admit that his flailing around amuses me.

Given how much it takes to fully heal any team member from low health and how much LP the front liners have I was a bit more lax on healing than I have been. I figured I could stretch Annie's limited mana reserves by letting a groggy get through here and there as long as I was careful to stall so they could recover before ending the fight. A gamble to be sure. As the dungeon dragged on I got more careful about healing including this use of a Healing Herb. They've been sitting in my inventory for who knows how long. Now they get their fifteen seconds of fame!

In a chest in the northwest corner is a Storm Bandanna for Domino. Disregard the fact that his promoted sprite clearly wears a pirate hat. He must double-up or something.

This is a straight trade-off. Domino loses the +2 Speed of his Wind Bandanna to gain +2 Defense from the Storm Bandanna. Given the fact that he was already acting dead last every round I'm not terribly upset at this trade.

How do you keep that hat on no matter what?
Trade secret.
Really?
Nah. I use a pair of hatpins to keep it in place.

My wandering around in loops does have one benefit: the higher level front liners manage to secure some level ups. Finn hits level 9 and gains a few more points scattered across his stats.

Finn even manages to upgrade his Thunder spell to level 2. He's never going to cast it but he has it. For the curious, promoted Domino doesn't jump during the victory sequence. Pre-promotion he was the same way. Maybe Domino just has bad knees. Or maybe someone on the dev team just didn't want to bother with it.

An astute observer might notice that there are holes in the ice floor which are suspiciously aligned with some of the curved walls. Eh, I'm sure that's just an aesthetic choice. Nothing to worry about, right?

I know, Tont. I know. There's gotta be something interesting up there.
Sir Samson could still toss me up there. I wouldn't mind if it's for a good cause.
No. Just, no.
Bad aim?
Perhaps I just have more of a conscience than you do.
Funny, I don't see it anywhere.
*eye roll*
I told you I could get a reaction out of him, kid.
And now he's going back to angry silence.
I'm annoyed. Not angry.
Our silent giant speaks again!

As the team heads south to check the other side of this large chamber I decide to go ahead and drop through a hole. It's not always a bad idea. Besides, I'd like to know what lies below before the team gets forced to fall.

6th Floor

There's a staircase up, a path of ice bisecting the floor, and just barely visible at the edges of the screen are three ice ramps. There's no way to climb up onto the platform those ramps are connected to. The team can only slide across the ice and go back upstairs.

This place is really a mine? People used to work down here?
It might not have been a frozen over hellhole back then.

Back upstairs the team starts trying the ice ramps by just going to the first one they find and sliding down.

The curved walls cause them to turn and change directions. Talk about some serious momentum!

How long are we going to keep sliding?

I had to ask, didn't I?
Crap! Brace for impact.

That ramp ends up turning the team several times right into this pit.

Things aren't all bad though. The team falls onto rock on the 6th floor which means they're some place they couldn't reach from the stairs.

They're able to walk south and find themselves staring at the tops of the ramps they saw but couldn't climb earlier. This is the only way up. One ramp leads to somewhere interesting. The other goes to the stairs up. Without being able to see the other side of the ice patch it thus becomes a 50/50 chance of picking the right one.

I manage to choose wisely. (It was bound to happen eventually!)

Down one ramp and up another. I never would have guessed that.
I feel sick.
You never got seasick on the boat.
I'd take a boat ride over this any day.

Then a lone Snow Wolf roaming aimlessly on the rock manages to find the team.

Puppy! It's all alone. Maybe this puppy wants to be friends?
You'll lose a hand that way, kid.
Hmm, if I didn't need both hands for casting spells that would be awfully tempting.

Hey, treasure!
Looks like something Lorele wears.

The Battle Scarf will have to wait until Lorele's back in the party to see any use.

On the way back to the ramps a trio of Snow Wolves and a Manticore appear to avenge their fallen canine friend.

Uh, Tont. Do you still want to try to tame the dogs?
Still very tempting but I think this calls for some magic!

Snow Wolves are vulnerable to Firedrake but the Manticore in back isn't. Liches and Ekidona also aren't weak to fire damage and they're common opponents. For an ice-themed dungeon fire isn't particularly useful. Well, not particularly useful outside of the fact that Firedrake continues to be Tont's most mana-efficient spell to cast versus groups.

Burning a group of dogs helps Tont understand how to burn them even better. The elemental summon spells only have two power levels. If you've played Shining Force 2 it has the same thing (thankfully Beyond the Beyond doesn't have the splitting damage on multiple targets mechanic). Tont won't be using Firedrake 2 any time soon due to its MP cost. I find myself saying that a lot with his spells. He can crank out damage to groups quickly but it drains his mana in a hurry.

Discussions about spell costs aside it doesn't take the team long to climb back up to the 5th floor to try the other ice slide.

Please no pit. Please no pit.

Please no pit!
We slid right by one back there.
I don't think Finn can hear you right now.

The route doesn't lead to a pit. It leads to the platform in the northwestern corner the team saw earlier. The opened chest that once contained the Storm Bandanna is a surefire landmark. The top ramp was their entry point which means they again have to choose between two other ramps not knowing where either leads.

I guess... this one?
Go in order? Sounds fine to me!
Why do I suspect you like falling in pits?
Eh, I'm not a fan. I just take whatever change of pace comes along.

The second ramp dumps the team in the northeastern corner of the chamber. A staircase down to the 6th floor is there for the taking but with treasure still unclaimed the kids turn back.

I hope this is the last ramp we ever have to slide down.
Aww, but...
EVER.

Rather than leading to danger the slide goes to another platform on the east side with more ramps.

DAMNIT! WHY?!
You can just wait here while we check things out, sis.
No. The sooner we get moving the sooner we can get out of here.

I choose the middle ramp. It's a bad choice.

A pit ahead! Wheeee!
I would be mad if I hadn't expected exactly that.

I haven't gotten a chance to use this spell yet and it's just a pair of Manticores but what the hell. Let's roll!

With Tont still sitting pretty on MP I decided to use Summon level 4 to at least see what appears. Strangely enough it doesn't use the spell animation. Instead the game uses the "use item" animation and sound effect.

Tont summons a Nightmare Queen who blasts the two Manticores with Blizzard breath 3. I guess that's worth the 10 MP Tont spent.

Did... we just unleash a powerful ice-spewing demon lady on the mines?
Maybe she answered because she likes this place.
As long as she doesn't stab us in the back she can have it.

There's one ramp left and it leads to treasure. Key item Flint Stone got!

That's it? The secret treasure? Phoeey!
This is for starting a fire.
But we have magic for that! Why do we need this?
For the miners.
Uh, yeah. I knew that!
It seems like someone went to a lot of trouble to hide it up here.
Maybe monsters put it here so the miners couldn't find it.
That makes a strange amount of sense, Finn.

With nothing else to find the team is finished with the 5th floor. They head downstairs.

6th Floor

There's a bit of ice and some sliding but there's no puzzle. It's just short of a straight shot down that serves to take up a bit of time. I suppose that because the floor is actually two separate parts to make the falling gimmick work it's size is inherently limited.

7th Floor

There's no slidey ice on the seventh floor. All the team has to do is walk south, go down some stairs, and turn into a small chamber where they discover what looks like a fire pit.

Is that oil?
Looks like an ice wall ahead.
Stand back! My magic will make quick work of this!

Alas doing practical things like unleashing some of the myriad fire spells the team has is not what the game wants. Instead Finn has to use the Flint Stone.

Why didn't it work? This is bullshit!
Magic, I guess.
Someone didn't want anyone getting through here.
But why?
Protecting treasure I hope!
Me too. Now if I can just get this to light. Wait...

There we go.

For some reason lighting the fire causes the wall of ice several feet away to instantly melt. Magic!

Then an Ice Dragon and two Liches attack the party. I suppose they don't approve of lighting fires in the mine.

So Tont summons a big fire drake to light up their worlds. The Ice Dragon isn't a particularly remarkable monster. It can use Blizzard Breath 2 like Snow Wolves and appears in the back row. They're weak to fire but this one survives to the next round.

I might not be able to melt ice but I can still set monsters on fire!
Consolation prize?
Damn right it is!

In a small room is the last treasure chest of the dungeon. Key item Mithril Silver got!

Is this shiny ore what we came here for?
Knowing our luck we'll take it back and be told we got the wrong thing.

That's a chance I'm willing to take.

Finn queues up an Escape spell in order to make a hasty escape. Walking back up through the ice and pits is only slightly less annoying then going down.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - we have Mithril! Let's go turn it in and see what we can make with it.

Update Ninety-one | Index | Update Ninety-three

Beyond the Beyond: Update 91: Slippy, Slidey Icebox (Ice Mine)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 05 Mar 2017 00:31:19 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 91: Slippy, Slidey Icebox (Ice Mine)

The last time we saw the team they were freezing their collective tushes off. Sadly that's not going to change for this update because the team needs to go deep into the icy depths of this cave in order to reach the goodies hidden within.

1st Floor

The first thing I must note is that due to a change of hardware I'm playing the game in ePSXe 2.0.5. I've tried to keep the graphics settings as consistent as possible but there might be some subtle differences upon close inspection. With that technical note over we can move on with playing the game.

Two things are immediately obvious upon entering the mine. The first is that it's cold. The second is that there's a big patch of ice right next to the main entrance.

AEEEEIIII!
Everyone okay?
Yeah. I think we're stopped now.
I didn't sign up for this!
It's all part of the adventure, kid.
Besides, can't you use your magic to melt the ice?
I don't think it will stay melted very long down here.

This patch of ice causes the entire group to slide forward when walked on and there's nothing they can do about it. What that means in game terms is that every movement on the ice slides the team two spaces. We've found our gimmick already and yes it is going to get annoying.

Also, there are monsters everywhere. The encounter rate is sky-high but thankfully the monsters are things the team's mostly seen before. That doesn't mean they can slack off though. These monsters can and will do huge amounts of damage to them if allowed to attack.

How do the snake ladies not get cold down here?
Thick skin? Magic? I don't friggin' know!
Hmm, you know what? I like the magic answer. Let's go with that.

Physical powerhouse Tont is not. He has a hard time doing more than 1 point of damage with his attacks but I'm loathe to spend MP when it's just two monsters.

Take that! And that!
I don't think it's intimidated, Tont.

I'll say!
Well it is made of metal.
So are these things golems or evil spirits or what?
When we kill it let's take it apart and find out!
Can we just kill it and leave it be? I'm perfectly okay with that option.
Aww, come on, Finn. This is part of the adventure.
Why do I suspect you want to know so you can make your own monsters?
Uh, no, of course not! I'd never make my own monsters! Where would you get that idea from?
Probably from all the bragging about what kind of golems would make the best minions.
Oh yeah! I, uh, forgot about that. *pause* Hey give me a break. It's been a long time since I last saw you guys.

The first floor's just an introduction to what lies in store below so it doesn't take long to find the staircase down.

2nd Floor

Just north of the staircase is the dungeon's first treasure. Gimry's Axe is obviously for Samson.

Wow! It's got a big skull on it!
Shouldn't we be worried that it might be cursed?

Cursed or not it's heavy.
Heavy? For you?
Sooo none of us has any chance of using it in battle.
I bet you could shackle someone to it and leave them stuck!
Well if we need to restrain someone I guess we've got that option.

While the new axe does come with a nice boost in attack power, pushing Samson up to 162, it comes with a hefty penalty. Equipping it drops Samson's Speed by five points. Since he was using the Tempest Axe that means he loses ten Speed with the swap and that's just too much for me. With Attack gains having diminishing returns what gain in damage Samson would get isn't worth it to go last. There are already two slow team members. Samson needs to attack in sync with Finn and Annie. Gimry's Axe is thus going to collect dust.

The mine has many dead ends just long enough that it isn't possible to see whether or not they're dead ends or if they have treasure without venturing partially down them. It's all about that encounter rate!

Is it really a good idea to invoke rain in a place like this?
You and Finn have fire magic so I'm not worried.

It doesn't take many encounters for the team to need their first group heal. Annie's just shy of having ten uses of Healing Rain. By the time this dungeon's over she'll have crossed the 60 MP threshold.

The first real puzzle of the dungeon is straight ahead. A patch of ice bars the way to the stairs down. With the forced movement this can be treated as a math problem but it is difficult to count tiles on the ice. There's no clear visual indication of tile boundaries. From where Finn's standing the team cannot reach the stairs. They'll slide past the one tile wide opening.

Maybe we should have prepared a bit more.
A rope would be handy right now.
Yes it would. Finn...?

Sorry! A little busy over here! OW!

The ice is no reprieve from the encounter rate. Sliding itself is safe but an encounter can be triggered upon stopping.

Mere moments later a Snow Wolf, an Ekidona, and a Hippogriff attack the team on the ice. Never mind the fact that the ice isn't visible on the battle screen. If it was the developers probably would have included some weird slipping and sliding that makes combat take twice as long.

Are they stuck on the ice too?
Maybe that's why the hippogriff's here?

Then the Snow Wolf breaths all over the team. That magic resistance is already proving useful.

*coughs* Okay. It would be great if we never did that again.

What did I ever do to you, Mr. Hippogriff? Hiya! Take that!

Well we did kill the dog and naga lady it was trying to rescue from the ice. Maybe it's just bitter about that.

Hippogriffs are just damage sponges who can only scratch at the team. It all adds up though. I suppose they are crowding out more dangerous monsters and that I should be mildly grateful for that.

To reach the staircase it is necessary to enter the ice from this point. That moves the team two tiles east. Then they move north, then they turn west and head up twice. It's a series of movements that look like a partial loop. The objective is to get the team on a tile they would slide over when first entering the ice patch.

If done correctly the team is put in position to slide east two tiles and turn north. It is critical to take steps slowly while on the ice. Tap in the direction you want to go, let the team slide, then stop and consider your direction before pressing anything on the d-pad again. Otherwise you might slide a tile past the exit and have to start over.

I still say we should break off some of those spike thingees and use them to stop ourselves.
I'm having enough trouble keeping my balance as it is.
But that's what I'm trying to fix!
All things considered it's probably better if we don't hold big pointy things to accidentally impale each other with.

3rd Floor

Downstairs is a tougher puzzle. There doesn't seem to be any way to get around the two holes in the shot above from this side. The game forces the team to fall. I guess that's one way to teach the player what happens if they screw up.

Oh and just because the team stops sliding on a hole doesn't mean they can't be attacked before the game realizes they should be falling. Ahh, Game Logic!

What just happened?
We're three inches from a big hole in the floor and there's a puppy and a dead guy about to attack us.
Okay then. Good to know.

Begone foul dead guy!
What if he was a nice dead guy?
Well maybe he should find a better place to hang out.
Aren't we the invaders here?
He's already dead. How much deader can he get?
Well he did vanish so I guess the answer is 'more than we think.'

Upon completing the battle Tont reaches level 2 and learns a brand new spell. Tolle is actually a bad transliteration of Thor but I actually like the name on its own. Tolle and Thor could totally be drinking buddies in Valhalla.

Should we be worried about the laughter coming out of Tont?
Yes. Yes we should.
Don't worry, Finn. I just realized how I was screwing up a spell I've been trying to learn.
That just makes me more worried.

After the fight the team proceeds to fall to this point on the fourth floor.

In a chest to the south is a Dagger for Domino. It brings his attack power up to 134.

Upstairs on the 3rd floor is the real entrance to the floor's puzzle. It is possible to get around those two entrance holes to reach the staircase up but it isn't easy. That's not what they're looking for though. They need to find the staircase down that takes them further into the earth.

The floor has been carefully mapped out to keep the player in a specific sync with the holes. The trick is to find the one spot that breaks that sync. Easier said then done, of course. There are even small gaps like the one shown above.

Where are we going?
You're the one leading. Don't you know?
...no?
We're going to be stuck down here for days, aren't we?

Maybe we can ask those monsters for directions?

The Snow Bear is big and has more health then other enemies in the mine but this one dies before it gets a turn.

On the other side of the ice is a chest containing a Helium Ring. This item has no obvious use so I looked it up and found out two things. Apparently I missed one hidden in Marion Castle (clearly we've lost nothing in missing it) and that equipping it causes the character to speak with a higher pitched voice. There's no shortage of equipment or events in Camelot games that exist purely for a laugh.

Then Finn got smacked in the face by a Snow Bear.

What did I do to deserve this?
We are trying to kill it.
I'm glad I know healing magic right now.

So I did have some trouble with this particular puzzle. As I've already mentioned it's carefully tuned to keep the player in sync with the pits.

I'm not so sure this is going to work.
Finn's already moving so we've clearly made our decision.
I regret nothing!

Well now that we've climbed back up and I'm poisoned from that naga lady we just killed do you still regret nothing?
We're fine. Everything's fine.

Yeah. I fell a few times in what was a bought of not-great puzzle solving on my part. There are only so many possible routes so eventually trial and error will win. The biggest problem isn't the ice or the pits though. It's the fact that the team is constantly being attacked by random enemies. It's hard to concentrate on the puzzle when your attention is repeatedly yanked away by more immediate problems.

Here's another example of a bad move. North or west go straight to pits. The question is thus should you drop down so you can get back to the stairs and start over or do you move south and try to back out of this dead end.

After more trial and error I finally land on that one spot that breaks sync. From here Finn can turn south, move west once, then north, then west again. That puts the team face to face with a pit but as long as every move is careful they won't fall again.

That allows them to slide past the pits and reach the next patch of dry land. Victory! And it only took about 25 minutes most of which was spent fighting random battles!

We made it!

We've almost made it. Haven't we, Finn?
Sorry, a little busy right now making sure we don't get hit with lightning again!

Oh hey that manticore coughed up something shiny while it was dying.
EWWWW!

Counter Jewels aren't all that useful but the team's got another one anyway.

There's the staircase down. The staircase down that actually leads deeper into the dungeon I should say. Everyone on the team is already well acquainted with that other staircase down that's composed entirely of the frozen tears of unfortunate adventurers.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - the lower floors of this dungeon!

Update Ninety | Index | Update Ninety-two

Beyond the Beyond: Update 90: Into the Dragon's Heart (Dragon's Shrine)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 26 Feb 2017 00:54:31 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 90: Into the Dragon's Heart (Dragon's Shrine)

When last we saw our intrepid heroes (before our latest bonus update) they had raised Arawn's Flying Palace from its resting place in the ocean but at the cost of losing Steiner to one of Dagoot's magical arrows. Oh yeah and Dagoot finally decided to enter the plot. He's been kind of hanging around... somewhere. His laziness has been to the team's benefit.

As might be surmised from all the effort to free it (and the name) the Flying Palace actually flies. It is a giant flying machine shaped like a d8. I would say it allows the team to fly anywhere in the world but it doesn't. There's still one invisible barrier that's not going anywhere.

Wow look how high we are! This thing really does work.
Yeah... just great.
Should we say anything about Finn's moodiness?
Just let him stew.
All any of us can do is focus on the mission. Finn will take care of himself.
I guess...
That's exactly what I'm going to do, Sir Samson. I haven't gotten this far to lose now.
I wonder where this ship came from. Did Arawn build it?
He really likes flying or at least being way up high.
Probably from some world full of amazing stuff!

The Flying Palace flies higher than Steiner does which means slightly more overworld map is visible. It also moves at a nice speedy pace that manages to avoid being too fast. I've never had any trouble making precise stops with it. The same landing restrictions as Steiner are in play with the Flying Palace - it needs flat, open terrain to settle down on.

Just out of curiosity, where are we going?
I don't know. Does it really matter?
Uh, yes?
I see you kids made it through.
What do YOU want?
Oh, just checking up on your group. Hmm, that light is on. That's unusual.
Don't we have bigger problems then one little light?
Finn I think this is a beacon of some sort.
Indeed it is, Prince Edward. Why...? Ahh, I see what happened. You should follow that, Finn.
...why?
I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by what you'll find.
Okay, sure. Why not? Follow some random beacon to who knows where.

Nestled deep in the mountains between Marion and Zalagoon, just south of Merlin's cave, is this little shrine that Steiner couldn't reach although from the right angle it is just barely visible while riding him. The Flying Palace has no problem reaching it.

This seems to be the place. Where are we?
Look at the symbols. This place belongs to Arawn.
Great. There aren't going to be a bunch of traps or anything, is there?
Oh heavens no. Centuries ago I had a summer home here. Such pleasant weather. Unfortunately it was destroyed by an earthquake. Shame, I still miss the place.
Lovely. Arawn's former summer home. Because we haven't invaded enough of his houses.
I would be angry if I actually lived in any of those places. Or if I hadn't designed them to be invaded. Now go on. You have business here. If you should need me you know what to do.

Nestled amid a thick canopy of trees the team finds a small shrine and a trio of priests. Given the fact that the platform seems to rise above the tree line around it I can't help but wonder about scale again. Maybe they're just short trees?

(SW) Welcome to the Dragon Shrine. This sacred ground is protected by Arawn.
Should I ask what it's protected from?
Certainly not from us.
(SW) Roaming monsters, mostly. And bandits.
And how often do bandits manage to find this place?
(N) Not often.
Wait, we had to fly in. How do you guys get in and out of this valley?
That's a very good question, Finn. I'd like to know too.
(N) We have our ways.
Ahh, the sacred art of the non-answer. I can't say I've missed it.
(SE) It's splendid to have guests for once. I've heard the legend of the Flying Palace, but I never thought I would see it.
Where do you guys keep all these legends?
(SE) We priests of Arawn have told them for generations.
(N) And I'm sure you kids have seen for yourselves the wisdom in doing so.
I wish the stories could have at least included some real directions. We kind of had to wander around lost for a while there.
And now that we have the Palace we'll fly around lost.
So true...
We've gotten this far, Finn. We'll figure out what to do with it.
(N) You should be proud. You moved the Ancient Palace! You must have collected all four of the Ancient Tablets. Are you, then, heading to Quamdar...?
Do we really have much choice? I mean that, by the way. If we don't Shutat and his goons will keep on attacking us.
So we take the fight to them?
Sounds great to me!

Having spoken to the priests at the surface the team heads downstairs. Arawn sure does love his pyramids doesn't he?

Fortunately what lies below is not a dungeon but a shrine of some sort. There is a raised platform with a pair of priests in the center of the chamber.

Is that...?
How?
(L) Have you heard the legend of the dragons?
Uh, not really. Why are you suddenly asking me?
(L) Long ago, the dragons were assigned by Arawn to watch over the agreement between Arawn and the Vicious Ones.
Ooookay, and...?
Wait, didn't someone mention a dragon flying over Marion? And there was that dragon that appeared at Bandore.
(L) That's right, young man. That dragon remembers its duty. I heard items made by dragons possess sacred powers. I wonder if its true. Maybe in this age of strife they'd be willing to share that power.
Every time we see that thing it's either flying and doesn't pay any attention to us or it's sleeping and doesn't pay any attention to us.
Haven't we fought and killed dragons?
Smaller dragons. They could be babies compared to Steiner.
(R) Those are evil dragons unbound by Arawn's command. They are little more than wild beasts.
Okay so some of the dragons, or a couple of the dragons anyway, serve Arawn. That still doesn't explain what's happening here.
(R) So, the time has come for the Great Light to travel to Quamdar. I will tell you the rest of the legend...
Did you even hear what I just said? I don't need a history lesson. I need an explanation for the here and now.
(R) I've been waiting to say this for a long time. Five minutes is all I ask for.
*chuckles* I think we have time, Finn.
Alright, alright. Say your piece.
(R) Thank you. As I was saying... In order to enter the Abyss, you must find a fifth Final Tablet. It can only be found with the use of the other four Ancient Tablets and the Flying Palace. Once all the tablets are set, the Abyss, the path to the Underworld, will be opened.
That was quick.
And to the point. Where is the Final Tablet?
(R) That I don't know.
Some lonely place far from civilization I'd wager.
(L) I notice you're suddenly very quiet young man. Is something bothering you?
Yes, yes something is bothering me.
(L) What would that be?

Oh I don't know. Maybe the dragon SITTING RIGHT OVER THERE!

Walking past the priests towards the golden dragon behind them reveals that it is in fact Steiner. Once again, pay no attention to the weird scale issues that are in play here. Maybe Steiner's been micronized? Arawn could be related to the Robotech Masters somehow. He does have futuristic space tech at his fingertips.

Finn! You found me! I didn't know if I would ever see you again!
Steiner! But how did you get here?
When I was shot by that arrow, I thought I was done for. But, when I woke up, I was here. I've been resting, but I should be all right now.
That... doesn't actually answer my question. I...
Oh no! Don't cry, Finn!
(R) You two share a strong link. No wonder you've come here.
I'm glad you're okay, dear friend.
I'm glad too! Someone's gotta keep Finn from getting lazy.
Steiner... Anyhow, I'm glad you're OK.
For a minute there I was worried you might get all sappy on me, Sir Samson.
Steiner... I see you are all right now. I was so worried about you!
Steiner! How dare you make us worry so...
Hey! Don't get mad at me. You must understand that I only started moving again recently.
You've only been gone for a few hours!
Details, details...
Steiner, promise that you'll never leave us again.
Don't worry. We'll always be together.
Unless you get shot again or wander off.
Okay so maybe I didn't take Dagoot as seriously as I should have but I'm all right and you guys have the Flying Palace, right?
We do indeed. We used it to fly here.
Then, we should be leaving. I'll be waiting in Isla.

Steiner then sails over the group on his way off the platform. This place must have a high ceiling. Then again maybe my mirconized jab really is true.

He then turns, moves north and... vanishes. I'm not even kidding. The game doesn't bother to try to hide the fact that the sprite despawns halfway up the screen. It happens fast enough that a player might not notice.

Hidden in the northwestern torch is a Source of Life. For those who've forgotten this item increases max LP by 2 to 5 points. With that everything of interest in the shrine has been found.

On a side note, when the game says that the use of the Flying Palace is required to get the Final Tablet what it really means is that the event flag for activating the Flying Palace is needed. As seen in update 89 I could have gone to look at the Final Tablet before placing any of the Ancient Tablets. I chose not to because the Final Tablet isn't introduced until this point.

With that out of the way they head back upstairs.

Now that we have the Flying Palace what should we do with it first?
I think it would be prudent to take care of any loose ends before we go chasing the Vicious Ones.
We have loose ends?
There is that tablet that opens the way to the Abyss.
We don't even know where that entrance is. I'll worry about that when, or should I say if, we get that far.
I don't want to open that gate any more than you do, Finn, but we might have to.
If I can avoid it I will. The last thing we need is for anyone else to come up from the Underworld.
The first thing we should really do is make sure Tont isn't causing trouble in Isla. We haven't seen him in quite some time now.
You have a good point there, sis.
And I should check in on Barbaros. After seeing what happened to Steiner I've been worried that Shutat might send something to make sure my people are dead.
Isn't there some problem with, uh, Mistrall was it? And I doubt there's been word from Zeal since last we were in Bandore.
I'm pretty sure Zeal takes us closer to Shutat so let's see what's wrong with Mistrall first.
Procrastinating?
Like Edward said if it's a loose end we need to deal with it.

Marion Town is the closest bastion of civilization and the team has some cursed equipment to offload so that's where they head to. It is rather strange parking the super futuristic Flying Palace within sight of town, walking inside, and having everyone still talking about the war with Bandore. Sure that's major news. No doubt about that. I'd just think the Flying Palace would raise some eyebrows.

The team sells off the Torch, the Cloak of Darkness, the Devil Ribbon, and Lorele's old Scarf for a nice chunk of change. As shown in the screenshot above the Torch sells for 0 gold so there's no monetary gain. I just wanted to be rid of it because it is useless now.

From the storage chest in Isla I retrieve the Source of Power and the Source of Defense. The time's about right to put them to use.

Then I dump two Mage's Jewels and Finn's Spike Shield into storage. The shield is just in case I want to boost Finn's attack power later while the Mage Jewels, as full MP restores, need to be saved for when they're more useful.

I went back and forth on who to use the Source of Defense on and originally I settled on Domino. His Defense is pretty lackluster. Then I figured that Lorele, being a melee character, might actually be able to withstand some time in the front lines. Her max VP is still lagging behind and I don't think it will ever catch up but with enough Defense she might be able to hold her own. To that end I decided to give her the boost. That way I might later swap her and Samson.

Then as I was making my way back through Isla I reached the decision to give her the Source of Life too. It's another thing that Domino could use but I figure he's always going to have the advantage of being in the back row (with his knives why would he ever leave?) and since Lorele isn't going to have as much VP as the other front liners she'll probably need more Life Points to keep her going.

After all that time trudging around inside the Flying Palace a trip to the inn is necessary. To think that 50 gold was at one point a major expense. Now it's little more than pocket change.

Once everyone's recharged it's off to Barbaros to swap in the two bench-warmers.

Hey there, Domino.
*grumbles something under his breath*
Ah, Finn. Need my skills? Shall I join your party?
Sure do. Lorele says she needs to look in on Barbaros and I figure you're probably bored.
You're right. I am bored. Sir Samson's here now though.
I have nothing to say to you.
For now.

Lorele takes Domino's place in Barbaros. She's rather colorfully out of place in contrast to the brown floors and walls.

Are you sure you'll be fine here by yourself?
*runs hand along the wall* I was born in this castle. I know it like I know the back of my own hand. Besides, I have a Light Orb. I can always pester Arawn if I get lonely.
Pester away! I'm genuinely curious as to what you plan to do with that place.

Tont's in Isla Village so that's where the team teleports to next. This introduces a mild annoyance. As seen in the screenshot above the teleport point is south of the village - typical for every settlement - however the wait point which Tont currently occupies as at the other side of the village.

I'm never going to see what it's like inside the Flying Palace am I?
It's mostly puzzles and monsters anyway.
Well there are evil dragons in there.
Evil dragons? Really?
Yeah.
And I missed it? Bah! I'm getting robbed of all the fun!
I'm sure you'll figure something out, Steiner.

In other news Finn passes the Throwing Knife he's been carrying to the only member of the team qualified to handle such ordinance. It only provides a ten point Attack boost for Domino but given how far behind the pirate's fallen he needs it.

Then it comes time to do something that I've been holding off on. Domino distributes the Resist Jewels the team bought from the hidden merchant in Barbaros to Finn, Samson, and Tont. We're in endgame territory with the Flying Palace and magic is going to get even more brutal. Let me stress though that this is not strictly necessary. It is entirely possible to beat the game without granting the entire team permanent magic resistance. One big reason I'm going through with it is to hold down the amount of grinding needed.

With the Resist Jewels handed out (they need to be used in a random encounter) the last thing I need to do is use the Source of Power on Domino. As I said before he needs all the Attack boosting he can get at the moment. I'm not giving him the Ring of Power because Finn's so much faster but that might change in the future depending on how Domino's level ups go. The Tempest Ring might be an option but it all comes down to what the final team is going to be and at this point in the game that's still up in the air. Because he isn't affected by row modifiers Domino will be needed for attacking pesky enemies that appear in the back row - especially dangerous casters.

Then it's off to Mistrall! Or rather the team flies to this cave that Steiner previously couldn't reach. It is visible while riding the dragon. Before the team wanders inside let's see how their stats are coming along.

Finn's almost level 8 and it won't be long until he reaches 150 Attack power. It certainly doesn't feel like he has that much when he's in battle. It's not like he hits starter slimes and rabbits for 100+ damage with each attack. Diminishing returns, yadda yadda. His stats are just fine for his level and he does have a decent array of spells despite not having enough MP to really consider using them during dungeon crawls. Escape isn't exactly a cheap spell to cast and he always has to have enough MP in reserve for an emergency get away.

So is this the cave that blacksmith was talking about?

With the Mithril? Who knows.

Annie might not have as much attack power as her brother but she's hard to kill (not that enemies don't try!) with quite a selection of potent healing magic. I could probably use Steal more but as a speedy front liner Annie needs to attack and help kill enemies before they deal damage.

Where else would it be?

Sir Samson continues to do his thing and I continue to moan about the fact that his VP and LP don't reflect the fact that he's a magicless tanky dude. Despite the fact that his LP is clearly lagging behind the siblings he's not doing too bad. He'll need more Speed but at the moment, with that Tempest Axe, he's still acting ahead of enemies. That's the reason his Attack power hasn't risen like Finn's. The Mystic Blade is a big Attack jump but I'm loathe to give up the +Speed on the Tempest Axe.

Domino's suffering primarily from the fact that his starting stats were so far behind everyone else's. All he really needs is enough VP to stay conscious and enough attack power to hurt things. In that regard he's doing fine. He acts dead last in turn order though. Barring finding a Source of Speed or two the only remedy for that is the Tempest Ring (which Tont will not be parting with any time soon) or level ups. Domino's five levels behind the rest of the party so he still has room to grow.

As a man of the sea I'm not exactly eager to go crawling around some cave but I suppose we're here and it's here.

What you're trying to say is that there's probably treasure down there, right?
The thought had crossed my mind.
A forbidden cave out in the middle of nowhere. Hmm, if there's any treasure down there I bet it's valuable!
Isn't the Mithril itself valuable?
I don't reckon that man's actually going to pay us for risking our necks. We'd do well to just keep whatever else we find.
I'm down with that!

Tont is only a level 1 Summoner with a measly five experience points in his promoted class. That puts him the farthest behind out of all the available characters. He's got MP and an assortment of spells but the rest is a bit lackluster. Tont's main job at this point is just to survive to soak up experience and toss out a summon spell (usually Firedrake) here and there.

With their nerves steeled and gear in order the team descends a staircase and enters the game's optional dungeon.

By Arawn it's freezing in here! Is this really where Mithril is kept?
I guess so.
That just means it's harder for treasure seekers to loot the place.
Good point!

--BONUS CONTENT --

Getting Steiner back might be a complete surprise provided one never looks at the back cover of the game case. That might be common today with emulation but back in the day when Beyond the Beyond first came out the only way to get the game without box art was to get it used. Anyway this, let's just say excerpt, from the back cover clearly shows Steiner and the Flying Palace at the same time. The Dragon Shrine isn't hard to find but this still constitutes a spoiler. It's not the only spoiler either.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - the last sidequest of the game. I wish I could say it's an easy sidequest but no. There's a reason this dungeon isn't available until this late point.

Update Eighty-nine | Index | Update Ninety-one

The State of the LP - an update

ladyabaxa — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 23:40:12 GMT

So I'm using my Surface 3 as my main machine. After some work I've been able to do a bit more recording for Beyond the Beyond but ePSXe 1.6 won't load ISOs for me. The recording I've done has been in ePSXe 2.0.5. I wish I could say it went smoothly but there have been issues with zoom (necessary to read at high resolutions on this screen) and the emulator still has a bit of stutter for no clear reason. I'm about halfway through update 90 as I type this and then comes the hard work of a dungeon crawl that I've started. Got a bit confused on one of the puzzles so I stopped recording to work on it.

It's been some time since my last update and the reason is that I didn't have an internet connection for four months. NaNoWriMo went fine. I checked in on Thanskgiving with 80k words and finished the month with 100k words. I didn't get to update my word count after Thanksgiving though. Bummer! Did I write a complete novel? Ha, ha, ha! Of course not! I never manage to do that. Then I spent a whole bunch of time working on things that never get mentioned here instead of anything for Beyond the Beyond.

Beyond the Beyond: Update 89: Act 4 wrap-up and bonus material

ladyabaxa — Sun, 19 Feb 2017 15:58:08 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 89: Act 4 wrap-up and bonus material

The team has managed to stumble its way through another part of the story so, like before, it's time to stop and see what's been going on under the game's hood. First though there's a little matter to attend to. That's right it's time for...

the Act 4 recap!

Act 4 was light on plot. It began with the team having survived its long, multi-dungeon trek through Bandore. They had just been given use of Domino's ship. Bandore was in turmoil what with the emperor dead and the Vicious Ones having flown the coop. Fortunately cooler heads in Bandore's army had survived. They surrendered the nation to Marion despite the fact that Sir Galahad only brought a small crew with him to chase Prince Edward. With the war at an end the team focused its attention on locating Shutat.

To do that they set sail. First came Discipline Island and the Shrine of Discipline which was host to warriors from every nation in the region looking to complete the Labyrinth in the shrine and became powerful, or famous, or both. Then it was off to sleepy Leaf Village (even in these recaps I refuse to call it Leave Village) on the southern tip of Aridia. Still no sign of Shutat or the Vicious Ones. After a long trip the team found a village of elves called Mistrall on the northern side of Gebergheim. There they heard that the local blacksmith wanted some Mithril from a mine they weren't able to locate, dumped some money into the local economy, and moved on because nobody there had heard of Shutat.

Finally, after much sailing and hiking they reached the remote lands of Barbaros deep within the wilds of Aridia. They walked in just in time to watch a training session between Princess Lorele and castle guards. After she whupped their butts and strolled out to presumably find monsters able to put up more of a fight the team ran around Barbaros snapping up treasures and hearing a whole lot of talk about how the people of Barbaros were super strong and afraid of nothing. Then they talked to the king but he was rather dismissive. "Go complete the trial of Discipline and then I'll listen to you!" sums up his attitude.

Said trial was rather easy for Finn and resulted in him classing up from Swordsman to Hero. As a bonus everyone level 20 or higher in the team was offered a free promotion of their own. Also, Steiner grew up into a big gold dragon capable of flying the team around. When they returned to Barbaros though they found the Vicious Ones had struck while they were gone. The castle suffered heavy damage and casualties were many including the king. Before expiring he told the team to help his daughter. From one of his advisors they also learned that the king threw Spirit Water in Shutat's face and burned him which caused the Vicious Ones to beat a hasty retreat. In a hidden passage of Barbaros a soldier stood watch. Downstairs, locked in a treasure room, was Princess Lorele. When freed she rushed off to help her already-dead father. Vowing revenge she joined the team.

With no idea where Shutat wandered off to (again!) the team went about collecting the four Ancient Tablets that Arawn told them to go after before all the counter-invading started. That led them to the lonely island of Pity and its many magical mushrooms. When all four tablets were placed the Flying Palace was raised to the ocean's surface from its resting place in the depths. The team ventured inside and eventually found a control room that started up on its own once they were inside.

The rise of the Flying Palace didn't go unnoticed. Outside was the battleship of the Vicious Ones and Dagoot who had come up with an odd, somewhat ambitious, plan to tether the Flying Palace to the battleship and prevent it from taking off. Dagoot confronted Steiner when the dragon tried to remove the line and ended up shooting him in the back. Steiner still managed to disarm Dagoot in a particularly silly game of Tag and released the line. Then Dagoot shrugged his shoulders and teleported away. Steiner, badly weakened by what was apparently a magical arrow, fell into the ocean.

Oh yeah and on a sidenote, amidst all that hoopla, the team discovered the hiding place of the legendary magician Merlin. He taught Annie how to bring people back from the dead so now, unless she's dead, there's no reason to pay to have team members resurrected. If she's out of MP they can just go to an inn to recharge her mana.

End of recap.

Around the World in 80 Screenshots

Remember this odd fellow locked up in Bandore's dungeons right after the emperor was killed? No? Well it was way back in update 66 so that's to be expected. (I almost forgot him too.) They never approach the bars so my talking to them actually looked like this - about a second before Finn went running off because of the particular code I was using. Thank you, cheats!

Where is the emperor? Lord Shutat? Why have Bandore troops surrendered? No, we didn't lose! Someone please, let me out!

As we saw before they don't have anything important to say. They're just someone unable to comprehend the fact that Bandore lost the war.

A quick jaunt out of bounds on Domino's ship shows that the bow was never finished. It simply ends. The player would never see this without cheating so this was clearly deemed unimportant.

To the south is an interesting feature. The Bandore harbor map is huge with a big block of darkness south of the water marked at the edges by a stripe of purple. This column of purple stripes interspliced with water is not only fully animated but is connected to the water layer. It gets scrolled from right to left until it goes off screen completely and wraps around to the east side. Then it cycles back around and around.

This is an optical effect to create a sense of motion for the boat. Instead of making the ship move it is simply easier to scroll the water underneath it. With the water wave cycles constantly running it is nigh impossible to see this effect for what it is when on the boat.

The interior ship maps each have a purple capital B down in the lower right corner. Once again someone went about labeling the maps.

Over in Merlin's Cave are flames in two fully-animated columns. I snapped this near the beginning of the game while hoping to sequence break Merlin. These are same type of flames that flank Merlin's vase but without any transparency applied to them.

Over in the Shrine of Discipline the red on the edge of the screen that we saw back in update 71 is actually another case of color striping on the edge of a map.

This stripe runs south and turns to mark the southern border. Look closely at the upper left corner of the screenshot above and you'll see the entrance hallway to the shrine. This is juuuuuust barely out of camera view. I numbered the individual static frames of the seal on the shrine floor. Those aren't animated in this bit of workspace. Instead to the left are a pair of fully animated seals that are the final product. I still have no idea what said seal is supposed to represent. An abstract sun motif, maybe?

Further to the left are the frames for the door to the Labyrinth including the shadow they cast behind them.

Upstairs in the Labyrinth the game hides a copy of the three symbols just off screen to the south. Because these tiles are adjacent to drop points it is necessary to keep one's distance from them or the team will fall to the floor below. In fact in the screenshot above I'm about to close the menu to deliberately let Finn fall. These points match up with out-of-bounds points on the map below. My guess is that when the player steps on a symbol the game uses a copy function (with transparency applied) using these as the source.

And if you wanted to see what they look like when they're not flashing on screen at 50% opacity or embedded in the first floor here ya go!

On the shrine's exterior is a rather nice mural that is hard to see without using walk-through-walls. I like it! There's the light of Enlightenment or perhaps a status effect spell going off. It could easily go either way. Also there's what looks like a flying turtle. This game needs more flying turtles.

Over in Mistrall are a bunch of animations, mostly various bits of water from around town. I have no idea what that little green C is supposed to be but it looks to have a little shadow attached to it. There are a bunch of bushes too for some reason. I'm fairly certain the game doesn't actually use the in-between animation frames of that door. If it does it plays much faster than any other door animation in game and too fast for me to see.

One little detail that I like but which has no actual bearing on the plot is this difference in grass tiles in and outside the village. Inside it is short and well-maintained. The residents of Mistrall take their lawns seriously! Outside though it is overgrown and tangled. If anyone bothers to trim the far shore they don't do it that often.

Over in Barbaros there's a bit of map bleed (?) down in the dungeons. The edge of a light aura is just barely visible out of camera range.

Finn can also lock himself in a cell if he feels like it although there's nothing to do or find in either of them.

There's not much of interest in Barbaros. I even tried searching the urns and barrels that are otherwise unreachable but they aren't even flagged as urns or barrels. The game just gives the generic "nothing unusual" search message.

In update 82 the team took a tour of various shrines around the world. Included was a secluded building on a tiny island. Downstairs was an open passage blocked by a flame-doused brazier. Off in the upper right corner are two sets of animations. One is for the fire and the other the brazier itself. We'll see what this is later in the game.

There is one mildly-spoiling thing down below to show off. (For the record I didn't need to cheat to get down there. I chose not to open the path for plot reasons.) These four braziers surround a tablet. Said tablet looks suspiciously like the Ancient Tablets but isn't one of that set.

If Finn searches he somehow automatically knows it is the Final Tablet. How does he know it's the final one? He must have read the script, of course! He can't take it though. That requires a specific event flag that I'm actually going to deliberately avoid for a while. What's more interesting and actually relevant for this update are the braziers. Two are lit and the reason why is because they are linked to the four tablet shrines that raise the Flying Palace. They start out the game unlit and erupt in flame as tablets are placed in their matching shrines. It is a somewhat odd design choice for players are unlikely to ever see it in action. There's no reason to place any of the tablets before all four are collected. There's even less reason to interrupt that sequence to come to this room. It's not like there are hints here about where the tablets can be found.

A Matter of the Deads

Just like the previous three acts one big use for codes is to test cutscenes and the dialogue they contain to see how they handle the deaths of party members. Act 4 is light on plot to begin with so there isn't much to work with. In the screenshot above Finn's death to poison is immediate and unavoidable.

With Finn dead Annie becomes team leader. A space is left for Finn inside the control room but her sprite gets all the reactions scripted for her brother.

Annie's also the target of Steiner's lines that address the team directly. We've seen this sort of variable in use before - using a %Leader sort of designation instead of branching by character. At least, that's what I would guess offhand.

Outside while Steiner and Dagoot go through their song and dance they make several name drops of Finn which are all are unchanged. None address him or anyone else on the team directly so there's nothing awkward or out of place by doing so. They just refer to him.

It's only at the end when Steiner's about to collapse that he again calls out to Annie.

Annie's line as she contends with an impulse to deny what just happened has one small change. Normally she says this:

I can't believe it... Why Steiner? He's a dragon. He won't die easily, right Finn? Answer me!

If Finn is dead she instead says this:

I can't believe it... Why Steiner? He's a dragon. He won't die easily, right? Answer me, someone!

It's a small variation that goes from demanding an answer directly from Finn - which he couldn't give anyway even if he wasn't a silent protagonist - to flailing about hoping someone in the room can alleviate her worries. No one replies.

The game then pauses for a second and... WHOOPS SOMETHING GOT OVERLOOKED. Finally! It only took 88 updates. I didn't even have to cheat myself into this situation. Finn can die in the Flying Palace without any sort of shenanigans. Annie tells the dead Finn about his recent losses then says they need to go to Quamdar.

If Annie is not in the party her lines pass to the next person in the roster. In this case it is Edward. His usual line precedes this so it does not replace his statement about Steiner. Domino and Tont have no dialogue for this scene. Lorele is an optional character and she gets to say something. I'm not surprised about Tont. He doesn't get to say much throughout the game but Domino's required. I guess he just has nothing to say. Or the developers just couldn't be bothered. Or it isn't used for some reason.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - the start of act 5.

Update Eighty-eight | Index | Update Ninety

BAD NEWS

ladyabaxa — Sat, 24 Sep 2016 22:06:08 GMT

So I started my day with a hardware failure with my work machine. (I still have my Surface 3 but that has certain limitations.) I might be able to bootstrap parts to get it working again but I can't make any promises. Money is extremely tight here so buying hardware is out of the picture.

Just thought I should put up a notice in case.

Beyond the Beyond: Update 88: When Bad Plans Come Together (Flying Palace pt. 2)

ladyabaxa — Wed, 21 Sep 2016 22:23:00 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 88: When Bad Plans Come Together (Flying Palace pt. 2)

In our last episode the team raised the Flying Palace to the ocean's surface. Daring to venture inside they found a motif totally alien to them. Also, there were traps. And monsters. And cursed treasure. And non-cursed treasure. And dragons. And a total lack of ice cream sundaes. And bewilderment over what Arawn has planned. And Finn's ongoing bad day. Overall it's been kind of mixed.

5th Floor

Looks like a big chamber over there.
Full of traps I'm sure.
Why don't the traps ever stop the monsters?
Many of them can fly.
...Arawn really did plan this all out.

The fifth floor is dominated by a big open space but it belies a spike trap maze. It's not quite the same thing as an invisible wall maze but some of the principles are the same.

If I suggest we just jump over it will everyone tell me it is potentially too dangerous to try?
That seems likely.
I'm more concerned you could become trapped.
Okay. I was just checking. Besides, there's been treasure to find so I'm hoping that trend continues.

On the far eastern side is a narrow corridor that is blocked by spikes. The hallway in between is navigable but the team's only just begun poking around on this flour so I turned back.

In the northwest corner is a treasure chest just waiting to be raided. Inside is a Silk Scarf to raise Lorele's Defense from 44 to 46.

It feels very... silky.
That's actual silk, Finn. Have you never seen silk before?
I grew up in a podunk little village out in the sticks.
So that's a no?
A very definite no.

The monsters keep on coming. A rare few manage to get the drop on the team.

What's that growling sound?

Oh dear...
Eeep!
Brace for impact!

It just isn't the same if I don't get hit with one of these big spells at least once per dungeon.

Mirroring the eastern side the western flank has a pair of narrow hallways but this time both are blocked by spike traps.

The center is a big spike maze but only one flips up at a time. There's no way to pass through it and continue south. It isn't hard to navigate as long as one remembers that spike panels are safe to walk on while the spikes are flipped down.

What is any of this testing? I don't feel smarter after figuring any of these puzzles out. I'm just annoyed!
A test of our patience, perhaps?
I would say it deters simple thieves but the Palace has been underwater for centuries. That's pretty good at keeping out visitors.
It feels more like a test of endurance.
Or a way for Arawn to waste our time!

Maybe it's really just a way to give the sealed monsters more time to find us.
AARGH!

Even in the middle of a spike maze the team isn't safe from pouncing manticores.

To advance requires walking through the one non-trapped hallway. Just to the south is a staircase.

We're just going to go down?
If this is the wrong way I am curious to know where it leads.
Sounds good enough to me. I just want this over with.

6th Floor

The sixth floor is a series of twisty hallways. Dead ahead from the staircase the team finds a sarcophagus just standing, alone and lonely, in the middle of a small room.

To the north is an obvious puzzle.

Unless this is a trap it seems we actually went the right way.
It was bound to happen eventually.

In two moves the sarcophagus rests on the plate. Spot the change in the dungeon!

Did anyone else hear a rumble?
I did.
It had better be a good rumble!
Or else what?
Or else I am... going to get very cross with whatever trap we just primed!
I'm sure it's shaking in terror.
Well... it should!
*giggles*

Heading north through the main corridor the team spots what I assume is a sphinx
statue resting on a dias between two braziers. As they approach the sphinx suddenly
breaths a jet of fire!

It looks something like this animated GIF!

AAAAAAAHHHHHH!
Run away! RUN AWAY!

That was just, just... RUDE!
Okay so what do we do about this little problem? We can't even get close to it.
If only we had something to shield us from the flames.
Or prevent the sphinx from seeing us.
Hmm, I might have an idea. Follow me.

Can't get us now can you, you cat-person thing?
That's a sphinx, Finn, and it's just a magically-embued statue.
Well I still feel better.

The solution to the sphinx is simple. Just block its fire with the freestanding sarcophagus. Despite all the twisty passages there's no test of whether or not the player is able to navigate them without pushing the sarcophagus somewhere unreachable. It's a straight shot north that any player would have to actively work hard to mess up.

Yeah, as far as puzzles go the Flying Palace is pretty easy. It's like someone had half an idea but no solid follow-up in implementation.

To the west are more passages and a staircase up. It leads to the southwest wing of the fifth floor. This is another instance of the game wanting the player to take the shorter route. There is nothing of use or interest in these winding passages. It's all just there to make the player walk farther and risk more random encounters while they search for treasure.

7th Floor

Downstairs is the easiest puzzle in the whole dungeon. There's a room with a locked door (don't see that very often in Beyond the Beyond!), three pressure plates, and three sarcophagi. Once all the plates are down the door opens. Arawn was really phoning in the security at the end wasn't he?

I suspect what happened was that this dungeon was a late addition to the game. The entire subplot of "get the tablets and raise the Palace" feels a bit tacked on. Again, this goes back to what I said about Steiner growing up. We can already fly around the world map. The only reason we need the Palace is because there are completely arbitrary invisible walls on some of the mountain ranges. I'm definitely not a fan of this part of the game.

Once the door is opened and the team steps inside (and there are still random encounters up until the team reaches the trigger range!) a viewscreen comes up and the Flying Palace begins to shake. As the team looks around in bewilderment the machine beneath their feet activates.

What's going on?
If I knew that I wouldn't be just as confused as you.
We seem to have activated the Palace.
Th-that's what we came for, right?
I hope Sir Samson's right. Knowing Arawn I can never be certain of anything.

The screen pans down, fades out, then moves to the overworld. Our floating d4 has suddenly become a flying d8! We know it's super advanced because it has a bunch of large, pointless lights on the exterior. It's rise doesn't seem to bother Steiner as he hovers there.

Then the screen scrolls over to reveal an unknown ship.

Now! Fire!
Aye, captain!

Then someone who has yet to appear officially in the game tells someone else to fire and there's a big puff of smoke.

Back inside the Palace the team has been locked into the control room. They still have no idea just what's going on.

Finn, can you hear me?

Don't ask how Steiner's managing to talk to the team from outside the Palace (or why he never bothered doing that before, or why he didn't notice the big ship approaching the shoal ring). It does make the team turn south for some reason.

Steiner? Where is that voice coming from?
I'm not sure.
Something is happening out here...
What do you mean "something"? What's going on?
I'll check it out.
Steiner? Steiner come back! Damnit! Is there anything we can do?
I'm looking around, Finn. There must be some way to control the Palace from here.

Pictured: Finn being an incredibly detailed and articulate character in game. Oh Silent Protagonist how you are a blank canvas I delight in painting upon!

...
Don't worry, Finn. I'll take care of it!

Yes, Steiner replies with exactly that line above. That doesn't even make a bit of sense given the conversation. Steiner doesn't even know what the problem is yet, if there even is a problem, let alone if he can tackle it.

Back outside it seems the ship has somehow managed to attach a rope or cable to the Flying Palace. Should I even dare to ask how? The Flying Palace isn't exactly small, given the dungeon the team just traversed, so what sort of scale are we talking about here?

I see... the battleship of the Vicious Ones has grappled the Flying Palace!

Steiner flies over to where the line is attached to the Palace. Oh yeah and that's the battleship that fought its way out of Bandore. It's a good thing Steiner recognizes it otherwise I might think we were under attack from some particularly ambitious pirates.

Wait a minute! Why the hell didn't they just fire their cannons at the Flying Palace? They fired some sort of cable/rope so clearly they're capable of launching ordinance that far. I mean, that's why they stole the battleship in the first place. Instead they're going to try to prevent the Flying Palace from lifting off with a rope or cable? We are talking about a super advanced anti-gravity engine. Can't the team just hit the proverbial gas and snap that rope/cable? Or just drag the battleship into the shoals?

I know, I know... I should stop assuming the villains will ever raise the bar on their villainy. They're clearly still winging it as they go.

If I remove the hook, they can no longer prevent the palace from taking off!

Steiner flies over to the Palace and begins struggling with the hook.

I can't let you remove that.

Steiner looks around in confusion for a moment before the screen scrolls over to reveal a certain someone hovering over the ocean.

Who? Oh, there. You have wings!
That I do. Did you think dragons were alone in the sky?
You can't be human!
You're right. I'm not. Who would want to be part of such a weak species?
What?! You must be Dagoot... of the Vicious Ones.
*flies closer* That's right, my scaled friend. Your friends aren't going anywhere.
And you're going to stop us? By yourself?

Dagoot brandishes a gold-colored bow.

That I am!
A bow and arrow. Ha! You think you can stop a dragon with that? Where's Shutat? At least he would be a worthy match.
Lord Shutat suffered an unexpected injury at Barbaros...
*snorts* What a shame...
Keep talkin' scale face. Enjoy it while it lasts because I'm here to make sure your friends don't make it to Quamdar. Now back off!
You must be joking! Do you just expect me to roll over and give up?
If you're anything like that coward of a dragon that likes to fly over Marion then yes, I do. All bark, that one! What a shame. I've been wanting to test my skills and it flies just a bit too high. So what do you say? Wanna rumble?
You're not leaving me much choice.
Well I'll help you make a decision. See that lovely battleship of mine over there? I've left orders that if anything should happen to me that they blast a certain big dragon right out of the sky. Have you seen what it can do? Hrm, I really wanna know how dragon hide holds up against cannonballs.
*growls something incomprehensible*
Well? I'm a patient man but I don't have all day.
_{Come on, Steiner. Think! There's gotta be a better way to handle this.}

_{Maybe... I don't know. Worth a shot.}

And so Steiner turns and starts flying away. No explanation for it is given in game. He goes from blustering to retreat in a manner of seconds. Thanks, Steiner! You were such a pal there!

You fool!

Dagoot fires an arrow into Steiner's back. That's one hell of a bow to make that distance. (I will never stop pointing out weird scale issues.)

Arrggghh!

Wounded, Steiner falls into the water and lies there. A splash sprite is barely visible under his sprite which is a nice touch. With Steiner down Dagoot flies over to gloat.

YOU LYING PIECE OF SHIT!
I never promised anything. You're the idiot for turning your back on an enemy. Dragons... as stupid as ever!
Urgh!
That arrow has been handed down in my family for generations. When fired from my Great Bow, it's powerful enough to pierce even a dragon's thick hide.
You're just... having all sorts of fun with this aren't you?
Oh yeah. I'm enjoying every minute of this. Your kin in Marion was a real pain in my ass. It feels good to finally take one of you scaled interlopers out.

As if I'm going to let you stand in my way. You want a fight, bat-brain? Come and get it!

Steiner beats his wings hard and gains altitude quickly.

Steiner charges at Dagoot throwing him back and forcing him to drop his bow into the ocean.

My bow!
Ha! Not much of an archer now are you?
I don't need it to finish you off.

You are nothing to me now. Just watch as I stop your plan.

Steiner then flies over to the Palace and resumes working the hook free.

Ha Ha Ha! If I were you, I would save my strength. You don't have enough left to remove the grapple.
I won't let anything stand in Finn's way! No matter the cost.

True to his word Steiner pries the hook loose and drops the now-loose line into the ocean below. Without that impediment holding it back the Flying Palace begins to rise.

Very impressive... You would sacrifice yourself to help Finn. Finn, you have a good friend...

With his plan foiled Dagoot doesn't try to attack or come up with something on the spot. He doesn't even fly back to the battleship. Instead he just teleports away.

Finn, that should do it... But, my strength is exhausted. I... can't... keep my altitude...

Steiner steadily sinks until he falls into the water. Unlike his last fall into the drink he goes under. Why? Drama, that's why.

(1) The dragon's down. What now?
What were Sir Dagoot's orders for this situation?
(1) He said...
My orders are that we get the hell out of here. Right now!
(1) Eep!
(2) Sir are you all right?
We're not going to attack?
I'm fine. Shutat warned me not to try to take on that machine. Come on. Raise anchor!
(3) Sir! Yes, sir!
I've taken care of one pesky dragon. The day's not a total loss.
(2) I'm glad Mistress Ramue isn't here. She'd try to throw everything we have at that thing.
Then be glad you've got a captain with some sense in his head.

Inside the palace is a moment of stunned silence. Apparently they figured out how to work the Palace's camera system while events outside were unfolding. I can't be too critical though. They're locked in a control room of an advanced machine they know nothing about. It's not like Arawn gave them a manual to the thing or left one for them to find. Clearly though they did see what happened to Steiner since they're about to react to it.

After that brief moment of silence each party member has something to say.

Steiner! Brave warrior.
I can't believe Steiner is... What a special animal.
A weapon that can destroy dragons... I guess that is the horrifying side of magic.
I can't believe it... Why Steiner? He's a dragon. He won't die easily, right Finn? Answer me!
I... I...
Finn!
Annie, please consider what you are asking.
......
What? Oh, I see.
...
I'm sorry... Finn... I'm sorry for saying such things without considering your feelings. You lost your father... and now... your best friend Steiner.
I'm not angry at you, sis. I... I don't even know what I'm feeling. Maybe this is just total shock? It doesn't feel real at all.
Yeah. This isn't something anyone expected.
I can't even say I didn't know there were risks.
To think they might have been waiting for us to raise the Palace.
We should have considered that the Vicious Ones might move in to stop us. Not doing so was reckless. I'm sorry, Finn.
So that was Dagoot. We could barely see him. Ramue, Shutat, Yeon... That makes four.
The battleship is leaving. We should be safe for now.
Finn, let's go to Quamdar. We must stop Shutat!
I know, I know. Just... I need a moment to get my head around this.
How do we fly this machine anyway?
That's a very good question. It must have something to do with these flashing symbols here.

-- BONUS CONTENT --

Dagoot
Another of Shutat's three generals. An expert in archery, he can easily use the strongest bows that even five sturdy soldiers together cannot handle. He is level-headed and confident, but also a bit conceited.

Whelp there's Dagoot's first official appearance in game and it only took most of the plot for him to finally appear. He's been referenced as one of the Vicious Ones ever since the invasion of Marion but apparently he was out of town or something when Zalagoon charged across the border. As his bio states he is an archer although having lost his family's Great Bow he'll have to rely on that giant crossbow in his character art. What can't be seen though are his tiny wings. As we've seen he can fly although he probably uses magic rather than any sort of mechanical lift to keep himself airborne. About the only other thing I can say about him is that he has a rather... unique fashion sense.

No NPC ever bothers to mention Dagoot's wings (or his shoulder spikes) which one would think would be a dead give away that he isn't human. Yet he and the other Vicious Ones just strolled into Bandore and no one was bothered by the guy with wings, or the other guy with horns, or that third guy who's big and all green. It make some sense in Shining Force where there are elves, centaurs, and other species running around but here in Beyond the Beyond it's all humans. The elves live in a remote village. Everything else has been hostile.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - well that was... something. This flying deathtrap had better be worth it!

Update Eighty-seven | Index | Update Eighty-nine

Beyond the Beyond: Update 87: Walk Like A Faux-Egyptian (Flying Palace)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 18 Sep 2016 03:28:05 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 87: Walk Like A Faux-Egyptian (Flying Palace)

So in our last episode the team traversed the strange and magical depths of Pity Island. I suppose the biggest pity is that without the Ancient Tablet the island has lost whatever purpose it had and now just gets to be an isolated land of monsters cut off from the rest of the world until someone invents the airplane. Or somehow removes some of the shoals from its shores. I suppose that's also an option.

If I had brought the other three tablets the team could fly over and place them right away. Eh, they need a rest stop anyway to heal up. Isla is directly north from Pity which makes for a short flight.

What does the tablet say?
I have no idea. Edward?
*shakes head* The script is just as much a mystery to me as when Arawn gave us the first tablet. I've never seen anything like it. What about you, Sir Samson?
No, it makes no sense to me.
We could just ask Arawn. It's not like he isn't following our every move.
As long as these things do what they're supposed to and nothing more I don't really care what they say.
It's just some instructions that don't apply to you kids. Don't worry about it.
GAH! Could you give us some warning before you do that?
No matter what happens Finn never loses his jumpiness.
I can't help it. I have a highly tuned startle reflex!
You're doing fine. Just keep going.

I made 7,000~ish gold in Pity without even trying. There were simply that many random encounters despite Pity's rather compact layout. Finn fishes out the other three Ancient Tablets and dumps them into his inventory. Where and how does he carry four large tablets? Hammerspace, of course. It's just video game logic that spares the player the annoyance of detailed inventory management.

Upstairs I find out that the free inn that Finn enjoyed earlier in the game has vanished because Steiner is no longer part of the roaming party. It is Steiner's dialogue that drives it and the developers obviously didn't feel it necessary to program an alternative. They took the dual attack and the free inn with one fell swoop! *shakes an angry fist*

At least the inn at Marion Town is cheap even with a full party.

The next day preparations are undertaken. Lorele's old gear is sold off and a fresh batch of herbs is bought. I even buy a few Healing Herbs. Finn actually used one in Pity since he was hurt fairly bad but no one else in the party was low enough to justify a Healing Rain. As I said before the useful life of Herbs is running out. Using two Herbs is still a fifth of the cost of one Healing Herb (10 gold each, versus 100 gold) but takes two inventory slots.

Is this all extremely nitpicky item management? Yes it is! At this point in the game I could swap over to all Healing Herbs and just absorb the cost but I am a little worried about the last round of purchasable gear upgrades.

Anyway, to reach the four shrines simply fly over to the bridge between Marion and Zalagoon. Turn south and keep flying. You might need to go a little east but the inner sea isn't that big. The shrine guardians have nothing new to say (bummer!) so there's nothing to do but walk up to the pyramid and place the Ancient Tablet where it clearly belongs.

Item > Ancient Tablet > Use

Once placed the light at the top of the pyramid becomes a ball of light covering the tip.

Arawn certainly loves his eyes doesn't he?
That's called the Eye of Horus, Finn. It's a symbol of wisdom.
Who decided on an eye for wisdom? It's really creepy when plastered over everything!
Damn right it is!
Ha, ha! You get used to it. It's not going to hurt you.
We still have three more tablets, Finn.
Right! Focus on the task at hand.

When all four tablets are placed the ground begins to shake and a beam of light shoots out of the pyramid.

The other three shrines join in firing lasers. Despite what the composite screenshot above might suggest they don't fire in random directions. Instead they all point towards the space between them.

When your lasers combine you get a 3D transform routine! The game is finally going to actually use the 3D properties of the overworld map for something that actually works?

After a flash of light a giant blue caltrop appears in the sea. Well we're safe from the Giant of Bab-il. I'd like to see it come stomping through that!

Oh wait it's just an advanced pyramid that has risen from the bottom of the ocean. Because releasing Cthulu is a better option?

There's only one way to approach the pyramid and that's by air. There are no explicit hints that tell the player what to do at this point but it's not hard to guess that they should fly Steiner right into it.

So that's the palace? It's not flying.
I think I can just barely see a door down there.
I guess there must be another test to get through.
You kids are catching on. I can't let just anyone walk in and take something so valuable.
It's full of monsters, isn't it?
It is a teensy bit dangerous, yes.
Sounds like fun!

1st Floor

I'm sorry. When did we walk onto the set of Stargate?

Let's see: super advanced technology that presumably includes anti-gravity all wrapped up in a pyramid built by an other worldly being. Also, ancient Egyptian motif. Stargate was initially released in 1994 with a release in Japan the following year. The game's original release date is November of 1995 with its U.S. release in August of 1996. So the two are contemporary to one another but whether the movie influenced the game at all is somewhat doubtful as its Japanese release would put it pretty late in the game's development cycle. There's also no teleporting around, alien symbiotes, or other assorted chicanery. There isn't even a Monster of the Week in the palace. As we shall see, for all the hoopla, the palace's internal security is actually pretty low-tech.

At least it's dry in here.
If there are monsters I wonder where they came from?
I'm afraid I might have gone on a spree collecting souls centuries ago. Well, good luck. I'll see you kids on the other side.
That was rather direct.
It actually answers some of our questions. The monsters were sealed up in these places long ago as spirits and are released to fight intruders.
And we're the intruders...
Nothing we can't handle.

Wandering up the eastern passage the team finds a trapdoor. There's no visual clue to this trap.

What's that sound?
That rattle?
It sounds like a... a gear of some sort.
There's a trapdoor under us!
Oh GREEEE

EEEEAAAAAAATT! Umph!
Everyone okay?
Yeah.
Just my pride hurt a bit more.
Odd place to put a trap I would think.
Yeah who blunders into a corner? Besides us, I mean?

In a chest to the south is a Cloak of Darkness. Well I'm glad we could fall down a pit into an otherwise sealed off area to get a cloak that I'm never going to equip. I suppose it is slightly more interesting than just stuffing the chest full of money.

Seriously, the plot dictates that the player spend a third of the game with a perma-cursed member. Who would want to spend more time cursed after that? Cursed equipment is sometimes worth the trade-offs in Shining in the Darkness and Shining Force -usually cursed weapons because they can hit all enemies or the wielder can avoid the curse effects - but I see no benefit in Beyond the Beyond. I'll sell this after the team gets back to town.

As they round the corner to find a way out the team comes across a pair of Burials. Behind them though is a new opponent: a Green Dragon.

That's a dragon!
Small dragon. Is it a baby?
It doesn't look friendly.
That's because it isn't. Let's not forget what Arawn said.
To fight a dragon. Hmm, let's find out how strong it is!
It seems to have the same thought about us.

As the team begins cutting its way through the Burials the dragon casts an Attack level 2 spell on its surviving hovering friend.

Attack boosts are always a cause for concern but in this instance the Burial's attack for 43 damage isn't enough to groggy Finn. Yay for his slowly increasing VP max?

Ow, ow, ow!

That one attack is the only use the Burial gets out of their boost. Annie charges out at the start of the next round with a 60 point critical hit. Maybe it's just me but Annie seems to have a rather high critical hit rate. Then again as the highest speed character on the roster she gets to attack more.

Just you wait, dragon! I'm comin' for you next!
Miss Annie can be so scary when she has a mind to.
It hurts but I'm going to be fine, sis.

The dragon is in the enemy back row which greatly slows down the rate at which the team can hurt it. Despite being a dragon it isn't very tough and only manages to scratch at Annie before Finn cuts it down.

Are you disappointed, Lorele?
I am! Arawn said he gathered these creatures long ago. I can guess why none still roam Barbaros.

AHH! What was that?!
It's just a trap. Behind us.
If we were stumbling around in the dark it might actually be dangerous.
Now I'm curious if I can jump it.
You keep saying things like that. What is it with you, Finn?
You weren't there with us in Zalagoon when he would jump down wells.
This I have to hear!

So here's one gimmick of this dungeon: spike traps. There's only one pit trap thankfully but that's because (as one might surmise from the lefthand part of the screenshot above) the dungeon is designed to descend. Yes, the developers went to the trouble of animating and coding in a pit trap that is used only once for an entirely optional area. It's a bit of a missed opportunity to annoy the player.

The spike traps are triggered by stepping on specific tiles. They are mildly annoying because the game has to pause to play the flip up animation.

Then when the player steps off the trigger panel the game has to pause again to flip the trap back down. Anyway, the gimmick is that spikes block paths and force the player to detour around them. It's not quite an invisible maze.

I still think I could jump it!
I am a bit uneasy about the possibility of more pits. If it's all the same perhaps we should search out an alternate route.

2nd Floor

There are only two possible routes and one is blocked. The answer is thus rather obvious. To the north on the next floor is a little stretch of hallway with nothing of interest. There is no pit and no secret passages.

I wonder what it says on the wall here.
It looks like the writing on the tablets.
Both belong to Arawn. Maybe it's his native language?
If so then I hope nothing vital is written here.

If I hadn't already fallen and found the chest seeing it from the west side of the floor would be a solid hint that I had missed a hidden route. The staircase leads to the east sarcophagus by the entrance. It isn't possible to go down that hidden set of stairs though. They're one-way only just like the spike trap. Go too far down one hallway and, if you want the treasure, you have to go back up to the first floor and find the trapdoor again.

As for the rest of floor 2 it is actually a rare case of the game wanting the player to take the shorter route. Being as well trained as I am I of course took the longer route and had to backtrack. At the end is a switch to flip the blocking spikes.

That was easy. We'll have this wrapped up in no time!
We're going to be lost in here for days aren't we?
I won't tell anyone if you don't.

3rd Floor

This floor is where the real puzzles start.

Left or right?
There's a sarcophagus at the end of the hall down there.
*shrugs* It's a start.

Upon approaching the sarcophagus it slides out of the way on its own.

And now they're moving on their own!
Do you think we'll have to climb in one?
I hope not.
I'm glad we're all on the same page.
I wonder who made these. I mean, I doubt these ever held bodies.
One might as well ask who made the Flying Palace or Arawn's Palace or Arawn's Tower. Unless Arawn tells us we'll probably never know.
All of those are so old, centuries old. Older than anything in Barbaros. That's for sure.
He's super old so it might not seem that way to him.
He designed everything from top to bottom to be a long series of trials. To think, they've just been sitting around for their appointed time. What happens to them after the Vicious Ones are dealt with?
Arawn waits a few centuries for more Vicious Ones to show up?
Surely he's got something better to do with his time.
These places seem to take care of themselves, sis. I doubt he has to show up very often.

Over on the east side of the floor is a blocked passage and a floor switch. Stepping on this one doesn't do anything though.

I'm jumping up and down and it still won't go down!
Maybe this is just a decoy.
Why would anyone make a decoy?
Because it's a puzzle, Finn. It's not supposed to be completely straightforward.
Hmm, maybe it is a fake but there are some notches on the sides of this plate that I didn't see on the plate upstairs.
Okay. We've barely seen this floor anyway.

As the team begins its search an encounter with Manticores leads to this rather caption-ready situation. Despite the fact that Edward's Defense is lagging a bit behind because of my refusal to upgrade he still doesn't take much damage from attacks. He doesn't get targeted much to begin with - granted this is partly due to how fast the team leaps to the attack. In this run the game has apparently decided that the character in slot 2, which is Annie, is it's highest priority unlike my last time through where it pummeled character 3 over and over again.

As they make their way down the hallway the team stops to search each sarcophagus and accidently finds that one is easily moved back.

Careful. Let's not get it wedged in there.
It's in our way!
There's a hall behind it. Let's circle around.

The monsters in the Flying Palace are mostly the same as what the team found in Pity. Burials continue their screen-hogging ways. Evil Shamans continue to earn the team's early aggression.

So that man lived long ago and his soul has been trapped here for centuries. How sad.
Arawn is capable of amazing things. Frightful things.
He seems alive now. Not that he'll be living for much longer.

Burials aren't all that flammable so they resist Edward's Fire 3 spell. It's still worth the MP cost to hit four of them and an Evil Shaman. Burials aren't much of a threat on their own.

On another note I do like how the battle background is an enlarged version of the same wall murals scattered around the Flying Palace.

EEWAAAGGH!
What was that, sis?
These things are gross. I'm pretty sure that's what she was trying to say.

Well Burials are rather high up on the enemy power scale and have enough attack power to make for decent critical hits.

You want a punch to the nose don't you?

They are also thoroughly gross when they attack. Keep that tongue to yourself, Burial!

And there's Lorele hitting level five and upgrading her Holy Light spell to level 3. She's yet to use it in a trend that is likely to continue but she has it anyway.

In the upper left corner is another piece of armor that Annie will never equip: a Devil Ribbon. It was presumably taken from a ribbon-loving devil centuries ago. Why Arawn keeps this stuff in boxes in his super-advanced pyramid ship is a mystery though. Stuffing the Devil Ribbon into Finn's pack they continue winding their way through the corridors.

This thing's got bad magic in it doesn't it?
You can sense it laying in wait?
It's more like the skull embroidery is a clue.

They also find out that Green Dragons can breath fire. Er, well their shoulders can breath fire. This is what happens when spell animations are paired with monster animations that aren't positioned with the spell in mind. I like to think, though, that Green Dragons are actually robots and have flamethrowers hidden in their shoulders ready to flip open and fire at any time.

To solve the puzzle just push the pushable sarcophagus over the plate. Don't accidently push it somewhere that you can't move it any further or you'll have to go back upstairs to reset the floor. Every time the sarcophagus is moved the game plays a loud KLUNK sound effect that implies it is empty and thus lightweight. How does it hold the plate down then?

Magic, that's how.

Are we free?
Free?
To... continue forward?
You ask that is if we could go back, Finn.

Before heading downstairs Finn spots a sparkling jewel on one sarcophagus. When he pries it loose, like any self-respecting treasure hunter would, he finds out it is a Mage's Jewel. So, thus far, the treasure chests have contained cursed gear while something useful was hidden on a faux-casket. Sounds about right for the dungeon theme. The team's a bit too savvy to fall for any Curse of the Mummy stuff though so they walk down the stairs.

What exactly are they looking for in this pyramid? Who knows! The game hasn't specified except to say that we'll get to use the Flying Palace if we pass Arawn's test.

4th Floor

The fourth floor presents no obvious path to take with branches leading to branches in the winding passageways.

I wonder how far down we are now.
For all we know there could be a sprawling complex under the ocean floor just waiting for us.
Let's hope not!

As they begin to make sense of the fourth floor another random encounter bumps Edward up to level 6 and upgrades his Attack spell to level 2. Now that's a useful spell upgrade! It will target the entire team thus enabling all the frontliners to crank out nice critical hits while Edward sits back and watches. The level ups are coming in a bit slower than Pity. It feels like the encounter rate is a bit lower. In addition to that, enemies are mostly melee so there are no funny nuke-em-all instances where the team gets pummeled.

It's that smoooooooth difficulty curve kicking in again. I'll take it! After the multi-dungeon marathon that was Bandore this is almost pleasant.

Instead Finn gets screamed at by a Fenril and becomes extremely confused.

AAAAAHHH! The bees! The bees are everywhere!
Your brother's lost his mind again.
Or found it again. It's hard to tell some days.
Shouldn't we be worried? He's slashing away at the air around him.

Naw. I've got this.

Finn's confused attempt to attack his sister goes a lot less smoothly when she's also not confused. She easily blocks his attack.

I'll get you! You won't turn the coconuts on me again!
Finn you don't even know what a coconut is.
And yet they're still his friends.
I would say that's weird but he became best buddies with Steiner before he had any idea of what a dragon really is.
Maybe the coconuts are replacements for Steiner.
You think I don't hear your buzzing but I'm on to you! I'll get you!
Whatever it is let's not mention this to Steiner or the next thing we know we'll be up to our eyeballs in real coconuts.
Now I'm hungry!

In the center of the fourth floor is a rather odd structure. A large wall adorned with the Eye of Horus bisects a chamber.

Ugh, my head! What happened?
A dog screamed at you so you've been ranting and raving at nothing.
That would explain why I'm all hoarse.

In the southeast corner is a small chamber with four lit torches in the corners and a mural of two people praising or worshipping a flame.

Praying to a fire. That's... unusual.
I remember you being quite happy to see a campfire.
But I didn't get down on my knees and sing its praises.
Maybe we need to set something on fire in here.
That'll be easy!
You say that as if we're a bunch of pyromaniacs.
Tont would have to be here for that. Instead we have Edward who is very careful about what he rains fire on and Finn who still doesn't understand how he summons Steiner to douse things in dragonflame.
See, we're not all ready to light the world on fire. Just a few of us.
So you're lumping yourself in with Tont?
Just wait till he sees what Steiner can do. He'll flip.

The eastern side of the floor is a small maze with flip-spikes hidden within. The only objective is to push north.

Also there are manticores.

Don't think that you'll stand in our way!

Finn's attempt to lay a smackdown is met with laughter as his attack is blocked. Just sayin, this wouldn't have happened if Steiner were still little and flying around with the team!

What was that, Finn?
I think my head might still be messed up.

The manticore springs to the counterattack launching an exchange of blows.

I'll get you yet you flying wanna be cat!
You're taking this rather personally, Finn.
I'll get vengeance for the coconuts!
WHAT?!
*laughs* Just messin' with ya, sis. *pause* Stop looking at me like that. I'm not crazy.
...
No, stop it! Don't give me that look!
When we get outta here...
Oh hey, I think we can get through here. Come on, guys!

As a reward for navigating the mini-maze is a treasure chest with a Battle Shield for Finn. He loses the +2 Attack from the Spike Shield but gains four more Defense. Given the fact that Finn has taken quite a beating recently that seems a fair tradeoff.

Nothing to worry about, Finn. The magic in this one seems fine.
Oh? Really? Well it's about time!

In a small room just south of the treasure chest is a lone sarcophagus. Searching it reveals a rather ordinary looking item. Good thing the team's looking in every nook and cranny or this would be a confusing dead end.

Key Item Torch got! (Yes I know it doesn't have the key item coloring but it is plot-needed and cannot be discarded.)

A torch?
So we do have to set something on fire.
Why didn't we just do that with magic then?
Because none of us really took that idea seriously?
Besides, I suspect we're activating a waiting enchantment, not lighting a fire as if it were a candle.
Figures!

The team passed a brazier as they crossed the floor but there was nothing they could do with it until now.

Eeek! It just lit itself!
A magical, self-lighting torch. That would be handy in Barbaros.

And like that the brazier is lit!

You know, if we had bothered to pay attention to the murals here we would have realized what we were doing.
We're supposed to actually read these things?
There's the Eye of Horus above the flame. I wonder what that means.

Contrary to what one might think lighting a brazier causes that odd wall to slide down opening an upper passage.

That was unexpected.
I guess the Eye of Horus has... SEEN THE LIGHT! Ha, ha, ha!
...
Ha, ha, er... Moving right along.

I don't even know why you undead bother. You're not a threat at AEAEADGG!
What was that, brother of mine?
GRMMMPHEA!

Finn's trip through the Flying Palace has been less than stellar for him. Wights can paralyze with their critical hits which is way better than some old school RPGs would do. (Because getting those levels was so much fun in the first place that I just had to do it all over again. For funsies.)

While Finn somehow manages to remain standing in spite of his paralysis (he's such a trooper!) Sir Samson finishes off the last Wight.

I must say I am a little concerned that Arawn trapped the souls of some undead in here. Could they not be released from their undeath?
Maybe he just likes the variety.
Whatever. We're destroying them. That should be enough.

Then Annie levels up and upgrades her Healing Rain spell. First Attack and now Healing Rain. The level ups might not come with much of an increase in stats (but that's normal for this game) but the new spells are certainly welcome. Now Annie stands a chance of keeping up in a boss fight with lots of group-wide spells flying around.

Just north of the strange purple eye wall is the staircase down.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - more of this dungeon

Update Eighty-six | Index | Update Eighty-eight

Beyond the Beyond: Update 86: Depths of the Earth (Pity Island)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 11 Sep 2016 18:13:21 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 86: Depths of the Earth (Pity Island)

Having claimed Bandore's Ancient Tablet, which Shutat and his gang somehow managed to completely miss, leaves just one to find. That one tablet rests somewhere on the island known as Pity. Unfortunately the shrine-like structure in the center of Pity actually leads to a dungeon.

1st Floor

Mere steps inside is a huge red mushroon. If Finn walks into it he bounces back as the following animated GIF shows.

Not included is the loud PRANG! sound effect that plays each and every time this happens.

What just happened?
It is magical but the magic within wasn't triggered. It just repelled you.
So I've been rejected by a mushroom? Lovely.

Finn and company don't get long to contemplate the mushroom or it's rejection before a Pyrohydra and an Evil Shaman threaten them. They've seen Pyrohydras before but seeing them on Pity is a bit... unusual. When I think of fire-elemental multi-headed beasts picturing them in dark, damp caves filled with fungi is not what comes up.

Too bad about the Evil Shaman. They lived for about three seconds before Annie charged out with a deadly critical hit.

Uh, sis, are you feeling okay?
Pretty good actually. Let's find that tablet and get out of here.

So how does Edward's new Magic Staff hold up in his first battle post equipping it? Well he dealt 22 damage to a Pyrohydra from the back row so I'd say it's doing pretty well! For comparison Samson attacked and dealt 29 damage.

The interior of the shrine? cavern? mountain? is a series of passages dotted with more mushrooms. They're everywhere.

In other news there are some familiar faces like this Dark Elf and their Black Aerial friend.

Elves live on this island too?
Must be an isolated bunch.

I had to go back over the footage of this dungeon crawl with a fine toothed comb because of an oddity with the Dark Elves. I'm not referring to this Confusion 2 spell that hit everyone but Samson. Instead I'm referring to a large change in their place in the turn order. In this fight the Dark Elf acted after Annie. Later however they always acted after Annie, Samson, and Edward and right before Finn's turn. It turns out that Dark Elves have a Speed of 31. (One of the few times I've bothered to look up enemy stats.) When the team went in Finn had 29 Speed while Samson and Edward had 30 Speed. This was the second random encounter in the dungeon and afterwards there was a lengthy roll of encounters that lacked Dark Elves. By the time any more appeared Samson and Edward had both leveled up and pushed up to 31 Speed. The player apparently wins ties for initiative.

Anyway, that digression out of the way, most of the team has just been confused! Yikes!

Edward has his eyes on the prize though as he kills the Dark Elf.

Finn's aim is a bit more suspect. Confusion is more effective when used on the player (because of course it is - thanks game) but the effects are more random.

Finn what are you doing?
Ow! Why did you hit me?!
Wait, what? Why is the coconut talking to me?

With Annie groggied Finn stares off into space. This is one of several turn-wasting actions Confusion can invoke.

But... where DO coconuts come from?
Finn pull yourself together. We're in danger!
Grandpa Rutabaga what are you doing on the island?

The moment Annie recovers from groggy status turn about apparently becomes fair play. Luckily for Finn a Vital Recover kicked in at just the right moment. The funny thing is how evenly matched they are. (If you're wondering where the rest of Finn's VP went, Lorele punched him in the back of the head in the previous round.)

You... you hit me! I think.
Did I? Who are you again?

Seconds later Samson kills the Black Aerial and separates the kids before they do any more damage to one another.

Ugh, my head. What happened?
Magic.
Is that why I have blood in my mouth? Ow!
You and Miss Annie had a bit of a quarrel there.
I take it I lost then.

No point in having this spell if I never use it, I guess.

Even with Annie's Healing Rain and Finn healing himself with Heal 1 he still can't get near his VP max.

Just to the south is a chest with a Mage's Jewel inside. Such jewels completely restore one character's MP.

I've heard of these!
You have? Where?
Master Myrrdin told me about them. They are phylacteries in which mana is stored.
Soooo, it's magical. Is it dangerous?
Not if handled properly.
What happens if you handle one improperly?
The mana inside could escape with explosive force.
And we're just going to carry it around while monsters attack us.
If we didn't break the Vase of Life while it was full of water we should be fine with this.

Moments later an Evil Shaman dares to challenge the team by themselves. Annie easily knocks such shamans into healing mode but since they only have basic herbs they never heal enough to cover the next attack in the team's line-up. Annie's the only team member fast enough to act before they do but it's still a bit random. Sometimes they don't get hurt enough.

2nd Floor

Lots of rocks and rubble on the floor. What a mess!
This place is very old and decrepit. I doubt anyone from Marion has been here since it split off from the mainland.
Where are we climbing to anyway? Don't caves usually go down?
Maybe up into that rocky slope outside?
Dang it! We could have just gone in through the ceiling and saved ourselves a lot of trouble.

Just down the corridor is a small gap in the wall. It is too small for anyone in the group to fit through.

Did we miss something?
Hmm, Finn let's go back to those mushrooms we passed.
Oh no. We're not going to have to eat them are we?
I, er, hope not.

Near the red mushroom is a curious green variety. When Finn touches it instead of being bounced back he is shrunk into a mini-Finn.

Noooo! I'm tiny! Help!
A test of balanced magics. Hmm, interesting.
I don't care if it's interesting. I care if I'm going to be stuck like this!
We have to use this to get through that gap, don't we?
Well, there's no going back. If this be Arawn's design then we must move forward.
*sighs* It won't be the dumbest thing we've ever done.

And suddenly I am reminded of Ogre Battle! Terrible unit formation for that game though what with the mages up front. Actually it's still terrible because the mages are in the front row where they take full damage rather than hiding behind the line of Griffins.

So the team is tiny and their enemies are not. Will this have any combat effect on them?

Were they always so tall? I feel like I could drown in their beards.

Short Answer: not at all.

Bearded or not I can still reach their kneecaps. Have at thee!
I think you broke his leg.
Nah, he's still standing.

One Evil Shaman heals their wounded ally thus allowing the wounded Shaman to conjure up some Titan magic.

See? He's summoning an earth elemental to smite us.
You're awfully chipper about us being crushed by falling rocks, sis.
There's nothing I can do to stop him. I might as well have a laugh before the pain starts.

In retaliation Edward unleashes a blast of Fire 3. The highly flammable Griffins take boosted damage and one dies outright to a critical magic roll. Go Edward!

Raining fire upon your enemies. Is that a common thing for Marion's nobility?
I don't think so. My father is not a magician.
I'm not complaining. You keep doing what you do best, Edward.

One of the two surviving Griffins makes the foolish mistake of attacking Annie.

Just because I'm tiny doesn't mean I'm lunch. Back off bird brain!

Grinding Lorele up to level 20 here in Pity would have been viable. After all this group awarded 1440 experience. I have done that in the past but I don't really consider it that optimal. Getting back to an inn to rest takes more steps, the encounter rate is sky high so getting out of Pity is more difficult if Finn's out of MP and you forgot to bring a Guiding Branch, and there are a lot more caster types in the formations so the team ends up getting hit with a lot of nukes.

With the quintet of enemies dealt with the team slips through the opening in the wall and finds themselves in another room with a rickety ladder leading up.

Being tiny is so weird. Is this what ants feel like?
If we get out of here alive maybe we should ask Steiner what it was like being surrounded by giants all the time.

Directly in front of the opening is a pile of rocks or rubble. It isn't possible to move over such tiles while tiny. I strongly suspect the placement of this particular pile was to teach the player exactly that since it's on the direct path from the opening to the ladder. Also, they play a loud HGUH! sound effect every time the player tries which is way too amusing to me.

Some things never change, not even when the team is tiny. With so many Black Aerials in the mix it was inevitable a Wind 2 would get through.

3rd Floor

Upstairs is a whole bunch of red mushrooms and rocks everywhere.

Where to now?

Just to the northeast is another gap in a wall.

I think it's over there.
I can just barely see it.
These rocks might as well be a cave in for us. We can't climb over them like this!

As they ponder what to do a trio of Black Aerials and an Evil Shaman emerge from the shadows to attack.

Not again! How do these things keep finding us?
We are on their home turf.

You know what? I'm tired of this! Steiner where are you when I need you?!
Right here, Finn!
WHAT?!

That actually worked? And since when can you breath fire?
Enlightenment is AWESOME!
Should we be worried that Finn just tore open a rift and called a dragon's head through it?
I did what?
Some sort of magical bond, Finn. You wished for Steiner to be here so much that the mana within your body made it so.
I... don't understand any of that but okay.

Here's a little something the game never bothers to mention and which I've been hiding by not showing the team's updated spell lists with their stat sheets. When Finn classes up to Hero the game quietly adds the Steiner spell to his spell list. At 9 MP per use Finn can only cast it twice. When cast it summons Steiner to breath fire all over the enemy for a respectable amount of damage. Just don't think too hard about how Steiner's long neck clips right through the floor or the scale involved.

There are two "models" of red mushroom but they both do the same thing: restore the team to their original size. Getting through that crack in the wall requires shrinking back down though.

We're going to be doing a lot of bouncing back and forth between sizes aren't we?
It's kind of fun, actually! I wonder if these mushrooms will grow around Barbaros?
There's nothing natural about this arrangement. I'm not even sure these mushrooms are actually alive.
Aww, what a pity.
I'm kind of surprised there are no tiny monsters walking around. How do they get around in here?
That's one of those questions that it's probably best not to think too long on.

One random encounter later Lorele hits Master Monk level 2 and picks up the Healing Rain spell. That'll take some of the load off of Annie for this dungeon but doesn't make Lorele a competent stand-alone healer. At least, not without plenty of Mage Potions to refuel her low max MP.

Like the Labyrinth it is easy to take a wrong step and mess up. Just take it one step at a time and don't get in a big rush.

Of course when random encounters come every few steps it's often impossible to rush anywhere.

OW!
Why do so many elves hate us?
I wish I knew, sis.

Another random encounter while trying to navigate the same room results brings up a new duo: a Manticore and a Poltergeist. I did mention the encounter rate is sky high in Pity, right? Because it is. Neither of these monsters did anything particularly dangerous or noteworthy.

I knew I shouldn't have joked about there being no cats in here!
Technically that's a manticore, not a cat, Finn.
It's close enough.
Maybe we can tame one and fly around on it?
That sounds like something Tont would suggest.
For all we know that's what he's trying to do right now.

Just past the crevice the kids find a common feature. There's a red grow-shroom, a green shrink-shroom, and a ladder. Pity is usually pretty generous with providing both options.

4th Floor

Just upstairs though they find their way barred because they're all tiny. This is why Pity offers so many chances to grow or shrink side by side. To go forward they need to be big. To go back through the crevice they have to be small. This way the player can't accidentally get stuck. There's no way to know what size they need to be on a new floor without going up and looking. Trial and error all the way!

Floor four is dominated by a large patch of mushrooms. Most are green but there's one lonely red shroom way in the back.

With such a high encounter rate and so much experience flying about the level ups were all but inevitable. With them came some new spells. They were a mix of bleh and meh. Awaken 2 will probably never be used since any group-wide sleeping spell would likely also knock Annie out. As for Fire 3 Finn doesn't have much MP to work with and his Steiner spell does more damage for slightly more mana.

There's one new enemy in these dank tunnels. Meet the Burial. It's green, it flies (and isn't always in the back row!), and it's mostly face.

What in the name of Arawn is that thing? It looks so weird!
I've never heard of anything like it, Finn.
Weird or not don't let your guard down.

Samson got double-attacked by the Burial but the Poltergeist and Evil Shaman died without getting turns.

At this scale it's nearly impossible to miss.
And no matter where you punch you're practically assured to hit its face.
I usually aim for the chin. Snaps the head back and sends my opponent reeling.

Up and around the corner is a curious crack in the floor. To the south is a ladder leading upward (always up in this strange cave) but Finn and company double back to see where the crack leads. In order to fall through they have to be small.

It is well worth falling however for just below is an otherwise unreachable chest. It presents another reason to wait until the class-ups have been finished before heading to Pity. Lorele gets a new weapon, Power Knuckles, but she has to be a Master Monk in order to equip them. (I did check!)

Hmm, excellent craftsmanship! Whoever made this should be proud.

On their way back up the team runs into more Burials and learns they can breath fire. Or rather they can "cast" Fire Breath level 1 because the game is limited to treating breath weapons as spells.

This is revenge for siccing Steiner on your buddies, isn't it?
Wouldn't they have to breath fire on all of us to really get even?
Don't give them any ideas!

5th Floor

On the fifth floor comes a choice of going north up a staircase that requires being large or shrinking down to fit through another crevice.

If it weren't for all the monsters this place would be almost pleasant.
Maybe Tont will make this his evil lair.
Probably too damp in here for his tastes.

6th Floor

Opting to go north the team ascends to the sixth floor. Despite what it might look like these are small floors with rather simple layouts. It's the high random encounter rate that takes up most of the game clock.

Circling around Finn doesn't see a large hole in the floor until it is too late to avoid.

AAAAHHHH!

Predictably it dumps him and the rest of the team back on the fifth floor.

Everyone okay?
Ow, ow, ow!
A little shaken but nothing permanent.
I've had more graceful landings.
Just surprised. Finn what were you doing walking into a hole?
And why did we all follow him into it?
Sorry. It sort of blended in with the floor.

Just because the layouts are simple doesn't mean the developers didn't find novel ways to screw with players.

As they retrace their steps a flurry of heads shuffle into view! The two Wights almost fade into the background against those huge, brightly colored Pyrohydras.

Six, seven, eight... dang it, I think I counted some of them twice!

Hrmph! There are fewer now.
Oh, hey, I didn't even notice there were zombies too.

Pyrohydras were once fearsome opponents but those days are long gone. The team has moved on, gained experience, and acquired better weapons. Two die before Finn's turn even comes up. I suppose it's a good benchmark for how far they've progressed since Bandore despite the fact that the plot has barely budged.

Back up on the sixth floor a pond is ringed with impassable shrooms. Floating on the lefthand side is what appears to be a green leaf.

We could just swim. It doesn't look very deep.
I wonder where that leaf came from. There are no leafy plants in here.
It reminds me of the leaves of the beanstalk.
Now that you mention it, Annie, there's the same sort of magic in it.
It's already wet and not growing. What else could we do with it?
I'll see if I can ride it while small.
Why do I suspect this is something you've always wanted to do?
Sorry sis, can't hear ya! I'm off to shrink myself!

And so Tiny Finn avoids the cracks in the ground that exist solely as traps and rides a leaf across a pond. He could probably wade across or climb over the mushrooms or just sort of step around them but nope, leaf boats it is! On the other side are more mushrooms and a large pit.

Should we unshrink ourselves first?
Nope! I'm goin' in!
*sighs* My brother's being reckless again.
*calling up from below* Come on down. It's safe!

Because I chose to jump down without unshrinking the team is forced to backtrack. It's not all bad though. In this chest is a Throwing Knife for Domino. Domino throws all of his weapons but now he has official sanction to do so. To the left is the crevice on the fifth floor that I earlier bypassed.

On the way back to the ladder more Black Aerials appear. Annie continues her cavalcade of critical hits.

Enough with the wind. NO MORE!

Then Edward levels up, gains another point of Speed, and upgrades his Thunder spell to level 2. This is another spell I probably won't use unless Fire 3 spontaneously stops working.

Falling back down the pit it becomes obvious why it is necessary to use a grow-shroom before falling. There aren't any in the small chamber the hole leads to and there is rubble blocking the only way to the next ladder.

That leads to a patch of sixth floor that is walled off by mushrooms. The only way to go from there is straight up.

This used to be part of Marion. Hard to believe.
A glimpse into the past, perhaps. Of a wilder land that wasn't the Marion we now know.
And to think, Finn, we could have grown up in a place like this.
*shudders* No thanks!

7th Floor

The seventh floor has a large pool and three directions one may go from the ladder. To the north is a crevice while the left and right paths can be traversed while large. The only shrink-shroom is on the far right hand side.

The northern crevice leads only to another shrink-shroom and a leaf to ride over to the western section. If, like me, you didn't notice that pile of rubble blocking the path you might wonder what the point of this leaf is and end up forcing yourself through more random-encounter filled backtracking. Don't do that.

Also, yellow nuclear dogs, er, I mean Fenrils!

Those are dogs. Those are definitely dogs!
Steady yourself, Finn.
They're kind of cute actually.

To the far left is another crevice and some leaves floating in the water. There's no shrink-shroom south of the gap either so if the team had stumbled into that grow-shroom they would have been forced to walk all the way to the other side of the chamber.

8th Floor

Just upstairs is more rubble that punishes the player for coming up the ladder while small.

Of course the only way to advance is to shrink again and ride a leaf to get around some shrooms. In the distance the tablet they're searching for comes into camera view.

Unfortunately this is the wrong way to approach it. There are rocks in the way that bar tiny people so using a grow-shroom is required. But to reach the tablet requires riding a leaf and there are no shrink-shrooms within reach.

Maybe I can just jump it! It doesn't look that wide.
I don't trust your luck.
Aww, come on, sis! Let's at least try.
That doesn't seem to be the intended solution. We should look around for whatever we've missed.

The team has no choice but to fall down this hole.

As I circle around though I realize I've missed this treasure chest. It can't be seen from the north where the other side of that crack is but can be seen from the room on the right. The Battle Gi is a five point defense boost for Lorele but unlike the Power Knuckles she can equip it as a regular Monk.

The path the team needs to take (and which only took me a couple of circuits around this floor to figure out) is this leaf right here. Hopping on causes it to slowly meander its way across the pond to the crevice on the far right side.

Up another ladder is more path-blocking rubble and a narrow path. If the player comes up this ladder while tiny and tries to move south they automatically get bumped back down the ladder to the floor below. Because we just had to add that extra minute or so of padding to the dungeon.

From there the team takes a leaf up to the main part of the floor with the pit directly north of their landing spot just in case they weren't paying attention. By not blundering into a grow-shroom they are able to take another leaf to where the tablet is.

Key Item Ancient Tablet got!

Umph, I always forget how heavy these are!
It would probably help if we weren't still shrunk.
Oh yeah! I was wondering why this one was so much bigger than the others.
*facepalm*

Finn casts Escape to make a quick exit from Pity. The team could have walked back down but they had already gathered all the treasure. It isn't necessary to unshrink before leaving Pity. The Escape spell or a Guiding Branch would teleport them to the entrance at their original size or they could just walk out and be quietly unshrunk in the transition to the overworld map. Technically the first shrink-shroom is on the second floor and there are rocks in front of the ladder down to prevent the player from doing that but I'm a rebel with cheat codes and I just had to put it to the test.

I distinctly remember parking my dragon differently.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - all four tablets have been found so I guess we should go turn them in.

Update Eighty-five | Index | Update Eighty-seven

Beyond the Beyond: Update 85: Tablet Hunters (Loose Ends pt. 3)

ladyabaxa — Wed, 07 Sep 2016 18:13:20 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 85: Tablet Hunters (Loose Ends pt. 3)

Lorele's a Master Monk now! Yay! We're done with grinding and can do things that actually advance the plot!

As a newly-minted level 1 Master Monk Lorele isn't exactly impressive. Her speed is terrible (what is it with the latter half of the cast all being super slow?) but she's one lucky monk and has a respectable Strength stat. I wish I could say I'm surprised by her maximum MP but I'm not. I've been well trained to expect Monks/Master Monks to do a rather poor job at healing. While I'm ambivalent about some post-promotion portraits I think Lorele here got the better end of the deal.

That said there are some stat boosters in storage and depending on how things shake out in the next segment of the plot I'll decide who gets what.

How do you feel?
Awkward, honestly. My center feels shifted just enough to throw me off balance.
I'm... not going to pretend like I understand what you just said. I'm just going to nod.
*smiles* Finn, never lose that honesty.

Those who are paying attention might notice that I swapped Domino for Edward at the end of that last update. That's because I wanted to check Edward's inventory. The Ice Ring provides the same stat boost as the Fire Ring: +2 Defense. Since Edward has nothing better to fill his accessory slot he goes ahead and equips it.

And yes that means Samson has the Fire Ring and Edward has the Ice Ring. No, I didn't plan that out in any sort of thematic way. I just slapped rings on people as I thought of seeing what stat bonuses they might offer. There's no downside to either ring and both could use the defense boost.

Just outside the shrine is this fellow we first saw back in update 71. He's from Bandore. I didn't bother talking to people in town after Finn completed the Labyrinth since the team already had their hands full. They've got a moment now though so let's see how the locals are doing.

Hi there! New in town? Huh? I remember you! You... wait, did you actually complete the Labyrinth?
It wasn't very hard. I just had to pay attention to where I was going.
Hey, you must be confident in your abilities to come all the way to Discipline, right?
Define "confidence."
It was more like we didn't have a whole lot of choice thanks to the king of Barbaros.
I don't mean to be rude but it does seem like he had an... ulterior motive to his request.
That sounds just like Papa.
So your dad really was trying to marry you off? We could have prevented a lot of trouble in Barbaros if he had just listened to us.
Shutat must have already been on his way to attack though. Do you really think we could have fought him off?
I don't know. Honestly? I never want to see Shutat ever again. If he just sort of vanished back to wherever he came from and never bothered us again I'd be fine with that.
You would give up any chance at revenge?
I'm just trying to make sure he never hurts anyone ever again. I don't care about vengeance.
Finn that's rather noble of you.
It also doesn't address our problems with Ramue. We have to find her.
I haven't forgotten.
Nor should you.
I know, I know. I'm not looking forward to that, either.
So you're worried she's going to use all that magic to kill all of us? Yeah, that's likely.
What, you expect to die? You have no pride in your own skill? Well, you completed the challenge when so many have failed. You should be.
Ramue is not someone to be handled lightly.
So are you kids traveling mercenaries or something? Do you want to come to Bandore? Strong people are always welcome.
Most of us are from Marion, actually.
So what?
So, we saw the war with Bandore and even got a front row seat for the death of the emperor.
What?! The emperor is dead? Then what am I doing here scouting for soldiers?
You're scouting for soldiers? Here? But I thought you came with that other Bandore soldier to guard him or something.
Marcus? Uh, well I have to fill the rest of my time with something.
Maybe we should tell Marcus that he'd better get home.
If the emperor is dead then who rules Bandore now?
The people decided to form an entirely new government.
What?! Has the world gone upside down?
Eh, talk to Marcus and get home as soon as you can.
Doesn't that guy want to be a hero or something?
He's missing his real chance to help by being here.

To the south is that fellow from Barbaros.

I know that man!
Yeah he was here earlier too. Finn, are you sure about this?
Not really but here we go.
Hi there. I'm Kanaar... Oh, I remember you... *gasps*
And here I was worried about how fast Finn could make things awkward. I should have known better.
Princess Lorele!
What are you doing here, Kanaar?
I came here to train and strengthen myself.

_{Sis should we mention the other half of his reason?}
_{If he doesn't I'm not going to say anything.}
_{Sounds good to me.}

Why didn't you tell anyone you were leaving? Your family has been worried about you!
Uh, this is - this is just something I have to do. But, princess, why are you here?
Barbaros was attacked by the forces of a man named Shutat. To take vengeance for all those killed I search for him.
Barbaros has been attacked? But if you're out here seeking justice then that means... the king. Oh, oh no and I've been here the whole time!
You are blameless. Many brave souls tried and failed to stop the invasion. You could not have known what was coming.
You are too kind, princess. I - hrm, yes, I will return to Barbaros as soon as I can. For our people.
*smiles* Thank you, Kanaar. They need every brave soul they can get to help rebuild.

Strangely enough Kanaar doesn't have any reaction to Lorele in game. Then again everything concerning Barbaros feels a bit rushed and tacked on.

Just to the north is the house with the, er, forthright woman that the kids pilfered a Source of Courage from in their first visit. She said to visit her again if the trial was completed. Despite the rather dubious nature of that request the team's going to do just that. They face down deadly monsters every day it seems so it can't be any worse than that. Right?

Hello there cutie!
This isn't going to end well is it?
Wait, I remember you now.
Wow! You actually managed to pass the challenge. I prepared this special brew to celebrate. Drink up!
Steiner's not here. It doesn't really count as celebrating without him.
Go ahead! Drink!
I'm getting there.
It smells funny.
Is this really fit for human consumption?
Let's find out! *gulps down his drink*

That's not a screenshot that's gone rogue. That's the game actually fading to black after Finn takes a drink then fading back in. Nobody moves in the interim and there are no sound effects.

Oh, are you OK? Perhaps I shouldn't give you anymore of this.
Finn, Finn say something!
...BBUUUUURRRPP! Whoa, quite a kick to that.
Are you sure you're all right?
My throat hurts a little but other than that I'm fine.
Well, I'm very proud of you. You wouldn't think about settling down here, would you?
No, he wouldn't. We're leaving. Now.

The other Bandore soldier in the town's inn has nothing new to say. He hasn't managed to pass the test in the Labyrinth and is apparently unconcerned with what may be going on back in Bandore. It's like a whole other, entirely secluded, world on Discipline Island.

Warping to Mistrall I swap out Edward for Tont with the plan of giving Tont the Magic Staff. Unfortunately my plan to boost Tont's attack power for all those times that summoning something isn't a good use for his MP is derailed by the fact that he can't equip the Magic Staff.

Oww! It shocked me!
It's rejecting you?
My magic's just not compatible with this thing I think. Bummer.
How does that even work?
Damned if I know! What did Edward say about this staff?
I didn't actually show it to him.

Although given the weird markings on it I really should have.

Here's something I never remembered to showcase: if a character attempts to pass an item they're holding to themselves the game's response is to spit out a "%Character shows off the %Item" line. It's a silly little thing but the thought of Finn waving around a magical staff is worth a chuckle.

Over at the gear shop I again contemplate buying Samson a Rune Axe and again decline. That 135 attack power is awfully tempting but not tempting enough to override his boosted speed in killing things. Eh, maybe later. Also, I continue to be perplexed about why the Guardian Blade is in the game as-is. Because I'm totally going to spend 7,000 gold buying a sword that is a downgrade from the Mystic Blade that Finn got for free. No, no I'm not.

I do however buy a Mystic Hood for Tont to bring his defense up to 39. Tont's still wearing a Wind Cloak and so I decide against buying a Mystic Cloak. He could use the Defense boost but the Speed hit feels too costly.

So one quick warp back to Discipline Town Edward rejoins the party and Tont returns to whatever it is he does when he's not in the party. (That raises a number of rather scary possibilities!) Edward can equip the Magic Staff. Wait a minute...

It raises his attack power to 131? From 100? What the hell is this staff made of? Does it also disintegrate things on contact and make a mean smoothie while it's at it?

That's more attack power than Sir Samson has right now.

WHAT THE HELL, GAME?

Finn where did you find this?
Uh, where did we find this?
That lonely shrine out in the middle of the ocean. South of Aridia.
Oh, that's right!Now I remember. It was in a fire in a big brazier.
A fire that burned your hand and taught you nothing about searching flames.
As if I'm going to let anything stand between me and treasure.
And that's the saddest lesson of all.

Goodbye Stun Rod. You weren't really worth all the money I paid for you but at least I get most of it back in resale value. It's not all good news in terms of equipment. Edward still has a War Hood and Wind Cloak combo equipped and both are inferior in Defense compared to what's for sale. I could have upgraded the hood without issue but didn't think of it at the time.

Then I fly Steiner to Isla Village because the team needs to get something out of storage and what's the use of being able to fly around on our dragon buddy if we never use that ability?

Ahh, being able to fly so high is really great! I love it!
Why do I hear the distinct hint of a but at the end of that sentence, Steiner?
What? What are you talking about? I didn't say anything like that.
Yeah, no. We know something's wrong. Out with it!
You guys are no fun any more!
Are you being literal or are you busting my ass again?
I do believe he's being literal, Finn.
No I'm not!
You get lonely while we continue on our quest without you. Is that it?
Well... a little.
I miss you too, buddy. It just isn't the same without you.
Really? Kryaar. Well then hurry up and kick Shutat's butt so we can go adventuring again like old times!
What, are you gonna shrink yourself down to a convenient travel size?
I wish! ...Seriously, Edward, work on magic that can do just that.
I, uh, will see what I can come up with.

From the storage chest Finn takes the Steel Key and the Gold Key. One of those keys opens a rather important door. I just couldn't remember which one. Eh, it's not like the team's hurting for inventory space. They're traveling rather light at the moment.

Upstairs is Sonia in precisely the same state as when Marion was liberated. I'm a little sad that Isla doesn't get any more updates. It was interesting watching the village and its people change over the course of the game.

I'm sorry. No news about Percy.
I know you'll find him, Annie. Don't give up.
Don't worry. I owe him a kick in the shins for making you worry so much!

To the northeast of Isla lies the mountains that separate Marion from Zalagoon. Unfortunately they too are rife with the same invisible walls that bisect Aridia. It's even more annoying on Greenheim because it is both completely unexpected and there are no visual clues as to where the invisible walls are. In fact there are no hints at all! Just looking at the screenshot above one would never be able to guess that Steiner can't move north.

Oh and just to complete the annoyance there are more invisible barriers in that same mountain range that serve absolutely no purpose but to aggravate the player. This really cheapens the fact that Steiner can fly the team around, especially after learning that the next part of the plot involves gaining access to a flying machine.

Like, what was the point of programming in any of this if Steiner's flying doesn't actually accomplish anything? Spoiler alert! It has exactly one plot-required function: taking the team to Pity Island. That's it. The devs could have removed some or all of the shoals around Pity Island but nope - gotta go through the whole Test of Discipline so Steiner can grow up and ferry the team around for five whole minutes then sit around on the overworld map doing nothing for the rest of the game.

Yes, I am ranting a bit. I'm also a bit bitter that Finn's been robbed of his dual-attack with Steiner. Damnit that attack was cool and unblockable but also awesome because tiny dragon roar and divebombing!

In other news the team teleports to Bandore where they make sure to stop and say hello to the most important NPC in town.

Meow.
Aww, who's a good kitty?
*starts purring*

Down in the bowels of the castle they reach this staircase. They've seen it before several times. In fact just to their south is the still-open passageway that leads to town.

What are we looking for?
If memory serves there's a locked door down here.
You think the tablet's down there?
Can't hurt to check, can it?
It can if there's a vicious demon behind that door.
Ugh, let's hope not, okay?

The Steel Key does nothing with this door. Not that I really expected it too. I just didn't want to have to make a run back to Isla if had misremembered which key it was.

I don't hear or sense anything unusual.
Neither do I.

It is the Gold Key that unlocks this door. For those who have forgotten that's the key that was lying on the ground in the bowels of the volcano. The team had to blunder their way through Yeon's trap before they could reach it.

It worked. Wait, it worked?
I don't understand it either.
Perhaps we should just be grateful for a bit of good fortune.
There's the tablet.

Key Item Ancient Tablet got!

So it is.
I don't get it. It's been here the entire time?
From the dust and cobwebs it has been hanging here undisturbed for years.
Soooo does this mean Shutat wasn't after the tablet when he attacked Barbaros?
That is not a comforting thought, Finn!
That might be plausible though. If these tablets are such a big deal why not destroy this one? It's not like Shutat didn't have plenty of time.
If the key was actually lost and no one could unlock the door that might explain at least part of it.
Just destroy the door...
Yes, that thought had crossed my mind.
Maybe... he doesn't know what they are.
How could he not? A minister in Barbaros told us what they're for. Several of Arawn's followers did the same. Bandore's been guarding one for centuries. Don't they have records and stuff?
I don't think they do, sis. We've been up and down and all over this kingdom several times over and never heard anything about it.
So what you're saying is that Shutat and his cronies took over the country and yet never bothered to look in the one locked room in the whole castle?
It must not have seemed important all the way down here.
Shutat's mind was on something else. Something... Yeah I'd better stop that thought right there.
Finn?
I'm okay. His mistake, our gain. That's how I'm going to look at this.

What else can I do, sis?
Let's not mention this to anyone in Bandore. We don't want to cause a scene while we make off with a priceless treasure.

Over in the dungeons the Gold Key proves to be not so helpful in reaching the locked up treasure.

I don't get it. Why put a chest in a jail cell?
That's exactly what I want to know!
Shutat's dastardly scheme to deny us the castle's riches?
I bet he's got the only key to this cell too, that jerk.

As the team heads down the main boulevard of Bandore Town Finn continues to vent about being denied treasure.

We have the tablet. That's what's important.
*sighs* I know.

So it's back to Isla to drop off those two keys. I also store 30,000 gold just in case. Rainy day fund and all that. Unfortunately I decided to store the three tablets rather then haul them around so I get to make another trip to this chest in the near future. Sometimes I'm a little too well trained in the art of dumping all non-essentials when not absolutely needed.

If something happens to us then I guess your mom and dad are set for the rest of their lives.
Don't say that, Finn! Nothing bad's going to happen to us on Pity Island.

Then it's a quick run to Marion Town to load up on herbs. Yes, I have a team of promoted murder-machines and they still use the most basic healing item in the game. Herbs aren't nearly as useful as they used to be but they still fill a patch-healing niche like nothing else. How long will they continue to fill that niche? Not much longer, probably, but they'll do just fine for the moment.

Preparations complete the team climbs aboard Steiner and starts flying south.

Where to now?
You know that big island to our south? Pity? We need to go there.
Aren't there a bunch of monsters on that island?
You needn't remind us.
I'm gonna miss all the fun stuff, aren't I?
That's the price of Enlightenment, Steiner.
I want a refund!

Hidden in the center of the island is a small shrine-like structure. Thankfully Steiner can land next to it and the team is thus spared a forced hike.

Stepping inside though reveals something that looks nothing like a shrine. The overworld map is lying again!

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - Pity Island!

Update Eighty-four | Index | Update Eighty-six

Beyond the Beyond: Update 84: The Lush Land of Aridia (Loose Ends pt. 2)

ladyabaxa — Tue, 06 Sep 2016 02:23:08 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 84: The Lush Land of Aridia (Loose Ends pt. 2)

Welcome back. Today the team has some more loose ends to tie up before it moves forward with the hunt for tablets. It's best to get this out of the way before diving head first into the next dungeon. Lorele needs a level up so she can join the rest of the team in Enlightenment. She and Domino will always be a bit behind stat-wise just because they won't get those few post 20 levels like the rest of the team but with all the gear that's popping up being for post-promotion classes I consider it more important to keep that up to date.

I could have saved some stat boosters for them but in my experience it's better to use those early where their effects have more of an impact.

This screenshot dates all the way back to update 24 when the team was exploring Simone. This easily missed book is just about the only thing hinting at Merlin and it of course is nice and oblique about it. "The Master Magician, Merlin". A biography about the great Master Magician, Merlin. It says his magic could cheat death itself, but was lost when he disappeared in the fjords north of Marion.

I suppose I should be happy that he didn't get in anyone's way. Good luck finding him without a guide though. You only have to leave your ship on the only two mountain tiles on the world map that are walk-passable and which look exactly like every other mountain range in the world.

I'll bring this map back because today the team is pseudo-exploring the land to the east of those ominous cloud-covered mountains. Leaf Village is to their south and there are some foes they've yet to tango with but which we'll get to see thanks to the game's rather loose encounter zoning. These are tougher foes not to be taken lightly but they don't show up in large enough numbers to be truly dangerous.

At least, not dangerous to this bunch.

First up is a Necromancer and their pet. Just looking at the Necromancer betrays the fact that they're a mage. Take a wild guess which one of the two the team will be attacking first!

As if it was ever really a choice. The Necromancer has to die and quickly before the nukes start flying.

Where do these people come from?
How should I know?
Mountain folk maybe?
We keep running into a veritable parade of them though. How many people could really live way up there?
I don't rightly know.
They've been getting more paranoid. I always thought they were scared of monsters. Maybe not...
Working with the monsters? Like we don't already have enough problems!

The first thing that happens is not Annie attacking but instead the Demon's Pet jumps to the attack against Finn. That's one speedy little pet! Also it bites Finn for a good chunk of damage.

Gah! Why? WHY?!

Finn is quick on the counter attack though.

You ask that as if you expect that little monster to answer.
I keep forgetting Steiner's not here.
We all miss him.
Let's go for a walk, I said. It's a lovely day out here, I said. I should know better by now!

The Necromancer survives the opening barrage and is fast enough to pull off a double attack on Lorele. It's a whole lot better than what they could have done with their turn so I'm not exactly complaining!

These are rather tough enemies (relatively speaking in terms of the enemy power scale in the game) but five on one still falls squarely in the team's favor. The Demon's Pet gets another attack in but that's all it can do - be ridiculously fast and snap at the team. Also be a ludicrously cute flying squirrel/mouse/bat thing.

Don't bite me! That's rude!
Now you understand how I feel, sis.

Sir Samson gets the finishing blow.

Hrmph!
No wonder nobody lives out here. It's a death trap.
People who live freely with monsters are out here.
They don't count!
What if we run into someone with a monster who's friendly? What then, Finn?
I guess they... might count.
Might count?

If they don't attack us I'm willing to live and let live.

And here's why I chose this spot beyond simply to change things up a bit because grinding is boring. This pair of enemies was worth 878 xp and 180 gold. The money's kind of meh but that's a nice chunk of experience for two rounds of easy fighting. Also, because the team's fighting on the overworld it's easy to make a hasty escape if things go terribly wrong.

Healing Rain continues to be the staple heal. I really am milking that spell for all it's worth.

Yay for magic?
That doesn't exactly make me feel any better, Finn.
So it did nothing for your wounds?
Those are fine.
Then what's got you so down, sis?
I don't like the fact that we still haven't seen even a glimpse of Shutat's battleship.
They could be halfway across the world by now.
Hit and run? What cowards.
Yes. We've already seen that.
I do wonder why it took so long for them to show up at Barbaros. That's not exactly a long trip from Bandore.
I doubt we'll ever know. It's not like they talk to us.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the world, with the help of a a bit of magic (and it's a shame the deck of the battleship never fully appears on screen because I actually like it and that would have spared me some reconstruction work on this set) the camera focuses on a character that hasn't actually appeared on screen yet. They've only been mentioned off hand a few times.

Iiii'm hoooooked on aaaa feeeeeeliing!

The singing draws some attention from below deck.

Not again! Why do you subject us to this torment?
Nobody forces you to listen. Just wave that wand around and ignore me if it bothers you.
You have the voice of a drowned rat. Face it, Dagoot. It's terrible. I've heard better coming from a drunken troll.
You just have no appreciation for music.
If you wake Lord Shutat with that nonsense...
He wouldn't even know where he is with all those drugs you've put him on. Relax. Enjoy this lovely sea air!
Ugh, lovely? There's nothing lovely about it. That's it. I'm getting off this wreck as soon as possible.

Ramue flees the onslaught of sea spray and bad vocals.

*shrugs* Aaaaa liiiifee aaaatt sseeaaa...
Grah! Damnit, Dagoot! Why?
Jjuuuusst aaaa liiife aaaatt sseeaaa!

Meanwhile, back in Aridia, the team has been ambushed by a trio of monsters.

Wait a minute. Those are demon ladies that Tont likes to summon!
Is that bad?

AAAAAHHH!
Hurk, okay. That answered my question.

There's nothing quite like being ambushed right into a group-wide nuke. I suppose I should be thankful that it's only Ice 2 and not something more deadly.

Seconds later Lorele is knocked unconscious when a Succubus kicks her in the face. That Succubus is a better fighter than 90% of Barbaros was.

Down one team member Annie leads the counterattack!

Stupid... friggin'... demons...
But what do you really think of them?
AARGH!
Sounds about right.

Samson immediately follows up for a two-hit kill. This is why I'm not too worried about upgrading from his Tempest Axe.

No triumphant roar?
Hrmph!
Eh, close enough.

Finn and Domino take out the other Succubus.

And that would be my cue to hit my mark.
You have no idea how glad I am that you never hit me in the back with those.
I have enough enemies as it is.

I take out the Succubi as quickly as possible just to eat a Thunder 1 from the Razor Demon. Down goes Domino into groggy status. The observant might note that I bought a whole bunch of Resist Jewels back in the ruins of Barbaros Castle but haven't used any of them yet. In fact I won't be using them for some time because... well, for one thing I wanted to wait until after Lorele promoted and for another thing I'm so used to the game's antics things like this Thunder 1 spell don't even phase me anymore. For the record they're in Domino's inventory and will be staying there until I'm ready to actually use them.

Now to wait for Domino to recover.

Ugh, my head. The demonesses are dead?
Yeah. They're gone.
A pity.
I'm sure if we just wait around more will turn up.

The Razor Demon spends their freebie turn doing the sensible thing and calling for help. Okay, so the best option would be to run away but failing that calling for backup's not bad.

Domino has nothing better to do with his MP than casting Wind 2. Since the team's not in a dungeon and Razor Demons sit in the enemy back row I figured what the heck. Let him have fun with it. Of course Domino is so slow compared to most of his teammates that one demon is already dead by the time he gets his turn.

When the team isn't being beset by fiends and wild animals they find a pristine stretch of coastline. Civilization is miles away.

It really is peaceful out here isn't it?
Yeah it is! That sea air's coming in nice and cool.
With warm sand between your toes and not a care in the world.
What about you, Sir Samson? Is this peaceful for you?
*shrugs* I suppose so.
Sir Samson's never really at peace.
I suspect that truer words have never been spoken, Finn.

MEANWHILE...

(1) Lord Dagoot...
How many times do I have to remind you not to call me lord?
(1) S-sir, yes sir. Dagoot, sir, are you sure of our heading? We still haven't seen land.
*sighs* Yes I'm sure. These winds aren't carrying us as fast as I thought they would. We'll get there.
(2) Is it true that you and Mistress Ramue had an argument this morning?
Brave, eh? Heh.
(2) Huh? Oh! Hurk!
...
(1) But... did you?
She has no taste in music. Hey, boy!
...
You can quote me on that when Ramue asks you what happened up here.
*growls*
What was that? Ramue got yer tongue! Ah, ha, ha, ha!
...hate... you.
(1) I-i-is it wise to taunt him like this sir?
It's just some harmless fun. Grow a spine! Ya get fresh meet ya gotta break it in.
HATE. YOU.
With that attitude you'll fit in eventually, kid.

Well I'm going to go stretch these wings of mine. You boys be good while I'm gone.
(1) B-b-but what should we tell Mistress Ramue if she comes up while you're gone?
Knowin' her she'll probably throw a party behind my back. Don't worry about it!
(2) You don't have to deal with her when she's angry...
I heard that!
(2) Eep!
Anyway... Hmm, you know what? I think I just got a great idea. I should teach her little pet over there to sing.
...
(1) That's - that's probably not a good idea.
Of course it is! It's a great idea! That boy's way too quiet for his own good. He should be exercising those lungs of his to their fullest potential! Whattaya say, boy? Beats guarding the boat while everyone else is out having all the fun.
...
Excellent! I'll be back soon to get you started.

Back with the team a trio of Hippogriffs hovers menacingly. Okay, so they're not really all that threatening. The only thing they've got going for them is that they're in the enemy back row so it takes longer to pummel them to death.

Counterattacks help speed up the process though!

Just because I attacked you doesn't mean you get to fight back!
Uh, sis, I'm pretty sure it does mean that.
...you just have to ruin my trash talking don't you, Finn?
*shrugs*

These birds aren't even worth the effort, Annie. My fists easily find their mark.

Unfortunately Lorele isn't being particularly helpful in combat. She's getting double penalties here which explains her piddly 1 damage. At least she does genuinely and unambiguously punch her enemies. That's a big step up from some other monks appearing in Camelot games that I can think of.

I'll just stick with my knives, thanks.
What would you do if your enemy disarmed you?
Run.
You would abandon a battle and admit your weakness?
Only a fool would try to win a hopeless battle. Better to live a fool then die a fool.

Domino doesn't get any of those row penalties. His attack power isn't as high as the frontliners but he still manages to be useful just because of that one little fact.

There are some more new enemies to contend with: an Ekidona and a pair of Minataur Lords. Yes, Minataur, not Minotaur.

Not more snake ladies!
Why? What's wrong?
Arawn has a bunch, er, slithering all over his tower.
Strange taste.

Unfortunately, while the Ekidona can toss out Ice spells that's not the real nuisance of this formation. Minataur Lords are able to use an item they carry called a Dragon Roar to raise the attack power of one group. On the bright side with the way enemy groups are split up in the formation this only ever effects three enemies, tops.

That's not a whole lot of comfort though when they spend the turn that the team's ganging up on the Ekidona to buff themselves. Snake lady got an ice spell off before she died otherwise Finn would have withstood this 43 damage hit with a sliver of VP left.

Such pretty little birds!
What are you doing? Pull yourself together, Finn!
Graaaaahhh.
Save your breath. He's completely out of it.

Healing Rain is highly efficient but Annie still runs out of MP in short order. Lorele has less MP than before because she's been patch healing. It seems silly to use Annie's MP for that when Finn and Lorele are both standing there.

Ugghhh.
Almost tapped out here guys. Maybe we should think of something less dangerous to spend our time on.

Hark, four Vampire Bats approach!

What about those adorable little creatures? They don't look all that dangerous.
Hurk!
What? What's wrong?
Uh oh...
AAAAAAAAAAAA

AAAAAAAAAHHHH!
(2) What was that sound?
Something... familiar.
(1) I don't hear anything. What are you talking about?
(2) Huh, nothing around us for miles. Must be the wind.
Hrm!

WHEREDOTHESETHINGSCOMEFROMGOAWAYWHYDOESTHISHAPPENTOME?!!
Jeez, brother of mine, calm down. That bat is very dead.

See? Barely any threat at all!
The Great Light has... a bat phobia? How odd!
I do not have a phobia! For bats or anything else! Also, don't call me the Great Light. That's creepy.
You've got issues, kid.
If Steiner were here he'd agree with you, Domino.

Vampire Bats are nothing to worry about for the team. They're sturdy enough to get some attacks in but it's nothing to worry about.

Evil Summoners could be slightly more troublesome, especially when Annie's down to her last magic point and can no longer heal, but with only one and no other monsters to take priority the team dogpiles the summoner before they can do anything.

Annie is poisoned by the Wyvern but victory still brings Lorele up to level 20. Mission accomplished!

Are you feeling okay, sis? You don't look so good.
Nothing I can't sleep off.

Rather than going to Leaf Village the team warps to Bandore Town. I didn't have anyone in Discipline Town so the team couldn't go directly there. Eh, it doesn't really matter which inn they go to what with 38,854 gold weighing down their pockets.

I learn the hard way that staying at an inn in Beyond the Beyond does not cure poison. Despite the fact that Cure 1 is dirt cheap Annie still couldn't cast it before resting because she didn't have enough MP. Lorele was also out of mana at the time.

Gah! Finally! Begone foul contagion!
I was wondering why you kept throwing up throughout the night.

Party rested, poison removed, it's time to warp over to Discipline Town and get this whole classing up thing out of the way. On a side note Leaf Village was, for some unknown reason, translated as Leave Village. I am honestly stumped as to how that happened. It seems rather obvious it should be Leaf instead. The village is surrounded by that thick canopy of trees after all.

Anyway I send Edward over to Discipline Town as needed.

Minutes later the team is again in front of the Master of Discipline.

Ahh, you have returned. So, you again require my aid?
For the last time I hope.
I will give the worthy enlightenment without the challenge! Does anyone seek enlightenment?
Yes.
Who seeks enlightenment?
*takes a deep breath* I do.
To realize your true potential, look within yourself!

Lorele becomes a Master Monk! Also, she gains the cutest purple pigtails!

It looks as if you have all the guidance you require. Pleasant journey, brave warriors!
So that's all it takes? I don't understand. My father said this test was difficult.
Finn completed the challenge so the rest of us get a free ride.
I still don't understand why that is.
Some things are not to be questioned. Leave them be.
And that sounds thoroughly ominous.
That's what we keep saying!

Speaking to the Master of Discipline again causes the group to fan out but she, without even looking at the group, just tells them that there's nothing more that she can do for them. She's not kidding either. We are finally done with the Isle of Discipline. No, seriously. The team has no need to ever return.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - everybody's classed up now. Time to get ready for a dungeon dive!

Update Eighty-three | Index | Update Eighty-five

Wikipedia and Obscure Games

ladyabaxa — Sun, 04 Sep 2016 05:43:07 GMT

So, as anyone who has followed my work over the last few years might guess, I've played quite a bit of the Sega CD game Dark Wizard. I do love the game despite it's many flaws. Today though is a post on how information about obscure games like Dark Wizard is often inaccurate. Specifically I'm talking about the game's Wikipedia page. (Go ahead and read it if you haven't. It's short.)

I'm going to quote some parts of the article and explain where they... aren't quite accurate.

"His anger towards Gilliam and the kingdom of Cheshire grew, and he used his knowledge of forbidden spells to summon four demon generals to conquer Cheshire while he attempted to free the dark god Arliman."

I'll ignore the rather run-on nature of this one sentence and how it should be broken up into two or three separate statements. No, what I want to point out is that Velonese does not summon the "four demon generals" as if he opened a gate and four demons answered the call. He literally creates them from his own body. Velonese performs a ritual that separates four ribs from his immortal body and each transforms into one of the demons. They are a part of Velonese which is why he is able to command them as well as why he can resurrect them with the Call Undead spell.

The game's english manual agrees with this. On pages 3 and 4 it states "Velonese used his forbidden knowledge to summon four elemental demons from his own body and ordered them to wage war on Cheshire while he made preparations to break the seal on the Jewel of Darkness and free Arliman."

So close Wikipedia. So close.

"There is no canonical link between the four characters and their stories, and Armer IX, while seemingly the rightful heir, does not appear to exist in the other three scenarios."

This statement is simply wrong. Amon only appears in his own scenario but other vampires take over the town of Loa in every scenario with the same plan of increasing their number. Amon is presumably somewhere in the world keeping a low profile. The other three rulers as well as the lieutenants of the four scenarios do appear. They're civilians going about their lives in their various towns. Finding them all is actually something of a treat. They don't fight because in those alternate stories their paths diverged and they ended up not being motivated to serve the king, embark on adventure, seek revenge, or what have you.

Armer IX can be easily found in the other scenarios. He's in the tavern in Cheshire Town which is right next to Cheshire Castle. If a member of the Holy Army enters and talks to people he'll walk up and insist that he's the rightful ruler of Cheshire. He even does it during Amon's scenario when Armer VIII is thought to still be alive! This isn't some esoteric thing either. It's well known among the fanbase.

On a final note Armer VIII is called Wynrick VIII in the game's english manual. His son is named Armer. No numbers after that name. He's just simply Armer. However there's no Armer in the internal file names of the battle sprites. There is, however, a WENREEK____. It's file MLUNI096.BIN and yes that file is Armer IX's battle scene sprites. I checked. Somewhere along the line Wenreek/Wynrick got changed to Armer but didn't propagate all the way down the line by the time the manual was written.

Temporary Hiatus

ladyabaxa — Sat, 13 Aug 2016 20:10:25 GMT

I am rather behind on tasks at the moment so I'm going to take some time to try to get caught up. Updates will be sporadic. Welcome to fall northern hemisphere!

Beyond the Beyond: Update 83: Old Times Gone By (Loose Ends)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 07 Aug 2016 01:50:06 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 83: Old Times Gone By (Loose Ends)

Where were we, Mistrall? That sounds about right. It's been some time since we stopped to evaluate the team so first off let's do that.

No one has gained any post-promotion level ups yet but Finn's slightly more than halfway there. He's starting to look like an actual knight. Also, he's up to 46 max VP! It's a bit sad that I find that almost extraordinary but such is Beyond the Beyond. His gear isn't likely to change much in the near future but what he's got is already pretty good. Having +69 attack power is rather respectable even if moving down to his defense power and realizing that he only gets 26 points from his equipment is a little depressing. Beyond the Beyond is a tad lopsided like that!

Aww, come on, Finn! I haven't gotten to see this new sword of yours yet.
Fine. *sheaths the Mystic Blade*
So that's it. I wonder what the inscription means.
I have no idea. It started glowing when I picked it up.
What happened?
My arm started hurting then my clothes changed and I teleported out of the Labyrinth.
Does that mean everyone sent in there was looking for that sword?
I hope not.

Annie manages to be second highest in defense despite the fact that her base defense feels a bit pathetic. She's crushing the rest of the team in speed and her max MP allows for eight Healing Rains and some change. Her max VP is a little worrisome but that's what the defense and max LP is for.

It's a little disconcerting to think that the Labyrinth hinged entirely on who was sent in.
Kryaa. But isn't that what its supposed to do?
What I mean is that if the goal was to find that sword and if it only worked its magic for Finn the rest of us would have always failed.
The game is rigged so to speak.
But... other people have completed the Labyrinth. Right? I'm not just making that up am I?
Just think, Finn, Arawn could have put the whole shebang together.
And play on Finn's love of swords? Sounds about right.
What are you doing? Do you want to get Arawn's attention again?
Surely he's got better things to do than watch us all the time.
*looks up at the sky cautiously*
Aww, come on Annie. I think he's doing a fine job in keeping Finn paranoid. We should at least make sure to shout into the Light Orb about that every so often.
CAN WE NOT?!
That's the spirit, Finn. Lead the way! Shout proudly to the heavens!
Didn't you gain Enlightenment or something? Why are you so eager for Arawn to show up?
That's a very good question, Finn.
Aaaahhhhhh!

Samson's holding onto the top spot in defense and is second highest in VP. With that +5 Speed bonus he's even managed to knock Finn back to third in the team's turn order. His Luck is rather terrible but that doesn't seem to bother him in any way.

You're your usual quiet self, Sir Samson.
He seems content to let others say everything.
Unless I'm the one talking.
Hrmph! As if I should indulge you any further.
You mean like how you just did?
Consider it a freebie. Just this once, for you.
Aww, Samson you flatter me.
Ugh!

Lorele's stats haven't changed since she joined the team. She will start working towards level 20 in this update though so that's something!

Sir Samson are you ever going to say why you dislike Domino so much? He's been nothing but polite.
Something personal, perhaps?
Sorry to disappoint you but no. It's not a personal vendetta.
Duty and honor and all that. That's what it is.
Why does it sound like you don't believe those are good things?
I just have issues with certain definitions of those words.
Not the only thing you have issues with.

Domino's still trying to catch up to the kids in pretty much everything. I doubt he'll succeed though given the head start they've got. His stats haven't changed all that much since he joined as a level 15 Pirate (the fact that I promoted him at level 20 while other members of the team were level 23 just puts him further behind). Despite all that he's doing okay. My main worry is that pretty much any two nukes are going to groggy him.

Maybe we should ask what your vendetta is.
But we already know that. REVENGE!
Then why is he going after me so much?
Can you blame me? It brings a smile to my face.
Yes I can blame you!
Haven't you been doing that since you first met Domino?
Yes he has. Why is that, Sir Samson?
I've been suspicious of you. Because you're a pirate. There's nothing irrational about that.
I could say the same thing for knights.

Samson doesn't have a ring equipped. The Fire Ring offers a +2 Defense bonus so I go ahead and give it to him.

So what's going on? Where are you going?
I don't know yet. We need to find all four tablets now. Annie said she wanted to come here first though.
I just... feel we need to go east. Across the ocean.
There's a lot of world to the east. Can you narrow that feeling down a little?
Some lonely place where you can smell the ocean breeze.
O-kay...
Is Miss Annie cursed or something? She's never gotten like this before.
I don't think she's cursed.
I'm not crazy either. It's just that while we were going through those shrines I started getting these impressions of someplace else.
Eh, good enough for me. If it's a trap by Shutat then at least we might find him.
Sir Samson's not the only cynical one. Finn I think you're going to fit in with the Marion Knights.
Uh, thanks?
No problem!

The team takes to the skies but Domino's ship isn't waiting for them on the eastern shores of Gebergheim.

In trying to turn around and head west Steiner flies right into another line of mountains he can't cross. Thanks to the game camera we can see a cave entrance on the other side. It cannot be reached right now. We'll have to remember to come back here later.

The ship is parked over on the far western shore just beyond the shoal line. Steiner's way too big for the boat and has to land. Alas this whole "growing up" thing has really sidelined our scaly friend.

You stay safe out here, Steiner.
I think I can manage that. You try not to crash the ship.
And have you miss all the excitement? Not a chance.

The first random encounter comes less than ten seconds after I start sailing. It's as if the game is fully aware of how much I've been avoiding encounters by teleporting and flying around and is determined to rectify that ASAP.

Now there's a familiar sight!
You mean the hydras?
Oh yes. Always fun to spar with them. All those heads keeps it interesting.

In addition to the team's new clothes we can watch a hydra deflect Domino's thrown knife with its tail. Fortunately ricochets are not something to worry about in this game. At least, not something the team has to worry about. The info window at the top of the screen though has plenty to worry about what with Domino's knife sailing through it. Just don't ask why Domino swapped to an underhanded throw with his Captain class. That I don't know.

Eventually the team once again reaches this point on the edge of Marion.

Here? Are you sure, sis? This was just an empty cave.
I'm sure. This is the place.
*shrugs* Let's do this.

The team last saw this cave back in update 74. At that time the pot was a free full-team restore. Now searching it prompts a voice to call out from nowhere.

<Ominous Voice> There's nothing in that pot!

Eek!
Who said that?

Finn and company look around for the owner of the <Ominous Voice> while someone teleports in behind them. Or drops their cloaking field. Either way someone's in for a surprise.

There's no one here.
We definitely heard a voice though.
Some strange kind of trap.

What appears to be an old bald man materializes in front of the pot.

Woo hoo hoo! Over here! Here!
What?
Behind you, Finn.
Woo hoo hoo! Were you surprised? I can't believe that I have a visitor!

Warning! Animated GIF ahead!

The old fellow teleports around Finn inspecting him and the team while doing a whole lot of nodding.

Who are you? What are you doing?
Yeah, seriously. Stop that!
Sorry if I scared you, but in times like these, one can't be too cautious.
Most people don't hide themselves with magic.
Every time we've seen that it's been bad. Like, Vicious Ones bad.
Is this your home? We did not mean to trespass.
My home? No, no. It is... well, it is hard to explain such things. I wasn't sure anyone would come. But, yes... yes, you are the one!

Well, let me introduce myself. I am the master magician, Merlin. I have been waiting for this day for over 300 years.
Three hundred years, eh? And here I thought I was getting old.
Nobody can live that long.
Don't be frightened. I've mastered so many spells, that living a long time is a simple task for me... But, all my magic is peaceful.
What do you want?
Arawn asked me to go into exile and to wait for the Great Light. He told me that my magic could one day help save the world from a great darkness. And so I left the world and waited for three long centuries. Waited for you. Welcome, Great Light.
My name's Finn. *awkward pause* Hrm, this is my sister, Annie.
Hello.
These are some of our friends. Lorele.
You should not sneak up on people like that! I could have killed you.
Sir Samson.
*bows slightly*
And Domino.
Running into all sorts of legends these days.
It is an honor to meet all of you.
Wait, did you call us here?
I did.
Why?
So that I can complete my assigned task. I am able to grant one of you the power of resurrection. Do you want me to teach you the spell now?
I... guess we should. If Arawn thinks we'll need that kind of magic who am I to argue?
At last! After 300 years, my task will be complete. So, who shall I teach?

Saying YES brings up a list of everyone in the current party so that a choice may be made. Given that this is a high-level clerical ability the choice for this bunch is pretty obvious.

Miss Annie I do believe this decision is yours.
What? I... I don't know if such power belongs in human hands.
But priests of Arawn do it all the time. What's so different with this?
That is a good point. What use does Arawn have with your resurrection spell, Merlin?
My magic cares not what the cause of death was or the state of the physical body. It gives form to the eager soul and restores its place among the living. It is resurrection in the truest sense.
I guess if you're all fine with this... Okay. I'll learn your spell.
Excellent. Just close your eyes and relax. Soon you will understand.

And just like that Annie can raise the dead. No fuss, no fetch quest. It's as simple as saying yes.

There we go. Do you understand now?
Yes. Thank you.
You have ended my long wait. I should be thanking you.

At 12 MP per cast Resurrect is the most expensive spell Annie has. Fortunately death doesn't strike the team often so this will hopefully go unused for the rest of the game.

Come back anytime.
You're kind of out of the way up here.
*laughs* Yes. I had to be.
What's with the pot? Why didn't you want us to touch it?
There is powerful magic in these waters. It could be dangerous.
Whoops!
Huh?
We sampled the water while you were gone a couple weeks ago.
Oh? Is that all? Don't worry about it. Hrm... What should I do now? This world is so different from the one I used to know.
That eye there. We've seen it all over Simone. What is it?
The watchful eye? It is a symbol of wisdom and a ward against evil. So Simone still stands?
Yup. Was it full of mages three hundred years ago?
That it was. A refuge from the harsh world where magic could be studied in peace. Perhaps I should see what they're up to these days.
Well you certainly couldn't make them any weirder.

-- BONUS CONTENT --

Since there's a Yes/No prompt with Merlin here's what happens with the No branch.

What?! Are you saying that you don't need this powerful magic? I guess you don't know how valuable this spell is. I've waited 300 years to teach this to you! Well, Come [sic] back if you change your mind.

He then nods just like if the player had said Yes and the conversation ends. He doesn't go anywhere though so the player can interact with him again - a good option in case there's no one in the team who's a good candidate for the spell. He starts with his closing "What should I do now line?" but it's a different dialogue branch.

By the way, do you wish to learn the spell of Resurrection?

That brings up the Yes/No prompt. From there it either goes to Yes or No as already seen.

Samson has no MP so teaching him Resurrection would just be sticking it on someone who can't cast it. The game however is aware of that. Trying to pick Samson just prompts Merlin to reject the idea.

Hmm... Sir Samson is not capable of wielding magic. Shall I teach someone else?

"Not capable of wielding magic." That's a bit harsh. Merlin doesn't say that Samson's untrained or lacks the mental fortitude or mana reserves or what have you. He is actually incapable of using magic.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - grinding!

Update Eighty-two | Index | Update Eighty-four

Updates: Fall 2016

ladyabaxa — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 20:56:47 GMT

It's almost August as I type this update and that means we're getting closer to another year of NaNoWriMo. Ahh, November - that month of the year when I join the hordes in building up a wordcount. I made 84k words last year which is my highest total yet. If I were the ambitious sort this is where I'd pledge to go for 100k. I'm not though. Instead my cynicism merges with my arthritis to remind me that the goal is 50k words and if I reach that and don't break a new records that's perfectly fine.

The irony (perhaps?) of that sentiment is that I took the time to get my word count for Beyond the Beyond up to date and the total, as of update 81, is at 314,215 words. I swear I didn't start out with the intention to write an LP in half a million words! Act 3 is the wordiest so far at 95,953 words total.

When this post goes up I'll go back to writing update 83. That brings me to an immediate update. I'm not planning on posting said update this Sunday, July 31. The reason is that the internet connection in my home has been unstable. A new modem from TWC is only one part of the solution. A line outside has to be replaced. It's getting a lot of interference which has been knocking the modem offline. With any luck that will be complete within 48 hours and things will be stable. Since I can't make any guarantees though I'm just going to use the time to make update 83 a bit more interesting (or at the very least proofread it a few more times).

That brings me to my last point. What to do after Beyond the Beyond? Hmm, that's a good question. My recording options are limited. Should I do another narrative LP? Beyond the Beyond has been lengthy but rather fun for me.

Beyond the Beyond: Update 82: Pyramid Power (Tablet Shrines)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 24 Jul 2016 15:10:56 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 82: Pyramid Power (Tablet Shrines)

There's no sign of Shutat anywhere. He, his crew, and his battleship have all apparently gone invisible and wandered off to some distant corner of the world. In light of that strange reality the team has little choice but to figure out what the deal is with those tablets they've been collecting.

First though there is the little matter of Lorele's starting stats. She joins at level 19 which means she isn't quite able to go straight to a class up. Grinding her up to level 20 is high on the priority list but won't happen in this update. Her stats aren't all that impressive but her attack power isn't too bad. Unfortunately her defense isn't high enough for me to consider putting her into the front row so her attack power will be inherently nerfed.

The most concerning thing is her low Speed. She's the slowest member of the party by a good margin. Finn has 28, Annie has 39 (!), Samson has 29, and Domino has 24 Speed. I suppose a valid strategy would be saving Defense and Speed boosts for Lorele in hopes of making her a decent frontliner. As is I have no plans on altering the team's formation. Lorele will just have to make do with the attack penalty from sitting in the back row.

As befitting a monk Lorele has a mix of offensive and defensive magic. Two levels of Heal make for decent patch healing and she can cure poison. Sleep is a bit useless - Lorele's too slow to be effective with it plus we're getting well into the late game where enemy resistances are more serious - but being able to raise defense power with the Defense spell could be useful. We've been the target of many Wind spells and it is unfortunately less useful for us because of the way groups are built but Lorele might get some mileage out of it.

The team's got a lot of traveling to do so here's a look at the part of the world map that concerns them. I've placed X's on every location related to the quest for this part of the game. Two we've already dealt with and one doesn't come into real play until later.

The journey begins just outside of Bandore where Steiner waits impatiently for something interesting to happen.

So what's the plan?
There are a number of small islands scattered around. Nobody lives on them to my knowledge. Couldn't hurt to check.
How many are we talking about?
Not many. Feeling up to it, kid?
We have nothing better to do.
All right! I've been waiting for a chance to put these wings to use.
How are we going to find these islands? It's a big ocean out there.
I know the general direction we must go. I trust Steiner's sharp eyes to do the rest.
Damn right! Nothing gets past me.
So how many monsters have slipped past you since you grew up?
They don't 'slip past me.' They take one look at me and scurry off lest I eat them.
I have a hard time picturing you eating any monster no matter how hungry you are.

The team saddles up and heads out only to run headlong into something I haven't mentioned: invisible walls! I would say these are rarely and easy to avoid but that would be a lie. Every continent, sadly, has them, and they are completely invisible (as already suggested) so there's no way to tell where they are without flying right into them. Screenshots don't really convey their presence well (again, nothing there to see). They're used to wall off parts of the world map so Steiner can't reach them.There's no warning they exist either. The player just has to sort of bumble into them.

Why yes we did go through a bunch of trouble classing up just so Steiner could grow up... and then find out that he can't fly the party to any of the interesting places the team's been hearing about on their journey. That's why we're going to spend this update going to places we could already reach by boat. As a small compensation there are no random encounters while flying.

Finding the exact borders of the invisible barrier takes some poking around.

I'm sorry, Finn. I can't climb any higher. The air up here is just too thin.
It's okay. You did your best.
So much for flying to Zeal.
We'll just have to find another way.
That doesn't bode well. If we can't find any way in how can anyone still alive in there get out?
I'm hoping Zeal's fine and we find out Shutat just blocked the tunnel to cover his tracks.
Finn is ever the optimist.
With everything that's happened lately someone has to hope it doesn't get worse.

The forests around Barbaros continue to provide no opening for Steiner to land even if he wanted to.

I see it now. Wow! Shutat's bunch really did a number on the place.
It looks worse from the ground.
There's a big hole in the outer wall! What caused that?
I don't think Finn wants to know.
You're right. I don't.
There was a big explosion and the ground shook. I didn't see it but the sound... it was unlike anything I've ever felt.
I suppose we should count ourselves lucky that whatever they did they didn't use it earlier. That would have been a nasty surprise for Zalagoon.

All around Barbaros is pristine wilderness as far as the eye can see.

Is any of this part of Barbaros, Lorele?
Sort of. Father always had a tough time with people this far out. Not too keen on listening to authority, you see.
So they didn't think of themselves as part of the kingdom. I wonder if they're still out here, clueless as to what's happened.
Word has already spread to Marion so my guess is that they've heard. Whether or not they care is another matter entirely.
You say that as if they might be happy to see your father dead.
I don't really want to think about it but Father had his share of enemies. All kings do I suppose. He never let it bother him though so it couldn't have been too serious.

To the south is a network of rivers that can be traversed by ship but don't lead anywhere but wilderness. The rivers are elegantly horizontal as they snake around in their grid. It is a little jarring given how much other elements of world topography at least try to have natural-looking curves and indentations. It's a shame that this is all eye candy with nothing to actually do except fight random monsters.

From there though they start flying south.

How far are we talking about?
Just keep flying, Steiner. I've sailed this route before.

With the right starting point it doesn't take long to find this little island tucked away in a distant corner of the world map. It is small and looks unremarkable but there's a building of some sort.

There we go. That's it.
What is it?
I don't know. The entrance was locked the last time I was here.
You couldn't have told us that before we flew all the way out here?
*chuckles* Just wait. I think you'll find it interesting.

Once they get closer the team finds an odd little pyramid on top of a stone platform tucked inside of tree-covered hills.

Hmm... unusual.
That doesn't look locked to me.
You sound like you were expecting this, Domino.
I had a hunch something might have changed. That seems to be how these things work.
Are these torches magical? It doesn't look like there's anyone around here to light them.
As far as I know no one lives on this island.
It looks almost new. How long has this been here?
That eye up there reminds me of Simone.
Eyes everywhere! I wonder why. Do they actually see anything?
Let's hope not.

Downstairs is a nice red carpet that leads to what appears to be an empty altar. Nothing happens when the team walks up the stairs though. It's just a red herring.

There is something valuable hidden in the left/west torch. Finn fishes out a Magic Staff. No one in the party can equip it since both of our mages are elsewhere.

Finn! Why in the world would you stick your hand in a fire?
There was something interesting in it!
*sighs* Let me see your hand.

The only other thing of note is a torch on the right/east wide that blocks an open passage.

Ugh, no. This won't budge.
I wish Edward were here. This is probably magical.
I don't get it. Why bother building this?
There must be some test or trick we're just not seeing.
It is very peaceful here. I like it.

Back on the overworld the party takes a look at the World Map. I've marked the location of the island they are on since it is difficult to see to begin with. Obviously we'll have to return to this shrine later.

Rather than fly across the map, which would require maneuvering around those huge mountain ranges on Aridia that Steiner can't traverse, I instead warp back to Bandore. Technically there are closer locations like Luna or Discipline Town but in the time it would take to move a character to either site the team could just fly the distance. Again, we don't have random encounters while flying so the time difference means little.

There are four little islands in the center of the interior sea. We could have visited these earlier when sailing around but since the team couldn't complete the tablet quest yet I decided to wait. Visiting would have meant more sea encounters and the team was getting plenty beat up as it was.

Another shrine?
That wasn't here before.
So a shrine has spontaneously appeared?
Hidden by magic most likely.
What makes you think that?
These old places seem to be brimming with magic.
...old?
Whatever. Let's land and see what it is.

What they find is a stone platform, much like that distant shrine, upon which rests a small pyramid. This shrine has an occupant to talk to though.

Good day to you travelers. What brings you to this sanctuary?
We want to know what the deal is with those big stone tablets scattered around.
Have you heard the legend of the Flying Palace?
Not really.
Then I shall tell you. Long ago, Arawn and his four followers headed to Quamdar in the Flying Palace and made a deal with the Vicious Ones.
A deal?
We've heard about this, Finn. That's the agreement where we stay on our half of the world and they stay on their half of the world.
So this shrine was built by Arawn? That would explain why it's appeared now.
To obtain the legendary Flying Palace, you must collect all of the Ancient Tablets and place them in each of the four shrines.
The Flying Palace, eh. Here's hoping it can fly high enough to cross those high mountains.
Arawn does seem to love being way up high.

Hidden in a torch is an item so cursed the game doesn't even try to hide it. The Cursed Scarf is like picking up money, if said money occupied an inventory slot and had to be liquidated at a shop that probably doesn't actually want it.

Searching the indentation at the base of the pyramid reveals that something is missing - something, oh, tablet shaped.

Arawn could have just told us what the tablets are for. It would have saved a lot of time.
Yeah but then he'd be "getting involved" and you know he doesn't want to do that.
So why did he talk to us from the sky while we were on the volcano?
I just like to keep tabs on you kids.
Eep!
Are you watching everything we do?
Not everything. I just check on you now and then to make sure you're still going in the right direction.

In game the four islands are laid out in an equidistant cross unlike how they appear on the manual map. That's good. It means the team can just fly straight south to reach another island. In the middle is this curious ring of ship-barring shoals marking what is doubtless some plot-important spot.

The southern shrine sits on a flat green plain with some small trees for company.

Greetings, travelers. What brings you here?
You mean besides paranoia from Arawn watching our every move?
You have nothing to worry about.
You're not helping right now!
*hearty laughter* Never change, Finn.
So you serve Arawn? Ahh, then you seek the tablets.
And what is your role in all of this?
To protect the world, Arawn put the palace in the sea and placed guards at each shrine. It is my task to protect this place and ward off any interference.
Now ask the nice man where the tablets are. I'm sure he knows.
Okay. Where are the tablets?
Three of the tablets are in Barbaros, Bandore, and Pity. Arawn took the remaining tablet.
So why was Zalagoon left out?
It didn't exist yet. _{Brelin was being a lazy git.}
What was that? I didn't quite hear you.
Don't worry about it. Way before your time.

Once again there is a piece of cursed equipment hidden in a torch. This Evil Scale will not be sitting in Finn's inventory for long on account of being rather icky.

Flying north to the ring and turning east the team finds a stone structure in the middle of a desert. Why yes the island it's on is indeed green and lush from the overworld.

Greetings. What brings you here?
We were sort of in the area checking out the shrines. Might as well visit all of them.
I hope those other tablets won't be hard to find.
You're searching for them?
Arawn gave us one. Another one was a wall decoration in Barbaros.
I guess we should be thankful the king of Barbaros died to protect it.
I had no idea it was so valuable.
When you find all four tablets return. Place the four Ancient Tablets in all of the shrines. When the holy light forms, the pyramid shall rise.
We have heard of this Flying Palace. It will be an honor to see it in action.
How are we going to fly it, anyway? Does it come with instructions?
Getting the tablets is only the first challenge. Use of the Flying Palace shall be given to those who are strong, brave, and intelligent.
So a bunch of tests? Lovely...
Hasn't everything about Arawn been a bunch of tests?
Why yes it has. Good observation there, Finn.
Gah! Why do you keep doing that?
Well you're standing in a shrine I designed, planning to raise a machine I submerged, for a task I pointed out you should undertake. Is that enough?
*grumbles something incomprehensible*
*chuckles*
Are you going to be talking to us if we get this pyramid thing in the air?
I just might.

The last of the four shrines is another flat, grass covered plain.

Hi there.
Good day to you. What brings you here?
Yours is the last shrine we have to visit.
Ahh, so you are Arawn's chosen. It is a pleasure to finally meet you. We guard all of the shrines to protect the road to Quamdar, but I doubt if anyone can gather all of the Ancient Tablets.
We've already got two. Is there something we should know?
Pity's crawling with monsters. I doubt it'll be easy to get the tablet there.
Why Pity? Why was it not stored in Marion Castle?
Shutat would have it now if it were.
He stole all the treasures in the castle, the bastard!
Still bitter about that, kid?
Damn right I am! I worked hard for that treasure and he just walks off with it.
Pity wasn't an island yet when the tablet was hidden there. Marion hadn't become the kingdom it is now.
We'll get the tablet no matter where it is.
Such brave words.
After everything we've been through an island with some monsters doesn't really bother me. We'll just deal with whatever it throws at us.
Pity has lain undisturbed since its separation from the mainland. Few remember the tablet hidden there. As time has passed, their importance has been forgotten.
Is that perhaps to our benefit? What did Shutat do with the tablet in Bandore?
I don't know. It never came up.

Hidden in a torch is a Fire Ring. The desert-themed shrine had no treasure - because it wasn't enough of an outlier and just had to go whole hog. At least the Fire Ring makes sense as being stuck in a burning flame.

With all the shrines visited the team wonders what to do next. I opt to warp to Mistrall because there's cursed gear to offload and there's stuff to buy. They're not quite ready to head to Pity. Although they could get the tablet inside there are a couple of loose ends to tie up first.

In Mistrall the Cursed Scarf and Evil Scale are both sold. While the Cursed Scarf is only worth 667 gold the Evil Scale is worth an impressive 9,000.

You really want to buy this? Even with that horrible demon face on the front?
Sure thing. We can study the enchantments on it. How about it? You interested in selling?
Yes. Take it.
A pleasure doing business with you, human.

The Seraphic Robe is a small defense upgrade for Annie taking her defense from 48 to 50. It only costs 1,600 gold and as a front liner as well as the team's cleric her defense power is rather vital to the party's survival. I opt not to buy a Rune Axe for Samson even though it would raise his attack power from 118 to 132 because the +Speed effect of the Tempest Axe is more useful than the attack power boost. (Attack power has diminishing returns but Speed is always helpful.)

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - Lorele's not yet level 20. I suppose we should do something about that.

Update Eighty-one | Index | Update Eighty-three

Beyond the Beyond: Update 81: Bandore Back Together (Bandore pt. 2)

ladyabaxa — Sun, 17 Jul 2016 18:35:33 GMT

Beyond the Beyond: Update 81: Bandore Back Together (Bandore pt. 2)

With a quick trip back to Marion behind them the team turns its attention towards Bandore. Sir Galahad returned to Marion so things in Bandore should be all calmed down. At least, that's the theory. We'll see if that's actually true. Once that's out of the way then the team can embark on a search for the remaining Ancient Tablets - assuming nothing nefarious pops up.

Five seconds in Bandore and things seem peaceful. Also Edward's in Bandore because of shuffling characters around for teleportation purposes. That's going to happen a lot! At least it keeps the out-of-party members on the move so they don't get too bored.

Greetings, travelers! This is the peaceful town of Bandore!
Uh, hi! What's going on?
It's a beautiful day for Bandore.
Did all the Marion soldiers leave?
A few remain but most have gone home.
I heard of that war. Does that mean Marion is still occupying Bandore?
Dad would still be here if that were true.
Dad?
Oh, that's right. No one's told you yet. Sir Galahad is my father.
Ahh, now things are making more sense. I was wondering why he was so informal with us.

Heading east Finn begins leading the team through a familiar circuit. This will hopefully be the last time they need to do this.

Good day, kids. Is there something I can help you with?
Nah, we're just wondering what's happened since the last time we were in town.
How long ago was that?
A few weeks. We've had a lot of sailing to do.
Sailing? That sounds dreamy.
Way too many monsters out there to be dreamy for me.
Monsters are everywhere these days.
Tell me about it!
Now that the emperor and Shutat are gone, Bandore has changed dramatically. We can speak our opinions now.
Hopefully trade will pick back up. The town's so empty. It's eerie.
That could just be the graveyard next door.

Speaking of the graveyard the old man is still out there wandering among the gravestones.

Bandore is so weak now. It's not the kingdom it used to be...
See? That's why the graveyard is so eerie. It's got an old man talking to himself about the old days.
Bandore lost a war. Of course it's not what it used to be. Neither is Marion.
Or Barbaros.
Yeah that too. I guess we can say Zalagoon isn't quite the same either although we sort of had a hand in those changes.

Over in the inn is a single guest in an otherwise empty business.

Hello there. Are you also travelers?
I remember you. You were here when Marion came rolling in. Why are you still in town?
The harbor has to be repaired before the fellowship I work for can send a ship in. Once it does I'll be able to leave.
Sounds boring.
It is. I'll be happy to head home.
Where is home?
Far to the east. I find all this war business in this part of the world to be so much trouble over nothing.
I guess that explains why you're waiting here to get picked up. No sense wandering off.
Bandore's only merit was its strength, but I guess that wasn't enough. At last, this kingdom is starting to behave like a real kingdom.
Something more like home?
Maybe. Something more than just bluster and big ships. That only goes so far.
You might want to find something to occupy your time. I doubt rescue's coming until next spring.
Wait, Domino is that you?
We've met before?
A few years back. I'm not surprised you don't remember me. Still though what happened? Moving up in the world?
I suppose you could say that. Took a trip to the Island of Discipline and got a new outfit.
Good to hear. Here's hoping business gets back to normal.

Upstairs is a small surprise in the room not still hosting a locked chest (that the team still doesn't have a key for).

Hello, I remember you from Marion. It's me, the poet, Mark. I came here to finish my poem.
We were wondering where you disappeared to. Trying to get Bandore's side of the invasion?
My poem won't be complete without it. It's the birth of a new Bandore. I take it you kids had some role to play you aren't mentioning.
We don't really have time to get into it. Maybe later.

Wandering around the center of town is this fellow who has a slightly different line than what he had the last time the team talked to him.

Hi there. What brings you folks to Bandore?
Just seeing the town.
It's quiet but everyone's still on edge. Many are still scared of the outsiders from Quamdar. Shutat, the Sorceress Ramue, Archer Dagoot, and the fat Magician Yeon.
We still haven't met Dagoot.
Yeon's gone though. He fell into a volcano.
What? You defeated Yeon? That's one less to worry about. I hear they are causing trouble in Barbaros now.
You say that as if they're still there. By the way how did you hear about Barbaros?
It's a rumor going around town. Is it true?
Aye it's true.
I hope someone stops them soon.
Workin' on it.

The shops have nothing of interest but there's another NPC wandering around.

Welcome to Bandore. I remember you kids. Any news of Shutat?
None that we want to spread.
I heard Shutat and his followers have been seen sailing on a battleship. I hope someone defeats them.
As long as they're on the battleship someone has to defeat that first. I doubt that'll happen soon. Uh, not that there's anything wrong with your ship, Domino.
No offense taken, Finn. I'd be a fool to think it could stand up to that battleship. I saw firsthand what it did to Bandore's warships.
What are we going to do about that ship by the way? Shutat can just stay on it for as long as he likes.
Every ship needs maintenance and has to take on supplies. That means it has to dock somewhere.
Bandore's the only place they could though, right?
In this part of the world, yes. That battleship's too big and heavy for any pirate cove. Luna couldn't take it either.
It sounds like Shutat didn't think this whole "stealing a battleship" thing through.
That really surprises you?
No.
A big, deadly toy. How could Shutat resist?
Did... did Sir Samson just make a joke about Shutat? Is that what I heard?
Possibly. Might be a sign that the world's ending.

To the north is a household that has good reason to be happy despite everything that's happened to Bandore.

Hello kids. Good to see you again. The family that lives in this house is together again. Thank you for your help.
You're welcome!

Inside the house is the family which is not at that moment together physically but is together in spirit.

My father is working for the kingdom. He's so great!
That's good to hear.
What's he doing?
My husband is working on the restructuring of Bandore. We have a lot of work to do.
So he works for the government now. Whatever government Bandore could be said to have.
Hmm, nothing's been decided yet. That much I know.
I heard the emperor died. Is it not clear who will rule Bandore?
I think the citizens want to restructure their whole government.
No king or queen from now on. After what the emperor did to us we want to rule ourselves.
Really? How will you decide who leads in war or battle?
I don't know yet. That's part of the work to be done.
Good luck. Sounds like thoroughly unpleasant work.

Back towards the center of town is an adorable cat to meet the fur and meow quota. Oh yeah and another human citizen. I suppose they count as noteworthy.

Oh, hello there. I was wondering if you were coming back. Now that Bandore surrendered to the Marion troops, [sic] we can finally live in peace. I don't know how to thank you.
Treasure is customary but it's okay. We've already sort of... helped ourselves to anything interesting that anyone abandoned.
I suppose that's a diplomatic way of saying we swiped anything of use or value that we found in the castle.
*fidgets nervously* We're not thieves. We just tidy up around ourselves.
Did you by chance do the same while you were in Barbaros?
If I say yes are you going to kick me?
Not unless you stole something from my room or from my father.
Sooo you're okay with us taking the weapons in the chests in that room you were locked in?
If they help defeat Shutat, yes.
You kids are so strange.
I'll take that as a compliment.

Down by the well is another man. Nothing's crawling out of the well so that's a plus.

Is something wrong?
What? You talking to me?
You weren't watching where you were going as you mumbled to yourself.
I was just thinking about recent events. Beyond the southwest mountains lies the savage kingdom of Barbaros... I heard they fell victim to Shutat. I don't know if it's true though.
Barbaros was indeed attacked.
You are from Barbaros? So the rumors are true then. How awful.
My people have suffered mightily but we will persevere. I will make Shutat regret ever setting foot near Barbaros.

Back again? Is there any news about the tunnel?
I'm afraid not.
My father still has not returned from his trip to Zeal village. I'm really worried about him now.
My grandpa is not back yet. He said he was coming back with a gift for me... I just know he was eaten by monsters!
How many times has your grandfather made the trip before?
Once a year. It's always been dangerous. We accept that. With the tunnel blocked though there's no way out of that valley except to climb the mountains. I've been trying to remember if anyone has done it but... if they have it was a long, long time ago.
Zeal is on the path to Quamdar is it not?
Yes although that road is very dangerous.
If he yet lives in Zeal we'll find him.
We just don't know how we're going to do that yet.
Maybe Steiner can just fly us there.
Steiner?
He's my friend.
And he's a huge dragon.
Really? Then... there might be hope after all. I don't want to put such a burden on you though.
Don't worry about it. I'm kinda curious to see this village.
I'm more interested in learning why Shutat felt it was so important to prevent anyone from reaching Zeal.

Okay so technically these residents had nothing new to say. We might be able to do something about their predicament though in the near future so that's something for the team to keep in mind.

There's one last NPC by the northern wall. Then it's off to the castle.

Hi kids. You're from Marion aren't you?
Yeah. Why do you ask?
I'm thinking about going to Marion. I heard a lot about it from the Marion soldiers. It sounds interesting!
I guess it is interesting if you've never been there.
It was much larger than I expected. So much green, open grassland.
Bandore's got all those rivers and a volcano. Those are interesting.
All of which are crawling with deadly monsters.
Now that you mention it I wonder why monsters don't wander across that river that separates Marion and Bandore. Even now with the war and stuff they don't just walk across the bridge. What, are they scared of something?
They should be.
I guess Sir Samson's all out of jokes now.
So Marion has few monsters? Now I'll definitely have to visit it.

Up by the castle there are two soldiers outside by the main gate but only one has something new to say. The other's a repeat with nothing particularly relevant for current events.

Is the castle open to visitors?
It is. Are you folks sightseeing?
Sort of. Lorele there's more of a tourist than we are.
If only we could see Shutat's trail. That's what I want.
I hear Shutat and his people are around here, but if they return to Bandore, we will fight them off.
Around here? As in within Bandore's borders?
I've heard so many rumors I don't know what to think. No matter the truth Bandore won't bow down to Shutat ever again.

Inside Bandore Castle are Marion soldiers who are holdovers from the castle's previous state. It's not clear why Sir Galahad left some troops still in uniform behind. This particular NPC still makes no sense to boot. If Marion Castle could be said to be half-assed right now Bandore is more like quarter-assed.

This is the only one of the Marion soldiers on the first floor worth bothering about.

Sir Samson! Is something wrong?
We're searching for Shutat. Any news of him?
Nope. There are no more people wishing to take over the world here in Bandore. Now, Bandore can finally be a peaceful kingdom.
Why are you still in Bandore? Did Sir Galahad leave you as a garrison or something?
We're to keep watch on the peace process just in case.
In case of what?
In case it looks like another would-be emperor is about to seize power.
What are you going to do if that happens?
Trust me Finn. You don't want to know the answer to that.
Oooh, intrigue. Just another job for the Knights of Marion?
Hmph!
Sir Samson...?
Pay Domino no mind. He's just blowing off some steam.
And it's never been more fun.

Downstairs are a pair of (former ?) Bandore soldiers still in the dungeon. The other one is still upset that Finn and company helped bring the whole house of cards tumbling down. We won't bother their sulking.

Please get me out of here. Why do they keep someone of the same kingdom in prison?
Aren't most people who end up in prison going to come from the same country?
Uh, well... that's not the point!
We're the wrong people to complain to anyway. Even if we wanted to we couldn't let you out.

Back upstairs the team continues its circuit more because they've already started then any sense that they're doing something useful.

Hi there. Good to see some new faces in Bandore.
Bandore's so quiet today. It's eerie.
We have no fears now, and are striving for an ideal kingdom. [sic] You can expect a brand new Bandore.
I reiterate that it feels weird to me.
It's hard not to after spending so long thinking about what we were going to do to defend Marion.

In the castle barracks are a pair of soldiers... we're not going to bother with because they have nothing new or interesting to say. Woohoo!

Up in the throne room is a soldier who certainly isn't guarding the throne. Maybe they just like the carpets?

You must be from Marion. Thanks to you, this kingdom is being reborn. [sic]
The last time we were here there were meetings throughout the night. Is that still going on?
I heard there was a fight.
Things were rough for the first week. No more fights since then.
Did Sir Galahad ever get involved in those talks?
Every time I saw him he seemed kind of bored.
That sounds like Dad all right.

Out on the battlements are a pair of soldiers seemingly unconcerned that a horde of monsters could just stroll off the volcano and attack them.

Nice view of the volcano from here?
(east) What? No. Wait, you're heavily armed for a kid.
We have to be for all the times monsters try to eat us.
(east) There are no monsters around here. At last, Bandore is taking its first step towards the dream of being a peaceful kingdom.
(west) The people of Bandore want peace. We want to make our kingdom the envy of the world.
Wasn't Bandore already the envy of the naval world?
Depends on who you ask.

With Bandore quiet the team heads to the gate to leave.

Where to now?
Any ideas on where those other two tablets could be?
Uhhh...
I can think of a few places they could be hidden.

-- SUMMARY OF EVENTS --

The king of Barbaros dismissed the team's story about Shutat and company prowling around the world. He told them he'd listen if they proved their strength by clearing the Labyrinth on the Isle of Discipline. Finn passed the test with little trouble but Shutat attacked Barbaros in the interim. When the team returned with proof that had been demanded of them many in Barbaros were dead and the king lay mortally wounded in the throne room. He threw Spirit Water in Shutat's face burning the horned one and forcing the Vicious Ones to retreat - which is more than anyone on the team has done to Shutat so kudos to him. With his dying breath he kinda, sort mumbled out a request that he and Barbaros be avenged.

Lorele, only child of the king of Barbaros, was first seen during a sparring session in the castle courtyard where she easily trounced the soldiers with her. When trouble came a knocking her father ordered her locked in the hidden treasure room and gave the key to a soldier within the secret area. As soon as the door was unlocked Lorele rushed out to find her father dead beside his throne. Upon hearing from the surviving advisor that her father tasked Finn and company with avenging Barbaros Lorele decided to join up.

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - someplace way off the beaten path.

Update Eighty | Index | Update Eighty-two