Just shut out everyone and you simplify your foreign policy dramatically!
Nasir's foray into foreign policy saved our asses, although I'm not sure how Goldoa feels about this.
At least we got out of this mess with our heads intact.
HAH HAH!
...Oh. So that's what he had in mind.
(Valtome is pronounced "vahl-TOW-may." I'm surprised too.)
...What the hell do you think Crimea is to you? It's a different country for a reason!
Elincia tells him to get lost. Probably in more tactful words.
Although Valtome certainly took it that way.
Well, that's going to make him very popular with literally everyone.
(Related note, it honestly felt like the narrator was going out of his way to say Valtome's name as often as possible. Was it just me?)
"Marauders" is a word that has almost been supplanted with a popular usage of such (fun fact: I searched the definition and the Marauders of Harry Potter appeared before the dictionary definition). Its use here to describe the Begnion army is 100% perfect.
one who roams from place to place making attacks and raids in search of plunder
At least bandits have the dignity to admit they're stealing!
Well, that part's good. I'm going to pretend there's no asterisk.
All right, now we need to figure out the next move.
Let's try telling them that we do not approve of their actions again.
And this time, let's give them a rap on the head with a lance if they don't accept our terms.
Provoke them? They are raiding our villages! I don't think it gets any worse than that!
One thing that kinda goes understated in the political gravity of this situation is that Crimea is halfway between being an extension of Begnion and its own autonomous state for Reasons (not knowing how the separation occurred means I'm not 100% clear on what those reasons are). Begnion is, right now, acting as if Crimea was just Begnion territory. This is not new- Zeffren didn't care much about how he was breaching international borders back in 2-P- but it is something Elincia needs to put a stop to if she is going to maintain Crimea's fragile grip on its independence.
And, of course, if this guy has a better idea, I would love to hear it.
Again, this guy wasn't mentioned in PoR 23. Again, why aren't any of those characters the same people as the minor Crimea villains in this game? (Possibly because on replays, that speech would feel too much like "can't we just let them die?")
That shut him up.
Lucia is concerned about the whole "why is Begnion even doing this" angle.
Whatever this is, this is not Sanaki's doing. Sanaki would come down on them hard if she could. We must act as if Sanaki is somehow compromised- which, again, is a big deal.
Mia got MVP last mission.
And four Base conversations today!
These are the only characters who will appear in today's "Villagers" conversation. Yes, you read that right- no one with a name and face!
So what are their opinions on this whole business? Well, Begnion hasn't endeared themselves very much to them with the way they treated Crimea. Good to see we won't be worried about another rebellion any time soon.
Fair point- Begnion helped us. They can certainly lean on this to try and support their argument.
The counterargument, of course, is that Gallia was just as important to our rebuilding as Begnion, if not more so.
Well, we've still got a few racists lying around.
Wow, this stuff is baked in to the world. No he doesn't have a point!
This guy's on Gallia's side.
To confusion.
Gallia did a lot of hard work for Crimea's benefit. There's a strong effort to reconcile these two nations going on.
Oh look, a named character made a cameo appearance.
Mordecai might be a relative non-character in the grander story of Tellius we've been in the middle of telling, but to these villagers, Mordecai played an impactful part in their lives during a troubled part of their history. Purely by being his normal, playful self.
After that, how could they take up arms against Gallia?
...
Yeah, stinkers all around. Although I don't think I jive with you much.
Anyway, we need to head back to the characters with faces. Not that Calill is in a better mood.
Makalov, you are in entirely the wrong business for this sort of thing.
Sounds good. Except for the part about Makalov being on permanent benching duty.
Or better yet, actually be dead!
...Not sure on that one, though. Although I was tempted. Heroes revealed he tried dealing with some of his debts by paying in Marcia's name, and, well...
Why would Amy have ideas?
Amy has been raised right by two intelligent parents. ...OK, one intelligent parent and one wise parent.
Perhaps Makalov is just drunk and is imagining Amy was ever on his side.
Calill grabs him by the scuff of the neck and throws him out, or at least makes sure to ask for him to pay his goddamn tab first.
Makalov, when pressed with anything resembling any actual effort, goes straight for the nearest excuse. He's like a male Hilda, except Hilda had goals. Actual values.
Marcia is here to grab Makalov's ear and get him moving.
Honestly, why don't we move without him?
...Oh right, we need Calill, too...
Doesn't seem to bother Marcia and Astrid any.
...Oh yeah, I guess Makalov probably would have worked for the Senate instead of the apostle...
Hey, technically, Ike paid off his entire tab back in PoR, didn't he? Maybe he's somehow established brand new debts with them all and that's why he's hiding in Crimea.
Makalov, for some reason, thinks Marcia is a mind reader for that one. I guess when mind reading is an actual thing that can be done in the setting, it's something people can reasonably expect to happen, or at least more reasonably expect than can be done in our world.
Astrid, please stop. Once was enough.
...I think you've been reading the wrong kinds of knight books. Granted, in your home environment, that probably would be the rhetoric you were exposed to.
That's... not the how or why of that expression. You could've learned knightliness from literally anyone else in PoR. There's an alternate universe where Astrid joined the Dawn Brigade and followed Sothe around. Honestly, the one where she became a GM and followed Gatrie sounds pretty good too.
Marcia seems suitably perturbed.
Astrid, I say this with all the sincerety in the world. You outclassed him from the moment you were born.
Makalov forgets he's supposed to be a horrible human being and says something actually intelligent.
Although I'm not sure this is quite the extent of Makalov's problem.
This line. This. Line. This line is a horrible mistranslation. You see, if you remember Astrid/Sothe's Supports, you'll remember that Astrid has multiple siblings and her characterisation and ambitions is directly driven by their fates.
- Astrid:
- ふふ いつもながら
仲のよいご兄妹ですこと。
うらやましいですわ。
- Makalov:
- ……………
- Marcia:
- ………………
Her line in the Japanese version has her envious of the sibling bond that Marcia and Makalov share. And I mean, Marcia and Makalov can judge her all they want, it's one hell of a closer sibling bond than she had with her brothers and sisters. As hard as that is to believe.
That disbelief made it into the translated version. I wonder if Makalov knows about the sibling thing.
I have no idea what he's worth right now, but it can't be much.
Now that we're done dealing with Makalov, mostly, how about a nice light-hearted trivia point at his expense? Astrid doesn't actually have a heightened Support speed with him! She does, however, get one with Marcia. In addition to Astrid's bonuses with Sigrun and Lucia and Marcia's bonuses with Sigrun and Heather, part of me really wants to be in the alternate universe where Astrid is fawning over Marcia instead of Makalov. If you really need her to be playing comedy, Marcia having no idea what to do with that kind of relationship writes itself. Perhaps it could come off as homophobic if done improperly, but Marcia would be supportive of Astrid herself- just baffled that Astrid is expressing her admiration by abandoning Begnion and following her to Crimea.
...Probably needs a few more openly gay relationships in the story to dilute it. Ike/Soren and Elincia/Lucia can help there.
All right, so what do Elincia and Lucia have for us?
Oh yeah, Geoffrey needs one of these.
Elincia feels bad about Geoffrey having to deal with all of this.
Geoffrey is proud to bear Elincia's burdens. He makes one heck of a general.
Geoffrey is supposed to be Elincia's love interest, but for some reason, Lucia's versions of the lines like this come of as a heck of a lot more romantic. Maybe I just have lesbian goggles.
Truly the most romantic of conversations, right here.
Right into the pile. I know someone's going to want this later, but I usually wind up not using all of these.
Lucia's talk is... much more inane.
That is all.
There had to be a better way to slip 10000G into our pocket.
Today's Bargains. I snap up the Adept, and also scoop up a Daemon Card for future use. Daemon Cards are the most powerful type of Card, and Leanne is coming up.
Since it is no longer Part 2, it is now possible to edit the Skills of the Royal Knights, so off these two come. Gamble is still about as terrible as it was in PoR, but another Paragon has entered the shuffle!
Astrid gets Adept. Mostly because she has the Capacity "free".
Marcia bears Nullify. This is the equivalent to the Full Guard from FE9, and now Marcia is no longer weak to bows. Not that there are any crossbows in the next mission.
Calill gets Paragon, as the only character coming into this mission with a level concern, and Gamble, because it's the only unequipped skill going round and she has the spare Capacity for it.
BEXP time! Marcia has four capped stats, BEXP is going to give her a hand!
This actually only capped her Skill, but I think Magic and Resistance aren't that far off. And at least she got Luck on all four level ups.
For Astrid, I made sure that all her level ups had Defence. That second level proved pretty stubborn, but I got it in the end.
Yeah, I think Astrid's set.
These plain names are amusing, but we couldn't have a name for this town?
Oh hello, another name that's very recognisable for a disposable character. Roark was the first Gym Leader in Pokemon DPPt, and that's certainly going to be more so since those games got a remake released recent to when this was posted. I think Roark is less of a "taken" name than Yeardley, but more Nintendo gamers are going to recognise it.
I love this line. I love how callously dismissal the plot is of one of the most emotional parts of the game before now. We've moved on to bigger problems.
付近の村々から供出させておりますが、
内乱時に混乱があったようで
糧食の集まりが予想外に悪く……
Apparently, the confusion going on while Crimea was busy being in a state of rebellion caused the people to fumble the harvest.
Oh dear, the casualties are coming.
Well, that's just lovely. This army is falling to pieces under this man.
Time for Roark to bear the bloody nose for Begnion.
You'll do more than that, sir. Your corpse will send a bit of a message to your boss.
Yeah, no way we're avoiding the fight.
Three people sound right? Calill is helpful, but we could probably manage it with just Astrid and Marcia this time.
Oh hey, the Yellow units have a different name to us! That's cute.
...They have a Commander, too?
No, this guy doesn't have any Authority, but if he did, the Yellow units would benefit from it while he's alive.
Also, one of them is a guy with a Physic staff. He can and will use it on us if we're in trouble, which helps out a ton.
The boss has no Authority stars and is kind of on par with, if perhaps slightly below, the bosses the GMs have been fighting. That Spear certainly makes him something to respect.
This guy is holding a Speedwing.
Calill opens festivities, climbing a ledge to the north and zapping the one target she can find.
Marcia climbs to a higher ledge and kills this guy. He is a generic Soldier (ie a Tier 1 Halberdier). These guys have a very important job in the Begnion army this mission, even if they no longer give a ton of EXP.
Astrid no longer has to be constantly fed kills.
Geoffrey will no longer be used as a meatshield.
The yellow cavs, though, can stay on Roam AI. I'll need them for reasons.
The Begnion Army believes that Crimea siding against them is a "betrayal". Which it quite frankly is not, under any stretch of the definition.
DEAR GOD BEGNION WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING NOW?
I'll tell you what they're not doing now, though. Competence.
OK, Calill is being hit.
Although she likes the EXP she's getting from killing these swordmasters.
This is close this is close this is close
(Thank goodness for that point in Luck, because I saw that 1% crit chance...)
...Calill is doubling swordmasters now?
Go Calill. Paragon is really helping her catch up.
So much for Nullify protecting Marcia from Archers. OK, I guess it is true that this probably would've killed her, or at least severely hurt her, if she didn't have it.
There is no "evacuate the villagers" gameplay mechanic, but the extinguishing of the fires is a BEXP mechanic- when a Begnion soldier ignites a house, we have around three turns to put out the house before it burns down. Any house that is still standing and not on fire at the end of the mission (regardless of whether it was ever on fire in the first place) gives 1000 BEXP, and any house that is still standing while being on fire is worth 100. Houses that have collapsed, obviously, are worth zero. And you should feel bad about not saving them.
One important thing to keep in mind is that the only enemy units that can Burn houses are the Tier 1 Soldiers running around. These two Soldiers making an appearance is a nice little clue, although I don't think anything in-game explicitly mentions this little detail.
Astrid, instead of engaging with any of that, kills this halberdier instead.
She at least stands here, atlhough I'm not ultimately sure if the soldiers can burn that next house over from the side. They certainly don't need to be standing in the doorway to do it.
I decided to kill this guy from the safety of a thicket, but I'm not sure if there's anyone in range to be hiding from. The ability to not be hampered by the thicket next turn is nice, though.
Although that did mean counting on this dodge.
Marcia's mostly just doing this to break her sword, I'd like that archer to attack Calill.
The Speedwing is now mine.
Geoffrey considers where he can go without getting an enemy's way since the halberdier is so close, and decides to go over here.
One thing about leaving the yellow units on Roam is that they can and will use the Extinguish command for you. Considering "units that can act" are currently at a premium for the blue faction, this is quite lovely.
They can also help out with our enemy situation.
Calill thanks you most generously.
The enemy soldier attacks this guy. I feel like I've heard that an extinguished house can be burned again, but I've never seen it and honestly believe that once you've saved a house once, you've saved it forever. Maybe that's a problem on higher difficulties.
This guy lands a hit this time. He only gets one hit, though.
With a lance in hand, Marcia one rounds this halberdier.
And actually dodges the archer despite the higher hit chance on Biorhythm.
Astrid wants something to shoot at and finds the halberdier hassling the priest to be too far out of her way, so potshots with an Iron Longbow.
We weren't expecting anything else.
And she decides to park next to a General.
Calill handles this guy.
Magic cap. Also she's got a Speed cap going on too.
Geoffrey remembers there are reinforcements on the starting position and he's a horse unit, so he should be going this direction.
Marcia notices that she is in the perfect position to cast the first stone against this guy. For some reason, I thought this was a fantastic move.
It also classes her up.
That headwing for the pegasus gave me way too much hassle trying to choose how best to show Marcia off in her new promoted form. And I just realised we've also got Tanith later...
Seraph Knight, you mean like these guys?
For some reason, I thought I was playing GBA FE and this guy would've dropped the Iron Axe he has in reserve had he used his Hand Axe first. I have absolutely no idea why I did that, I haven't played GBA FE in ages.
Holding a Physic Staff means this guy recovers 20 HP every turn. He's very survivable!
Honestly, the Short Spear knight is actually kinda terrible. He tends to miss.
The melee cavs are a lot more accurate.
This guy, rather than attack Astrid or Marcia, goes for the yellow unit. Well, now I need to worry about dealing with him.
What do you mean, leaving Astrid next to this guy was a bad idea? Honestly, the worst part about it is that Astrid has to back up to kill him, but I have a solution.
Here's a better shot of Seraph Marcia, after she dodges the Short Spear of Roark's flunky.
Good thing Geoffrey got moving!
Calill cleans up this General for Astrid. She'll need to get back for those reinforcements, but Astrid needs to go forward and they'll take their time.
I think this is her Resistance cap.
Hey, yellow units! This one's mine!
This is a hidden item. Just. Here. Behind Roark. Either you have Marcia get up here or a horse unit Cantos up. Reminder that the mission is "Defeat Boss" and the map is over if Roark dies.
Geoffrey is currently standing in enemy range right now, but he has no other options and the yellow units can probably protect him from the Soldier.
I would prefer if it wasn't "plural".
OWOWOWOWOW at least this wasn't lethal. What is it with this playthrough and generics getting critted. At least it's not me...
His Japanese quote does not use the "dog" insult. For some reason, the ENG version inserted "dog" rhetoric into lines that didn't already have it and took it out where it did exist. We've seen the best translation and the worst translation, I guess this is the weirdest translation.
Roark, of course, does not crush Marcia.
Marcia stands here with her three use Javelin, preparing to kill that archer. He hasn't moved since he was shooting at Marcia, possibly because no one is in his range. The armour just doesn't move.
Astrid has a nearly broken Iron Bow, and I decide to shoot Roark. The other guy would be a choice, but the EXP works out really nicely if Astrid doesn't kill him on the next enemy phase.
The Short Spear guy throws down a ledge.
While the crit victim gets both a Vulnerary and a Physic.
That's him dealt with. I think that's a Crimean insignia on Marcia's new Swish?
...Apparently, on further investigation, it is the Begnion crest. Marcia still has her old colours, who knew?
This guy doesn't crit the second time. Which is could, because this guy couldn't take it.
Oh, I see how it is.
Oh, of course you got an Adept off. Ah well, no skin off my nose.
Class change now, might as well.
Astrid has a similar promotion- I didn't quite realise how few Paladins in this game actually do wear helmets. No third tier unit does, to my knowledge. And yes, the camera doesn't give us a good look, but Astrid bears Crimea's Crest and not Begnion's. Makalov, incidentally, has no Crest.
Regardless of our opinions on that, I think our opinions on this are "just fine".
Oh, and that's convenient. Even though Astrid already had one.
If Astrid got a Sol, crit or Adept off, the map was over right here.
I want a little more kills. Not that much, though, in the end.
Calill starts with this guy. The other guys are going to go for the yellow units, though.
Geoffrey tells them to withdraw (closer to the boss, ironically).
Marcia breaks her one use Javelin on this guy.
Astrid gets started on her Lances.
Well, that could've gone better.
But it could also have gone a lot worse.
Skill cap.
Hello? Beautiful woman on half HP just... waiting to be finished off over here? Hello?
Roark uses a Concoction.
It was actually a bit of a tough choice for who Astrid kills of these two. I decide that the safe strat is to kill the Soldier- if he burns the house and Marcia Stuns, I lose the BEXP for not getting the chance to save the house.
Astrid shows off in her crit animation, throwing her lance up in the air like a twirling gymnast before slamming down and jumping back.
Marcia, of course, doesn't attack on her turn, so as to not make Roark use a Concoction.
Some general shenanigans from the yellow units.
And Calill got healed.
So the halberdier Astrid didn't kill went for Marcia. Because screw Astrid, I guess.
Marcia did not Stun or crit Roark. He dies on our turn.
More of these jerks.
Astrid can't reach the halberdier, dangit. Maybe if I anticipated it and moved her more south last turn, but too late now.
These are Calill's numbers with Gamble, for posterity. I wonder how those shake out. Poorly for us as a tactical option, though.
It took me so long to get a level up with three stats in it. Yeah, Calill needs BEXP.
And Marcia gets the kill. She's the only one without Paragon right now, the boss kill is too valuable to be doubled.
This is the only meaingful level up I got all map that wasn't on Calill. Marcia made it count.
I'm sure. Astrid has Sol now, and give Calill some BEXP and she'll have Flare.
Geoffrey: I am Geoffrey, the commander of the Crimean Royal Knights! Do you command these men?
Roark: Knight of Crimea. You are clearly guilty of treason against the Begnion Empire! Do you understand what it means to send an army against us? You’ve just killed your people.
Geoffrey: You have been warned. Queen Elincia will not accept any further acts of violence and banditry within our borders! Withdraw your troops immediately, or I cannot guarantee your safe return! Decide quickly.
Roark: How dare you take that tone with me! I’ll put you in your place!
Wow, these two really both think they have the moral high ground here? Of course, we have that, but good luck telling him.
The whole... one house that got burned. I couldn't actually stop that house from getting burned, even with boys allowed (the soldier that gets it is too far away for anyone to reach), but at least Marcia got the other guy on Turn 1.
Lucia gives us a job well done.
"...And what is she doing here?"
No, seriously, what brings her all the way out here?
Geoffrey goes right into report mode. Technically, fighting Begnion wasn't our Plan A, but we were fairly sure we were going to do it.
And yeah... Begnion's going to blame us for this.
Lucia gets the negotiations started.
I like how it specifies "Days Later".
Elincia: "You are charged with disorderly conduct, arson, and assault against an officer of the law. How do you plead?"
Valtome: "Excuse me, I believe I am the judge of this trial!"
Elincia expresses her neutrality, but Valtome just can't seem to get it through his thick hair what neutrality means.
For one thing, we are a neutral country. Neutral means we're not helping you.
Look, you don't get very far with diplomacy if you say the quiet part aloud. "...delighted" does not actually mean "delighted".
It was not an ambush. It was very clearly signposted multiple times. You were warned.
Both treason and sedition are crimes that require Elincia to be a Begnion citizen. She is not.
...Even if she was, I'm not entirely convinced what she has done so far could actually count as both. Probably could, especially in the kangaroo courts I'm sure the Senate could throw.
略奪……？
これはひどい言われようですね。
そもそもベグニオン帝国は、
クリミアの宗主国……
その要請あらば、各国は
喜んで物資を提供せねばならない。
当然のことではありませんか！
いいですか、エリンシア女王よ。
あなたの王国軍は、我が軍に
一方的な奇襲を仕掛け……
甚大な被害を与えたのです。
これは、帝国への反逆を意味します！
女神に背くにも等しい……
許しがたき大罪だと、
理解しておられるのですか！
Valtome just keeps on serially escalating this crime: Since Begnion is a theocracy, aggressive behaviour against it is akin to turning your sword on the goddess herself! That's a reasonable assertion to make!
Elincia asserts her authority as Queen of Crimea. We've only seen him in two conversations and a map narration and I'm already sick of this ponce.
Valtome just does not care.
Valtome insists that his authority means something. Right now, as the commander of the Begnion Central Army, I'm afraid it actually does mean a great deal.
Although directly threatening the life of a foreign queen to her face is very bad form. Sheesh.
He's already planning on moving in. Yeah, this guy isn't worth having diplomacy with.
I don't think it was intentional, but if you were to look at a map of Begnion, the territory of Culbert (Valtome's territory) is actually kind of small and out-of-the-way: it is directly adjacent to the Desert of Death and the only way for it and Persis to reach the rest of Begnion is through a relatively narrow isthmus between the ocean and Lake Semper. Perhaps Duke Culbert being the one with designs on Crimea's land is due to more than sheer arrogance...
I can assure you it wasn't a pleasure. At least someone competent on the other side will get us better places.
- Valtome:
- くす くすくすくす
こちらが下手にでていれば
どこまでも図に乗って……
たかが属国の女王が
何様のつもりだぁっ！！
いいか！ こんな小国、
我が帝国軍が本気になれば
いくらでも潰して……
- Zelgius:
- バルテロメ殿…っ！
- Valtome:
- 潰しっ ……！？
- Zelgius:
- 少し…落ち着かれたほうが
よろしいのでは。
- Valtome:
- ………っ…
私としたことが…！
……退出します。
後は貴公がなんとかしなさい。
When Valtome goes on his murderous tirade, Zelgius enforces the "please leave" request a little more firmly, and Valtome acknowledges and acquiesces to it. I'm not sure if that's a "oops, shouldn't have said that" or a "what did I say wrong?" at the end there, though.
How often does one get to say that in their military career?
...Considering BLM, probably an uncomfortably high amount, actually...
Elincia and Zelgius have crossed paths before, back in PoR. They didn't actually exchange words in that scene, though.
Zelgius wants no part in this mess, but there's only so much he can do about the rest of them.
Elincia has planted her flag in the ground. Unfortunately for her, Zelgius already pretty much knew all this, but it's good to officially say it.
Zelgius can do this much for us, at least.
Elincia notices the asterisk.
Concessions to Begnion.
Passage through Crimea and permission to fight the Laguz in Crimea.
This is a pretty shit concession for us, since that doesn't really answer the whole "don't compromise our neutrality and right to exist as a country" problem.
Zelgius really doesn't have much better for us, though.
And that's... that's honestly disgusting. The only way Crimea can enforce a "no" here is to engage the Central Army. And, well... look at how well that goes for the Laguz Alliance.
Elincia calls Zelgius back for some answers.
私には……
どうしても信じられません。
あの方が、ラグズ連合との戦いを
お認めになるだなんて……
セリノスの王族への、
真摯な謝罪のお言葉を…
私ははっきり覚えております。
帝国内におけるラグズ奴隷問題を
憂慮し、その解放にも
ご尽力なさっていたではありませんか。
聞けば…帝国は
皇帝派と元老院派に二分し
対立しているとか……
教えてください。
この戦争は本当に……
神使様のご意思なのですか？
Elincia goes into more detail about the strength of Sanaki's character, particularly in relation to the Serenes Massacre and laguz slavery work she does. She acknowledges the conflict between Senate and Apostle, too. Nothing particularly new, but worth mentioning.
Unfortunately, Zelgius does not possess those answers.
...
...
If you're invested in Sanaki right now, this part stings hard. Admittedly, the narrative has done a pretty bad job of preparing you to feel much for this, but it's just horrifying that right now, no one truly knows if Sanaki is even alive any more.
For Elincia, though, who counted on Sanaki for counsel back in PoR? And who has a heart bigger than anyone else in any sort of power right now?
She can take small comfort in a perfect turncount and saving that village with only one short fire.
Next time: Time for a little girl power.
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