Back to Gondolia we Zoom, and it looks like things have gotten more energetic.
I'm not sure if the contest has started or this is just the pre-show bazaar sales. It doesn't look like anyone is on stage.
Sylvando's eager to see the contest.
And orders us to save a space. What is he going off to do, then?
...Well, that's better than nothing, but Sylvando, your choices in party divide could use work. Why stick the only two people with wanted posters together? To save a space?
Erik's having about as much of it as I am.
Erik: First he insists that we help that kid, then he orders us to save him some seats for the contest... Man, that Sylvando guy really has a nerve! Still, what can you do? Let's head over to the stage and see what's what.
...Look, Veronica, you don't have to be condescending about it either.
Now this is a face you're going to want to remember. Or perhaps you'd rather not, but trust me, he will pop up again.
This is his friend slash handler.
Both of them are fighters from a very combat-heavy town called Octagonia. No one seems to have told this guy about the whole "the winner isn't just strong" bit.
This man, incidentally, is in fact the "Liu Za" we heard mention of earlier. He's also cribbing the design of the male Martial Artist from DQIII.
Ah, kiddos.
...Wait, there's someone on the stage now...
Oh dear, are we going to have to participate after all?
Erik is surprisingly vain for how little he's bothered by the affections of women. Well, perhaps vain isn't the right word, but he's clearly aware of how attractive he is.
Before we can go into much detail on the topic, however, we find out what's really going on here.
...Actually, have you two ever actually met by this part of the story? We know who that guy is, but he hasn't actually appeared in the story after we got thrown in jail, and I'm not necessarily sure Erik has had reason to bump into him.
125% of the blame goes straight to Sylvando, the actual brazen fool.
Considering Erik might not actually know what Jasper looks like, I think this is a pretty decent way of writing his reaction to this moment.
This is exactly what we needed to not happen.
Oi! Don't you pin Dundrasil on me, you smarmy bastard!
...Actually, on second thoughts, let's not fight Jasper without Veronica and Serena.
...Oh.
Oh.
(Anyone in the audience still under the impression Jasper's a good guy? Just making sure.)
Rank-and-file footsoldiers of the Heliodorian army. They're dutiful to a fault, but only fair-to-middling fighters.
Hand-picked and heavily armoured, these skilled swordsmen are greatly adored by the children of Heliodor.
The red ones are Heliodorian Guards, the yellow ones are Heliodorian Soldiers. My usual source is giving me numbers I'm sure aren't correct for their HP, but one important thing to keep in mind is that human enemies are not Humanoid. They're "???" class, so don't bother using anything effective on Humanoids.
Also to keep in mind, if you have any group-targeting plans, that the Guards and Soldiers are different enemies and thus live in different Groups.
You don't actually have to win this fight- if Erdward and Erik get knocked out, the plot proceeds as normal. If you do want to win, Scorched Earth is the way to go. These guys take a lot of beating.
The Guards can sometimes "assess the situation", also known as "passing their turn". The Soldiers can crit, and while all of the can Pep Up, I'm not sure which can use their Pep Power "Brothers In Arms". I only have evidence for the Guards.
Erdward prepares for the worst-
But Scorched Earth is real good here. Two solid hits and they fold. This fight is nowhere near this easy without Scorched Earth.
This is why the whole "not winning" thing doesn't get in the way of the story.
Fortunately for us, we have backup.
Sylvando to the rescue!
Veronica's confidence is not matched by her speech. I'm not really sure why she goes for ""Honey" here.
What guards? They're all here tackling us... aren't they?
MARS FIRE...
IGNITE!
The guards, quite reasonably, feel like they should probably do something about all the fire.
Jasper is a little more organised.
This is where Serena went off to, if you were wondering.
These three somehow managed to concoct a surprisingly decent plan, considering where they were off to while we were busy getting caught.
OK, Jasper, I know good people can use Dark magic, but are you sure that's how you're going to keep looking like a good guy here?
Especially since I'm not sure Zam looks that Dark?
Erik knows exactly what he's in for, and he's willing to shoulder it if it means Erdward can press on. I'm not sure what he expects to happen next, but the fact he trusts us enough to do this no matter what we pick is amazing enough.
...
Sylvando takes a hint and draws Veronica back with a shake of the head.
And now Gondolia is on high alert looking for us. I assume the boats have not been allowed to leave, and that tunnel entrance is now dangerous.
I don't doubt Sylvando's had the opportunity to pull off daring escapes in his time.
Poor Serena isn't the sort of girl who's accustomed to partial success. And if I have anything to say about it, she never will be.
Now was that "I think" necessary? I say, as someone who's fairly sure Erik overrates himself.
Now, this is a very good explanation for why Sylvando let this happen in the first place- we forgot to mention the whole "wanted criminals" deal to him.
Now the question has changed to "why wasn't this a top priority for us?" This is a really big deal and it limits our movements considerably, why didn't we bring it up... at some point?
Sylvando's taking this awfully... well. I'm not entirely sure that's what I'd be using to assauge those fears.
So then... time to stealth.
This is legitimate gameplay advice- we need to get to the bridge in the middle of town, and heading to the inn is the way the game expects you to do that. The Heliodorians have blockaded several of Gondolia's streets, somehow making this town's layout even more confusing.
Sylvando: Let's sneak up to that bridge in the middle of town and see if we can spot where they're keeping Erik. Be quiet as mice now, and use the buildings for cover- the streets are crawling with soldiers!
Veronica: How many soldiers did the King of Heliodor send here!? The place is crawling with them! If they spot us, we won't stand a chance, so let's stay out of sight.
Serena: Oh, poor Erik! I just hope that awful Jasper hasn't done something terrible to him... I mean, it's my fault he got captured in the first place! I have to do something to try and rescue him...
It's... how was it your fault, Serena? I guess because you're the one who tried to rescue us, but... the guilt complex bit in early for this one.
I didn't trigger it this run, but apparently, Veronica has a very apt Party Chat line here about Serena:
Serena's terribly worried about what's going to happen to Erik, but I just know he'll find a way to get through this. He better had, anyway...
We start here, and if you look to our left, you can spot a Heliodorian carrying a torch. Obviously, we don't want to get spotted by him. What does "getting spotted by him" entail?
Fight scene. They have an "!" appear over their heads and chase you around, but in these streets, that might as well be an instant fight.
You have the option to flee, but I reckon fighting is more helpful than trying it. Maybe it's my luck.
These guys are still worth EXP. Don't worry about Erik, he's one of the faster levellers.
...I haven't done that bit yet, why are you referencing it? It's clear this guy doesn't know what's going on anyway, though.
All the town services are still available, with a wide range of reasons why.
I think Rainbow's End might be my favourite.
Erdward found the EXP to get a Greatsword Crit rate up panel. That'll come in handy eventually.
...How about I don't? This lady, incidentally, is what a playable female Priest looks like in DQ3. You don't have defined party members in that game, and so what your party members look like is wholly determined by their class. Many of the designs found new life as NPCs in later games, although usually they're somewhat unique NPCs. This one's a generic design, I'm pretty sure.
Anyway, those last few images had a bit of a chronology issue, but we're recentred now- we're climbing this ladder on the Inn building.
We could've got these treasures earlier, but I chose not to, saving them for the dramatic moment where they would come in plot-relevant.
This chest feels like a "pre-boss magic water" chest anyhow.
There's a little gap you can use to jump down here. I believe it is impossible to access this bridge through other means during the Gondolia escape.
...You mean to tell me we can see the stage here?
Well, that's unpleasant. Do keep in mind that, if we play by Jasper's rules, Erik is probably doomed either way. I wonder if Jasper knows or cares that Erik has a Heliodorian bounty for other reasons, though.
Impatient? Hm... you may have a point, but yeah, we shouldn't keep him waiting.
Sylvando is familiar enough with the Gondolian streets to have a solution.
Soldiers don't tend to be patient types, in my experience. Goodness knows what they'll do to poor Erik if we don't rescue him. But charging at them head-on isn't an option... If we make it to the gondola stop to the north-west, we should be able to sneak to the contest stage from there. Yes, it means we're going to have to get in a gondola, but try to resist the temptation to burst out singing, honey. This isn't the time...
Veronica and Serena repeated their first lines for me, which is a shame, because I would've loved to get that other Veronica line.
You can jump off the bridge here and only here.
Hey, I'm not gonna... actually, yeah, this is a stickup. Let me use your gondola or nobody gets hurt!
(...That's how stickups work, right?)
When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie that's a big damn rescue...
I think you can use the gondolas when Gondolia is in normal operation parameters, I just don't see any reason to.
And now we have appeared behind Jasper!
"We did find a bunch of knocked out guards, though!"
AMBUSH!
So, boss time.
He and Hendrik are Heliodor's two most celebrated soldiers, and some even like to say that together, they embody the two-headed eagle that adorns the kingdom's coat of arms.
??? Family
630 HP
80 MP
Dragon Quest is actually surprisingly light on human boss fights historically. There are a few cases where characters that appear to be human challenge you to a fight for some reason or other (DQs 6 and 7 have spars with human characters that turn out to be Restless Knights or Harmours, DQ5 has slave drivers you rebel against that turn out to be Beastmasters), but when it comes to fighting a character who is explicitly human and looks it in combat, it's usually only done once or maybe twice per game and because the circumstances are special. DQ11 probably has more human-and-looks-human boss fights than the other games combined.
As for how Jasper fights himself, he actually only has three particularly interesting tricks. Sword Stance, Zam, and Fizzle. And yet that's enough to make him a somewhat scary boss. It might be a good idea to put on Veronica's Cat Suit and that Care Riviere on Serena. I obviously didn't do the former, mostly because I still wanted Veronica's usual design, but I imagine I forgot the latter.
Sylvando, obviously, should Oomph Erdward. Even if Jasper blocks him, this is still the best source of damage you have and you should capitalise.
Two can play at your game, Jasper.
Sap is also a helpful means to make sure the hits you do land count.
There's his Sword Stance-
And there's his normal attack- since he's wielding two swords, he hits twice. Veronica took that like a champ.
If you're wondering why he got two turns, that's just a DQ boss thing. Although I don't think DQ bosses have historically gotten two turns this early before now.
Serena needs to be allowed to heal. If a healer is Fizzled, they can't heal- we don't have much in healing Abilities yet.
Sylvando decides he's going to make Jasper's life annoying too.
And we might as well keep protected from Zam while we're thinking about it.
Sword Stance only blocks like 33% of your attacks. We can hurt him.
I always love seeing Zam not really hurt.
Not gonna lie, I'm excited for Kabuff.
...Look, I really didn't know what Sylvando was going to do, OK?
Fear me, Dark... crap, I should've prepared a quip sooner than this.
...I'm also looking forward to Frizzle. Frizz isn't cutting it anymore.
Don't you just love it when he attacks the guy you didn't buff? Sylvando is more resilient than Serena, but still.
...We call that worst possible luck.
Also Sap is down, so Erdward's damage output is down. (The whole "has two turns" thing means status ailments don't last as long.)
Oomph was about to go down, so I had Sylvando apply the second layer. Casting a buff on a character who already has the buff renews it regardless, but since Erdward had a one stage buff, Sylvando's cast also bumps it up to two.
Veronica does have Abilities, but yeah, this is a waste of her Pep.
Oh, now seriously, what is that going to-
...Serena, where did that come from?
That looks like he crit me. Fair play.
Jasper, despite all evidence to the contrary, is not a demon, so this is what you should expect.
Erdward's only getting a renewal here.
...Still 10 damage? Probably a better option for Serena than a regular attack.
...Eh, I guess...
...Ah, that's not much still.
...Jasper?
...Jasper. You are pathetic.
About what I'd expect out of that encounter.
...No, I am not using that spell again, Serena.
Dangit, one SP off Fuddle Dance... because of the way this game works, learning Fuddle Dance is the door to miracles with Sylvando.
I don't know either. Hot Lick is not a good skill.
And Serena goes straight to Erik's rescue. Completely in-character, and I'm sure anything else is reading too far into it, but I feel like this is supposed to be where Erik and Serena's bond of whatever is supposed to fully be reinforced.
The guards show up, and are as amazed as anyone else.
Look, I'm not sure what you expect to do, we already kicked the butts of every one of your soldiers here.
Something seems to have entered Sylvando's notice.
...Look, man, I appreciate that whatever you do tends to turn out well, but would a little more direction kill you? At least tell us what you expect this plan to accomplish!
I'm so scared. However will I defeat you without Sylvando?
...Oh right, no Oomph.
"Milord?"
"Not now!"
"But milord, there aren't any sharks in the water-"
"Well, don't tell them that!"
We have a better plan that that, however-
...Genuine question, how did Sylvando get on the boat so fast? Obviously, it's his boat, any questions about "why" have satisfying answers, but how Sylv managed to get on the boat after having jumped in the water is a more genuine question.
This ship is Sylvando's own boat, the Salty Stallion. We are going to become very familiar with it.
Well, that put a smile on our faces. Now we just have to, you know, board the boat.
A brief "introduction" of sorts to Sylvando's helmsman, Dave (pronounced "DAH-vey"). He's not much of a character, as you might have surmised by the fact he's a generic design recolour, but he does get a surprising amount of opportunity to express a little individuality. For the most part, he's just going to slip into the background, though.
Even before the train, there's a compulsion to say this.
So hey, about those sharks... (Dragon Quest has traditionally includuded very fish-like enemies to fight in the ocean areas, but I don't feel like any of them are shark-like. Maybe a few...)
Of course Veronica had the most trouble getting aboard.
Well, you can certainly say that one again.
...Especially since it seems Jasper has a plan.
We were out of earshot, though, so blissfully unaware.
Despite being a minor character, Sylvando is quick to ensure Dave receives the praise he is due.
"Cor blimey!" is a minced oath that originated as "God blind me!", and is famous in the context of DQ for being Yangus's catchphrase from DQ8. I feel like it was around before that, although this use is probably a reference.
At any rate, COR BLIMEY!
...Bloop! Bloop blorp!
Disgusting? "Huge" and "very angry" are good things to say. As creatures of the deep go, this one's pretty handsome.
Well, we don't really have a counterargument with that. Except for the fact there is sea life down there, I guess.
Pro tip, Jasper: Don't call it your pet if you want to look like the good guy.
Fortunately, we have a solution!
...Or, well, we are now surrounded by other boats. That are shooting cannonballs in our direction.
They appear to resent your tentacular's existence, sir. Because of course they do. No port town will be happy to hear a foreigner's got a pet monster in the waters who'll take down ships on his say-so.
Thanks to the cannonballs, that tentacular is no longer our problem!
This is a gameplay hint, so it's worth mentionng that part, but the Gondolians clearly were shooting real ammo at it. Granted, I wouldn't want to aim it too close, for fear of hitting our ship, but still.
The framing of this scene here, incidentally, is why I thought we weren't supposed to know Placido was Rotondo's son. It feels like "that good deed we did paid off in the end", and usually, those sorts of stories don't have you knowing how that happens until it does.
Veronica, Serena and Sylvando saw to that. At some point.
Rotondo, in addition to the reasons most people have for resenting the Darkspawn (which, admittedly, is a very short list), was under the impression that the Darkspawn was responsible for the curse placed on him by his son, which presumably led him to act in the way he did.
By turning us away from his house. Not the worst thing in the world.
And that's how this whole mess got started. Jasper left no witnesses, but did so in a reversible way and, as soon as the silence was reversed, things... went poorly for him.
Rotondo, who witnessed Heliodor attack his family and the Darkspawn save it, knows that the Right Thing to do is support "the Darkspawn". Leave the rest to the people who care.
Oh hey, Jasper is going to talk to us directly!
This sounds like generic villain banter, and it is. But the line as voiced is filled with pauses, which, intentionally or otherwise, makes Jasper sound pathetic as he scrambles for a way to make himself sound badass.
So, you know, now Rotondo has reasons for the Heliodorians to come down on him.
Eh, he can handle that, he's a grown man. Unlike Jasper.
And away we sail!
And fortunately, Dave, the member of the crew who spent all his time in the port, heard the gossip about which direction we have to point this boat.
Erik takes a moment to be impressed with Sylvando's ability to actually back up his showmanship with results.
And we can now set sail onto the Great Sea!
Erik: The salty air, the rolling waves, it makes me feel like I'm a kid again... Sorry. Ignore me. Just thinking out loud. Let's focus on getting to Zwaardsrust and finding the guy who bought the Rainbough.
Veronica: Until Serena and I set out in search of you, neither of us had ever seen the sea. Don't get me wrong, I love Arboria and the mountains, but there's just something about being out on the ocean waves- it's like all your worries are washed away.
Serena: Oh dear... I was just about to bite into the last of the cakes I'd bought in Gondolia when a mean old seagull came and swiped it away! I mean, it's hardly the worst thing that's happened to us on this trip... But it still made me quite cross!
Sylvando: Well, Erdward? How are you enjoying life aboard the Salty Stallion? I know the decor isn't for everyone, but I've spent a long time getting everything just right. If you're going to have a ship, you might as well have one that just says ‘you’!
No, seriously, we now have a boat. All Dragon Quest games from II onward have a boat, and the ability to sail around is often understood to give a great deal of freedom in exploring the game's world. This is more true in some games than others- but honestly, DQXI is one of the least free when it comes to the boat.
For the first time in DQ history, you can only disembark at specially signposted ports. Most DQ games allowed you to set down anchor anywhere where your boat can reach the shore (and often hiding the real lategamey places behind coral reefs and mountains).
We won't be doing much sailing in this update, just checking up on the Gondolians.
The Heliodorians still have a presence in Gondolia, and are on high alert for the Darkspawn. Although the ability to pick out the Darkspawn seems to be at a premium around here.
It also doesn't help that a lot of the residents have the quite reasonable assumption that the Darkspawn won't be coming back.
Of course the kids recognise us. Does that mean they'll do anything about it? Of course not, they're kids, only the adults know what's going on!
Honestly, you're the first that's called me that.
Benigno's happy to go play with Placido now that everything has been solved.
...Is that why you didn't ask us to try and heal Placido with our magic before resorting to stealing?
Happy to hear.
It was five minutes ago.
Incidentally, there is a good reason to come back to Gondolia- with the completion of Hakim's quest, Akia now has a quest for us.
She would like us to go to a place we have not yet gone- Puerto Valor. We have heard of this place before, but we don't know where it is. It's close, though.
Hm... I'm not sure I agree this is going to be a "lovelier" letter.
...Come to think of it, there's probably a hilarious outcome if you go to Hakim here. Apparently, it's not in the datamine. Although that's not perfectly formatted.
Rotondo's house is now open, and he's got a bunch of treasures to loot.
Hey, it was wrong, but it wasn't a mistake.
...You know, I'm not sure why. But yeah, we do.
Placido's mother is very happy with the way things went down, rather naturally.
...I don't understand your A to B here. Are you somehow... thinking Rotondo was blaming Placido?
Yeah, whatever attractiveness Jasper has is undermined by that cruel little sneer.
Jasper was no big deal, I don't see why I should be scared of Hendrik.
Hm, we'll have to make a note of that.
...Yessssss, to give to this guy. What did you think I was going to do?
Oh, I presume this would be funnier if I talked to you earlier?
...Well, sorry. I know I resented the whole "harbour closing" thing, but that's no reason to put it off entirely!
I wonder if these guards are just the ones Jasper feels like punishing.
Yggdrasil knows I would in his place.
Before I get into the analysis, I think I missed three books in Gondolia, according to the datamine, and two of them are serialised, so if you don't mind, I'm gonna quickly show those off...
Viva Signor Universo:
As proud citizens of the city of Gondolia, we must show to the world the most wonderful example of ourselves that is possible. And for our inspiration, we look to none other than the sea which surrounds us!
We must be as strong as the waves that buffet the ships in a storm, and as gentle as the breeze which fills the sails!
And what better way could there be to show the best of what our Gondolian men have to offer than the magnificent, fiery, feisty and fabulous Signor Universo contest!
So I say to all you salty, sweaty, strong young men: aim for the top! Be the best that you can be! And make Gondolia proud!
— Doge Rotondo, First-Ever Signor Universo Winner
Go Rotondo! Although that's pretty recent for a cultural tradition that closes ports.
Diary of Tetsu the Smith:
Part Two: A Dream Is Chased
My name is Tetsu.
I am forty-eight years old.
I am a blacksmith.
In Gondolia,
A clue to the medal’s source
From a strapping man.
Far beyond the sea,
A school for medal hunters
Lies in a valley.
He says that this place
Teaches the medals’ secrets.
I must learn them too.
A return to school-
Funny perhaps at my age,
But this is my dream.
Do not fear, mother.
I will become a great smith,
And return home soon…
It's never too late to return to school, mystery smith!
Memoirs of a Treasure Hunter
This journal tells the tale of the adventures of a humble treasure hunter. I hope that it might prove at least an amusing diversion for those who choose to read it.Sudo Nim, huh? I'm sure that's not his real name, but if he doesn't want to share, that's his business. Still, though, if he's getting his reward from Zwaardsrust, this must have been decades ago. I'm sure he won't turn up again.
My name is of little consequence, but if you must call me something, call me Sudo Nim.
So, what prompted me to set out on my quest? Well, the Zwaardsrustian Chief Minister’s offer of one million gold coins for a certain artefact played no small part in my decision.
Legend has it that hundreds of years ago, when the Luminary returned from Yggdrasil, he brought something back with him: the Rainbough.
When I heard that this little stick could make me a millionaire, I didn’t even take the time to pack- I was on the road in a flash!
And so began the adventurers of Sudo Nim, treasure hunter, and the quest for the elusive Rainbough…
And that's the Gondolia story- our lovely little town story about helping a muted little boy got rudely interrupted by the pursuing Heliodor forces. The game doesn't want to heavily focus on Heliodor's pursuit, but they do keep it in mind and include multiple instances of us crossing paths with Heliodor, although this is the only one where we wind up battling them in gameplay. I suspect they didn't want to keep giving the guards new stats. The inclusion of this element to the overarching plot does something Dragon Quest has always been a little slow to adopt- making the wider context of the story matter in the main gameplay loop. Town Stories, while always charming on their own, are usually very discrete, and the actual thing you're trying to do shows up in its own sections or only at the ending. Heliodor is always butting in somewhere else to be relevant to the story.
This story is much more focused on "live life with love in your heart" than "don't waste your time bearing grudges". Benigno and Rotondo treat us unfavourably at the start of the story, but that doesn't prevent us from acting in their interest when it's the right thing to do, and they thus warm up to us in turn and reciprocate the favour. Rotondo treats himself as unreasonable for having opposed the Darkspawn at all, and while this is a true statement, I'd honestly say he didn't act wrongly for doing so at any point- he obeyed the party line because there was no benefit to contradicting it without being able to assist the Darkspawn, and when he saw actual proof that he was wrong, he swiftly and painlessly changed sides. Rotondo is a very reasonable example of an authority figure who opposes us initially.
Dragon Quest has traditionally had a little bit of an issue interweaving the party and the Town Story in the main text, but this one shows a good example of that- Serena's prior expertise is the reason we are able to diagnose and cure Placido, Sylvando's resources pull us out of the jam with Jasper on two counts, Veronica gets to throw around fireballs at last, and even Erik's thievery gets a showcase- a poor one, but one nonetheless. It's always nice when a story recognises what your party members are capable of doing and has them actually do it when doing it would be helpful. All in all, this is one tightly-written town story.
No comments:
Post a Comment