Sacred Stones Challenge Runs

[Boomhauer007]

I replay this game a lot; partly because it's short, partly because its lack of difficulty makes it more open to wacky challenges. I've seen quite a few on this board: single gender, mountless, LTCs (including with those first two), and some more unique ones. After searching the board I came up with one that I hadn't seen, a "reverse tier list run".

This is exactly what it sounds like, basically you make or use a tier list and then only get to use the units at the bottom and then work your way up to fill out the team. I think the biggest thing that makes this interesting, especially in this game, is that there are points where your team gets actively worse. Marissa is ch12, Syrene is even later, and you lose your best unit at the time to bring them on. The rules I've gone with are:

- Must use full deployment every chapter

- Force deployed lords (eir 1-7, eph 8-20) are exempt

- No grinding, pretty somewhat quickly

- Must reset on deaths, full recruitment

- No RNG manip

- No Myrrh (She's a bit of a weird case imo)

I'm through chapter 9 now, only a couple resets but this is where it gets harder.  After ch10 you spend a few chapters losing all of your good units in exchange for Dolza, L'Archel, Marisa, then Ewan. Early promoted Gilliam to GK at 13, that extra 2 move is huge and the ship really needs people that can take hits. 

List is below. Don't know if it's terrible, just kind of threw it together. I'm good with the top and bottom, the middle was the hard part. Ephraim and Myrrh are with Seth to not screw up the order. 

https://imgur.com/a/S5HBkOO

So have you ever come up with any challenges of your own? Or have a cool story to share about a challenge run you've done in the past? Always interested in ways to keep an older game fresh. 

Edited March 24, 2020 by Boomhauer007

[eclipse]

That's. . .nice?  I'm not quite sure what kind of discussion you're looking for (if any).

[Boomhauer007]

I think I'd have been better off posing the topic as something about different types of challenge runs specific to this game, or maybe asked about different types of runs people had done themselves. I was mostly interested in seeing if anything had tried any similar playthrough (didn't see anything like it when I searched), instead I think I rambled on about what I was doing a bit too much. Apologies if I cluttered the board. 

[eclipse]

Y'know, with a bit of first post/title editing, you can make it about challenge runs!

[Boomhauer007]

Changed it up, I think it looks a lot better now, thanks for the help. 

[Benice]

In terms of challenge runs, me and another user here are both in the midst of Trainee-only runs. (I'm using Marisa also.) It's...challenging, at least for me. If you do something like that, don't persist on Phantom ship if Amslia seems too weak; just restart and hope she gets less RNG screwed.

[Boomhauer007]

Is that a Ross solo until Amelia? 

Phantom ship in my run took me the entirety of Marvel Civil War to beat just now, that was miserable. Ephraim's low strength (12 at level 16) and Ross's truly unimaginably bad skill (literally 4 base as a level 16 pirate, gave him both secret books) made it so much harder than it needed to be. Also not sure if it would have been possible without pure water, that stuff is way too good.

[Hello72207]

On 3/24/2020 at 11:32 AM, Benice said:

In terms of challenge runs, me and another user here are both in the midst of Trainee-only runs. (I'm using Marisa also.) It's...challenging, at least for me. If you do something like that, don't persist on Phantom ship if Amslia seems too weak; just restart and hope she gets less RNG screwed.

And here is the other Trainee-only runner. You are the only one forcing all unit deployment. Just send out Zerker Ross with a ton of hand axes and maybe an elixir, and you will be fine. If you keep Ephraim out of the way and don't care about L'arachel dying. But yeah, Trainee only is challenging. Another one you can do is a PMU, or maybe just do a bow only run, or a sword only.

Or, and here I laugh evilly, a SLIM SWORD ONLY challenge. Yeah, you heard me. SLIM SWORD ONLY. Oh, and no Seth, BWAHAHAHA.

 

[Benice]

10 minutes ago, Hello72207 said:

And here is the other Trainee-only runner. You are the only one forcing all unit deployment. Just send out Zerker Ross with a ton of hand axes and maybe an elixir, and you will be fine.

Unless Amelia has 5 def and 3 res like mine. Don't even try. Just restart. Save yourself 800 or so tries.

[Hello72207]

1 hour ago, Benice said:

Unless Amelia has 5 def and 3 res like mine. Don't even try. Just restart. Save yourself 800 or so tries.

Or I could use the WARP STAFF.

(or slim swords)