Let's play Super Robot Wars V! (the world has been saved in 332 turns)

[Acacia Sgt]

Oh, even more?

Then to round up the trinity, Ryouma Nagare.

And can't have Joe the Ace without Maito, I'd say.

Wait, how did you got your mother to pick units...?

[eclipse]

10 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Oh, even more?

Then to round up the trinity, Ryouma Nagare.

And can't have Joe the Ace without Maito, I'd say.

Wait, how did you got your mother to pick units...?

Since Amuro has a sense of humor that's worse than mine, I'll take both of them.  I will have WORDS for Ryoma!  Maito's gonna make me rich.

My mom is watching the story as I play through the game.  She seems to enjoy it, even if it gets a little weird at times.  I, uh, avoided Arzenal for this one (mostly because the current run has exactly one Cross Ange unit, and it's Tusk. . .thanks RNG).

[Punished Dayni]

21 minutes ago, eclipse said:

Okay~!  Which means I also get the guy who's the butt of the intermission jokes~!

 

I think you missed my meaning: if you're taking two suggestions from people you could take Shinji and roll for one of the other three.

[eclipse]

1 minute ago, Christmas Dayni said:

 

I think you missed my meaning: if you're taking two suggestions from people you could take Shinji and roll for one of the other three.

OH, okay~!  I'll "roll for EVA" on the next slot.  Thanks~!

[eclipse]

Update: The guy who loaned me the game was nice enough to pick two units for me.  They're both OP.  So five slots remain.

I'm going to officially start this game at 4PM HST, or in a little under seven hours.  If I don't get any new entries by then, I'll RNG the final five pilots.

[eclipse]

Rest of the randomized units going up.  Except one has a wonky recruitment requirement, and can show up in two different places. . .one of which is AFTER determining which ending you get (Yazan kind-of does this, too).  So, I'm going to make a slight exception for that guy - namely, I get his BFF until I recruit him (said substitute helps to recruit him anyway).  The explanation will come when I actually recruit That Guy.

Besides, it'll make the mini-fic that's coming along with this playthrough a LOT more entertaining.  I'll edit in Chapter 1 as soon as the captcha lets me update the list fully.

[Acacia Sgt]

A mini-fic? That sounds interesting.

[eclipse]

On 12/26/2020 at 4:12 PM, Acacia Sgt said:

A mini-fic? That sounds interesting.

Tee-hee~!  I hope you find it amusing.  Told my mom the idea, she said I was lucky that a certain someone can't walk out of the game and punch my lights out.

Chapter 1 - 2/2

Spoiler

I'm not sure what this "SRW" is, or how anyone in the middle of a war could have time for such a thing.  Nor do I know what this "Serenes Forest" is, or why anyone would care about how to play a game.  What I do know is that I'm bored, and there's some bets floating around about whether or not this "SRW" is feasible given the restrictions posted by "eclipse".  Might as well see if I can make someone's day better.

SR Point: Use all of VangRay's weapons

There's four enemies, and the VangRay has three weapons.  The first doesn't hit very hard, but it's great when you want to ensure that the protagonist doesn't get all the kills.  Second weapon is the bread-and-butter attack, and the only one that can be used after moving.  Third one hits hard (it one-shots the scrubs on this stage), but has some accuracy issues and requires a bit of focus.  Fortunately, Our Hero has Zero-In, which makes things a lot easier.  Weapon order is 2 -> 1 -> 3 -> clean up.

Chapter 2 - 4/6

Spoiler

So this is how it began.  From a mysterious boarding call to some security shenanigans to some jerkwads from Jupiter raising hell.  And this is where Tobia joined up.  Ever cheerful, even as the Earth that he called home was nothing more than a ball of dirt that grew alien plant life.

SR Point: Have one unit shoot down 4 enemies

You start with the Yamato, and it's more than a match for those scrubs.  Fastest way to get the SR point is to have the Yamato body four enemies, then have the protagonist use their final attack to murder everything else.  If you try to bring Tobia into this mess (like I did), you'll take an extra turn.  Unless you get a lucky Zanbuster crit.

Oh, right, I should start blathering about the cast.  So here goes~!

Protagonist - He/she will have a spirit set based on their birthday and blood type.  So far mine has Zero-In and Attune, which means that I'm going to be guzzling Mars Bowls like beef bowls.  I prefer Chitose's take over Soji's - things get a little weird during part of Soji's story.  At least the gender split isn't as bad as X, where I actively wanted to punch Iori multiple times.  The Vangray doesn't get a lot of new attacks, but it'll hold its own just fine.  Eventually I'll get a choice of upgrades, and I've already decided on which one I want.

The Yamato - Your first battleship!  With a variety of weapons, she can snipe from a distance with Shock Cannons, or get up close and personal with Bow Torpedoes.  She'll unlock a couple of attacks down the line, plus two that only show up for two maps.  The crew is from a lot of places in Japan, and IMO their bios are well worth reading.  Of the pilots, Okita will use his SP to ensure that my squishies don't die.  Kodai fixes up accuracy problems.  Sanada keeps everyone alive once he gets the right spirits.  And Shima gets the big lug into the thick of things faster.  All in all, a solid crew, and should be one of your first aces.

Tobia - A Newtype who's in a Gundam that doesn't require Newtype powers!  Which means if you drafted a non-Newtype and really need them to get kills, have Tobia steal something with Funnels. . .er, COMPETENT Funnels.  Iron Wall is a saving grace in endgame, while he can choose between punching things hard with Valor or really punching them hard with Soul.  With the ability to rush to the front lines quickly, and dodge as necessary, SP management will be the worst he has to deal with (in other words, give him lots of Concentration).  Kai Kai's great at running up to things, but is extremely vulnerable to long-range attacks.  Which just so happens to be a lot of the enemy battleships.  Some range extension on its attacks go a long way!

Chapter 3 - 6/12

Spoiler

A copy of the Commander himself?  Working for the Jupiter Empire?  He won't be happy to hear about that.

SR Point: Defeat all enemies in 3 turns

Welcome to the first true multi-part chapter!  SR point is active for the first part only, which is four enemies you've already seen.  Once again, Jinrai (third attack on the VangRay) will make short work of them.  After that is the Amakusa, the first real PITA Our Heroes have faced.  Tobia's Intuition is great for baiting out the Amakusa.  If you want to use the protagonist, get exactly seven tiles away - you'll be able to snipe safely without having to worry about the counterattack.  Once a couple of turns have passed (or you deal enough damage), the Yamato will show up and save everyone's bacon.  Kodai's Bullseye will come in handy here.  Defeat the Amakusa, and the rest of the enemies will run.  Kincade also shows up. . .but alas, his F91 is terrible and he's undrafted.

Chapter 4 - 4/16

Spoiler

The first firing of the wave motion gun.  And to think some idiot was giddy over that power!

SR Point: Defeat 12 enemies in 4 turns

There's an extremely cheesy way of completing this map.  On turn 1, load everyone up into the Yamato.  On turn 2, charge and unload everyone.  Attack and counter as necessary.  On turn 3, kill what you can, use the ExC Order Emergency Retrieval to get as many as you can back, and end the turn such that the Yamato is the only thing on the map.  During the enemy phase, the enemies will suicide into the Yamato.  Kill all the little ones (which is exactly 12) to trigger the second part of the map.  Unload and mop up.  The end.

Chapter 5 - 7/23

Spoiler

So many things happened in such a short time.  Two people from my world appeared in another world.  Meanwhile, some asshat game designer made THAT a SR point.  Thank goodness the person who did this run wrote down their strategy.  ExC commands are pretty useful.

SR Point: Defeat a Metal Beast in a single attack (Support Attacks not valid)

Asshat game designer, indeed.  You'll start with Ryoma, who has no chance in hell of dealing with the SR point by himself.  Only one unit can, and that's the Yamato.  Get up to Smash Hit, then use the strongest things you can to one-shot an enemy.  After that, it's a matter of cleaning up the remaining beasts.  If it wasn't for that stupid SR point, this map would be a lot less infuriating!

New pilots:

Ryoma - Black Getter eats through EN like no one's business, so the Propellant Tank isn't the worst thing for it.  Like Kai Kai, it's a close range thing.  Unlike Kai Kai, its pilot doesn't bother dodging.  He'll take hits to the face.  Guts will keep him alive, while Bullseye will help against dodgy things.  Overall, he's not bad for early game.  Plus, Ryoma as a pilot has his moments (especially his ace conversation).  I'll fangirl over some of his other qualities as the story goes on.  Don't want to spoil anything~!

Tetsuya - He doesn't take hits, he absorbs them!  He'll hit back hard.  But like every other super robot, he'll chew through EN if you're not careful.  For now, his range is gimped.  Tetsuya's spirits say "hit me in the face, I dare you".

Chapter 6 - 5/28

Spoiler

Something tells me that this won't be the last time Okita fakes the death of the Yamato.

SR Point: Defeat Shultz before he arrives at highlighted point. The Yamato must engage him once. (If Jarletora is defeated, Shultz leaves the map)

The first part of the map is just a bunch of durdling around.  Everything will go after Kodai, and he absolutely sucks at killing things right now.  Fortunately, he has Persist, so he shouldn't die.  Everyone else can mop up after him.  Once the Yamato appears, it's a matter of killing off the main boss while completely ignoring that other guy.  Once you kill the boss, the map ends.

Chapter 7 - 4/32

Spoiler

Setsuna and Tieria also showed up while doing an experiment.  It reminds me of how I--wait, I'm supposed to be playing this game.  Focus!

SR Point: Defeat all enemies within 5 turns

This map's difficulty goes down as the number of your available mechs go up.  In my case, I was able to pull four turns because I could fire all sorts of crap at the enemies.  Things will naturally target the Yamato, and we all know how that ends!  Setsuna and Tieria show up mid-map, and in my case, all they did was stand around.  Setsuna's busted-tier, and Tieria's the weakest of the main 00 squad - and he's pretty formidable in his own right!

Edited January 25, 2021 by eclipse

[Excellen Browning]

Soji was my first ace by a considerable margin, not the yamato. Also, woof, that spirit list is not great for the granvang.

[eclipse]

On 12/26/2020 at 6:31 PM, Excellen Browning said:

Soji was my first ace by a considerable margin, not the yamato. Also, woof, that spirit list is not great for the granvang.

In my "let's have my mom watch this run" save, my first ace was Judau.  Somehow.  I still have no idea how that happened.  But Soji/Chitose being the first ace isn't too much of a stretch, given how the story goes~!

Chapter 8 - 5/37

Spoiler

Why in the world is "eclipse" so fixated on giving Melda a kill?  This run isn't as bad as I thought, since I have several units at my disposal.  Now there's another side bet on how long I'll take to finish the game.

SR Point: Clear the map without Yamato taking any damage

The ease of getting this SR point is dependent on the number of units you can mobilize.  But in hindsight, I really should've made someone free for this map if I had no recruited units - the protagonist doesn't show up until turn 3, and the Yamato can't fire back.  In this case, I had Tobia dive the enemies, and it worked out.  Ryoma and Tetsuya cleaned up after him.  Melda got her lone kill, then cooled her heels in the Yamato.  Overall, a success~!

Chapter 9 (Chitose) - 4/41

Spoiler

The original commentator has lost her mind.  Even if I was able to understand those references, this isn't the time to crack stupid jokes!

SR Point: Defeat all enemies within 5 turns and defeat 4 enemies with one pilot

Welcome to Earth!  It's Joltik-catching time, and you're going to roam around the city and catch them all!  You have five turns to catch your Pokemon, and a couple of other trainers show up after a certain number of enemies are caught.  One trainer must catch as least four Joltiks, too.  The fastest way to do this is to park the protagonist in the middle of everything, activate Smash Hit, and laugh.  The newcomers should be able to get one, if they're lucky.  Saburouta is weirdly chivalrous - he'll tank hits for others while being stupidly dodgy himself.  His damage will suffer later on, but he'll do just fine through most of the game.

New pilot:

The Electron Fairy - Currently at the helm of the Nadesico B, which packs missiles and a Gravity Blast.  It takes a while for the MAP attack to heat up, but it's somewhat useful.  I'm going to rush kills on her, because if she hits 60 kills by a certain point, I get the Phase Transition Cannon, which is the superior MAP attack (never mind its regular one).  Like all other battleships, give her Hit and Run and laugh.  In a pinch, she can Flicker - how an entire battleship vanishes without a trace is beyond me.

Chapter 10 - 5/46

Spoiler

I should've realized she was insane when she called them "chapters".  But she somehow got the SR point on this stage, despite the RNG's best attempts to keep it from her.  Perhaps a dose of insanity is what's needed to play this game to the fullest.

SR Point: Defeat all enemies within 3 turns

This SR point is a bit of a crapshoot, since one of the enemies is stupid dodgy and none of the starting units can do squat about their accuracy.  Counterattack the Pokemon and hope that a Distortion Attack lands on the big bad, and things should work out from there.

Part 2 is a lot easier, since you have the protagonist and the Nadesico at your disposal.  The enemies are a bit bulkier than previous iterations, but it's still workable!

New pilot:

Ryoko - Like Judau, she'll facetank things instead of doing the sensible thing and using Flicker.  She gets an extra attack over her blue counterpart, and shouldn't flirt with Nine for her ace conversation.  I don't have much to say about her because this is the first time I'm gonna use her seriously.  Thanks RNG~!

Chapter 11 - 11/57

Spoiler

Some of these SR points require heavy investment.  Thank goodness for this insane lady's ramblings.  But I did it in less turns!

SR Point: Destroy Wolfgang's Teigel 5656. He retreats below 6000 HP

You'll either need a LOT of investment in the Nadeisco/VangRay's weapons, or you'll need a dose of Mightgaine.  Regardless, you'll need a ton of ExC, because getting the SR point is a gigantic pain in the neck.  The VangRay will need 5 ExC to trigger Direct Attack and Smash Attack.  The main attacker (Nadeisco/Maito) will need 5 ExC to trigger the same combo.  You'll also need Harry's Analyze.  Whittle Wolfgang down to ~7,000 or so HP.  Use both Direct Attack and Smash attack on the attacker and the protagonist.  Have the attacker stand next to the protagonist and attack.  This should trigger the protagonist's Support Attack, and since both will be critical and ignore the enemy's defensive stuff, it should be just enough.  I took a bit longer to get Wolfgang off the roof.

New pilot:

Maito - This guy will keep you in the black, finance-wise.  He's mostly close-range, and doesn't want to stray too far from there lest he run out of EN.  He isn't as dodgy as the Aestivalis, nor is he as bulky as a Mazinger.  He can choose to either outright dodge things with Intuition, or tank them with Iron Wall/Persist.  Gaine gets the Mightgaine to the front ASAP with Accel.  Later on, they'll gain a nifty long-range attack.  Maito himself would be a damn refreshing CEO if he really existed - for one, his employees would be taken care of during these upside-down times and all!  Plus he'd probably make a bunch of commercials that say "wear a face mask everyone".

Chapter 12 - 8/64

Spoiler

It's a good thing that Tobia wasn't stuck with the Yamato.  I doubt he's the type to sit still.  I'm not sure what about this world breeds such silly criminals, but it's a refreshing change.

SR Point: Defeat 8 enemies within 4 turns

This SR point is a nice breather after the hell that was the last chapter.  Once you hit that point, you'll get reinforcements.  Catherine's lackeys have Support Defend, so get them low on EP then trick them into support suiciding on your turn!

New pilots:

Sumeragi - The Ptolemaios 2 Custom is more of a support ship than anything - it can repair things on the fly and whatnot.  TRANS-AM is a nifty thing that allows it to fire after moving for two turns, which is usually enough to get her into range of everything relevant.  Slap Hit and Run on her, and she'll be able to keep up.  The ship's weapon outputs aren't impressive, but I adore the spirit list on the subpilots!

Allelujah - Comes with a free Soma.  Tieria takes hits, Setsuna's the all-ranger, Lockon's the sniper, and This Guy is the close-range specialist.  Think Tobia, but his final attack has the lovely Barrier Buster/Ignore Size combo.  Like Tobia, he appreciates some range extension!  His spirit list is absolutely lovely, with Soma's more supportive list complementing his.  Overall a solid pick, even if he can't quite pull Setsuna's level of cheese on later stages.  Oh, and he gets Zeal.  WHEE~!

Chapter 13 - 5/70

Spoiler

The seas are blue, there's dragons in the skies, and I did not sign up for this.

SR Point: Defeat Galleon and Schooner class Dragons by Turn 5

You have a five-turn limit on this map, but you get another battleship and some nifty reinforcements.  Which would be great, but you guys didn't draft me a single Full Metal Panic! unit.  Thanks.  Anyway, the initial enemies will go boom, and then the real fight starts.  While three of the Cross Ange girls show up, it's temporary, so a profile will have to wait,  I feel this SR point is easier, since the dragons like to rush you, and most of them are the close-range variety.

Since I'm editing turn counts, might as well give a brief overview of the Mithril guys.  Sousuke's the star of the show, except he's almost completely ammo-based.  Lambda Strike is a breath of fresh air, but he has to ditch the armor first.  Kurz is the long-range guy, but relies on ammo instead of Lockon's EN.  Never really used Mao, sorry.  Closeau has the Commander aura, but will otherwise bounce off of lategame enemies.

New pilots:

Tessa - The Tuatha de Danaan can either swim or fly in space, but for some reason can't fly in the atmosphere.  This makes it harder to get an ace bonus.  But in turn, it sports the ever-impressive Cruise Missile, which is a 12-range attack.  Top that off with innate Hit and Run, and all it's missing is a proper space map to wreak havoc.

Hathaway - His initial spirit list is literally Gain, and that's it.  Funnel Missiles is an insult to the funnel family, as it's only good for busting barriers.  His bio and ace conversation is depressing.  But he's on the team so that I don't miss Lane outright, because of the ace pilot thing.  He'll eventually mature into something better, and I think he'd be pretty funny in a better mecha.  Later on, he'll get a good MAP attack, but getting there is painful.  Gotta admit that V does a hell of a job of a "what if" story, because we see this guy as a dumb, impressionable kid.

Spoiler

WELL SCREW YOU TOO ECLIPSE!

Chapter 14 - 6/76

Spoiler

Who does this self-absorbed witch think she is, anyway?

SR Point: Defeat all enemies in 4 turns. Ruri, Sumeragi, and Tessa must also shoot down at least 2 units each.

The first two turns are bleh, but I was able to get a kill with Ange.  The second half of the map is where Judau's gang shows up.  Shoved everyone besides the titular guy into the nearest battleship, then proceeded to go to town.  Activated TRANS-AM on turn 2 so that Sumeragi could get the necessary kills.  No one bothered dodging on turn 1 EP, but I didn't have problems after that.  Map ended after Ange stole the final kill.

If you're wondering about the extra turns, the first two is a little something between the Cross Ange girls.  It's as ridiculous as it sounds.

New pilots:

Ange - Unlike a certain new recruit, her lone spirit is Zero-In, which is useful for keeping her alive.  She'll gain better spirits and more attacks like any good SRW main series pilot.  Her biggest downside is her kill count - you'll need to drag her up to 60 kills manually!  Not that I mind, since Mail Rider's good for my funds!  The Villkiss eventually does the all-range things like MOST competent main series pilots.  Her attacks just take a long while!

Vivian - The goddess of good fortune, she'll generate a certain power part after every deployment after her ace.  Bunbunmaru's decent on smaller things, and Freeze Bullet is her ace in the hole.  I slap the Rescue Unit on her so that she's not totally outclassed lategame.  Her biggest issue is fighting over range extenders, but her competition so far is Tobia and Allelujah - both of which have much better combat performance than she will!  Haze is a nifty thing, but I don't use it that often.  And for whatever reason, she has Mercy.  Why.

Judau - Starts with a good MAP attack, and just gets better.  He wants Hit and Run, as his early attacking strategy is to bust things down with his "stay put" weapons.  Once he gets High Mega Cannon online, he can run up and make things cry.  He has a hell of a mouth (as in, it's a bit of a miracle he's alive after calling out both Ange and Amuro on some bullshit), and would've been up there as a favorite if Tobia didn't exist.  But Tobia's thought process is amusing, so he wins.  Oh, and he'll get his armor eventually, which means that he'll facetank EVERYTHING and not care (which is a notable exception among main series pilots, who tend to duck when things get tough).

Chapter 15 (Japan) - 6/82

Spoiler

This world has strange criminals, but it isn't so bad.  The weather is beautiful, and it's relatively peaceful.  Until I had to eat all that natto.

SR Point: Defeat Fromage (Vuitton) with one attack or counterattack. You can use Support Attack.

Sorry, I'm with Vuitton on the natto issue.

Ahem. . .

This SR point is exponentially easier with Nine's Encouragement.  I rushed through the skill tree to unlock it in the factory, then bought it as soon as I had enough resources to do so.  Slapped that on the protagonist, activated Smash Hit, and used Rekka on the boss.  The end.  Hardest part was getting the ExC necessary for those shenanigans.  I'm slipping as many kills to Maito as I can - he'll need 38 before the routes merge!  Mostly because I'm a sucker for free stuff.  Even if it's unrecruited free stuff.

The only one not dodging at this point is Maito, and this doesn't surprise me at the least.  Which means that Gundams are doing their job of NOT being hit!

Edited January 25, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 16 - 5/87

Spoiler

"Hey, what's that?"  I thought I closed the door to my room!

"Is that the game that came from that other Earth?  What's it like?"

"Huh?  Papers?"  Before I could object, the two unexpected visitors had made themselves at home.

"It's supposed to be the strategy that goes along with the restricted run-" I started.

"Hey Judau, this person's really cool!  Look at what they wrote about me!"

"Where's my entry, Tobia?  Oh, you're right, this is pretty good!  What'd they say about you, Hathaway?"

"I'm trying not to think about it," I grumbled.

SR Point: Defeat all enemies by turn 5

Unlike the other "Defeat all enemies by X turns" chapters, this one's tricky.  By the time the Nadesico shows up, you have four turns to wipe the map.  You'll either need Hit and Run on the Nadesico, or you'll need a bunch of units to take on the rush.  Or just solve everything with Judau's MAP attack.  The enemies are relatively accurate, as everyone took hits here (even the Gundam boys).  Accel is your friend!

Kappei gets his own damn section because the Zambot kids deserve some good in their life.  The story makes it clear that the Nadesico changed the ending to their series, which IMO means that we get a bit more interaction between Kappei and his friends.  As a unit, the Zambot is somewhat squishy, as far as super robots go.  It can hit relatively hard, but its true power lies with its combination attack.  Which I can't get because no one drafted them.  Besides hitting hard, the animation is all sorts of adorable~!

Chapter 17 - 9/96

Spoiler

Watching Maito duke it out all by himself was painful, both in the game and when we actually fought there.  Had to admit that downing most of Wolfgang's army in the blink of an eye was awe-inspiring.  Or would've been if it hadn't been for Judau busting out a giant cannon that basically wiped the field.  Most of us were the clean-up crew.  How insulting.

SR Point: Defeat 8 enemies in 1 turn

The first three turns is a scripted battle between Tri-Bomber and Joe.  Persist is a good spirit.

After that, it's the SR point.  Thank goodness my mom drafted Judau for me.  It made this a lot easier (as in, I didn't have to attempt a MAP Gravity Blast, which always ends poorly).  As a result, I was able to unlock the Hyper Generator.  I also unlocked the Full Armor Coating because Hathaway was nearly one-shot by Wolfgang (Maito's health drop was planned, at least).  Without a good MAP attack, you'll have to shove everyone into the Nadesico and hope that it can counterkill a lot of enemies in one turn.

New pilot:

Banjo - The Daitarn 3 is an armor-shredding, money-making machine!  Banjo can either dodge things outright or can take hits to the face.  He's pretty sturdy and hampered by both a relatively short range and EN (in other words, Just Super Robot Things).  Plus, he nets me a nifty bonus once I get him to ace!

Spoiler

Maybe YOU should try piloting this thing, eclipse.

 

Edited January 25, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

One long rest later, and here we go~!

Secret 1 - 5/101

Spoiler

That's what the new guys can do?  How'd they all end up in relationships?

Enter Black Mightgaine!  Secret scenarios don't have SR points, so they're great for giving people a chance to catch up!  In this case, Ange got as many kills as I could feed her, with Sumeragi/Shinn/Athrun/Ryoko on her heels.  Activated Fortune on Ange before she finished off the boss for good.

BTW, Nine is the best.

Spoiler

New units:

Athrun - He has two combo attacks, but the only one I care about is Meteor Saber (with his ex-girlfriend, no less).  As a pilot, he has a respectable spirit list - well, save for Drive, which IMO should've been Spirit.  His bright red suit can pump out decent damage, but barriers ruin his day.  He's a good candidate for the Spiral Effector.  As a character. . .well, the spoiler tag should sum it up:

Spoiler

Shinn - Decent variety on his attacks, but the only one that has anything notable on it is the Black Knight's sword.  His initial spirit list is promising, and he'll probably pick up one of Valor/Soul later.  He'll most likely do decently enough, though I'll probably use Athrun to bust through tougher enemies.

Chapter 18 - 6/107

Spoiler

Huh, didn't know I could press buttons during a conversation to learn more about the person speaking.  Maybe I should try that on myself.

SR Point: Defeat 15 enemies and Hiryu in 4 turns

This one's a bit tricky thanks to the all those Fromage units.  Luckily, a well-placed Gravity Blast MAP attack renders them moot.  Managed the SR point thanks to that Gravity Blast and a one-turn beatdown of Hiryu (it goes MUCH faster after Sun Attack).  Had to give some kills to units who already have way too many.  I might have to go an Arzenal route or two later on!  This is also the map where Battle Bomber, Graham, and Patrick join up.  Battle Bomber's a decent filler unit, Graham is The Ultimate and better in combat than Patrick.  But Patrick has a cool ace convo, so nyeh.

Chapter 19 - 4/111

Spoiler

Why can't I see my own bio?!

SR Point: Defeat all enemies within 2 turns.

The enemies are all over the place and have barriers.  Barrier Busters that don't require a lot of Focus are ideal - in other words, Tobia wrecks face here.  After turn 2, you'll face off against the speed freak - who goes down pretty quickly with enough Intuition/Bullseye/Attune on your side!  The cannon fodder's there to raise everyone's Focus.  Wouldn't be such a bad map if your forces weren't all over the damn place thanks to the first half!

Chapter 20 - 6/117

Spoiler

I can see Tobia's bio, but not Judau's.  Or anyone from Mithril.   I wonder what would happen if I asked someone from another world to look at this game?

SR Point: Defeat all enemy units before Kodai reaches the objective point.

In other words, nuke the initial enemies in four turns, then have Kodai do his thing.  Assuming you're moving at a good clip, the furthest enemies shouldn't be too much of an issue.  Unlike the last map, there's enough time for the heavier-hitting attacks to shine.  But they're probably not worth the EN.  After the plot point, you'll get. . .yet another explanation for "what happened to that guy?".  Along with the Yamato.  The second set of enemies should fall pretty quickly.  I wound up taking an extra turn because a single reinforcement survived.  Yay me.

New pilot:

Amuro - Apparently he fell into a plot hole and wound up in this world.  Another Funnels sniper, until his Gundam decides to wake up and give him some close-range attacks.  He's based off of ammo, which means that he'll spend some of his time on the battlefield inside of a battleship.  Second Attack allows him to be his own support attack, and has messed up more softening attempts than I care to think about.  Like most Gundams, he's relatively dodgy, but unlike the others, he tends to get hit when I least need someone to be hit.  Or he'll kill something that I want to leave alive.  Or fail to kill something.  Unfortunately, I can't reach through the screen and slap him a la Bright.  All I can do is cheer on Nine during his ace convo (which he absolutely deserves).

Spoiler

I'm not the only one with a less-than-stellar synopsis.  Better not let the commander see this.

 

Edited January 25, 2021 by eclipse

[Excellen Browning]

I tried to use Amuro in his Nu Gundam on my own playthrough and I wasn't particularly impressed. Guy needs his psychoframe to start doing damage.

Athrun and Shinn on the other hand are very good. Good spirits, Accel, dodgy units that can take a hit if needed, decently strong attacks. Athrun was my second ace.

[eclipse]

On 12/30/2020 at 1:17 AM, Excellen Browning said:

I tried to use Amuro in his Nu Gundam on my own playthrough and I wasn't particularly impressed. Guy needs his psychoframe to start doing damage.

Athrun and Shinn on the other hand are very good. Good spirits, Accel, dodgy units that can take a hit if needed, decently strong attacks. Athrun was my second ace.

Amuro's job is to be bait, and hope that he doesn't go boom in the process.  Shinn feels like he'll be fighting with Tobia over the range extenders, while Athrun needs less investment.

Chapter 21 - 6/123

Spoiler

Those damn dragons got the best of me last time.  Tobia noted that anyone would not know what to make of a new enemy the first time they saw them.  I have data and experience now.  It's time for revenge.

SR Point: Clear the map in 7 turns

It looks easy enough, until reinforcements show up.  In this case, it's dragons on one side and Gardim on the other.  Hokushin is his usual dodgy self, so bring along people with Bullseye/Persist to deal with him (Judau and Ryoma were my picks).  From there, it's a matter of chewing through a lot of bulky units.  I finished off the Gardim first (not my fault that they all went after Tobia), then the Martians (you'd think that they'd leave the Gundam with the giant cannon alone), then the dragons (who should have a healthier respect for anything with the word "Funnels" in their weapon name).

Spoiler

"I thought I heard Athrun's voice in here!"

"Hey, the door's open!"  Oops.

"Oh, you're that guy who's playing the game.  That's definitely Athrun on screen!  Can I watch?"  Once again, I had unwelcome visitors.  This time, they were female.

"But it looks like Athrun's turn is over."  I almost felt sorry for the SEED pilot in question.

"That's where the two of you went!  Never thought you'd visit random guy's rooms, Rosalie and Chris!"  Now I had a third visitor.  Great.

"His cursor's on Ange, Hilda.  Aren't you curious to see what happens?"  Which one was which?

"Why would I care about the Fallen Princess?" the newcomer snapped, her face almost as red as her hair.

"Hilda, Rosalie, Chris, that's where you went!  We have a meeting to attend!"  My room was too small for this many people!  The dark-haired newcomer with twintails filed out with everyone in tow.

I hope they don't visit me again.

Chapter 22 - 5/128

Spoiler

Hello red seas, we meet again.  It seems nothing much has changed since I left.  Except those weird green ships, that is.

SR Point: Defeat all other enemies within 5 turns and also defeat Goergametsch.

Thing is, that giant green battleship will chicken out once roughly half of its health is gone.  Your best shot at dealing with it is someone with Ignore Size, Nine's Encouragement, and Smash Hit.  I used the protagonist for this, since Rekka fulfills everything, and doesn't require too much setup.  Ideally, you'll have someone with a support attack and Smash Hit handy (used Hathaway for mine, but he wasn't needed).  Sun Attack still rules supreme, because armor shred makes this a lot less painful.  Otherwise, it's a matter of murdering everything between you and that stupid battleship.  Using whatever it takes.  Like so:

Spoiler

(yes, Smash Hit was active on Judau. . .and for those NOT familiar with SRW, that blue area is basically "I'm about to unleash hell here, please don't stand there unless you want to go boom", because friendly fire on wide-range attacks is A Thing)

Spoiler

"What was that about?"  Not long after the gaggle of girls had left, the commander dropped in.  Who would've thought that he'd be alive in a completely different dimension?

"What was what about?"

"Those girls.  They normally keep to themselves, but they seemed to be interested in that game of yours."

"They heard Athrun's voice and were curious," I said carefully.

"Our voices are in there?!"

"It's like watching past battles, except I'm the one calling the shots."

"Mind if I watch the next map?"

"Sure?"  What else was I supposed to say?

"What are these papers?  A walkthrough?  With unit analysis?  Whoever this is seems to be quite fond of everyone.  I wonder what it says about me?"

"I, uh, wouldn't take everything she says seriously," I said hastily.

"Oh.  She wasn't particularly gentle with you, Hathaway.  I'm sorry."  I silently hoped he wouldn't look for his own entry.  "And it sounds like she wasn't gentle with me, either," came a barely-audible mumble a minute later.

Chapter 23 - 9/137 (independent action)

Spoiler

And just like that, we're sucked into another war.  So much for a peaceful homecoming!

SR Point: Defeat Rommel, Rakan or Angelo within 4 turns

This one's rough, because you start out with a fixed squad.  I had the Nahel, Banagher, and Yazan at my disposal for this map. . .and without Yazan, I don't think I would've gotten the SR point (the Nahel simply takes too much damage, and you need three units to soften things up).  I parked everyone next to the Nahel and fired from behind it, and just barely took out Rommel.  The entire map charges at you, so back the hell up and pick them off.

It's a lot less hair-raising for the second phase, since you'll have everyone else at your disposal.  Keep near the coast for the Tuatha's sake.  The enemies will continue to rush you, which means if you have a unit with way too much movement, you can bail out the Nahel (Hathaway's great for this if he has his customization bonus, even if he isn't too keen on becoming Neo Zeon's target practice).  Marida's mech needs to stand still for a turn before it can unleash hell, but its range is pretty good.  Also made sure to have Banagher and Judau give their regards to Marida.  Probably could've finished this a turn sooner, but several units were running low on HP/EN (or in the Nahel's case, both).

New pilots:

Otto - He's in a precarious situation no matter which route you take, but this one gives you Yazan's Foresight.  While its weapons aren't anything to write home about, getting his ace bonus is how I'm going to survive the last stage.  It'll eat through EN at about the same rate as a super robot, so be careful when countering!  Liam rules.

Banagher - I promised a damn essay, so here goes.  First off, the Unicorn.  It starts out without its armor, which means it can do things like send enemies to horny jail with its Beam Saber.  One its pilot gets his focus high enough, you'll get Destroy Mode.  Initially capped at five turns, it'll do wonders to his damage.  And best of all?  No one's pulling him out of his mech!  Ahem. . .once he gets his armor, things become trickier.  Unicorn becomes mostly ammo-based, but gains a MAP attack (which is also ammo-based).  But it also gives Banagher an extra layer of protection, so he can stand toe-to-toe with something scary and live to tell about it (or just follow Amuro's bad example and get hit at inopportune times).  Once.  My strategy is to spend as much ammo as possible, bait the boss, and hope that he refuses to dodge.  Oh, right, the pilot.  This guy is the single most girl-crazy Gundam pilot I've seen.  If I stay in the UC dimension, a good chunk of his dialogue is about girls.  Then he moves on to "no I'm me, STFU", which is a bit better, before actually growing as a person.  He's the closest to a typical teenager I've seen in this game, and I'm not sure if that amuses me or irritates me.  Regardless, his ace bonus is hilarious when timed correctly, so ditch that armor!  Also of note is that he doesn't get Intuition, but that's okay, because most of the time I use Intuition's Flicker portion.  Lastly, if I deploy the Banshee Norn (which I plan on doing), I'll get a combo attack.  Not sure if Riddhe has to be piloting it for that attack, but we'll find out~!  Since Banshee Norn is pretty damn good in the hands of any competent Newtype.

Spoiler

"The first part of that chapter was tricky with only three units."

"That's why I keep the walkthrough around."

"Still angry about what she said about you?"

"Not as much.  I thought she had something against me, but she didn't seem to like you, either.  I can't tell what she thinks of Banagher."  The older man chuckled.

"I don't think she's the type to waste that many words on someone she despises."  The sound of rustling pages filled the room.  "Do you mind if others read their own descriptions?"

"Not especially?"  What did the commander have in mind?

"I'll send them over tomorrow.  Thank you."  My visitor got up and left.  Them?  I silently hoped it wasn't that group of girls!

 

Edited January 25, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 24 - 5/142

Spoiler

I remember how much I love being on the wrong end of a gun.  Thank goodness everyone else talked those guys out of their orders.

SR Point: Clear map in 5 turns

This time, you have your full team, so beating everyone up isn't so bad.  The Garuda may be a bit of an issue, but it probably won't stand a full volley of attacks from everyone.  The Ra Cailum and the Ple girls show up shortly after the map begins.  And THIS was why I'm using Hathaway as a sub for Lane - if I decide to go a different route, this guarantees that Lane shows up before the ace check.  Would've let Judau cool his heels, but Jerid gets stupidly tanky at low health.

New pilots:

Bright - Has Accel on himself, along with another combo of MAP attack and regular attacks.  Like Otto, he needs to watch his EN.  I distinctly remember needing him to be aced by the final chapter.  He'll have a slightly easier time of it, due to favoritism and the fact that his Bullseye is ALSO on him (meaning that he can do a lot when targeted with Prospect).

Ple - The two Ples aren't too different, really.  The majority of their spirits are the same, and they get the same ace bonus.  The upside to using Ple is that she can use Support Defend.  So shove her into something sturdy and she can keep certain stubborn main series pilots from an untimely death.  The Qubeleys sport EN-fueled Funnels, complete with the usual Funnel complements.  They're decent for offense, at least!  She desperately needs Hit and Run, though, because her main offense is Funnels.

Spoiler

THAT'S my entire point in this run?  To convince some other guy to take my place?  What kind of-

"Hey, you all right in there?"  Out of all the people the commander could've sent over, I wouldn't have expected a CEO!

"It's nothing," I said hastily.

"You sounded pretty upset.  I think you know who sent me.  He said to read my own analysis?  What's that?"  I found the page in question and handed it to Maito.

"This sheaf of papers came with the game, and it's basically a guide with commentary from an awful woman."  A chuckle came from behind me.

"The writer seems to be quite fond of Tobia.  And mostly everyone else."

"Mostly," I echoed darkly.

"She neglects most of the 1st Para-Mail Squadron, but that might have been an oversight.  I wonder what was so special about my description?  Huh?  Masks?  Why would I want everyone to wear a mask?"

"I don't think she was being serious," I cut in.

"That's a very odd thing to joke about.  So is taking care of my employees.  I wonder what kind of world she lives in?"

"WHAT."  Why was he thinking so hard about something like that?  Did it matter?

"This game features the story of the Yamato, as well as our own thoughts.  Didn't that ever bother you?"

"I figured someone heard about the Yamato's exploits from the future, and turned it into a game."

"But according to this write-up, I didn't exist.  Yet if this game is supposed to be a historical reenactment, then that's a contradiction.  And then there's your entry, where the game is described as a 'what-if' scenario, only for you.  Amuro's entry describes his appearance as a 'plot hole'."  Maito's words made sense.  They also made my head hurt.

"Maybe it's from NCC's future, but whoever wrote the guide decided that the three dimensional thing was too much of a tall tale?"

"Perhaps?  I'm going to read through a bit more of this guide, if you don't mind.  I don't have much to do at the moment, and I'm also curious to see how this game works."

"Uh, sure."  Unlike those girls, Maito would probably stay quiet, just like the commander did.

Chapter 25 - 5/147

Spoiler

I don't know what Setsuna did, but I hope he doesn't do it again.  That was awkward.  Too many voices.

SR Point: Defeat Xia Yu Fan and Xia Yu Lan before also defeating either Gauron or Gates within 3 turns.

This is a three-part map, but I turned it into a two-part one by ending the second phase early.  The first part is where the SR point is relevant, and shouldn't be too hard.  Lure the enemies near the Tuatha, and life is a lot easier.  I got tired of everything and introduced them to Phantom-01.

Phase two is punching Banagher in the face, repeatedly.  Turn on animations, because there's some unique dialogue in there.  It ends when Unicorn's health is depleted.  Or you can trigger a Game Over and let him die in there, but even I'm not that heartless!

Phase three is the real enemy.  Lots of interesting battle conversations, some in unexpected places.  Thanks to the RNG giving me Ple, I should be in a good place to recruit a certain battleship.  This is also where Judau eats through his EN.

Anyway, that's it for 2020!  I'm gonna celebrate the rest of the evening with a group that isn't a bunch of fictional characters!

Spoiler

"Well, this is disturbing."  Maito pointed to a particular sentence.

"She thinks we're fictional characters?  The year notation makes me think that she's nearly two millennia in the future."

"Yet this game is documenting the major points of our journey almost step-by-step.  Perhaps the people of the future remade history, but billed it as fiction?  Why would they turn you into a tragic figure?"  I shook my head.

"Thinking about it annoys me."

"I'm going to make a copy of this.  I don't think I'm going to catch everything in a single night."

"Sure."

"In the meantime, I'd love to see what else this game says about us."  Finally, I was alone.  I spent the rest of the night pondering Maito's observations.  She talked about us as "fictional characters".  Who would write such a depressing story, anyway? 

 

Edited January 25, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 26 - 5/152

Spoiler

I'm not sure which disturbs me more, Shinji's EVA going nuts or those things they call Angels.

SR Point: Eva Unit-01's HP falls below 10,000 within 5 turns.

I had to triple-check to make sure that I didn't screw up the total turn count.

This point is either stupidly easy or ridiculously hard.  Mazingers really help to speed it up, and I rushed Sun Attack on Banjo just to make this go faster.  Once Shinji stops his rampage, a bunch of cannon fodder appears, followed by another boss.  Beat up that other boss, and the cannon fodder goes bye-bye.  I, uh, kind of forgot the previous sentence and lost a bunch of kills.  Whoopsie!  Meanwhile, the highlight of this map was Amuro being hit by a 31% and Banjo dodging a 90%.  Of the new units, both Sayaka and Rei concentrate on support, while Boss and his gang makes for decent underling sniping.

New pilots:

Koji - The other Mazinger, and the actual title guy!  He wants to be up close and personal and smack things over the head.  Enemies bounce off of him.  He'll get some ranged attacks later-on, followed by some other nifty power-ups.  His strongest attack is literally one-shot, so use it wisely!  He's rather clueless in this incarnation, and it's a bit refreshing to see that bite him in the butt this time around.  His ace convo is plenty amusing!

Shinji - There's several ways he can go.  One involves eating all his EN thanks to Positron Cannon.  One involves a secret scenario, and I'm not sure if I'll be able to get it.  The last one requires a bunch of TAC, but it makes the true final stage a lot less irritating.  Shinji can absorb hits, to an extent.  Endgame enemies will chunk him, and he doesn't want to take on too many at once (or they'll drain his EN).  He's the middle ground between Asuka's brawling and Mari's sniping.  If he chooses the final option, he gains a very useful MAP attack.  The EVA characters in general are a lot more likeable in this game, and I think the extra interactions do wonders for Our Hero.

Spoiler

Word of the odd notes that came with the game had spread, and with it came more visitors.  After some inter-ship discussion, they agreed to have at least one person from each world watch my run.  Luckily, Kincade and Salia were content to stay quiet on opposite sides of the room.  Which would've almost been enjoyable, if the representative from my world could've been bothered to do the same.

"She has a lot of cool things to say about me!  I'm not even sure what 'horny jail' is, but it's funny!"

"Do you mind?  This map's supposed to be hard?" I snapped.

"Still mad that she wasn't super-nice to you?"  I resisted the urge to throw the controller at Banagher's head.

"She called you a typical teenager, and you think it's a compliment," I growled.

"You two. . ." Salia mumbled under her breath.

"Despite her opinions of the pilots, her strategies are sound," Kincade said calmly.

"I think that's enough for the day.  I need to make my report," Salia said abruptly.  Kincade shot us a knowing smile and followed her out.

"Well?" I asked pointedly.  Much to my surprise, the other occupant in the room had a finger to his lips.  When did he learn the value of silence?

". . .that's what happened?"  If I pressed my ear to the door, I could just make out Salia's voice.

"Keep that to yourself.  I don't think he'll. . .learn about his future."  That was Kincade!  Wasn't he from the world that considered me a historical figure?

"Understood.  But why would she. . ."

"The writer. . .his history.  I think she's fond of him."  I shot Banagher a puzzled look.  He shrugged.

"How did you hear all of that?" I asked, once the voices ceased.

"Must be the ship's acoustics.  I heard everything."

"And?"

"Kincade said something about your history in his world.  I'm curious.  Want to take a trip to the Yamato?"

"Are you serious?!"

"He thinks that the writer likes you, but knows your future.  Which means you're probably famous in some way.  I'd like to see what you did!"  I rolled my eyes.  "We'll get our chance.  Just be patient!"

Chapter 27 - 7/159

Spoiler

People do what they will, and sometimes they'll hurt you.  I could've told them that.  If they'd asked.

SR Point: Defeat Ghostfire V9 and Belgas V5, then Baron Ashura Mechanical Beast, all in the same turn and within 4 turns.

The hardest part about this point is not accidentally killing one of the sub-bosses too early.  But after dealing with this, it's. . .one of my drafted units.  And a good lesson on why fighting against Mazingers sucks.  I used Rust Hurricane to keep the other Mazinger's armor down to acceptable levels.  But that was no fun!  Ended it on EP because I landed a 35% counterattack.  Also beat the everliving tar out of everyone else.  Ruri got her ace bonus here, and this was a milestone of sorts!  And lastly, I told my mom "hey Amuro's facing a 29%, bet he gets hit".  I called it.  Dammit.

New pilots:

The rest of the Shin Getter squad - Now Ryoma has dodging and better damage mitigation!  Hayato has a very interesting combination of spirits, while Benkei keeps Shin Getter up and running.  Ryoma's still Ryoma.  Like a certain other Mazinger, their strongest attack has one shot.  They're still missing their "good" attacks, for now.  Plus, they transform.  Whee~!

Spoiler

A meeting to decide who goes where, on board the Yamato.  This was my chance!  The idiot who suggested it beckoned me down a hall.  Should be easy enough to slip away, and--

"Hey, where are you guys going?"  It was the girl that hung around Tobia a lot.  What was she doing here?

"We, uh, got lost," Banagher said quickly.

"Uh-huh."  And just as sharp as Tobia, too.

"Fine.  I want to know why people from your time seem uncomfortable around me."  She pursed her lips.

"I-I don't really want to say it," she mumbled.

"Surely this place has an archive of sorts?" I asked.

"It can't be that bad, can it?"  His reply was a withering look.  Perhaps it was that bad.  But even so, wasn't I dumb and impressionable enough to change it?  Assuming I knew what I had to change in the first place?

"But why would you want to know?" she asked quietly.

"That game and the walkthrough seem to know.  And someone thinks that the writer likes this guy over here."  I buried my face in my hands.  Why did he have to be so blunt?  Much to my surprise, she giggled.

"I guess she does, if you look at it that way."

"Wait, you read it?"  She never came to my room!  Unless she read it off of Maito's copy?

"Tobia filled me it.  It must be nice to have an admirer in another time!"

"T-that's absolutely not how the writer sees me!" I sputtered.

"Someone likes you!" Banagher teased.  If it wasn't for the girl, I would've punched him.

"And right here."  How'd we get to this door?  With a smile, she opened it.  A computer terminal sat in the center of the room.  "You'll have to figure out when in history you were, but that shouldn't be too hard."

"Thanks," I muttered.

"Yeah, thanks!" came a far too cheery echo from my annoying companion.

"I think you'll be able to handle the truth about yourself.  If anyone asks, I didn't lead you here!"  With a giggle, she left us.

"They said we were about a hundred years in the past.  Let's start there."

---

"You LED them there?!"  Tobia's eyes went wide.

"He's not the same person as the one from our timeline.  I think he'll change for the better," came the defiant reply.  Tobia shook his head.

"I hope you're right.  Because the truth may very well break him."

 

Edited January 26, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 28 - 6/165

Spoiler

I almost wish my dad had grounded me for this mission, but he says we're short-handed.  What the hell were those enemies, anyway?!

SR Point: Defeat PLAN-1055 Belial after defeating all other enemies.

Don't be fooled by this one, it's HARD (the lack of updates over the past couple of days was me trying out a whole bunch of different things).  The issue is that the map will auto-end after a certain point.  Meanwhile, the named enemy has a stupid skill that reduces all damage taken to 1/10th of what it should be.  So you're looking at an enemy with 80,000 HP (normally), two sub-bosses with 20,000+ HP and barriers (one of which will snipe your units from stupidly far away), some other assholes with barriers, a few bulky Gamillas units, recruiting Melda, and the Jupiter squad being all the way on the other side of the map.  And you have to obliterate all of them before you get to the main enchilada.  How do you deal with this?  Like so:

- Anything with the word "Funnels" in its name is fair game.  In my case, I had Hathaway dive and become target practice (again), chewed through every last Funnel, used a Cartridge to refill, and did it all over again.  Miraculously, Amuro didn't die despite some of the things I put him through.  Even Ple managed to annoy the bosses (she can outrange one of them, if you're careful about where you put her).
- Customization bonus on Kai Kai is a lifesaver here.  A lot of its attacks will gain Barrier Buster.  You want this!
- Shin Getter Robot has three modes.  One of them comes with a lot of Barrier Buster.  Sit in it and snipe away!  The animations for those are hilarious (mostly because Ryoma's complaining in the background).
- Koji's Rust Hurricane works wonders on the boss.  So does following up with Photonic Power Beam when the boss decides to attack him twice.  Do this by keeping his health lowish (but not so low that he goes boom).  Keep an eye on his EN, too.  Iron Cutter can conserve some, so unleash it on the little guys!
- Nine's Encouragement on someone that has a Barrier Buster is a lifesaver for chunking one of the not-bosses.  Used the protagonist for this.
- MAP attacks can work, assuming that you can get a clear shot.
- Cosmo Zero kinda sucks, but can hold its own against the little green guys and some of the Jupiter fodder.  Just make sure to recall Yamamoto if she's in the middle of a bunch of things that can outrange her.
- You are going to chew through your SP.   There's no getting around this.

Put it all together, get a little lucky, have Banagher put the "destroy" in "Destroy Mode" by trigger a bunch of Multi Actions on things with barrier, and that boss should go down on the final enemy phase.  As long as he's dumb and tries to pick a fight with Koji repeatedly.  Oh, and Restore Action on your battleships is amazing.

Spoiler

I wasn't able to read everything before we were caught.  Nor did I want to.  Even my ever-chatty companion was silent during questioning.  Perhaps that's why we were stuck cleaning the ship and taking out the trash, instead of something far worse.  Yet none of it was worse than what I read about myself.  Of what I could possibly become, if I gave into despair.

Rather than play, I read through the scenario's guide.  It looks like the author didn't give up, even if it took her a while to figure something out.  It would've been easy enough to do so, because it's all a game to her.  The war is real for me, and nothing would bring back those lives lost thanks to my other version's actions.

What should I do?

 

Edited January 26, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 29 - 7/172

Spoiler

He.  Will.  Not.  Shut.  Up!

I had a couple of days left in my confinement, why the hell would I risk that just to see a new crew member early?!  But a certain someone keeps telling me how pretty she is, and how cool her blue skin looks.  I'll take a proper walk around the ship after we save Atami City.

SR Point: Before map clear, defeat at least 3 enemy units at the same time with one ally pilot using a MAP weapon.

While it's possible to miss this one, you have two battleships with MAP attacks at your disposal, so make use of them!  You also have a lot of little enemies, who will melt under said MAP attack.  Though if you don't use Judau, he gets a bit annoyed with you (the Nahel needed the kills more, anyway).  Otherwise, this is a pretty straightforward map - murder a bunch of things who aren't that much of a threat, and move on with your life.  A good breather after everything the last map threw at you!

New attack:

Shin Getter 1 - "It, was, uh, the first thing that came to mind."  And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how Stoner Sunshine got its name.  Complete with its own epic theme.

Spoiler

She looked like a woman with blue skin.  The end.

Chapter 30 - 8/180

Spoiler

Now Shinji's asking me for advice on how to deal with difficult girls.

SR Point: Defeat Anksha (Buran Blutarch) within 3 turns.

Wasn't sure if I could pull this off, but I did.  Complete with punting Lane off the battlefield with my own two hands.  Er, Funnels.  Whatever.  Maybe he shouldn't have picked a fight with Koji.

After the point, you'll have to deal with angels.  Once again, Shin Getter to the rescue, along with Destroy Mode and a nice helping of Funnels/Kai Kai.  During the third segment, I briefly get Tetsuya/Yazan, and they help out.  Along with the new girl.  This post-chapter scene, along with Melda's recruitment, are good reasons to play through this route.  Mostly because it shows that certain guys have a type, and one in particular's type is "crazy".

Oh, right. . .new pilot:

Asuka - Like Shinji, she's a little gimped right now.  But unlike Shinji, she doesn't require a ton of hoops to get to her best attack, only some story time.  But once she does, she'll eat enemies.  Just watch her EN, like any other EVA!  She gets Intuition, which is a lifesaver later on (when she has issues hitting enemies that can do serious damage to her).  She also gets an amazing ace conversation.  While Stupid Shinji is relegated to something worse.

Spoiler

YOU ARE THE ABSOLUTE WORST!

Chapter 31 - 10/190

Spoiler

Chased a girl, got captured by the enemy.  Meanwhile, the guy next to me blathers about girls nonstop, and the enemies don't treat him any differently!  Does the universe want me to stay single?!

SR Point: Within 5 turns, use extra action Smash Hit to defeat Shamblo while its HP is 10,001 or higher. You may combine Support Attack.

This scene was supposed to be serious.  Instead, it turned into an unintentional snub:

Hathaway: *insert long rant here*
Zinnerman (to Banangher): Hey, what's your name?

Shamblo is that giant red thing that will hit your units from stupidly far away.  And best of all?  After you bring its health down, it'll fix itself and it's round 2!  Along with a bunch of other friends.  That's why the clear took so damn long, even with a whole bunch of Barrier Busters to my name.  As for that point?  Koji + a bunch of weapon upgrades + Nine's Encouragement + Smash/Direct Hit + spending a ton of EN did the trick.  Do not screw with the Mazinger.  Also made it a point to have Hathaway and Lane duke it out.  This is probably the most damage the former will ever do on this run, so cherish it~!

I probably should've stopped this write-up on the last scenario, but there was something extremely poetic about the theme of this scenario and recent events.  I'm worried that today's fiasco at the White House was the opening act to something far worse.  And the last thing I want is for this country to become a battleground, just as Our Heroes didn't want that city to turn into one.  My world doesn't have a bunch of idealistic teenagers with super weapons running around to save the day, though.

Spoiler

If I follow NCC's history, I'll end up just like those that I fought today.  I wonder what this map's walkthrough says about--

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!  I CAN DO WAY MORE DAMAGE TO YOUR--

"Hathaway?  Is something wrong?"  Once again, I'd left the door open.

"Father?!  It's, uh, nothing."  Deep breaths.  My nerves were frayed, and the last thing I needed was some random person talking about my battle capabilities like that!

"If the investigation of the odd game is stressing you out too much, put it on hold.  We're doing this as a favor to the Yamato, but your duties here comes first."  I shook my head, and put the walkthrough down.

"I'm sorry.  Sometimes, the writer is infuriating."

"Do you mind if I read it?"  I nodded wordlessly.  The silence was broken by the sound of flipping pages.  "Oh.  Yes, I can see why this would be upsetting."  He pointed to the part that I hadn't quite gotten down to.  I felt the blood drain from my face.

"So the writer's from America, and she's worried about war.  While we're fighting one."  Maybe she was the type to overreact?

"She's using this game as an outlet for her stress.  Perhaps that's why she's as abrasive as she is to certain members of my crew."  My father wore a small smile on his face.

"We're being used in place of whatever is making her mad?"

"I think she has very high expectations out of all of us, including you.  I'll have a chat with Amuro as well."  He seemed pleased with himself.

"Why?"

"We wouldn't want to let her down."  With a small chuckle, he left the room.

This woman was nothing but trouble.

 

Edited January 26, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 32 - 6/196

Spoiler

We're raiding a Federation base.  Why does Tobia look so excited?

SR Point: Clear map within 6 turns, and within those turns, one ally pilot uses extra action Multi Action.

This one's a little close, since you have multiple steps, and you don't have a lot of time to do it in.  Plus, Ple needs to have a chat with Banshee Norn.  Everything decided that it didn't like Tobia, so he was able to soften everything for everyone else.  Once Marida is out of the way, you'll get a scene, and Banagher can count his lucky stars that he didn't break something in his hand.  Also, Tobia is a terrible influence on him.

The next part is basically a boss rush, since you'll need to mind your turns.  Banshee Norn will come out for round 2, but I ignored it.  I have better things to do with my time~!

Finally got my first non-battleship ace.  And besides being depressing, that conversation was entirely too short.  I guess the writers couldn't figure out Hathaway, either.

Then the other half of the cast joins up.  Allelujah gets a new attack (one which probably won't see much use because I can justify mostly everything else), Shinn gets a new attack and SEED, the Nadesico is replaced with a better version and a whole bunch of other stuff happens.  Ange gets a lot better.  Oh, and new pilot here.  The other new pilot is Salamandinay, who's probably the second-best of the cast in terms of damage and range.  But we have the actual best Para-Mail on our team, in the form of. . .

New pilots:

Tusk - REAL.  MEN.  USE.  PINK.  SUITS!  He hits decently hard (well, as hard as a Para-Mail that isn't the Villkiss can hope to), and comes with Repair/Resupply.  His spirit list is all sorts of funny, too.  His biggest issue will be getting to ace, as he'll be busy keeping everyone alive instead of killing things.  His biggest weakness is his range, as anything with a half-decent ranged attack will be out of his counter range (and range extension items are seriously contested).  His ace conversation is somewhere between funny and weird.  I feel like the translation didn't quite do it justice.

ETERNAL - This is where Athrun does his happy dance, because he gets the combination attack Meteor Saber.  Oh, right, I should talk about the ship itself.  Lacus is the captain, and for reasons that are beyond me, she also has SEED.  The extra crit is nice, but the Eternal is a defensive ship, meaning that its job is to absorb hits for everyone and everything.  Support Defend + its customization bonus will ensure that I survive the final map.  Like several other utility ships, it doesn't have the best variety of attacks.  The crew has a decent spirit list, with Wattfield being your go-to guy for useful things like Accel.  Unfortunately, he gets criminally few lines, and Cagalli isn't around to argue with him.  Still a solid pick later on, since your smaller units are in danger of being one-shot.

Spoiler

"A pity that Banagher couldn't make it this time," Shinji mumbled.

"The commander said he might not be on time because his meeting would run long.  I have no idea who's coming from the AD or NCC dimensions."

"Sorry I'm late!"  An unfamiliar boy stood in the doorway, along with. . .Kodai?!

"Are you sure you have the time to spare?!" I blurted out.

"Oh, you must be one of the new pilots!" Shinji exclaimed happily.

"My name is Tusk.  It's nice to meet you all!"  He wore a surprisingly easy smile.

"I was given leave by the captain to observe this.  He said that it may give me some insight into battle strategy."  Shinji and I exchanged a look, but kept silent.  "Is this everyone?"  I heard voices?  Oh, right, I was standing in that weird spot that allowed me to hear people in the hallway.  I motioned for everyone to stay quiet and huddle close.

". . .I'm probably the last one. . ."  Sure enough, it was the last member of our group!

". . .apologies. . .meeting running late."  That was my father!

"You said you had something you wanted to tell me in private?"

"Yes.  How much of that odd guide have you read?"

"Uh, I haven't had time to read anything new."

"Ah, a pity.  I had a chance to read through it.  It seems this writer thinks that you're not doing as well as you could be, Amuro."

"Excuse me?"

"She has high standards for Londo Bell.  Please try to live up to those expectations."

"Uh, what?"  Everyone exchanged puzzled looks.

"It's not a good idea to disappoint a lady with your performance, repeatedly.  She will find someone who's more responsive to her needs."  Why was Tusk turning red?

"I-I'll keep that in mind."  Kodai's face went from puzzled to shocked.  Shinji shook his head, the confusion in his face matching my own.

"Who was that?" Tusk whispered.

"The other voice was his dad," Shinji replied quietly, pointing at me.

"The captain of this ship?!" Kodai blurted out.

"Yes, why?"

"WHAT?!"  Kodai's face was completely white.

"Did I miss something?" I asked pointedly.

"W-well. . ." Tusk stuttered.

"What are you all whispering about?"  The final member of our group stood in the doorway.  The color hadn't quite left the commander's cheeks.  Perhaps he'd been as red as his hair after my father's words.  But why?

"N-nothing!" Tusk and Kodai said together.

"We were taking bets on when you'd show up, sir," I lied.

"Today just isn't my day.  Well, enough about me.  I'm sorry to have kept everyone waiting.  What's this chapter about?  And, uh, can I read the walkthrough again?"

 

Edited January 26, 2021 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 33 - 5/201

Spoiler

Everything about this situation made no sense whatsoever.  The goons from Maito's neck of the woods, showing up right as the world's about to end?  It was almost tasteless.

SR Point: Defeat at least 6 units on the first turn.

The upside to this point is that you can suspend before moving, then reset until you get it, and it'll be relatively quick (while you can do this with other points, this one's by far the least headache-inducing).  The enemies will take a few hits before going down, so leave them in the red and finish them off on their turn.  Allelujah had a field day with them, since they all decided to crowd around and say hi.  The point scene doesn't quite make sense - Harry, you're drunk!  Otherwise, the worst of this map is getting rid of Joe and his stupidly bulky suit.  But that's what Judau's for~!

I wish Joe would show up and donate energy to Congress!

Spoiler

"You're here again?"  Commanders had other duties besides watching a video game!

"I have even more questions after reading everything.  Like why the walkthrough ends here."

"Huh?"

"The other observers are Nine and Tieria.  They might be able to address that."  Right on cue, they entered my room.

"Here's the next part.  It's everything but the last few scenarios," Nine said, a small smile on her face.

"The next part?" I asked hesitantly.

"Yes.  I'm still translating the rest of it."

"Translating it?  This wasn't written in Earth Common?"  I nodded along with Amuro's words.

"This is most likely a parallel universe," Tieria chimed in.  "From my analysis, the Federation was never formed.  Thus, their history is wildly different from ours.  The years she mentioned would be 020-021 in our terms."

"The original writing appears to be a variant of American English.  Her odd grammar is difficult to translate."

"How in the world did you get a hold of a copy of the game and the text?" I asked.

"It was in my memory banks after the Yamato was transported from the NCC dimension.  Once I had reunited with Sis, I was able to examine the odd data more closely.  Tieria helped to fill in the gaps within the game.  We built a console that could run the game, while I worked on the walkthrough."

"The game features a library, which contains information on the characters and the world they come from.  I've encountered numerous bugs, mostly related to displaying that data.  It's almost as if it refuses to display certain things for certain people."  Tieria shook his head.  "I was curious to see how Setsuna's story ends."

"Our reality, as we know it, is its own parallel universe?" Amuro asked.

"Yes.  Which makes things even more confusing.  It's as if there's multiple versions of us, and neither one is aware of the other's existence.  Or, more specifically, some of you have a shared history, while others are in their own world.  For example, Celestial Being has no bearing in anyone else's world."

"I wonder what MY parallel self is doing," Nine muttered.

"This is making my head hurt.  Can I blow things up now?"  Nine and Tieria shot me a worried look.  "IN A VIDEO GAME," I emphasized.

"I suppose this will be a good time to judge the writer's tactical capabilities," Nine said, as she made herself comfortable on my bed.  Amuro stifled a giggle behind his hand.  I glared at him and started the chapter.

 

Edited January 26, 2021 by eclipse

[Hasechi]

Hi.. I know this is a bit off topic... but anybody know this game?  there is a robot game like this genre. At the beginning you can choose Male or Female charater. After that, choose 1 of 2 robot become your main. 

The female charater has a green hair, green eyes. The male has pink or red hair I can't remember.

[eclipse]

16 minutes ago, Hasechi said:

Hi.. I know this is a bit off topic... but anybody know this game?  there is a robot game like this genre. At the beginning you can choose Male or Female charater. After that, choose 1 of 2 robot become your main. 

The female charater has a green hair, green eyes. The male has pink or red hair I can't remember.

What system is it on?  It's definitely from the SRW series!

[Hasechi]

3 minutes ago, eclipse said:

What system is it on?  It's definitely from the SRW series!

Hi! It is an PC game. I used to play it on PC....

[eclipse]

1 minute ago, Hasechi said:

Hi! It is an PC game. I used to play it on PC....

The only ones with proper ports to PC (via Steam, assuming you're in the right region) are V and X, and none of the protagonists have green hair.  It sounds like you emulated an older game.

If you can remember some of the other characters that appeared with the protagonist, you should be able to narrow it down.  For example, the Gundam Wing gang shows up in X but not V.

[Acacia Sgt]

Sounds like it's A. Girl with green hair and eyes being Lamia, guy with red hair Axel.

A for GBA, AP for PSP... sounds like it was emulated.