Video Persona 3 FES Hard Mode 100% Completion LLG

[ruadath]

Espinosa was totally correct that the Persona 4 LLG challenge ended up devolving into a huge grindfest as soon as the first dungeon began, and it looks like it won't end there. Since I'm not particularly interested in doing that at the moment, I decided I would work on something more fun: playing through my favorite game in the Persona series, in a 100% low level completion.

I will be playing on Hard Mode, easier than Espinosa's Maniac Mode on P3P, for obvious reasons, but their will be a different set of challenges to this playthrough that he did not encounter. First of all, due to the different game mechanics, I will not be able to directly control my party members during this playthrough, which will make item spamming (and general battle tactics) more difficult; this, however, should be offset by the fact that I have access to fusion spells (and multiple Personas, unlike P4) and can change the MC's weapon type as necessary. In addition, my time constraints for clearing areas of Tartarus will be much more stringent due to the constraints of a Max Social Link playthrough; for example, I will most likely have to clear the first sector of Tartarus on my first visit to the area, and thus I won't be able to advance the storyline to gain access to the compendium (or more EXP/Akihiko, in general).

In any case, I feel that this challenge should be a lot more fun to do, as even though there will still be grinding involved, it should be significantly less. I'm really looking forward to playing through this excellent game again. So my first question to my audience (you guys), is would you prefer to see this in the style of an LP (with me recording cutscenes and noncombat events) or would you rather I limit myself to screening boss fights only? I feel that the Persona games are very compatible with the idea of LPs due to the fact that they are largely story-driven, and for this playthrough in particular, a lot of what occurs during the regular part of the game will be important to maxing out social links and the like.

But whatever you guys would like to see, let me know, and I'll let you know when I get started!

Edited November 13, 2015 by ruadath

[JSND Alter Dragon Boner]

I prefer LP

That said mind telling how P4 LLG would become a grindfest? I didn't really play the game for a long time thanks to no PS2(played shit tons of SMT though), so hearing how Low Level run would be a grindfest is interesting >_>

[Caster]

That said mind telling how P4 LLG would become a grindfest? I didn't really play the game for a long time thanks to no PS2(played shit tons of SMT though), so hearing how Low Level run would be a grindfest is interesting >_>

I believe it's mainly just grinding chests in the dungeon for damage items, it'd probably turn into a grindfest considering most bosses in P4 have a lot more HP, so.

[ruadath]

I prefer LP

That said mind telling how P4 LLG would become a grindfest? I didn't really play the game for a long time thanks to no PS2(played shit tons of SMT though), so hearing how Low Level run would be a grindfest is interesting >_>

Perhaps the correct wording is farmfest... I have to spend hours before each dungeon farming chests for throwable damage items like Smart Bombs in order to actually be able to kill things quickly enough.

I've realized in fact that Smart Bombs would make the Shadow Yukiko fight a lot more reliable than it currently is (all those dodges, lol), so I might in fact redo from that point. I had a bunch of Smart Bombs, I just didn't realize they did extra damage lol.

[Caster]

But yeah, I'd be interested in watching this, more so if you did it in an LP style, I think that's a bit more interesting to watch, also considering I haven't successfully done a Max Link run yet.

Interested in how you'll deal with some of the more annoying bosses like Sleeping Table, I would assume it would take some luck, but I could be wrong, considering I personally haven't done something like this.

[ruadath]

I believe it's mainly just grinding chests in the dungeon for damage items, it'd probably turn into a grindfest considering most bosses in P4 have a lot more HP, so.

Right on point. Also, another couple of issues I failed to mention in my last post is the inability to use any Personas other than the starting one, most bosses not having elemental weaknesses (something "fixed" in P4G), and also I guess the inability to buy good weapons/armor from the shop without having necessary components (which means more farming in dungeons for the armors from locked chests, which means even more farming for chest keys).

[mozumes]

Hard mode isn't even really that hard compared to normal. The only problem for me was that the persona compendium is 4x more expensive and that the chance for aliments increased.

[ruadath]

First video is here!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CxKtdR4iqY

Doesn't really contain anything besides the introductory scenes, but I hope you enjoy watching them if you've never seen the game before!

[ruadath]

Part 2, from April 8th through April 18th is now up!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqIWeETsnP4

A lot of story events occur here, with some of the major themes of the game being introduced, in additional to several more main characters. In addition, we get our first glance at the classroom mechanics at school, and at combat mechanics in our first battle! I guess for the sake of the LLG, I should note that both MC and his Persona Orpheus hit level 2. The stats gained on Orpheus' level up doesn't really matter much since we won't be using him a ton beyond early game.

You may also notice during the classroom scenes that there were occasions when the game stated something like "Your Charm has increased!" Academics, Courage, and Charm are social qualities that are extremely important in this game, and are one set of things that I intend to max during the playthrough. I guess I'll keep track of how many points I've earned with each video:

Academics: 2 (+2) points

Courage: 0 (+0) points

Charm: 4 (+4) points

I guess it's best to mention now that it takes 80 points to maximize Courage and Charm, and 260 points to maximize Academics. The most important thing to focus on at the moment is the latter, as I need to reach Rank 3 (80 points) by May 18th in order to ace the first set of exams.

Besides that, there aren't really any actual choice to make at this stage of the game, with the game being very linear so far. It'll open up quite a bit soon enough though!

[spoiler=Don't read unless you've beaten the game/know the ending already!]Notice how you fall asleep for a week after summoning Orpheus? Consider Yukari's dialogue after you wake up: "How much sleep do you need!? It's been a whole week! ...I was so worried about you..." Kind of reminds you of the game's ending, no? I like to think of it as a sort of foreshadowing and thinks it's cool how the ending parallels this scene (the beginning) to some extent.

[ruadath]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDFsYb61XpM

More storyline development as the party gets ready to tackle the main dungeon of the game for the first time. We obtain our first social link, and see the admission of both the MC and another character into SEES.

[ruadath]

Turns out it's impossible in FES to get both Pixie and Asparas on the tutorial floor. This shouldn't be a problem though, as I don't really need Asparas for anything prior to Priestess (though early access to Cadenza would have been nice); Pixie's healing and Rakunda will suffice.

[ruadath]

Our first battles in Tartarus!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey9LK_QZzt0

The playthrough continues with our first steps inside Tartarus. The game forces us to clear out the first floor of Tartarus, netting the party some useful EXP, in addition to an extra Persona for the MC, Pixie.

Pixie will be really useful throughout the early portion of this playthrough by allowing us to go into battles with a second healer. She's also the only other Persona we'll be able to get until after the Priestess boss fight! After that, we'll have access to the Persona Compendium, which will allow me to fuse various Persona together to create new ones.

I also picked up a Practice Bow from one of the battles, a second copy of Yukari's weapon that will be invaluable in the next battle when we take on some fliers. It's not mandatory that I get it here, but it saves me some money in the long run, so it's nice.

[ruadath]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y87n5fJ46Mg

The game finally lets us have some control over our actions. I'll give a breakdown of what occurs each day.

[spoiler=April 21st]Bathroom for "Great" status
Stayed awake during class (+2 Academics)
Donated at shrine under "Great" status (+5 Academics)
"Horror House" at arcade (+4 Courage)
Studied at night (+2 Academics)
Became "Tired"

[spoiler=April 22nd]Automatic meeting with Kenji (Magician 1 S. Link)
Bathroom to get rid of "Tired" status
"Quiz Night" at arcade (+4 Academics)
Studied at night (+2 Academics)

[spoiler=April 23rd]Joined track team (Chariot 1 S. Link)
Bathroom for "Great" status
Decided to visit Tartarus

As you can see, I've gone all out to get as many points towards Academics as possible, since I need to reach 80 by mid-May. After the first two nights, I need to visit Tartarus on the third in order to have enough cash to afford more arcade nights. I decided to get "Great" status to make the upcoming battles easier; while I'm there I'm planning (hope) to clear out all of the bosses, though IIRC I'll have another shot on May 7th in case things don't work out.

At the end of the video, I equipped MC with the Practice bow and changed to Pixie in preparations for the upcoming battles.

[spoiler=Overall Summary]Academics: 17 (+15) points
Courage: 4 (+4) points
Charm: 4 (+0) points

S. Links (Fool 2, Magician 1, Chariot 1)

Edited November 1, 2015 by ruadath

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

Thankfully I'm a still a bit ahead with my first playthrough of this game so I wouldn't spoil myself by watching this.

[ruadath]

Thankfully I'm a still a bit ahead with my first playthrough of this game so I wouldn't spoil myself by watching this.

Oh? Judging by your profile pic, I assumed you were a veteran when I saw you on other threads, lol.

[ruadath]

By the way, I have a question for you guys regarding the playthrough:

Would you guys like me to include the video of the party traversing through the dungeon floors to get to the enemy? Or would you rather that I just start the video with me warping to the boss from an access point, having skipped over the part where I actually work my way up the tower. I ask this because it might get rather boring since I'll just be dodging enemies, looting chests when possible, and making my way up the staircases.

I definitely DON'T plan on making videos of the farming session that I will have after killing all of the enemies. Surely there are no objections here, right?

[Topazd]

I'd personally go straight for the bosses, the slight Tartarus layout changes wouldn't really warrant all that screen time.

I was initially against doing this in LP format, but it seems the way you're going about it will make the run nonetheless quite navigable and pleasant to watch!

[ruadath]

I was initially against doing this in LP format, but it seems the way you're going about it will make the run nonetheless quite navigable and pleasant to watch!

Thanks! I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying it! It only seemed natural to me that the events of the day should be included since I am attempting to go after Max Social Links, and I figured that if I was going to include screen time of those sorts of things, then it wouldn't be too far of a stretch to go for a full-length LP (especially after the positive feedback several people gave on the forum).

As for whether or not to record the running through Tartarus, the only reason I would think to do so (and probably for this first real visit only), is to show me looting some of the rare chests on the way up. For example, there is a reasonable chance that I might reset a lot of times to grab a Juzumaru on the way up to the the 5th floor, and a Shirt of Chivalry on the way up to each of the next bosses. I don't know yet if it is strictly necessary to grab these (most likely not), but I'll probably need all the help I can get (and a bit of luck) if I want to take out Rampage Drive on my first visit.

On the other hand, it's probably a good bit easier just to do that in the background and record only the actual fight segments... I'll have a think about this, but feel free to weigh in some more.

[ruadath]

Another thing that I'm debating/seeking input on is whether or not I should keep the goal of completing all quests. Since I can't complete quest #55 (the optional boss) until a New Game+, it seems rather pointless to sacrifice the LLG component of the game for an objective that can't be fully completed.

In particular, practically all of the "drops" quests result in silly rewards such as yen or equipment that can easily be obtained elsewhere. The exceptions to this, are, of course, the request that involve defeating Golden Shadows, but they do not give out EXP anyway (can someone confirm this? It's been a while since I last played through FES). I think that it might therefore be a better idea to limiting myself to completing only quests that do not require me to gain additional EXP. What do you guys think?

[Konnor97]

Another thing that I'm debating/seeking input on is whether or not I should keep the goal of completing all quests. Since I can't complete quest #55 (the optional boss) until a New Game+, it seems rather pointless to sacrifice the LLG component of the game for an objective that can't be fully completed.

In particular, practically all of the "drops" quests result in silly rewards such as yen or equipment that can easily be obtained elsewhere. The exceptions to this, are, of course, the request that involve defeating Golden Shadows, but they do not give out EXP anyway (can someone confirm this? It's been a while since I last played through FES). I think that it might therefore be a better idea to limiting myself to completing only quests that do not require me to gain additional EXP. What do you guys think?

Sure, cut down on quests that don't require additional exp gain. Also Golden Shadows do not give exp, though I found out they give 1 exp or so if you send your teammates at them in the field (this was in P3P where I tested that though).

[ruadath]

OK, I think I'm probably going to roll with that. It's actually pretty nice, since it ends up giving me extra nights early in the game to focus on raising personal characteristics, which translates to more free nights later in the game to buff up my Personas' stats.

[ruadath]

If any of you guys over here consider yourselves Persona 3 experts, I would appreciate it if you took a look at the following thread on GameFAQs to help me with planning social links, etc.

[Radiant head]

Have you seen those max social link guides?

You usually have to farm for matching arcanas, but with the tired system in fes, extensive farming/grinding is tough.

[ruadath]

Have you seen those max social link guides?

You usually have to farm for matching arcanas, but with the tired system in fes, extensive farming/grinding is tough.

Yeah, I have but I think it's possible to do it much better than they do. Matching personas shouldn't be an issue, as I'll have access to the compendium before I need it to boost my ranks. I'll have plenty of money from running through Tartarus a bunch of times, so I should be OK on the cash front (I'll probably raise 100-200k after clearing out Rampage Drive this first visit).

[ruadath]

I had a pretty good run through the first few floors of Tartarus, picking up a Patra Gem, about 3500 cash, a Short Bow, and a Juzumaru. I gave the latter to Junpei for the HP boost, and equipped MC with the Short Bow. Anyway, here is the first "boss" fight. Recorded in HD now! Tell me if you notice the difference (seriously, I'm a noob at recording stuff, so let me know).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQT7WHsbukw

Thanks to the knockdown mechanic in this game, the fight is really easy. All we have to do is hit have MC hit everything with his bow, wait for them to get up, and rinse and repeat. I still reset a bunch of times though, because I wanted to record a perfect run with no misses, and the bow isn't that all that accurate. Note that if he does miss, all is not lost; we just change Yukari to Support/Heal and continue. Things will work out unless we get misses on two consecutive rounds.