Fire Emblem 9½: Chronicles of the Sword

[Nimbostratus]

For a long time, all I knew about Fire Emblem was the fact that Marth, Roy, and Ike were featured in Smash Bros. Not anymore though. These days I'm a big fan of the Fire Emblem series, and that's largely thanks to Soul Calibur III.

"Wait, what?" you might say.

Well, you see... in addition to the standard fighting-game mode, Soul Calibur III also came with an extra mode called Chronicles of the Sword, which was more like a strategy game- and, in retrospect, very much like a Fire Emblem game.

I wonder... Has anyone else played this? Am I the only one who's so oddly nostalgic about it?

In any case, here it is, for your viewing pleasure.

[spoiler=Prologue (warning: large images)]

This is my character. He's a Dancer, which gives him a variety of fast, flashy, acrobatic fighting styles. (For the curious, the full list of character classes and the weapons they can use can be found here.)

Once character creation is done, we begin with the plot:

Unnecessary subtitles are unnecessary.

but everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked

The four characters shown here are all important characters in the CotS story. I'll point them out as they appear in-game.

See that funky axe-like thing 'King Chester' is holding? Remember that. It's important.

...wait, so we're a soldier of the Empire? Aren't Empires generally the bad guys in these things? Hmm...

Anyway, each Chronicle begins with a title and a little text crawl. For this one, I'll just type it here.

Prologue: The Art of War

Two opposing swords of foreign origin... With no knowledge of their true powers, man worshipped the swords as a symbol of wealth and authority. Nations have destroyed each other over the swords, and countless wars have been waged.

Blind to reason or justice, man once again learns the art of war. And in time, he too will learn...

Ooo, foreshadowing. :v Anyway, here we go.

Wake up, Crono!

Am I in trouble? D:

Oh, okay, it's just the tutorial.

(also, Girardot is the guy on the far left in the four-character image above.)

Despite what Girardot says, there is no permadeath in CotS. Which is good, because the AI characters are sometimes ridiculously hard to beat.

Anyway, we're then treated to a wall of text about objectives and whatnot. It's simple enough, really. Each CotS map is marked by strongholds. Your characters can be used to defend your strongholds or attack the enemy's. Most chronicles have the objective of 'occupy the main enemy stronghold' which means, once you do that, the map is beaten- even if there are still enemies left on the map. Some other chronicles have 'defeat all enemies' or 'defeat a specific enemy'.

Here on the Briefing screen we can create characters (but I won't be doing that) or equip our current ones with new weapons or outfits. The outfits don't matter much, but the weapons do. But weapons must be bought with in-game gold, which is earned as we progress through CotS.



We can also change our characters' unit type, which can have some influence on how each map is played. To be honest, though, I normally just have everyone as Bandits, which are fast-moving and good at attacking strongholds.

And here is our first unit, Aeneas. Who is this guy? Well, there's really very little character development in CotS, so this is just a guess...

Aeneas is the main character's friend and training partner. He's not in the Academy because he's more of a follower than a leader, but he is a very capable soldier. If this were a Fire Emblem game, he'd be a Knight or Cavalier.



Here's a look at the map and our characters' starting positions. Not really important on this map, but strategic positioning will be far more important in future chronicles.



This stronghold (and all the other enemy strongholds on this map, besides the main one) have the Poison effect, which gradually saps the HP of both fighters.

Oh, and before I forget...

that plays throughout most of CotS.



Each time a stronghold goes down, a Decisive Battle ensues. This means you must defeat the character(s) inside the stronghold in a battle

. It is still a fighting game, after all.



VS

The Lance discipline used by Aeneas has long range and sweeping attacks, which makes it hard for those with short-range weapons (like this guy's Wave Sword) to get close enough to get a hit in.

Also, all of the enemies on this map are generic nameless soldiers. These guys are easy to beat. Named characters have more HP and tougher AI.



A ring out is not always an instant victory in CotS, but it does take off a sizable chunk of the victim's health, so it's always nice to score one if you can- and the Lance discipline is good at doing that, too.

Victory is ours.

Characters gain XP and levels as the game goes on. The max level is 99, but the final boss is only level 63. There's only one level 99 character in CotS, and he's a bonus boss.

Anyway, time for the next stronghold- let's see what Dervus can do.

VS



This soldier has the same voice as Aeneas. In fact, there are only four voices for each gender, so don't expect to hear a lot of variety in this game.



Well, that was easy. If only FE dancers could fight like that. :v

When this happens, you have the option of entering a fighting-game battle or letting them duke it out on the map. Usually the former is preferable, since your character will probably lose less HP that way.

Dervus kicks his butt.

Meanwhile Aeneas defeats this guy.

It might be hard to see at this angle, but his 'shuriken' is giant (about the size of a shield) and attached to his back- and inexplicably spinning. Ridiculous though it is, Katana+Shuriken is a fun discipine to play with.

Two more fights left. The next one is Aeneas vs. a fellow Lance user.

The AI surprisingly toughened up a bit for this fight. Usually I can get a Perfect against this girl. No such luck this time. Ah well, at least she didn't beat me. :v

And now, the last stronghold.

This guy doesn't say anything- Rapier users are almost always silent.

Rekt.



"This is gonna be great!"



It was great. For me.

And with that, victory is ours!



And our reward is clothes :v: Character parts are unlocked as characters are recruited. These parts are the ones worn by Aeneas.



You also earn gold at the end of each chronicle. You get extra gold for fulfilling the bonus conditions, which are different in each chronicle.. and increasingly hard to fulfill.

So there we go, that's the first bit of Chronicles of the Sword. More to come soon.

[Parrhesia]

Why 9.5?

[Nimbostratus]

Two reasons.

1: I checked the release dates. Soul Calibur III came out after Path of Radiance but before Radiant Dawn.

2: I thought it was funny.

[Rapier]

I really liked Chronicles of the Sword when my PS2 was still working, and I still want a mode like this one in a future SC. I guess I'll be following this LP.

[Nimbostratus]

Cool. Thanks for watching~

[spoiler=Chronicle 1]

For what purpose, for whose sake do men raise swords against one another?

Parousia Military Academy, Grandall Empire.

Dervus stood among the officer cadets that had lined up to the booming voice of their instructor, General Girardot.

"The practice battle will now begin!"

The face-off would be between Abelia- the sharpest woman at the academy- and Dervus, who would be taking command of a unit for the first time.

"Don't worry. Since this is only practice, we'll let you keep your lives when you lose."

Just practice...? No. If Dervus lost on the battlefield, there would be no tomorrow for him... Defeat was not an option.





How very eloquent.



So yeah, we have a new character. Time for more backstory speculation.

Riese was caught one day stealing supplies from an Imperial army camp. She injured 6 men in her escape attempt, one of them being General Girardot himself. Rather than execute her on the spot, Girardot chose instead to conscript her. If this were a Fire Emblem game, she would be a Thief.



Here's a look at the map.



This is the first of many chronicles where enemy units will attack your strongholds. Usually it's best to defend them as quickly as possible.



Let's see if Riese can defeat our first named opponent. the Grieve Edge discipline uses bladed shoes, the closest this game has to a weaponless fighting style- it's fast and quite unpredictable, so it's often troublesome to fight against.



But there are plenty of ways to out-cheese the cheesy AI. including liberal use of savestates



Next up was a nameless Iron Sword user, who was surprisingly more of a challenge.



Abelia gives bad advice.



Time for Aeneas to test his might.



Not bad.



Showdown time.



En garde.



...Was that really all your might?





FLAWLESS VICTORY

The next chronicle has two recruitable characters- the catch is, you can only recruit one of them. The options are a Katana+Shuriken user or a Chinese Sword user.

...it should be noted at this point that Chinese Sword and Chinese Blade are not the same thing. Chinese Blade uses a jian, while Chinese Sword uses a dao-like broadsword. These two disciplines really need better (and less confusing) names.

Anyway, I chose the Chinese Sword user, though he won't actually join the party until Chronicle 9.

Next time, we face our final test.

[Rapier]

I remember the first chapters are really easy (who would guess that), but then chapter 5 kicks you in the face with a horse's strength, especially a certain recurring enemy character that is introduced then.

[Nimbostratus]

If it's the character I think it is, they're actually introduced in Chronicle 4 and return in Chronicle 6 (and a handful of others). Chronicle 6 is the first really challenging one, IMO.

[spoiler=Chronicle 2]

The final test- a test of command ability under real battlefield conditions- was about to begin.

"This is the last time I get to play with you baby birds. That's right, this is your final test! Don't expect me to go easy on you!"

The General is to be his opponent!?

Depending on his performance, Dervus might even be entrusted with troops to lead in the field.

If he failed, he would never see battle. That would be the safe route, but it would mean denying the very reason he was here.

Today, this baby bird would leave his cage, step onto the battlefield with his life in his own hands, and begin to fly.



Map shot.



And here they come.





These are the two recruitable characters. Whichever one we defeat first is the one that gets recruited. So, that being said...



Xiaoxin! I choose you!



It's super effective!



With Xiaoxin defeated, Jinkai retreats back into the nearest stronghold. Aeneas and Riese will battle the two characters there while Dervus takes the other one.







Oh Aeneas, I love you.



'sup Rufus.



Peace out.



And now it's time to face Girardot himself.





Music:

This battle with Girardot is a taste of things to come. He does a ton of damage if he hits you; and if he hits you with a combo, you're pretty much screwed.



See the chunk he took off my healthbar, there? That was only two hits.

Yeah. That could have gone a lot worse.







Not flawless, but close enough to please me. :v:

[Nimbostratus]

In this chapter, we fight some bandits. This is totally a Fire Emblem game.

[spoiler=Chronicle 3]

Dervus had graduated from the academy. He was now a commander. He and his comrades swore allegiance to their country, and to one another. That would be their bond.

Dervus was entrusted with a border garrison. He would be the wall that protected his country.

Now that he had become an officer in the military, he stopped to reflect on himself. What was it he truly wanted to protect? His home? A peaceful life? The ones he loved? Or...?

"We've received information that a group of what appear to be brigands have been sighted near the border! Find and capture them!"

The atmosphere changed instantly, and tension spread. Dervus steeled himself for his first real battle.











Well, geez. Way to spoil the mood, you guys.



Ooh, a new guy!





Sweet, and there's another Fire Emblem tradition followed: fighting bandits in the first mission(s).



Meiga is a career soldier and a man of few words. He has an infant son and fights in the hope of creating a truly peaceful world. If this were a Fire Emblem game, he'd be a Mercenary or Myrmidon.

He'll get a chance to show his stuff soon enough. But for now, I'll stick with Aeneas and Riese.



Map.





The first wave is down, time for another.







Pfft, you call yourself Loki? The Norse god would be ashamed.



At this point, the rest of the bandits retreat into their main stronghold.



NO U





Rekt



Something looks familiar here...









Meh, I'm sure he was no one important. :v:

Next time, things get serious.

[Rapier]

next time the AI rekts us (I mean, you).

The difficulty spikes so much during the battle with Luna. And then on Haltese, and on the following arc where shit happens.

My strategy was to leave at least one soldier behind (I think the main character can't be KOed without a game over, so probably it was he), charge with everyone and keep respawning in case something goes wrong against a boss. Can't be safe enough.

[Nimbostratus]

My strategy was to leave at least one soldier behind (I think the main character can't be KOed without a game over, so probably it was he), charge with everyone and keep respawning in case something goes wrong against a boss.

That's pretty much the only way to beat some of the later chapters, tbh. (And it's usuailly not Game Over if the main character dies, but it is on some chapters.)

[spoiler=Chronicle 4 and 5]

Several days later, the Kingdom of Dalkia suddenly declared war, claiming to retaliate against an attack by Grandall soldiers.

"Looks like they want to go to war so badly, they'll use any trick they have to justify it."

Dervus couldn't believe what his comrade had told him. During the battle they had just fought, Grandall soldiers had been spotted mixed in with the fleeing brigands. In other words, it was a setup.

Human greed... real war... a mind-numbing fear of the terrible sights to come...

Even so, he did not want to lose his future. So for now, he would take up the sword.

So, it's a setup, but who's responsible for it? Was this a false-flag operation by Dalkia, or...?

Anyway, we're bringing Meiga along for this one.

Have no fear, the player character is here!

She looks a bit young to be a military commander...

Anyway, the chronicle begins with a horde of Dalkia soldiers swarming the northern stronghold, while Luna heads toward the middle one.

Yes, you're seeing this right. There are four guys piled on here. But they're all generics, and with an arena that lends itself to easy ring-outs, Aeneas has little trouble.

Seeing this, Luna decides to change her plans.

Music:

Luna is one of the few bosses who fights you in one of your strongholds instead of staying in her own. She's pretty quick with that sword...

...but still no match for Dervus.

Luna sounds the retreat, and all of the remaining enemies fall back to their main stronghold.

Except for this guy. Characters from the main game are scattered through CotS as bonus bosses. They're hard to beat, but they reward a lot of EXP to your characters, even if they lose. However, it's a bit too much hassle for me, so I generally don't bother.

Let's give Meiga a chance to fight.

Why thank you.

Meiga's fighting style is another one I've not had much experience with. He took out the generics, but can he handle the boss?

Huzzah!

That was actually pretty easy. Let's move on to the next chronicle.

It was his first victory. Faced with the horrors of war, however, he felt the word "victory" had little meaning. And what was granted to them next was not time to grieve, but an order to counterattack Dalkia.

Attacking in order to defend. Could anything be born of that but hatred?

A familiar voice answered his doubts. "Why do you hesitate? Don't you want to put an end to this fighting?"

It was Abelia! Was she part of the reinforcements?

"Now, show me what you're made of."

Dervus steeled himself and ordered his troops to advance.

"This place was mainly used for commerce in the past. But now that we're at war, if we don't protect this bridge, it will have a dramatic effect on the main army's ability to advance. We've managed to take control of this stronghold on our side, but who knows how long that will last..."

"Destroying a bridge or two wouldn't be any great loss. We'll need one team to protect the bridge and one to go take out the enemy's main stronghold."

Sweet, so it looks like Eurydice and Abelia will be joining us for this mission.

Abelia grew up in an aristocratic family. She is a gifted learner, but she sometimes lacks common sense. If this were a Fire Emblem game, she'd be ... a Cleric, maybe? She seems the type, somehow.

Eurydice is from a far-away land whose economy is in shambles. Most of the pay she earns is sent to her struggling family. If this were a Fire Emblem game, she'd probably be a Pegasus Knight.

Map shot. Dervus will watch the western front while the others defend the bridge.

Who's this douchebag?

Anyway, the chronicle begins with the bridge being stormed by three Dalkia soldiers, who learn a very important lesson:

Don't mess with Eurydice.

The other side of the bridge is guarded by this fellow. Let's see how Abelia does against him.

Another important lesson: don't bring drums to a swordfight.

Well... unless you're Dervus.

Speaking of Dervus, let's have him deal with Roin now.

Dervus can be seen here attacking the stronghold. Roin is the guy on the horse over there. Looks like he's going to attack our western stronghold instead of defending his own.

Meanwhile, Dervus defeats a generic and this lady who ... has teeth on her mask?

Now Eurydice will deal with this guy.

Iron Sword is so wonderfully cheap.

Now, this is hardly fair.

I mean... there's only three of 'em.

And finally Riese gets some action too.

Two bonus bosses on this map.

Anyway, all that's left now is to take their (empty) main stronghold.

You sound like a jerk.

Now Dervus and co. prepare themselves to strike at the heart of Dalkia...

Incoming difficulty spike. I'm gonna have a bad time.

Edited November 24, 2015 by Nimbostratus

[Nimbostratus]

[spoiler=Chronicle 6]

They defeated the Dalkian forces and continued their push through the outskirts of Revless, the capital of Dalkia.

"Once we make it through here, we'll be at the capital. Let's go!"

Abelia's face showed no hesitation. What was it that made her so strong?

Dervus could see the deeply-colored trees of the five strongholds that were the gateway to the Dalkian capital. In contrast to the vicious battle that would soon erupt, they appeared beautiful in the moonlit night.



Map. This is a very straightforward mission, with four generics and five bosses. The generics attack your strongholds, while the bosses stay in their own.









These four are Luna's elite, Four Elements-themed lieutenants, the "Klessirpemdo"- and if you have any idea what that's supposed to mean, you're doing a lot better than me.





No way around it, I suppose. Let's deal with the generics first.





Even the generics in this mission are pretty tough. They will attack any time they see an opening.





But you ain't seen nothing yet.









Each of Luna's lackeys has a special condition in their stronghold which tips the battle in their favor. Not that they need it- they all have tough AI too.



Lizardman might be worth fighting. Since he's not in a stronghold, his HP won't regenerate between fights. But, first things first.



Let's deal with her first. Her element is Fire and her arena is the molten cave we fought Luna in. This makes it relatively easy to win by ring-out.



Aw yeah Aeneas is da man.



Never go up against Grandall when death is on the line!



Let's fight Elua next. She's the second-easiest to defeat, although that's not saying much- Lupi is the only one I've ever been able to beat without losing anyone.





...that took a lot of savestate cheese.

Well, now comes the hard part. We'll fight Lizardman, then the other two and Luna.



Jeez, he won with only 2 hits.



Holy crap Abelia might actually ...



Oh. Well at least he'll be easy to finish off now.



And Abelia gained a level for her trouble.



Dervus finishes the job and gains 3 levels.



Aege is one of the most infuriating characters in the game to fight- not only because she uses Iron Sword (which is an incredibly OP style) but also because of her stronghold ability, which creates mini-earthquakes that interrupt whatever your character is doing and leaves them helpless for about 2 seconds, which is more than long enough for Aege to swoop in and kill you. The only way to avoid this is to jump or be in the middle of a throw animation when it happens. The only really dependable way to beat her is with a quick ring-out, so let's hope Aeneas can do what he does best.



I... you... wha...



No seriously, what? I did that without savestates. That's... that's amazing.



Heal-Do's arena is very slippery- whatever direction your character is moving in, they'll keep moving in it- so it's pretty easy to accidentally kill yourself by slipping out of the ring.



Aww, well, at least that was pretty close.



Close enough for Abelia to finish the job.





Now only Luna remains, and she is much harder to beat than last time.





Music:

Luna's a pushover compared to her lieutenants, but she still does a lot of damage with each hit and takes a lot of hits to defeat, so you need to be careful.



Or, y'know, just ring her out.



Let's see what we won~



A new fighting style! :o



And money, of course.

The fighting style we unlocked is Steel Fan, which uses war fans. Dervus can use this instead of his tambourines. I haven't used this style much, but I'll try it in the next chronicle just for giggles.

[Nimbostratus]

[spoiler=Chronicle 7: A New Plot]

We have received reports that the Halteese Republic has invaded our country. In light of this, here are the new orders for Dervus' unit.

I. As of this moment, officer Dervus will turn over command of the Dalkia offensive to Abelia.

II. Dervus' unit will attack and penetrate Halteese's western defensive wall.

III. Advance into the Halteese capital and secure a route to the capital.

IV. Await the arrival of the main Grandall forces and support them when they arrive.

That is all.

-Emperor Strife







"Telling us to break through that on our own is like ordering us to die."



"They just won't let us be heroes."



Geez, who did we piss off to earn this kind of treatment?





Oh well, at least we'll have Girardot's help.



Girardot is famous both for his military career and for his love of birdwatching. If this were a Fire Emblem game, he'd be a Jeigan.



So here's the map. Although this chronicle isn't what I'd call easy, it's definitely a breather between the last one's crazy bosses and the next one's ... well, you'll see.





Well, can't say I disagree.



No fancy strategy needed for this chronicle.





Just beat a few generic attackers, then take the enemy strongholds (also manned by generics).







These three strongholds are the 'defensive wall' we were told about. They -would- be intimidating, if their occupants actually stayed inside them. But, most of the time, they'll come out to attack your strongholds instead.





The easy part is over; here they come.









So, with the wall strongholds empty, all that's left now is to defeat the bosses.



Here's their stronghold-





And here are the two characters we'll need to defeat.



We could also fight Rock but I think I'll pass on that.



Let's see how the rest of the team does without Dervus.





Pft, that was easy ...





Well, damn. Guess we gotta fight him again.







What's going on?









Oh dear... it seems the plot has arrived.









Plot is a four letter word, you know...



She was tough, but nothing too crazy.



I don't know either, but I doubt "making friends" is high on the list of possibilities...

Next time: The Plot Strikes Back

[Rapier]

Funny that I had so many issues with chronicle 5 (which you beat easily) and 6. I recall the next chronicle is also tough.

[Nimbostratus]

Indeed, Chronicle 8 can be difficult because it involves rescuing characters who will die if you don't reach them quickly.

[spoiler=BIG DAMN HEROES]

When they arrived, the Halteese capital of Epistema was already in ruins. The sky was filled with cold, dark clouds, and the dwellings were mere heaps of smoldering ash. Not only were there no signs of human life, there were not even so much as wild dogs tearing at the corpses.

"The Maletta army!? Were they the ones who sacked the city?"

Without warning, the Malettan forces attacked Dervus' unit, and for all practical purposes, they were now at war. The flames of a new conflict had been lit.









What the hell is going on, and who's 'him'? Who is the mastermind behind all this?



Oh geez.









This chronicle requires you to act quickly. You must save the Halteese soldiers before they're killed, then defeat the oncoming Malettans.









Oh god, the plot, it burns.



Looks like we got here just in the nick of time. Know what that makes us? BIG DAMN HEROES, SIR!





"Defending the lives of others may mean giving up your own... not that I don't admire that!"







There are three named Halteese characters on this map. Save them, and they will join your unit.



That's one



That's two



Hooray, we saved all three!





All of the enemies on this map are named and have tough AI. But thankfully, I wield the awesome power of savestates :v:





Sittin' in a tree?





Unsubtle foreshadowing is unsubtle.





Anyway, we managed to save the Halteese generics, too.



I cannot say NOPE strongly enough.





So these two bosses are all that's really left now.





Neither do I.



u wot m8?



All of Hyle's attacks are guard-breaks, which makes it easy for him to kill you very quickly with combos. He also hits very hard and has a lot of HP.





Well, I guess there's something to be said for teamwork.









"I'd heard that the great Girardot had taken a certain cadet under his wings, but... I never expected it to be one who would preach humanity in a time of bloody war!"



Yay! :v





Dear Princess Celestia...





Hmm? ... So I guess Riese is a war orphan?



Anyways, that chronicle's done. Next time we'll take the fight to Maletta.

Edited December 8, 2015 by Nimbostratus

[Nimbostratus]

[spoiler=Chronicle 9]

The intro of this one is ... weird. It's a lot of dialogue without any indication of who's saying what. Behold:





Although on second thought, it's probably just Girardot and Emperor Strife talking to each other.









...a certain other moon-themed character, perhaps?







"For all their talk of democracy, things have hardly changed on the inside. Maybe they would have destroyed themselves in time, without help from us or Grandall..."









Oh come on Meiga, it's not as if we're not used to this by now.



Aeneas has the right idea. Let's do this thing.







Oh hey, look who's finally decided to join us.



Xiaoxin is actually Girardot's son, though neither he nor Girardot know it. If this were a Fire Emblem game, he'd probably be a Mercenary or a Myrmidon.

We've also recruited the three Halteese characters from the last chronicle:







I can't be arsed to think up stories for them, but Kanon is an obvious Archer (she has a quiver of arrows on her back), Ailian seems like the Assassin type, and Leraje looks pretty Mage-like.



The middle stronghold is the only one that gets attacked in this chronicle, so we can just pile everyone up in there.

First up, three unnamed Dalkians.



Easy peasy.





These two named Malettans don't fare any better, and the other enemies retreat back into their strongholds.



...why are there five people in here?



Oh. Well, this is awkward.



And here she comes.







Hyle: "Kierkess... so you're here, too..."

Kierkess: "My forces shall lend you their aid. Give my thanks to him. Anyway, consider this a greeting. Go play with them a little, boys."

Hyle: "I haven't heard anything about that."

Kierkess: "If my forces aren't of any use, feel free to just let them go. Now, then, I bid you my leave..."

Hyle: "..."



Heal-Do: "Don't concern yourself with those fools. It's not our problem."

Elua: "I wish they would just get it over with already."

Lupi: "As long as they don't get in our way, I don't care. Let's go."

SO MUCH BANTER

Anyway, Luna and her lackeys aren't nearly as tough here as in Chronicle 6. Aege is the only one who really poses a threat.







That's that. Now let's take care of the guys sent by Kierkess, whoever that is.





Rapier would probably be #2 on my list of favorite disciplines :D

Now only Hyle and one generic remain.



This battle with Hyle is fun. And you can't spell fun without FFFFFFUUUUUUUU.



The AI cheats pretty blatantly in this fight. Hyle can block even when he's supposed to be vulnerable (immediately after attacking) while blocking does absolutely nothing for you.



It's cool though, Kanon's got this.

Next time, the mastermind reveals his master plan.

[Nimbostratus]

[spoiler=Chronicle 10]

"War god," he had heard someone call him once.

Despite taking losses, Dervus still achieved victory and advanced on Untide, the capital of Maletta.

In order to focus on defending their own country, Dalkia annulled their alliance with Maletta. Nevertheless, the capital of Maletta projected a fearsome presence. One could keenly feel the darkness of its violent past. And now, the emperor ordered the Grandall forces to advance yet again...

One single soldier, with sword held high and eyes determined, charged ahead of the ranks as he shouted his order.

"War god," he had heard someone call him once.









We never fully learn what's going on here, but my best guess is that Mooncalf was the would-be assassin...







...and that Kierkess mortally wounded her.



Kierkess: "Is something wrong?"

Hyle: "...No."





"Listen up, men! We're going to end this here! Move out!"



Everyone on the team for this chronicle has a weapon that does chip damage to blocking opponents. You'll see why pretty soon.



Kierkess: "Now, Hyle, would you be so kind as to join them?"

Hyle: "What!? Kierkess, how dare you mock us!"

Kierkess: "...You don't seem to understand your position, Hyle. He has already assumed full control. And I don't think you're in any position to complain, traitorous pig."



I've played through this several times and I still don't know what's going on here.



Kierkess: "It would have been a death sentence under normal circumstances, but our king is merciful."

Hyle: "Our king? What are you talking about!? Where is King Demuth!?"





Demuth: "True king!? You must be mad! I am the king!"

????: "Let's not get over ourselves. Who do you think allowed a pawn like you to make it this far?"

Demuth: "D-don't be absurd! Where are the guards!? Someone! Anyone! Seize him!"

????: "There's no one left to obey you."



Man, this guy is a jerk.



????: "...Grandall, eh? Those pesky fools are always getting in my way. They shall all pay with their deaths!"





So, Chronicle 10. We're halfway through CotS but this chronicle just might be the hardest one in the whole thing. Fighting these two at the same time would be bad enough.



This makes it even worse. It reduces all of your attacks to chip damage- hence why I brought guard-penetrating weapons. Every little bit counts.





Meanwhile, Aeneas guards the rear.



Welp, here we go.



Music:

Demuth already has a ton of health. The damage reduction is just insult to injury.



But he's still very much beatable; you just have to stay on the offensive.



Hyle, on the other hand...





The AI is in full Asshole Mode for this fight. It will read your controller inputs. It will block and counter things it shouldn't be able to. It will ruin your day, no matter who you are or how good you are at this game.



Finishing him off with Ailian was surprisingly easy, though. Perhaps his AI doesn't know what to do about Sickle users?





Hyle: "Leelia, forgive me..."

Kierkess: "What, you're already dead? You're useless."



So I just finished one of the hardest fights in the game, losing 2 of my characters in so doing...

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE!



Count the health bars, folks. That's eight characters coming at us, all at once. And that's not even counting Kierkess, who we'll have to fight afterward.

So, yeah, this is gonna be fun.. Let's get started.



The only nice thing about fighting these guys is that now the stronghold condition works in your favor. But their attacks still hurt a lot, even with their damage reduced.



Three left.. plus Kierkess.



Well, that went well.



He says something different every time you approach him, which is interesting, but not worth screenshotting.



Took two tries, but eh.

Now it's finally time. Mr. 'Kingslayer' has a lot to answer for.











Music:

I love the music for this battle. It's the same music that plays during the climactic battle in the main game's storyline. For CotS, though, we're only at the midway point.



...haha, he killed himself. RIP. :v:

But anyway, in case it wasn't obvious by now, this is the 'King Chester' who was mentioned in the prologue.



...somehow I doubt we've seen the last of him.

Next time, we return to the Dalkian front.

[Nimbostratus]

[spoiler=Chronicle 11]

Untide, the capital of Maletta, fell and was destroyed. Chester the tactician had acted in concert with rebellious elements within the Grandall Empire to advance a plan for rebellion. But the plan had collapsed and the rebels were executed.

Dervus had caused the destruction of an entire country by his own hand... He felt a complex mix of emotions. He wondered what Abelia would say at a time like this, and then it occurred to him. What had happened to Abelia!? Communications with the Grandall forces engaged in Dalkia were still cut off.

Without waiting for orders from headquarters, Dervus once again headed for Dalkia.



Girardot: "Abelia? Are you all right?"

Abelia: "General Girardot! And...oh!"

Girardot: "Save your thanks for Dervus. He just charged out without waiting for orders."

Abelia: "You! I never asked you to... to rescue me..."

Girardot: "Oh, brother. Anyway, what happened to the others?"

Abelia: "..."

Girardot: "I see. You've done well, all by yourself."





Oh goody, looks like we'll be fighting the Moon Squad again.



...are we sure this isn't a Pokemon game? 'cause it looks like we just found the Elite Four and their Champion...











True swords? What's all this, then?









Hmm... they've all got new weapons.









Their strongholds have unique conditions, too.



Here we go.

Lupi's stronghold makes all of her attacks unblockable and wreathes your character in flames, though I'm not sure what that does (if anything)... still, her unblockable attacks by themselves are bad enough.



Lupi: "Lu...Luna... Forgive me..."



Heal-Do's stronghold has a slippery floor and gives her slowly-regenerating health. She's not too tough.



Heal-Do: "No! I cannot fall here..."



Elua's stronghold constantly pushes you away from her and if she knocks you up into the air, you fly way up high. She's also impossible to ring-out. But she's also not really too tough.



Elua: "I'm sorry. I couldn't... hold them back..."



And finally... oh God, this fight. This is arguably even harder than Hyle in Chronicle 10. I don't know why I didn't remember this... maybe I repressed the memory.

Aege's stronghold has Quake and makes her the fucking Juggernaut- you can't throw her, and she doesn't flinch or move when hit; she will keep on kicking your ass even while you're flailing at her. Oh, and have I mentioned that Iron Sword is a broken, overpowered style? I have? Well. I feel that bears repeating.

The only upside is that her weapon hurts her a little bit when she attacks, and sometimes she ring-outs herself- but don't count on that happening often.





Aege: "Y...you... shall... not... pass..."



Well, we passed- but not without difficulty. Now it's time to face Luna.







TWO WOMEN ENTER, ONE WOMAN LEAVES



Luna: "Huh? I've never heard of her. Now, draw your swords! I'll make quick work of you!"





...oh

So Luna here is using Soul Calibur: the sword the game is named after. It's a sentient weapon and the counterpart to Soul Edge. Soul Edge is evil, but that shouldn't be taken to mean that Soul Calibur is good. If you're familiar with Babylon 5, think of Soul Edge as a Shadow and Soul Calibur as a Vorlon- both are equally destructive, and neither one really has any concern for human life.

Anyway, Luna's AI is pretty fucking tough, but after beating Aege she's kind of an anti-climax.

(30 savestates later)

OK I TAKE IT BACK HOLY CRAP PLEASE DIE ALREADY





There, FINALLY



Because we have the Power of Friendship!





As an added bonus, we're also rewarded with the weapons that the Klessirpemdo used in this chronicle.

Next time: God save the Queen ('cause we sure won't!)

[bottlegnomes]

Definitely following. CotS was awesome and a not insignificant part of why SCIII is my favorite.

BTW, fan's A+B attack is super helpful for two bosses later with the worst stage effect.

Any particular reason you went with Xaioxin over Jinkai?

Edited January 3, 2016 by bottlegnomes

[Nimbostratus]

Definitely following. CotS was awesome and a not insignificant part of why SCIII is my favorite.

BTW, fan's A+B attack is super helpful for two bosses later with the worst stage effect.

Any particular reason you went with Xaioxin over Jinkai?

Oops, hello! Thanks for watching! I guess I should update this, huh?

I picked Xiaoxin because Jinkai's fighting style is quite twitchy and difficult to use (even if it does look freakin awesome.)

[spoiler=Chronicle 12]

"Even now, he uses a double? It seems our emperor lacks the courage to face Queen Aurelia..." Before Girardot had even finished speaking, the bodies of the emperor's double and his servants had been tossed from the castle's battlements.

Just then, Dalkian special forces appeared in great numbers and began to counterattack.

"This is the final battle, Dervus. The war will soon be over. This is your time... It's your turn to change the future. Don't you die on me before then!"

Aurelia: "The Dalkian Queen herself shall bring judgment upon you filthy swine! Onhent Dalkia! Death and destruction to Grandall!"

The map might look complicated, but there's nothing incredibly difficult about this chronicle. All you gotta do is bunker down in your strongholds while all but 3 of the enemy units charge at you, then defeat those three- Roin and his two lieutenants- to gain access to the castle.

The enemy of my enemy is my friend, eh?

See? That was easy. o3o

Meanwhile, Kierkess paid Eurydice a visit.

Hehe... his new outfit makes him look like Raiden.

At this point, the enemies wisely decide to stop throwing themselves into the jaws of death.

But these two will be easy to beat, anyway.

At level 30, Dervus has now unlocked all of his possible fighting styles. We've already seen Grieve Edge, but I'll make sure to show off Soul of Voldo and Soul of Xianghua at some point.

And now all that's left are Roin and his lieutenants, and two bonus-boss strongholds. Not gonna mess with the latter.

Onhent Dalkia? Moar like Unhinged Dalkia.

Now time to fight Roin.

Little does he suspect, I bribed the judge

Denial is the first stage of acceptance.

What a lovely castle... it would be a shame if something were to happen to it... :v:

Music:

Aurelia isn't really as threatening as she should be. The AI doesn't know how to counter the Sickle style.. and it doesn't really know how to use it well, either.

Why do these types always insist that they can't be defeated.. after you've already defeated them? :v:

Grandall triumphant! The world is ours! I guess that's the end of ... oh, there are still 8 more chronicles left? Huh.

[Nimbostratus]

[spoiler=Chronicle 13]

One year had passed since the fall of the Dalkian capitol...

"I don't care if you have to reduce half the empire to ashes. Kill Girardot!"

"Congratulations on your return, Dervus. I hear you've been made captain of the anti-rebellion force."

"The rebel army is increasing its power by recruiting soldiers loyal to Girardot, as well as civilians!"

"That traitor, Girardot... to think he'd turn against the empire! We're counting on you, Dervus!"

Strike down General Girardot...? No, Girardot must have a reason for his actions. Dervus began his advance.



...really? We were ordered to kill our own mentor, and that's all you have to say?

Anyways, I dislike this chapter for three reasons:







Who are these people? Where are Aeneas et al.? I know it's been a year and they have their own lives, but ugh. I just can't bring myself to like these guys.



Well, whatever. Here's the map.



that's Abelia and Luca up top, Tina in the middle, and Dervus at the bottom.



>Victory condition: capture main stronghold
Umm...





Anyway, Tina kicks things off. That second person looks like she belongs in a heavy metal band..



Here's Dervus using Soul of Voldo. Notice he's facing away from the enemy. Voldo is the one character in the game who can fight while facing backward.





Anyway, this chapter and the next one are pretty easy. Chronicle 15 is when shit gets real.



Tina single-handedly defeats 5 enemies.





And now it's time to end this.







She does have a point, Abelia...



Parley?



Oh, right. There's a fourth reason I dislike this chapter.

The boss has a lance, and her stronghold has a condition which constantly pushes you away from her-- so unless your main character has a weapon with decent reach (which mine doesn't) this fight is freakin frustrating.





That took a lot of attempts.



At least we got a nice amount of gold out of it..

Let's go on ahead to the next chronicle.

[spoiler=Chronicle 14]

Dervus hadn't noticed the enemy approach at all. By the time he realized what was going on, he was already surrounded. It was a skillful and well-planned attack. The execution was flawless.

"If General Girardot is leading them, that's no surprise..."

That may be, but what in the world were they...

"Here they come! They're after you, Dervus!"

For some reason, something felt wrong. Did their real objective lie elsewhere...? The thought flashed through Dervus' mind.





Strife: "Well, what is it? I trust they're doing well?"

Chester: "I believe there is no need for worry. Abelia is with them as well."

Strife: "Good. You may leave. Tell them I want that fool captured alive."

Chester: "Yes, Your Majesty."

Strife: "One more thing."

Chester: "Yes?"



Chester: "Your Majesty is frank as always."

Best two lines of dialogue in the whole game, right there. :v



This is The Obligatory Defense Chapter. Just hole up in your main stronghold while the enemy horde flails at you. Be sure not to let your main character get defeated, or you'll fail the chapter.









Abelia: "The enemy is after you! Here they come! All units, defensive formation!"

Turtle time!



You have an obvious disadvantage in numbers, but these guys are all weak generics.







If Girardot really trained these guys, he didn't do a very good job :|

Anyway, the only enemies left now are the chapter boss and two bonus bosses.





Plus, y'know, you sent a bunch of weak little derps to kill Grandall's most elite.



Abelia stop taking credit for things you didn't do





Tina: "Wait, it can't be... those rebels..."



Abelia: "...I see, the rebels dressed as Grandall soldiers are leaving. The commander of this unit, Ignis, was also wearing Grandall's armor. Perhaps they, too, are battling their inner conflicts about this situation..."

*sigh* Abelia, you really are dense.

Next time: The Truth of the Matter

Edited January 11, 2016 by Nimbostratus

[IGdood]

This....reminds me of Namco vs Capcom

[Nimbostratus]

This....reminds me of Namco vs Capcom

How so? I've never played Namco vs Capcom before o3o

[spoiler=Chronicle 15]

Emperor Strife appeared before Dervus' unit in order to acknowledge his achievements. Dervus heard him talking under his breath. "This'll be the end for Girardot. As soon as we find him, he must be captured and executed."

Dervus thought to himself, "What am I doing? Is this the only way I know how to live?"

Even now, he felt as if the General's voice would boom out at any moment. "Don't expect me to go easy on you!" This was the same place where he had fought the General as his final test. Try as he might, he couldn't shake the memory from his head.

Girardot would surely come out onto the field personally. How would Dervus greet his former teacher then...?

Map

Abelia: "...I expected as much. Well then.. all units, attack!"

The enemy numbers seem sparse at first.

itsatrap.mp4

Rebels swarm your strongholds at this point. They're named and some of them are tough, but in general, they're not much of a challenge.

There are also two recruitable characters here (you recruit the first one you beat, like Xiaoxin and Jinkai in Chronicle 2) but I've already chosen which one I want. So there.

That's just about everyone on this map- now let's fight some bonus bosses.

Both of these characters can be painful to fight because they both have some very unpredictable moves. Most Namco fighting game characters telegraph their moves, at least somewhat. These guys, not so much.

Voldo goes down without too much trouble, though.

Yoshimitsu gets cocky and gets knocked into lava.

However, some of Yoshimitsu's attacks do a lot of damage. And some of those same attacks are also untelegraphed. He's kind of a bastard.

but Dervus eventually beats him, nonetheless.

Now it's just him and us.

Girardot: "You've grown strong, Abelia. But just what are you protecting?"

Abelia: "I have nothing to say to a traitor. If you won't surrender, then draw your sword!"

Music:

Girardot's stronghold gives him the same 'juggernaut' effect as Aege had in Chronicle 11, but without the quakes (and with the enemy using a less OP style) it's a lot less annoying. Also like Aege, he has a weapon that hurts him slightly each time he attacks.

You'll probably still lose a few characters while fighting him, but he's nowhere near as insanely frustrating to fight as Chronicle 11 Aege or Chronicle 10 Hyle.

Besides, it makes more sense to let Abelia or the main character beat him, considering what happens next.

"...you will never become a true warrior."

And then he dies.

But not by our hands.

Ladies and gentlemen: Soul Edge. (and its wielder, Emperor Strife)

...

geez Abelia, way to ruin the mood

So yeah, I bet you know what happens next

WE REBELS NOW

[bottlegnomes]

Did you recruit Rudiger or Feofan?

[Nimbostratus]

Did you recruit Rudiger or Feofan?

Feofan. Rudiger looks cool, but as Lance users go, I prefer Aeneas. The other Sword and Shield user is Abelia and she ... leaves a lot to be desired.

[spoiler=Chronicle 16]

Three years ago, he had decided he wanted to be a protector, and had taken up the sword.

Two years ago, he realized that he didn't even know what it was he was protecting.

One year ago, the war had ended. But through all the battles, he had found no answers.

Yesterday, he had lost something very important. He hadn't realized just how important it was to him until it was gone... And now, once again, he would take up the sword- to rebel of his own free will against the Empire.

After all that, she's still on their side.. Told ya she was dense.

That's some very strange logic, but I suppose I can't complain.

And here's our new recruit.

Feofan: "I already know that. But you repeatedly attacked us, and now you claim yourselves as some kind of heroes? Isn't that a little too convenient?"

Yuilin: "Yes, you're right. But dying here is the easy way out. I'm going to fight, stay alive, and atone for what I've done."

Feofan: "Humph... such moving words."

Yuilin: "But if you still hate the fact that I'm alive, then come on. I'll fight you with everything I've got."

Feofan: "...No, thanks. But I'm going to keep a close eye on you."

Luca: "Wouldn't it be easier if you just come along with us?"

No, nobody cares about you, get over it

Anyway...

Feofan looks pretty young. He's probably still in training and if this were a Fire Emblem game, he'd probably be something resembling an Est archetype.

Map.

Apparently, we Arthias now.

The first few enemies are easy-to-kill generics.

Then there's this person who uses the very fast-moving Nunchaku discipline.

Odd fact: Unless your main character is a Monk, no Nunchaku users are playable in CotS.

(immediately after the Nunchaku user)

This is why it's nice to have a weapon that heals you when you attack.

The named enemies on this map are much tougher than I remember them being in my previous playthroughs. probably because I'm not cheesing it with Iron Sword

Namco, why? Why would you take away all our characters with respectable attack range, and then fill the game with opponents who exploit that?

I know these screenshots don't tell the whole story but trust me, this AI reads controller inputs, it does things human-controlled characters cannot, and it is infuriating.

I don't know why I ever thought this was fun.

But don't worry, we're near the end now.

Tina: "There's definitely something strange. The Empire's defense is too prepared. It's as if they knew we were coming..."

Yuilin: "What do you mean?"

Tina: "The battles up til now... the Emperor's real objective wasn't General Girardot..."

FINALLY SOMEONE GETS IT

Only 3 more chronicles to go!

Next time..

[IGdood]

How so? I've never played Namco vs Capcom before o3o

It's a tile-based SRPG like Fire Emblem but when units fight each other, it plays out like a fighting game. It has 2 sequels, Project x Zone 1 and 2