FFVIII – Part 24: In Da Pub

Summary: Exploring the city of Timber.

TW: domestic violence


Timber

-I’m not actually sure where we are. I think Timber, but I got a bit lost in the whole TV station talk.

-We start off with some Galbadian soldiers suspicious of a cadet asking about the president. (Clearly Watts.)

-hahahhaa – one of the officers wants starts to tell his three subordinates to go easy on the citizens when investigating, but they all go hyper-aggressive and misinterpret what he starts to say.

-Train pulls back into the station in Timber. The TV station is behind a building called “Timber M*****s.” There was a magazine named that back in Balamb.

-The hotel is closed so no recovery, and soldiers are patrolling, but Watts tells us about an “Owl’s Tear” for recovery at an old man’s house.

-The pet shop seems both for Angelo and GFs. Has GF recovery stuff. I buy Pet Pals vols 3 and 4. These teach Invincible Moon and Angelo Reverse.

LOOK AT THAT FACE!

-There’s a dog running around outside the pet shop named Georgie and he’s adorable.

-Playing my first “Same” Triple Triad game with an old woman at the train station. Not betting Ifrit or Quistis while I learn this, but playing with good cards other than them, like Iron Giant and Behemoth.

-Wait, wtf? I won, but got ALL her cards…. Oh right. It’s “Diff” rules and I whomped her.

-At the end when picking cards, Red Bat was the only gold one. Checked my card collection for why that might be and I think I understand. Red Bat is in my card list as something I acquired, but I must have lost it since I have none at the moment. That’s what gold must be for: cards that I have had but now lack.

-I’m a bit embarrassed to say that I spent 4-5 games taking advantage of these rules and farming this poor woman’s cards. Sorry!

-Got into a random encounter with a soldier. It’s one of THOSE cities. Zozoesque.

-Rinoa’s got a neat little crossbow autoattack.

-I need to get better with Squall’s Renzokuken limit break.

-I think I now see what “make Angelo walk the field” means. Just that when I walk around the world with a new trick selected, it makes Angelo learn the ability just as gaining AP makes GFs learn their abilities.

-Hee! One of the women walking around town apparently sees Watts get left behind a lot.

A Watts fan.

-The architecture and city design in Timber is so unique and wonderful. I’ve felt that about both Balamb and the Garden as well.

-A back alley behind a house leads to the TV station.

-A scary dude runs a pub apparently.

-I think they were going for humor with this girl in a household where the parents don’t like each other, but instead ended up with a terrifying commentary on the persistence of domestic violence across generations.

-lol wtf is going on here. A cat’s on the bed, a kid is reading, and another kid is doing headstands.

-He charges me 10 gil for looking out the window before his mother comes upstairs and spanks him for trying to charge us. If I were her, I’d be more freaked about about why random strangers are wandering into their house so often.

-I can’t turn soldiers into cards. Boo.

-A random woman on the streets gives me three pieces of “secret info.”

First, says that Timber USED to be surrounded by rich vegetation. I’m turning around now on what the dream of Galbadians was all about. Current working theory: Ward, Kiros, and Laguna existed in the past, and their story is somehow tied to either the Sorceress War or deaths that started the Forest Owls.

Second, I should drink at the Aphora Pub.

Third, the TV station is protected by laser beams. Of course. What TV station isn’t protected by a defense matrix of laser beams? #wtnv

-I was wrong – it looks like Rinoa’s attack is like a crossbow that fires BOOMERANGS that return to her. Awesome.

-The two jerk soldiers harassing Timber citizens get quickly dispatched. Eat it, dudes.

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The Pub

-Reached the pub, where A drifter rants against the conditions in Timber, blaming the Forest Owls for provoking retaliation.

-I thought it was weird that we won a Buel Card from beating the soldiers, but it looks like it belongs to the drifter. Maybe returning it will net us some good will…. It does! And he both lets us keep it AND gives us a Tonberry Card because he’s feeling generous.

-The pub owner actually turns out to be nice to us. Not that that means he’s NOT abusive at home. Could be him, could be his wife, could be both. Dunno.

-The TV in the pub is weird. It just shows a woman’s face transforming into a tiger and back to a woman.

-I could head down the back alley towards the TV station, but want to explore the rest of the city first.

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Next time: continuing in Timber.