Gagazet - Cave
-I’m trying to figure out how to deal with these dang Dark Flans. They’re resistant to physical and elemental attacks, so maybe non-elemental? Bio doesn’t work. Perhaps… Bahamut? No. I hoped Impulse would be non-elemental, but it got reduced.
-AHA! I used Armor Break and Bahamut’s physical attacks do full damage. Maybe armor break is the answer.
-Yup. That’s the ticket.
-Some sort of dangerous water to wade through. Don’t want to do that yet. Want to backtrack first.
-I see an alcove on the map that I can’t get into. Grr. Must be something there.
-My first Behemoth! Lol wakka: “How many steaks you think we can get out of this?”
-There are definitely alternate paths, but they’re all vertical. I’d have to go down a hole.
-Ah, I see. In the water, it’s just Tidus, Wakka, and Rikku. Makes sense.
-Swapping to a Moon Targe I just got for Rikku with SOS Protect and SOS Shell.
-There are definitely some kind of z-axis stuff going on in here. I see ramps going up and down and I don’t know from where.
-What is that? Some kind of weird shell protecting a light core?
-“The First Trial of Gagazet.” I have to hit the light with Wakka’s ball. I guess this is the Ronso version of a Yevon temple trial set.
-OH COME ON I HIT IT!!
-I call shenanigans. It took me a few tries, but I hit the light core smack in the middle at least twice now and it bounced back.
-I must be missing something. I’ve hit the light 5-6 times now and it still bounces back. Is it bugged?
-Finally. I guess it had to be a really clean hit, with the internal protecting shell TOTALLY out of the way. Ok. No penalty for failure, so I don’t really mind.
-Backtracking. My main strategy for Behemoths is Bio + Power Break, and it seems to go okay. They don’t retaliate like in past games. This makes things easier.
-Aha! Now that I passed the first trial, where there was a gap now exist stairs.
-The area past the stairs is Mandragora Alley basically. Reskinned and souped-up Grats.
-Second trial. I have to hit three panels simultaneously. Or something?
I did this on the second try, but to be honest I didn’t really understand what was going on.
-Really digging the layout here. Each trial opens up a new zone.
-Uh oh.
AURON: “They’ll be upon us soon. She has sent fiends to test our summoner’s strength.”
YUNA: “Who is she?”
AURON: “Yunalesca.”
Like, the woman from Seymour’s example? Yep. She’s in Zanarkand. Not alive, but not yet sent. Like Mika and Seymour.
-Is she the final aeon? Probably not, but I’ll bet she’s tied to it in some way. Maybe as its gatekeeper.
-This path I’m walking on, up, seems to lead out of the cave towards Zanarkand. But I feel like there’s stuff I missed in this area, so going to backtrack for one last walkthrough.
-Found another waterway where I don’t think I’ve yet been.
-JACKPOT! Found the two treasure chests that I saw from across the chasm before. Recovery Ring and a Return Sphere.
-Ok. Found the last thing I was looking for, one of those earlier gaps that now has steps across it. Led me to a treasure chest with “Pep Talk” in it.
-Hm. Thought by its name it might be a Wakka weapon, but no.
-Found it! I was sort of right. It’s a Wakka armguard. SOS NulFrost, SOS NulBlaze, SOS NulShock.
I love Bahamut.
-The red arrow on the mini-map is starting to confuse me. Am I not supposed to go up yet? I definitely feel like I’m missing something, but just can’t think of anywhere else in here to explore.
-Gonna keep going and just hope I’m not missing out on Excalibur or something like that.
-I regret ever saying “Oh, Behemoths aren’t so bad in this game.” My first fight was lucky. That one didn’t use “Heave.”
-There’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Is it an oncoming train? We’ll see.
New enemies captured in the cave:
-ACHELOUS
-AHRIMAN
-BEHEMOTH
-DARK FLAN
-MAELSPIKE
-MANDRAGORA
-SPLASHER
---
To the Summit
-YUP. ONCOMING TRAIN ALRIGHT.
Sanctuary Keeper.
-Scan makes it seem like the god worshipped by Malboros.
-Pretty easy fight ultimately. On the other hand, most fights are easy when you have a fully-charged Bahamut waiting in the wings.
-Rikku is getting exceptionally nervous as we get close to the end. Tidus too.
-Auron describes how similar his experience was with Lord Braska. He thought his resolve was strong, but when he got here to this summit, he was no longer certain if he wanted to go through with it.
In the end, he feels he changed nothing. That’s a bit harsh on yourself, Auron! You helped give the world a Calm. Even if the cycle continues, that’s not nothing.
-We’re approaching Zanarkand.
-holy crap. That’s quite a cinematic view.
-Not sure what the wind instrument is in the background through so much of this game, but I really like it.
-Yuna’s determined so summon the final aeon.
-Rikku is still resistant. She wants to find some way out. I honestly don’t know if there’s one there.
-Yuna moves to hug Rikku, to thank her. Drops a sphere. Is that HER sphere? Has she kept a sphere log of this journey?
-Tidus picks up the sphere. Listens.
---
Yuna’s Sphere
-Yuna is thankful to have had the chance to meet Auron.
-This seems a bit invasive for Tidus to listen to this right now rather than giving it back to her.
-Yuna remembers meeting Kimahri at age seven. It was just after her father defeated Sin and died. She felt alone, and Kimahri came to help her.
-This is heartbreaking. Phenomenal voice acting by the actress playing Yuna. Playful and serious and teasing and hopeful and sad.
YUNA: “And I’ve always liked your broken horn!” lololol
-She’s thankful to Wakka and Lulu, for helping her grow up in Besaid. And apologetic for what she’s put them through. Sees them as her siblings.
YUNA: “I even love it when you scold me, Lulu!” ooooof. This hurts. Like reading a death note.
-She gets to Tidus, and turns quiet. Glad they met.
Describes her love for him without naming it as such. A wonderfully subtle touch.
---
Road to the Zanarkand Ruins
-This definitely feels like endgame. I could absolutely be wrong, and maybe we’re only halfway done or something, but I doubt it.
-No music. Just the whistling wind.
-The road winds down. To the Zanarkand Ruins.
-We’re finally at the start. This is when the game began.
The encampment was outside the Zanarkand Ruins, before going in. I have context for everything now. The gaps are filled in. The real question: what comes next?
-I think I now understand the narrative conceit of the game. This was all a story he was recounting around the campfire, telling it to the party, remembering their time.
YUNA: “I think we should stop. For now.”
----
Next time: the Zanarkand Ruins.
