Summary:
Putting down rampaging machina on the Mi’ihen Highroad. Closed doors at
the Djose Temple. Tobli’s lackluster show. Sad Leblanc.
Mi’ihen Highroad
-Machina are on the rampage.
-There are 13 tandems of machina to take out, and Al Bhed are also helping. The game says that it’s not a race but I should still do my best to take out the majority. So… is it a race? Dunno.
-The Lady Luck gambling seems more forgiving than Setzer’s reels, if not nearly as forgiving or controllable as Wakka’s. I prefer Wakka's, but I understand that the more powerful the game makes these casino skills, the more challenging they have to make them too.
I like that I don’t need three in a row for a good outcome. I don’t like that a “dud” roll causes damage to my party.
Thankfully, it’s not like the Oracle in FFV where it had a chance to wipe everyone out instantly if you used it wrong, but still.
-WHOA HOLY SHIT THAT’S QUITE AN ABILITY – “Doubles the amount of EXP earned afer battle.” For just Rikku?”
-Also, something just hit me. I remembered from a past game (was it FFV?) that you’d get to keep the passive abilities learned from inactive jobs. I wonder if that’s true here. [Later edit and non-rhetorical question for y’all: I think this is NOT the case, but just to make sure – if I get this double XP passive for Rikku, does it only work for her when she is actively in her Lady Luck dressphere?]
-Hee, I see machina chasing this hypello and I feel pretty certain the hypello is still trying to sell the machina tickets.
-Shinra is putting another Comm sphere down at the travel agency. I’ll bet that if I travel to every zone in this chapter, then in the next chapter we’ll be able to use the Comm system for whatever its purpose is.
-Neat! Dice roll for Lady Luck.
-Not staying at the Travel Agency. I want to try knocking out more machina, and am afraid the clock will continue ticking if I stop and talk to everyone here.
-a woman says I should ask “Prophet” about chocobos. Huh.
-lol more start-of-combat banter:
YUNA: “Gimme a Y!”
RIKKU: “Gimme an R!”
PAINE: “Gimme a break.”
NEVER CHANGE PAINE
-Okay, we’ve destroyed seven and Al Bhed have destroyed five. Good. That guarantees us a majority. But the last machina I see are up on a cliff only reachable by chocobos. Maybe I’m supposed to find one.
-The people at the North End of the Highroad keep talking about a “mysterious figure” that saved them.
-Yeah, feeling a bit stuck on this last one. Tried jumping up the cliff using the normal climb buttons, but that doesn’t work.
I’ll head back to the agency.
-Ooh – I’ll bet the mysterious Al Bhed machina-taker-aparter is Shinra! I saw him scamper ahead at the start of the mission, but didn’t put two and two together.
-Before I can get back to the agency, I get the message that the Al Bhed dismantled the remaining machina.
-We get a 10k gil reward.
-Still no answer why the machina went out of control. Unanswered questions abound.
-Mission complete.
Mi’ihen Highroad
-Machina are on the rampage.
-There are 13 tandems of machina to take out, and Al Bhed are also helping. The game says that it’s not a race but I should still do my best to take out the majority. So… is it a race? Dunno.
-The Lady Luck gambling seems more forgiving than Setzer’s reels, if not nearly as forgiving or controllable as Wakka’s. I prefer Wakka's, but I understand that the more powerful the game makes these casino skills, the more challenging they have to make them too.
I like that I don’t need three in a row for a good outcome. I don’t like that a “dud” roll causes damage to my party.
Thankfully, it’s not like the Oracle in FFV where it had a chance to wipe everyone out instantly if you used it wrong, but still.
-WHOA HOLY SHIT THAT’S QUITE AN ABILITY – “Doubles the amount of EXP earned afer battle.” For just Rikku?”
-Also, something just hit me. I remembered from a past game (was it FFV?) that you’d get to keep the passive abilities learned from inactive jobs. I wonder if that’s true here. [Later edit and non-rhetorical question for y’all: I think this is NOT the case, but just to make sure – if I get this double XP passive for Rikku, does it only work for her when she is actively in her Lady Luck dressphere?]
-Hee, I see machina chasing this hypello and I feel pretty certain the hypello is still trying to sell the machina tickets.
-Shinra is putting another Comm sphere down at the travel agency. I’ll bet that if I travel to every zone in this chapter, then in the next chapter we’ll be able to use the Comm system for whatever its purpose is.
-Neat! Dice roll for Lady Luck.
-Not staying at the Travel Agency. I want to try knocking out more machina, and am afraid the clock will continue ticking if I stop and talk to everyone here.
-a woman says I should ask “Prophet” about chocobos. Huh.
-lol more start-of-combat banter:
YUNA: “Gimme a Y!”
RIKKU: “Gimme an R!”
PAINE: “Gimme a break.”
NEVER CHANGE PAINE
-Okay, we’ve destroyed seven and Al Bhed have destroyed five. Good. That guarantees us a majority. But the last machina I see are up on a cliff only reachable by chocobos. Maybe I’m supposed to find one.
-The people at the North End of the Highroad keep talking about a “mysterious figure” that saved them.
-Yeah, feeling a bit stuck on this last one. Tried jumping up the cliff using the normal climb buttons, but that doesn’t work.
I’ll head back to the agency.
-Ooh – I’ll bet the mysterious Al Bhed machina-taker-aparter is Shinra! I saw him scamper ahead at the start of the mission, but didn’t put two and two together.
-Before I can get back to the agency, I get the message that the Al Bhed dismantled the remaining machina.
-We get a 10k gil reward.
-Still no answer why the machina went out of control. Unanswered questions abound.
-Mission complete.
-Returning to the Highroad, just in case another lap through here reveals answers.
-The reaction is interesting. Former Yevonites who were already tentative in their acceptance of machina are even more tentative.
I wonder if the breakdown is caused by someone who wanted that, some old-order anti-machina type.
-Got an achievement: “Gambler’s Dream.” I think it’s because when I did the 4mp attack roll, Two Dice, I got double sixes. Nice.
-I’m still trying that matchmaking and publicity thing. While I’m happy that there’s no gender barrier for the matchmaking, and I can see if dudes are interested as well (though none have actually seemed interested), I do wish there were an age barrier. The game gives me the matchmaking options for kids, and Yuna comes off as SUPER FUCKING CREEPY.
-Found the Prophet at the North End of the road. He fits my possible perpetrator description: someone who clearly wants to abandon machina.
But he’s not an Al Bhed. Would he really have the technical know-how to cause this mass malfunction?
-There’s a new weird enemy, a hover like the “helper” thing in the Bikanel Desert. Whenever I defeat it, it says “Transmitting log…”
-Took a hover back to the agency, and I get a slow motion scene of the hover falling off a cliff just after we hop off.
-PHEW. The hover still flew off the cliff, but it was just because someone forgot to put on the parking break. XD
-I’ll add that with each successive mission discovered in a non-hotspot in chapters 2 and 3, I get sadder and sadder thinking what I missed in chapter 1. Ah well! C’est la vie when playing unspoiled. There’s always replays.
---
Djose Temple
-Gippal and Rikku have a relationship that’s hard to parse. He treats her like a little kid whose hair you muss up when you see them at a family gathering, but says they used to be a couple.
I’m unsure if this is just strange characterization, or if Gippal is an asshole, or both.
-The temple looks more heavily guarded than last time, but the Machine Faction isn’t being open about any fiend infestation.
GIPPAL: “You already took care of Sin. We can’t go running to you every time we get into trouble.”
-I kind of like that he’s at least taking this into consideration, how much she’s done already.
-It’s all respectful. We part amicably, and get an Al Bhed primer for our troubles.
-Back on the airship, Rikku swears nothing happened between her and Gippal. It’s an odd protestation.
-Paine agrees.
-The reaction is interesting. Former Yevonites who were already tentative in their acceptance of machina are even more tentative.
I wonder if the breakdown is caused by someone who wanted that, some old-order anti-machina type.
-Got an achievement: “Gambler’s Dream.” I think it’s because when I did the 4mp attack roll, Two Dice, I got double sixes. Nice.
-I’m still trying that matchmaking and publicity thing. While I’m happy that there’s no gender barrier for the matchmaking, and I can see if dudes are interested as well (though none have actually seemed interested), I do wish there were an age barrier. The game gives me the matchmaking options for kids, and Yuna comes off as SUPER FUCKING CREEPY.
-Found the Prophet at the North End of the road. He fits my possible perpetrator description: someone who clearly wants to abandon machina.
But he’s not an Al Bhed. Would he really have the technical know-how to cause this mass malfunction?
-There’s a new weird enemy, a hover like the “helper” thing in the Bikanel Desert. Whenever I defeat it, it says “Transmitting log…”
-Took a hover back to the agency, and I get a slow motion scene of the hover falling off a cliff just after we hop off.
-PHEW. The hover still flew off the cliff, but it was just because someone forgot to put on the parking break. XD
-I’ll add that with each successive mission discovered in a non-hotspot in chapters 2 and 3, I get sadder and sadder thinking what I missed in chapter 1. Ah well! C’est la vie when playing unspoiled. There’s always replays.
---
Djose Temple
-Gippal and Rikku have a relationship that’s hard to parse. He treats her like a little kid whose hair you muss up when you see them at a family gathering, but says they used to be a couple.
I’m unsure if this is just strange characterization, or if Gippal is an asshole, or both.
-The temple looks more heavily guarded than last time, but the Machine Faction isn’t being open about any fiend infestation.
GIPPAL: “You already took care of Sin. We can’t go running to you every time we get into trouble.”
-I kind of like that he’s at least taking this into consideration, how much she’s done already.
-It’s all respectful. We part amicably, and get an Al Bhed primer for our troubles.
-Back on the airship, Rikku swears nothing happened between her and Gippal. It’s an odd protestation.
-Paine agrees.
---
Moonflow
-Showtime?
-Shinra set up a CommSphere here, and said with it we can watch the show from the Celsius.
-Yeah. Though it’s just the three musicians. They sound pretty good, but Tobli is upset about the lack of razzle-dazzle.
-He wants us to track down some celebrities, but Paine tells us to run. I think she’s joking at first, that she hears what to her is another boring job about to come from Tobli, but maybe it’s more serious than that.
-I tried going back and talking to Tobli againto see if we got a mission, but no go. Will keep my eye out for any celebrities. (I suppose he could just mean Yuna, but Yuna’s already here so she can’t be the celebrity he wants. Maybe Rin?)
[Later edit: on the airship, the afterblurb for Moonflow suggests that the star power is possibly the Gullwings playing a concert. That’d make sense.]
-Rumor is that debt-collectors are heading to Tobli’s office in Guadosalam.
-The musicians here remind me of the impending doom.
---
Guadosalam
-Shinra runs past me with another CommSphere as I enter this city.
-Leblanc is in a state of despair apparently. Makes sense, given that her Noojy-Woojy is missing.
-This is SO WEIRD to see the Leblanc Syndicate goons on friendly terms with us.
-A woman here mentions the dangerous cave near Mushroom Rock Road. I wonder if that’s the cave where I found the bodyguard.
-One of the doors is still closed off. People outside think there’s treasure inside. As long as Lone Wolf doesn’t appear in this game, I’m confident I’ll get there eventually.
-Still can’t get to the Farplane. Unusually large number of pyreflies.
-Went into Chateau Leblanc. Ormi and Logos are practicing consoling her downstairs. It’s not very convincing.
-OH MY GOD THEY WERE TRYIGN TO IMPERSONATE NOOJ
MY DUDES, I DON’T THINK YOU DOING A BAD NOOJ IMPRESSION WILL HELP HER FEEL BETTER
-At the same time, it’s kind of sweet that they want to make her feel better.
-The switch to the hidden area is “acting up.” Can’t get there now.
-Leblanc’s in her bedroom. Rikku tries to cheer her up by raising her competitive hackles, saying how the Gullwings will get all the spheres in Spira with her out of the picture, but she doesn’t bite.
-The universe is a big place. I’m sure there’s somewhere out there, sitting in a dusty old Word file, fan fiction exists where Dona and Leblanc meet each other at a singles bar looking to rebound from their troubles, hit it off, and create a dominant new sphere hunting ship/team together that puts the Gullwings to shame.
All hail the Doblanc Syndicate.
---
Next time: Thunder Plains.
Moonflow
-Showtime?
-Shinra set up a CommSphere here, and said with it we can watch the show from the Celsius.
-Yeah. Though it’s just the three musicians. They sound pretty good, but Tobli is upset about the lack of razzle-dazzle.
-He wants us to track down some celebrities, but Paine tells us to run. I think she’s joking at first, that she hears what to her is another boring job about to come from Tobli, but maybe it’s more serious than that.
-I tried going back and talking to Tobli againto see if we got a mission, but no go. Will keep my eye out for any celebrities. (I suppose he could just mean Yuna, but Yuna’s already here so she can’t be the celebrity he wants. Maybe Rin?)
[Later edit: on the airship, the afterblurb for Moonflow suggests that the star power is possibly the Gullwings playing a concert. That’d make sense.]
-Rumor is that debt-collectors are heading to Tobli’s office in Guadosalam.
-The musicians here remind me of the impending doom.
---
Guadosalam
-Shinra runs past me with another CommSphere as I enter this city.
-Leblanc is in a state of despair apparently. Makes sense, given that her Noojy-Woojy is missing.
-This is SO WEIRD to see the Leblanc Syndicate goons on friendly terms with us.
-A woman here mentions the dangerous cave near Mushroom Rock Road. I wonder if that’s the cave where I found the bodyguard.
-One of the doors is still closed off. People outside think there’s treasure inside. As long as Lone Wolf doesn’t appear in this game, I’m confident I’ll get there eventually.
-Still can’t get to the Farplane. Unusually large number of pyreflies.
-Went into Chateau Leblanc. Ormi and Logos are practicing consoling her downstairs. It’s not very convincing.
-OH MY GOD THEY WERE TRYIGN TO IMPERSONATE NOOJ
MY DUDES, I DON’T THINK YOU DOING A BAD NOOJ IMPRESSION WILL HELP HER FEEL BETTER
-At the same time, it’s kind of sweet that they want to make her feel better.
-The switch to the hidden area is “acting up.” Can’t get there now.
-Leblanc’s in her bedroom. Rikku tries to cheer her up by raising her competitive hackles, saying how the Gullwings will get all the spheres in Spira with her out of the picture, but she doesn’t bite.
-The universe is a big place. I’m sure there’s somewhere out there, sitting in a dusty old Word file, fan fiction exists where Dona and Leblanc meet each other at a singles bar looking to rebound from their troubles, hit it off, and create a dominant new sphere hunting ship/team together that puts the Gullwings to shame.
All hail the Doblanc Syndicate.
---
Next time: Thunder Plains.
