Random Missions & Rumors
-A new rumor says that the crystals driving monsters wild are pure, solidified magic. The palace denies rumors that says it created them. This has Cid written all over it. [Later edit: lol]
-You can negotiate with clans to avoid engagements! Not sure how exactly. I see a new mission type, so maybe that’s all it means.
-I have to fight a comic book style villain named Dread Raven with Clan Borzoi. Can’t find this mission though. Hm.
-A new member wants to join, a black mage. Not sure of its race. Looks Vivi-ish.
I’ll bet it’s a moogle! I used Montblanc as a mage but he always retained his unique sprite.
-I FINALLY unlocked a new job on my Nu Mou, Leo. He got a solid number of white mage abilities and sage unlocked after grabbing some beastmaster abilities. I’ll try that out next time.
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Mission: Clan Roundup
-I encountered a Clan Crow unit which allows me to pay to leave them alone. I won’t do this much, but want to see if anything happens.
OH! I had a mission to capture them and failed. I forgot lol.
-…Dang it. Forgot to check the laws and got Marche red-carded with fire. My first game over.
-Got it on the second run.
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Mission: Twisted Flow
-I arrive at the Utei River to check out why it’s being diverted. The shades of blue here are quite pretty.
-A black warpy thing appeares. It warps me away, into what looks like a palace.
That must have been the “wrinkle in space” that Montblanc mentioned before.
-It’s a crystal! Hi, crystal!
-Marche searches for a way out when a voice speaks out.
-A MONSTER MATERIALIZES AND STEPS OUT OF THE CRYSTAL! Its portrait and color scheme look Exdeathy.
-This guy presents himself as Famfrit. His name is super familiar from FFXII. He was an esper in that game. I don’t remember if he showed up in Tactics.
For some reason, the various Ivalician esper names and faces just have not stuck with me, outside a few like Belias and Ultima. Like, I remember the time one and the cat one and some others, but most are kind of a jumble for me.
-Famfrit describes himself as a “Totema,” some sort of protector. He thinks Marche is here to steal the crystal.
-He summons a group of Ahrimans to help him. And hilariously, a judge warps in too. I wonder if the judges will ever speak up and express opinions and take sides – maybe even cheat, if an evil one favors my opponents. For now they seem to just be game mechanics.
-Defeating Famfrit is the win condition. Going with my old FFT strategy of bee-lining for the boss and ignoring the adds, unless he stays in the backline.
-I like that you can see Famfrit’s health in this fight.
-The boss music here is quiet and creeping rather than blaring and intense. It fits the atmosphere. This isn’t the culmination of Marche’s journey, something he’s charging into. Marche is in the unknown here, cautiously dealing with whatever this THING is.
-I tried out combo with march, when all my party members surrounded the boss, and it just has Marche do a thing. Not much damage. I don’t understand this. Maybe all the other party members need something equipped in the “Combo” slot for this to activate.
-Got him! Not too bad. His main attack was a single-target Demi, halving that target’s health. It never landed.
-We defeated him but didn’t kill him. Now Marche gets to ask some questions. First off: wtf is the crystal?
FAMFRIT: “The crystal is the thread that binds our world. The world I was born to protect. With the white ones, I was born…”
Machinists. They’re the source of Famfrit’s power. Even surer now that Cid is behind the crystals somehow.
Oh, the “white ones” are moogles! I had forgotten that in Ivalice, moogles are often techies.
He offers to lend us his power if the moogles allow it. He disappears. The crystal bursts. And briefly, we see a goat-horned person pop in, shake his head, and pop out. Who the fresh hell was that??
WAIT THAT WAS MEWT????
-The voiceover appears again: “When the thread dissolves, so will this world. And another world will be revealed.” What if this fantasy Ivalice is layered on top of St. Ivalice?
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Royal Palace
-Scene change to an actual palace, not just ruins.
-It’s Mewt’s dad, talking to Mewt. Mewt has a book open.
-oh god Mewt’s portrait is TERRIFYING! Is Mewt the bratty prince we heard about before? Hm. We know there’s a queen and Mewt doesn’t have a mother right now. Or at least he didn’t back in St. Ivalice.
-Mewt tells his father a memory. Of a snowball fight with assholes.
So Mewt remembers everything, but his dad does not.
-I spoke too soon. Mewt speaks of the snowball fight as if it were a dream. He either forgets shortly after or dismisses it, preferring this world.
“That… that’s right. I’m royalty… I’m a prince.”
Could be either. Whatever the case, he’s definitely the prince now. So who’s his mom in this world?
-One quick thing raising my hackles: I fear FFTA will make the abused kid into the villain. I hope they don’t.
“Everyone listens to whatever I say. My word is… law.” Mewt is the one constantly changing up the law on a whim. My current theory is that he remembers everything from St. Ivalice, and is so happy to have the least bit of power and agency that he’s running wild with it.
-His “Mama” enters. Mewt runs up to her and embraces her.
-There’s a Nu Mou servant here as well named Babus.
-HEE! Babus look like Poplio.
-The mother – like pretty much everyone else in this game – has an awesome portrait. She and Mewt both have a red eye painted on their foreheads.
-This woman is Queen Remedi.
“To you, I am your mother, and I love you very much.” I deeply want that to be genuine. I’d be surprised if it is.
-Mewt’s dad is the highest judge in the land.
-Interesting. Mewt wants to strengthen the laws, and Queen Remedi allows it. But the father doesn’t want to. He’s worried.
-Remedi brings up that the crystal was just destroyed. The father acknowledges people will accept this as pretext for stronger laws.
AH!!! THIS IS CID!!!! Judge Cid.
-God, I so badly want Mewt to be happy here and have a supportive and healthy family. I trust his dad’s intentions and love.
I trust Queen Remedi not at all. Zero percent.
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Utei River
-Marche pops back from the crystal room to the river.
-He thinks on what he just learned about the crystals as a thread of this reality. If he destroys them will he be able to go back home?
Damn. I mean, maybe, but even in that best case scenario, he’s not opening a gate for himself. He’s destroying what for all intents and purposes appears to be a living, breathing world.
[Later edit: I won’t go into detail, but there’s a very recent series of Welcome to Night Vale episodes that this is making me think of.]
-Now Marche has a purpose: destroy the crystals.
Jesus. This may be the first FF game in the series where our protag’s goal is to destroy crystals rather than save or protect them.
-I got a new “moogle battle command” of Totema. Sounds like a summon.
-I get to place a new city symbol on the map. Cadoan.
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Next time: Clearing out more missions.
