Update 12: Wood Zone



Hmm... Do I take the sword or the axe today...
YOU TAKE THIS GOLD AXE!
Gyagh!
Hmm, okay, very well then, I shall note, "gold axes terrify Judith."
...Sure. Okay. It was the words "gold axe" that scared me, not you sneaking up on me and suddenly shouting.
Who's the master of fear here?!
And who's the one that you scared, who knows herself better than anyone else?
Invalid!
Gods, but you're exhausting.


Let's finish the 2nd Stratum.

For this room is infested with countless insects that watch your every move! The insects make no move, as if waiting for a signal. You have no way of knowing when they may attack. You decide to spend as little time here as you can and move on.
Silently, now...


aaaagh birds
Not even Protector will save you now! Except they don't always overload you with fire so whatever, I guess.

B10F E1 Take Point


Pfft... Snrk...
Katya, it's-- Pfft-- This monster's shape isn't-- Ghhhhehehe...
...Whaddya two laughin' at?

Cannon Palm

HP: 472STR: 22TEC: 19VIT: 21AGI: 12LUC: 19
EXP Given: 1300

Damage Vulnerabilities:
100% 100% 100%
150% 100% 50%

Disable Vulnerabilities:
100% 100% 100% 50% 100% 100% 100%
100% 100% 100%
100% 150% 100%
  • Coconut Strike: Deals heavy bash damage to 2-5 party members. Slightly slow.
  • Coconut Strike: Deals 110% melee STR-based bash damage to 2-5 party members. The damage ranges from 75 to 86 on average. Has an 80% speed modifier and a base accuracy of 90%.
  • Cannon Palms are very likely to open with Coconut Strike.
  • If any party members are asleep, Cannon Palms are likely to target asleep party members.
  • Coconut Strike becomes more likely when the Cannon Palm is at 80% HP or lower.
  • If this is the first turn, and the party was not blindsided:
    • 79% chance to use Coconut Strike.
    • Else, Attack.
  • If any party members are asleep, 19% chance:
    • 39% chance to use Coconut Strike.
    • Else, Attack sleeping party members.
  • If the Cannon Palm is at 80% HP or below:
    • 59% chance to use Coconut Strike.
    • Else, Attack.
  • If the Cannon Palm is between 100% and 81% HP:
    • 19% chance to use Coconut Strike.
    • Else, Attack.
  • Coconut Strike: Deals bash damage to 2-5 enemies. Slightly slow.
  • Coconut Strike: Deals melee STR-based bash damage to 2-5 enemies. Has an 80% speed modifier and a base accuracy of 90%.
Drops:
  • Normal: Palm Bark. 50% chance. Sells for 92 en.
    • Hindi (+61 ATK, +2 TEC): Made from 1 Palm Bark. Costs 2450 en.
    • Biliomg (+77 ATK, +2 VIT): Made from 3 Glow Talons (Glowbird rare) and 2 Palm Barks (Cannon Palm normal). Costs 3900 en.
  • Rare: Starseed. 25% chance. Sells for 108 en.
    • Star Charm (+40 TP): Made from 1 Starseed. Costs 800 en.
Cannon Palms are irritating. Coconut Strike's plenty capable of leaving most of your party critically injured alone. If you're in a battle with other enemies besides it, then, uh, good luck.
These things are just resilient enough to be a huge pain in the ass. If you aren't packing some heavy fire damage, these will be a major nuisance to your TP and inventory on B10F.

Oof.
...Sometimes it does that though.

Right in the nuts.
...Ooooaaaah, NOW I get it!



Damn, no Starseed.


BWAAAAAAAAGH
DEATH APPROACHES

Into the trees--!
THANK YOU GOD ELOWEN
The one time Escape worked! Incredible!


Hindi (+61 ATK, +2 TEC) is made from 1 Palm Bark (Cannon Palm normal). Costs 2450 en.


Vince gets a very slight defensive buff.

Judith replaces her Hide Glove with a Spike Shield, with no net change to her STR.
Introducing the best physical mitigation passive in the game as well (if you manage to get a Grimoire of it).

And I swap out Hide Boots for Chain Boots on anyone that has them.


The breeze against your skin drives home how sweaty you all are from the constant march. If you wish, you can take a rest to enjoy the wind blowing in this room.
We've only been in this stupid jungle for five minutes and I'm already boiling like a meatball in a pot.
Upon making the decision to cool your sweat-drenched bodies here, you set down your belongings and sit. The dry, cool breeze that continues to blow here is a welcome contrast to the humid air of the dense forest. Before long, you notice that the sweat that had soaked your clothing has dried completely. The rest seems to have done the party a world of good, since everyone feels refreshed upon resuming the journey.





Oh no.
Ooh, that's an EXCELLENT display of fear!
Welcome to the real EOU. Deathsquads are everywhere. Don't let your guard down for a second.

I knew...this would happzzzzzz...
I'm-a tired...
My training never...featured flowers... Zzzzz...


BOOM!


Oogh!
YOWCH! ...Oh, you're gonna pay for that.


At least let me sleep peacefully.



Oh, I really want to keep that Starseed, but we need it for that quest, but--
Elowen? Are you mumbling about something?
N-no!
Ooh, yes, a Starseed!


Huh. Well, this is an interesting situation.

OOPS!


fuck off
This is a really annoying formation if you aren't running an Alchemist or a Gunner to kill the Cannon Palm ASAP. Which basically means more formations designed specifically for Story...

Eventually I just got fed up and walked over the damage tiles, taking the easy way out.

Convenient shortcut back to the beginning of the floor.


I've never seen tigers and bees cooperating before.

Barbed Tiger

HP: 300STR: 21TEC: 20VIT: 16AGI: 19LUC: 16
EXP Given: 720

Damage Vulnerabilities:
100% 100% 100%
100% 150% 0%

Disable Vulnerabilities:
100% 150% 100% 50% 100% 100% 100%
100% 100% 100%
100% 100% 100%
  • Rising Fang: Deals moderate volt damage that pierces party rows. Slow.
  • Rising Fang: Deals 140% ranged TEC-based volt damage that pierces party rows. The damage ranges from 52 to 68 on average. Has a 70% speed modifier and a base accuracy of 99%.
  • Barbed Tigers have a high chance of opening with Rising Fang.
  • Barbed Tigers have a small chance of specifically targeting sleeping party members, if there are any.
  • Barbed Tigers are unlikely to use Rising Fang until they hit 80% or lower, at which point it becomes their most likely action.
  • If this is the first turn:
    • 79% chance to use Rising Fang.
    • 21% chance to Attack.
  • If any party members are asleep, 29% to target a sleeping party member with an Attack.
  • If the Barbed Tiger's HP is above 80%:
    • 19% chance to use Rising Fang.
    • 81% chance to Attack.
  • If the Barbed Tiger's HP is 80% or below:
    • 60% chance to use Rising Fang.
    • 40% chance to Attack.
  • Rising Fang: Deals STR-based volt damage that pierces enemy rows. Slow.
  • Rising Fang: Deals ranged STR-based volt damage that pierces enemy rows. Has a 70% speed modifier and a base accuracy of 99%.
Drops:
  • Normal: Tiger Fur. 35% chance. Sells for 54 en.
    • Tiger Coat (+27 DEF): Made from 1 Tiger Fur. Costs 1300 en.
    • Jelly Shield (+20 DEF, +10% fire resistance): Made from 3 Rainbow Gels (Towering Ooze normal) and 3 Tiger Furs (Barbed Tiger normal). Costs 1040 en.
  • Rare: Tiger Fang. 20% chance. Sells for 61 en.
    • Tiger Fang (+55 ATK, +10 HP, +5 VIT): Made from 1 Tiger Fang. Costs 2050 en.
    • Tiger Lance (+71 ATK, +1 TEC): Made from 1 Tiger Fang. Costs 3290 en.
    • Sensui (+84 ATK, +2 AGI): Made from 4 Tiger Fangs. Costs 4420 en.
    • Viking (+65 ATK, +1 VIT): Made from 1 Laterite (2nd Stratum Mine 2) and 3 Tiger Fangs (Barbed Tiger rare). Costs 3000 en.
I...don't really know what to say about Barbed Tigers, other than Tiger Fangs are really annoying to farm.
For a final floor exclusive enemy, these things are disappointingly chumps. They've never really given me any trouble at all. TO HELL WITH TIGER FANGS

Aw, what? That's never failed me before!
Oh, yeah, they're immune to volt.

Eh, whatever.






Secret passage here.

Vendor trash!








Hey... Do you really think this seed could grow into love?
Eh.
HmmmmMMMMMMMMMMMM.
Don't make that face at me. I know it's just a charm. But if this seed can give a little girl the courage to confess her true feelings, couldn't you say...?
Could go either way.


big yes
Can't use em, too valuable.





Judith maxed out Sword Mastery, and unlocked Falcon Slash.
Now you're playing with mob-clearing power. This is the other big one for sword-based Landsknechts, and it's really goddamn strong in this game (Not as much as it was in 1, but we can't have everything). The cost is a bit much, but it's worth it in the pinches the sheer sweeping power can pull you out of.

Vince is still working toward En Garde.
The DEF Up tree is a real slow cooker but it'll pay off big time eventually.

Slightly more damage for Sagittarius Shot on Elowen.

Katya's close to Inferno Formula.

And Suicide Word's damage goes slightly up.


Oh goody, punching bags! And loads of 'em!
This encounter isn't really dangerous, though it is definitely annoying.

We have to lure the Giant Moa away from its spot here, but...




This is extremely dangerous, you realize.
Vigorous nodding.
You just said "vigorous nodding" out loud.
Vigorous nodding.

Giant Moa

HP: 2041STR: 26TEC: 20VIT: 18AGI: 22LUC: 19
EXP Given: 5100

Damage Vulnerabilities:
100% 100% 100%
100% 100% 100%

Disable Vulnerabilities:
100% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50%
10% 10% 50%
50% 50% 50%
  • Rush: Deals heavy bash damage to all party members. Slow and very slightly inaccurate.
  • Rush: Deals 80% melee STR-based bash damage to all party members. The damage ranges from 72 to 84 on average. Has a 70% speed modifier and a base accuracy of 90%.
  • Giant Moas are very likely to open with Rush.
  • Giant Moas have a small chance to specifically target sleeping party members.
  • Giant Moas are more likely to use Rush when their HP is at 80% or lower.
  • If this is the first turn:
    • 79% chance to use Rush.
    • Else, Attack.
  • If any party members are asleep, 19% chance to do the following:
    • 39% chance to use Rush.
    • Else, Attack, targeting party members that are asleep.
  • If the Giant Moa's HP is at 80% or lower:
    • 59% chance to use Rush.
    • Else, Attack.
  • If the Giant Moa's HP is at 100% to 81%:
    • 29% chance to use Rush.
    • Else, Attack.
  • Rush: Deals bash damage to all enemies. Average speed and very slightly inaccurate.
  • Rush: Deals melee STR-based bash damage to all enemies. Has no speed modifier and a base accuracy of 90% at all levels.
Drops:
  • Normal: Bird Limb. 90% chance. Sells for 412 en.
    • Hereward's Bow (+58 ATK, +2 AGI): Made from 1 Bird Limb. Costs 2140 en.
Either bind Huge Moas' legs, or kill them before they kill you. Not much else to them!
These things are pretty squishy for FOEs, but don't underestimate Rush's damage. It'll mess you up really fast.

...Shooting an arrow that high must take a lot of practice.
Not as much as you'd think.


Damage.

...Are y' gnawing at that thing's legs?!


EEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeAAAAAAAAAGH!


That all y' got?
Well, that was a freebie turn.

War Cry is Good.

DELICIOUS!
You've got some really weird methods.


Decent.
That's about all you'll get out of Raging Edge until later on.

I seem to be out of practice...
That needed a two-turn delay.
Reactionary nerfing tends to go poorly.

Efficiency is still good.

Nee-hee-hee!


Well, this is going swimmingly. This party's average LUC, between Judith, Katya, and Quixote, is fairly high, resulting in pretty high disable durations. Vince isn't that much of a drag on that, though Elowen is.

Again, thank you for the free turn.

Zapsquish goes your head!



Well, that was easy.
These birds aren't too rough, honestly.


But after a quick glance around reveals nothing of note, you make to leave when something falls from above. It seems to have landed in the nearby mound of leaves... You wonder whether you should investigate.
This warrants a magnifying glass! Does anyone have one?!
Why in th' heck would any of us have a--
THEN BEHOLD AS I PULL MINE FROM MY HOOD!
Was shouting that really-- Oh, never mind.
As you dig through the leaves, you find a number of fruits. The small, red fruits must have been dropped by birds or something of that sort. There are enough for all of you. If you wish, you can try eating the fruit.
They're safe.
Unable to fight the curiosity welling within you, you each place the fruit in your mouths. You quickly learn that your worries were for naught. The fruit is sweeter than expected, removing your exhaustion!




Eep.

Another nice shortcut.

A giant empty room with a sole Giant Moa. What's the catch, then?

Ah.

Screw this.


Let's fight.
I don't think I've ever found a way around this. Maybe I'm missing something, but I dunno.

Jungle Killer

HP: 2017STR: 29TEC: 17VIT: 25AGI: 17LUC: 16
EXP Given: 6000

Damage Vulnerabilities:
50% 50% 100%
100% 100% 125%

Disable Vulnerabilities:
50% 50% 50% 50% 100% 50% 50%
10% 10% 50%
50% 50% 50%
  • Numbing Sting: Deals severe stab damage to one party member. Attempts to inflict poison and paralysis on the target, with a medium chance. The poison ticks for heavy damage. Slightly slow.
  • Numbing Sting: Deals 100% melee STR-based stab damage to one party member. The damage ranges from 105 to 120 on average. Attempts to inflict poison and paralysis on the target, with a 50% base chance. The effective chance ranges from 46% to 55% on average. The poison ticks for 87 to 92 damage. Has an 80% speed modifier and a base accuracy of 99%.
  • Jungle Killers are likely to open with Numbing Sting.
  • Jungle Killers will specifically target party members that are not paralyzed with Numbing Sting.
  • If this is the first turn:
    • 79% chance to use Numbing Sting.
    • Else, Attack.
  • If the Jungle Killer is at 50% HP or lower:
    • 69% chance to use Numbing Sting.
      • If any party members are not paralyzed, target party members that are not paralyzed.
      • Else, use standard targeting.
    • Else, Attack.
  • If the Jungle Killer is at 100% to 51% HP:
    • 39% chance to use Numbing Sting.
      • If any party members are not paralyzed, target party members that are not paralyzed.
      • Else, use standard targeting.
    • Else, Attack.
  • Numbing Sting: Deals stab damage to one party member. Attempts to inflict poison and paralysis on the target. Slightly slow.
  • Numbing Sting: Deals melee STR-based stab damage to one party member. Attempts to inflict poison and paralysis on the target. Has an 80% speed modifier and a base accuracy of 99%.
Drops:
  • Normal: Toxic Barb. 90% chance. Sells for 453 en.
    • Scorpion (+65 ATK, +3 AGI): Made from 1 Toxic Barb. Costs 2860 en.
Jungle Killers really aren't much more than beefed up Death Scorpions. Bring a Protector or some attack debuffs and you're good to go.
In my experience, these things tend to hit like an angry truck and take as much damage as a boulder. But then again, I tend to not run elemental damage which really hurts against these things.

Whee, there it goes!


Well, I got lucky with how the Jungle Killer decided to start the battle.

PTOOIE! PTOOIE!
Don't...spit scorpion bits at me!
If only I was this lucky. Sheesh...

Mm-mm! Man, Elly, what'd you put in this thing?
Firebird meat.
...O-oh.
Hard to argue with results.
And here's the other fun part of Efficiency: boosting Amritas!

KKKKKKZZT!


...Should've brought my axe...


Yes!
Didja put a cannonball on that arrow or somethin'?


lol

Yeeeeeeeeeikes that's a lot of damage for the back row.
Numbing Sting is kind of self-defeating because it usually just instantly kills whoever gets hit by it in my experience.

Aaaaand Katya just got a free damage boost.

Eeeeeyahahahaha! Fear me, monsters, for I am Katya, Master of Elemental Kickboxing!
Credit where credit is due... Katya, Master of Elemental Kickboxing.
Jeeeeeeeez. I keep forgetting how good Alchemist is in this game.





A leaf falls from above, and you sense a tremendous threat directed your way. But a quick glance around reveals nothing that could be the cause... A careless move will surely lead whatever has you in its sights to attack. You must think hard about where the threat may be lurking, for you may not have a second chance...


Up there!
Recalling the leaf that drifted from above, you look up, squinting cautiously at the forest ceiling. There, you spy a man-eating plant that clearly has you in mind for its next meal...! The plant, sensing that its disguise has been penetrated, disappears into the branches. You sense that it has withdrawn completely... It seems to have abandoned you as a target. However, you cannot rule out the possibility of this man-eating plant remaining nearby in hiding. You make a note to remember that there is a dangerous plant here before leaving the area.
We'll be coming back here for a quest later.

B10F B5 Chop Point


Hereward's Bow (+58 ATK, +2 AGI) is made from 1 Bird Limb (Giant Moa normal). Costs 2140 en.

Scorpion (+65 ATK, +3 AGI) is made from 1 Toxic Barb (Jungle Killer normal). Costs 2860 en.

Tiger Coat (+27 DEF) is made from 1 Tiger Fur (Barbed Tiger normal). Costs 1300 en.

Iron Glove (+11 DEF) is made from 1 Iron Shell (Death Scorpion normal). Costs 650 en.

Poison Charm (Immunity to poison) is made from 1 Condensed Mucus (Venom Ooze conditional). Costs 2000 en.

Might as well give Elowen a small offensive upgrade.
More AGI for the best healer in the game isn't a bad thing.


Eh.

Eep.

EEP.
Fun!

B10F E4 Mine Point

Aaaaand one final shortcut.

OOF!
Looking around, it seems something came falling from above that happened to strike them. When you pick up the fallen object, you discover that it is a full bottle of medicine. As you ponder how such a thing could have fallen from the trees, you hear an energetic cry. You look up to see the baby monkey you rescued before, jumping up and down in the branches with excitement. Once the monkey sees that it has your attention, it throws another bottle of medicine to you. You are unsure how it procured these, but it must be the baby monkey's way of thanking you for your aid. You gratefully accept the medicine and march on while waving your thanks to the baby monkey.
...Thank--ow--thank you.


The Hamao's worthless, but the Soma's useful.
I'll have you know that I used many a Hamao to get slight amounts of TP in a pinch.

Bada-ding.

I'm probably gonna reskill Judith before boss time.

And expected level ups elsewhere.

Wondering who it could be, you investigate, and spy two female adventurers further in. The warrior woman Ren and the flame- haired Tlachtga... What are they doing here? Piqued by curiosity, you consider heading in their direction to speak to them.


Ah, so it was you. I wasn't expecting you to make it down this far. This is the deepest part of the second Stratum...a rather dangerous place. The Jungle King, a monster responsible for many deaths on the 10th floor, dwells here. The Radha must be sending sacrificial lambs to try to unblock further exploration.
Ah, c'mon, have more faith in us, y' mean ol' dame.
...Don't call us "dames," please, Vince.
Ren falls silent for a moment, looking at you with curiosity.
Interesting that they picked Tenebris... I hope they chose wisely.
Shaking her head, Ren takes a bottle of medicine from her pack and hands it to you.
Take this. It's a medicine processed from plants deep in the forest. You'll need it.


THANK YOU FOR THE GARBAGE!
Q-Quixote!
After you accept the gift, Ren shifts her gaze to deeper within the forest.
Cernunnos, King of the Jungle... Its lair is nearby. Proceed with caution. If the forest proves too much for you, come back here whenever you're injured.
You thank the two adventurers and return to your hunt for the Jungle King.
Ren and Tlachtga will heal our party back to full HP and TP if we come back here. That's nice.

Something waits here that sets your nerves on edge... It may be dangerous to continue. You consider the merits of returning to town first before investigating.
Let's just...return to town.
Agreedadilliano.
...



Let's close out with some items.
Tiger Lance (+71 ATK, +1 TEC) is made from 1 Tiger Fang (Barbed Tiger rare). Costs 3290 en.

Star Charm (+40 TP) is made from 1 Starseed (Cannon Palm rare). Costs 800 en.
Aaaaaaaand that does it for now. Next time: Cernunnos.
punch

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