Update #9: If You Play It Backwards You Can Hear Satanic Messages
Click for update 9!
YouTube Link: Urbeth (night)
YouTube Link: Urbeth
So, the highest possible sum of gil that can be made in the shopkeeping minigame is 20,000.
The best way to reach this sum is to sell magic at its market price. (Well, the easiest would be to do so at a loss, but I’d rather not if I can avoid it.)
This will almost certainly involve save scumming.
YouTube Link: Business is Fun
3 Firagas or Watergas at 5000, three Shells or Protects at 1000, and four Fire or Water at 500. This comes up to 20,000 gil with no loss on our part.
(If you’re willing to sell at a loss, Raise, Fira, or Watera cost 1500 each and as such are more likely to sell at 1000 and 500. If you’re really desperate for that high score, all Firaga or Waterga can be used but that’s probably not worth it even if you’re willing to sell at a loss.)
Of course, the RNG is still the RNG.
Save scumming away!
Hrm.
In the end it takes me about five tries.
YouTube Link: Victory
If it had taken too many tries I was willing to start losing money for it, but it luckily never came to that.
Ain’t that the truth.
Suddenly, a familiar light.
…what an odd thing to take interest in.
: How mighty you have grown.
: Long, so long have we waited for this blessed day to come.
…I guess it’s impressed with our ability to completely defy basic economics? I mean, all we did was resell some books at full price…
I’m not gonna complain about this, however.
Or maybe I am, given the circumstances.
A bizarre crown for a bizarre turn of events, I suppose ; seamstress is an odd one.
Basically, it uses equipment as consumables.
The defense of the armor used in the ability is added to that of what you have equipped.
Both your equipped armor and armor used with the ability need to have not been upgraded with gems, which limits its use.
And the other black robe is gone.
I suppose it’s possible to get some use out of seamstress with proper preparation but all in all it’s honestly kind of a letdown for being an optional Crown that takes the work it does to get.
Anyway, last time we got ourselves a task to obtain a Bomb Fragment.
Doing so, of course, will require some banditry.
Bomb fragments can only be obtained by stealing them from hellhounds outside town.
The RNG is as helpful as always, of course.
It’s best to equip fire-reduction gear for this as hellhounds are a bitch to fight otherwise.
It takes some doing but we get our prize in the end.
Honestly, after making us deal with stealing RNG I’m inclined to withhold it from him out of spite.
That is, if his “yeah sure whatever” attitude didn’t take the fun out of it.
: Here’s your money. Don’t spend it all at once!
Chump change, again.
Honestly, I’d recommend just skipping Mylion’s quest since only one of the lords’ quests is needed to get your full party and it isn’t necessarily worth it to deal with the RNG.
Of course, there’s still one last quest to do before dealing with the sorcerer, so now’s a good time to get kitted out for that.
(and since we’re in the neighborhood we can get our greed on)
Black Mage and Bard make for a sort of high-risk-high-reward setup.
Our target is only a short walk into the cave.
YouTube Link: Battle With Demons
This guy doesn’t even get the boss music.
Its attacks cause status effects…
…and it actually gets two actions per turn…
…but Magic Mojo and the Bard’s Ditty stack, with results that speak for themselves.
Kind of a joke, really.
On another note, we get these gems on the way back to town…
…allowing us to enhance the Black Mage crown…
…giving us access to the Spell Focus ability.
It’s basically just Magic Mojo 2.0, but there’s something important about it we’ll get to later.
Not that you know of.
okay okay jeez
: Here’s your reward then. Make sure you buy something nice with it!
Before we deal with the sorcerer, let’s take a moment to attempt to satiate our insatiable greed. (By which I mean make a comfortable sum of gil for use on the more expensive gear in later towns.)
Also, the records screen appears to be bugging out here; it’s impossible both to make an amount that’s not a multiple of 50 and to make more than 20,000.
Not important, just strange.
In any case, we’re more than good to go now.
Oh buddy you have no idea.
: Hang in there. Not much longer now…
Well, if you say so. Not suspicious at all.
Plot-mandated inn rest time!
YouTube Link: Crisis by a Hair
…and it goes the only way it possibly could have.
Welp.
Helpful!
I mean I’m not sure what anyone expected from them, they were already creepy as all hell.
All the shops have monsters blocking them.
Luckily most of the monsters are just random encounter grade.
Although this does give an opportunity to show off our new toy.
It’s Magic Mojo 2.0; this is helped by the two effects stacking.
Notice that the save point is gone. There’s a reason for this which we’ll get to soon enough.
Oops, looks like somebody is saying some dialog too early.
Note that the Lords’ side quests are now unavailable, meaning that if you got enough money and paid the sorcerer without doing any of them then re-recruiting Ringo/Yunita is now impossible, hence the save point being gone.
This fight here is actually a cut above random encounter territory.
Especially if you’re caught off guard like I was.
Luckily things worked out better the second time.
…did any of you people actually look at the dummies you shelled out cash for?
Also I fucked up getting a screenshot and had to reload as a result; this dropped from re-fighting the golem, which is good as we’ll be needing it later.
…Quelle surprise.
Again, did none of you people actually look at the things? They were already both ugly and monstrous!
The chimera has the same gimmicks it did before and the succubus can confuse but this is still random encounter material.
Man, not you too.
YouTube Link: Strong Enemy
YouTube Link: A Desperate Situation
The monster in blocking off the weapon shop is decidedly not random encounter material.
I’m actually really poorly equipped for this fight.
It’s weak to light; we have access to light-elemental weapons but not spells.
If I’d been smart I’d have made John a Bandit and equipped him with one of the light-elemental weapons they sell here. Too bad I hadn’t been smart.
If I’d been smart, I’d have equipped everyone with dark-reducing shields they sell here. Too bad I hadn’t been smart.
Its attacks cause curse, which blocks off crown abilities.
Embarrassingly I never actually figure out what opening and closing its eyes do.
In spite of my own horrible preparation the boss goes down soon enough.
We see a familiar light after defeating the demon.
: Eek!
: The darkness encroaches even into the souls of men.
: Those who succumb to desire lose all faith.
: Shine the light on their hearts and drive the darkness away!
Three in one update, nice!
There’s a few things to see around town post-crisis, albeit not much:
I mean, the boss was blocking off Thauzand’s place…
Never change, guy.
: You worked so hard to make that money, and this is the reward you get.
: But you musn’t let that Sorcerer get away with his ill-gotten gains!
: Listen. If you want to follow the Sorcerer, I can help. Go to the inn and sleep.
: Tomorrow I will have a ship ready for you, so you can sail after the scoundrel.
Another plot-mandated rest!? It’s like the Urbeth people want their town to be prone to calamities.
Luckily, this one is important for the other reason.
: (I’m so sorry, Ringo…)
That is, allowing us to reinforce the tenacity of John’s prickishness.
: (I’m going to have to find that Sorcerer and bring back George myself!)
: I’m sure the other Merchant Lords will want to thank you, too. Good luck, my friend!
Really? Boy howdy, more rewards!
…some thanks, Thauzand. Also, fuck off, Tryllion.
Before we shove off, however, we have new crowns to get a look at:
Merchant is all about the gems.
Great for getting yourself more gems… and very little else.
Which still makes it useful, mind you, only not for actual combat.
Salve-maker, on the other hand, is all about item usage.
It has its uses but White Mage is just more versatile all-around.
Anyway, now’s a fine time to shove off!
This was probably a bad decision on John’s part.
YouTube Link: Arbor
: He looks just like a tree or bush or something…
: What should I do?
: Maybe the people of Arbor will know how to fix him.
Quite the pickle Paul’s in, eh?
New Crowns
Not the best of hauls, regrettably.
Click for new crowns!
Seamstress
A very strange crown centered around using equipment as consumable items to improve defense or attack power. The first optional crown, it is unfortunately not very good as its use will be rendered obsolete.
Merchant
The most useful crown we’ve received this update, but not for its combat prowess. Its primary use is for farming gems.
Salve-Maker
A crown that’s all about enhancing and changing the use of healing items. It has its uses, particularly when it gets the ability to reverse item effects and use them on enemies, but White Mage is still more versatile.
Notice: See next post for crown poll!