Let&#39;s Play Zone

: …
: Okay, the installation’s all finished!
: This amplifier’ll boost Heroman’s sonic weapon to affect a very wide area.
: Mind you, this was a real rush-job, so it’s only gonna last one shot.
: Um… Not that I’m doubting your big brains and all that, but don’t ya think you oughta test the thing first?
: You upped the weapon’s output big time, so what if you fire it up and it runs out of juice before it can do anything? That ain’t gonna be a fun time for anyone.
: Yes, and that is why you’ll be supporting them in the operation. If need be, you and your Raija can supply the necessary energy.
: Psh, I’m a person-sized energy tank, then? That’s nice.
: But do we really need for you guys to go in there by yourselves, Joey?
: It’s the best option. The Skrugg are sure to come running once they realize we’re in the area.
: And with all of them there, you’ll cripple them and the anti-air guns altogether with Heroman’s sonic weapon?
: We deemed that the smallest possible team of assailants would be ideal to goad the enemy into a false sense of security.
: Still…
: Don’t worry about us, Lina. I promise I’ll keep everyone safe.
: I’ll be a hero just like my dad was!
: …!
: Your dad… didn’t he…?
: Yeah, he did…
: Our bum of a dad went and got himself killed pulling a stupid stunt – that’s what he did!
: S-Sis! How can you even say something that awful?!
: Our dad was a hero who protected so many people! Everyone back home says so!
: Yeah? Then, tell me: what’s a hero, exactly?
: That’s obvious, I think!
: A hero… is a strong man, who’s willing to put his life on the line to keep others safe.
: …
: You really don’t know jack…

She leaves.

: Ho-Holly…!
: Sis…
: Um, what happened to Joey’s father? How did he die?
: There was a major fire in Center City’s mines thirteen years ago…
: Joey’s father sacrificed himself to make sure the others got away safely…
: I had no idea…
: That’s normal. But there isn’t anyone in Center City who doesn’t know the story.
: Joey is clearly proud of his father for what he did.
: But, as far as Holly’s concerned…
: …
: Hmm, so that’s what it is.
: All right, here’s a thought! I will go and accompany Joey’s group in today’s mission!
: Aah?! You can’t simply make a decision like—
: Shush, Quan. I know exactly what it’s like to be proud of your father, so I feel obligated to help him honor his memory!
: You guys agree with me, right?
: Yes, absolutely…!
: You go and help Joey for all of us, Shangxiang!
: Leave it to me!
: H-Hey…
: It’s settled, then, Joey! Rouse yourself and we’ll be off!
: Y-Yeah!
: And you? Are you ready for this?
: Who do you think I am, eh?! And who put you in charge here?!
: (Look on, sis… I’ll show you what I believe a hero to be…!)

Mission 44 – Faith

: Aaany second now…
(on TV): Is everyone set, Joey?
: Yeah. We’re good whenever!
: The Union Army’s herding the Skrugg your way. You’re to begin your operation as soon as they arrive.
: Roger that!
(TV): Joey, promise me you’ll come back.
: Don’t worry. I… I swear I’ll keep you safe, Lina – I’ll protect you with my life!

: Uwah?!
: Huh? Joey? What was that just now?!
: Cut the chatter! They’re here!

: You’ve all been briefed, yes? The target area’s over there!

: Joey, we’ll take care of the small fry! Set out and make a beeline there!
: B-But…
: Come on, kid! Times like these, a big hero’s gotta stand up and give it to ‘em like this!

: Let those afar off listen; those who are near can see!
: I am Zhang Yide of Yan!
: Who dares fight to the death with me?!

: …?!
(TV): He said it! That’s his famous yell from the Battle of Changban!
TV: No, I think I saw some of that in the Tales of the Heike… (It’s both: the first line is from Akushichibyoye Kagekiyo, but the others are credited to Zhang Fei proper.)
: Forget about the details! It was cool, and that’s what matters!
: Right, Joey?
: Aha… Right!
: Then, begin Operation Thunderbird! Godspeed, everyone!
: Roger! Let’s go, Heroman!
: Hmmm!

Alright, we need to get Heroman over to the marked area, and losing anyone’s a game over (Heroman can’t lose his power armor frame, either, since it has the sonic weapon). This might be a tad complicated if you haven’t been regularly using these three and keeping them upgraded like I did, but it’s still doable.
The entire area’s covered in broken down buildings, so you’ll want to keep your guys there for the defensive boosts. If Fei and Shangxiang aren’t leveled up, you’ll want to hold your distance and let the enemy come in – take them out one by one, and keep both covered by Heroman’s support defense.
If anything, the Skrugg Soldiers are still pretty weak and their exp’ll help anyone lagging behind catch up. Do be careful with the Chimeras, though, and try to take them out quick via support attacks.

And when the next turn rolls over…

: Hah, I could do this in my sleep!
: Save your glee for later! We’ve more incoming!

: You’re wasting your time with this, foolish humans! Surrender!
: Nick?! What’re you doing here?!
: To reclaim this planet for the Skrugg, of course!
: I told you before, I’m not a man anymore! I’m a Skrugg!
: Nick… We broke your mind-control before, but you’re still…
: Are you actually doing this willingly?!
: Oh, yes. I’m gonna get back at everyone who pushed me around before…!
: And that includes you, hiding over there!

: …
: Will?!
: I owe the Skrugg for what they did to me. I’m tearing down all their plans!
: Shut your mouth, traitor! You’ve been a thorn on our side for too long, and now you’ll die along with them!
: Oh, boy, that’s some real bloodthirst there. Wanna team up to take ‘em out?
: Don’t get any funny ideas. We’re not friends, allies, or anything of the sort.
: But we’re after the same thing!
: …!
: You’re fighting to protect someone, too, no?
: Then, there’s only one thing for us to do!
: …
: Fine. You did help me out before – I might as well pay it back.
: Okay, that’s more than enough for me right now!
: Hell, yeah! Let’s make a dash for the finish line, then!

Don’t lose Will either, but he’s still as competent as ever. If anything, he’ll help offset any potentially underleveled units. Taking Nick out will auto-move Heroman in place, but he won’t give you any parts or money at the moment, so it’s faster to just ignore him and get to the spot.

And we’re in.

: Alright, this should be good enough!
: Here we go, Heroman! Full blast!
: OOOOOOO!

All the Skrugg mooks explode!

: Gwaaaaaaaargh!
: Alright! Their anti-air weapons got taken out too!
: It’s over, Nick! You don’t have any hope of winning this anymore!
: Shut up! Don’t tell me what to do! I’m a superior being! I’m better than every other human!

: Gaaah! He still had all these tucked away?!
: Hihihi… And with all this power at my disposal, the world is my oyster! I’m never bending my knee to anyone again…!
: DIIIEEEEE!!
: Hrm…!

: Whaat?!

: Hey, now, I hope you didn’t forget about us!
: And with those AA batteries of yours down, victory’s ours for the taking!
: Thanks for the help, guys!
: The UX is here…
: Will…?!
: Why is he helping Joey’s group…?
: We’ll explain everything later! We need to put the rest of the Skrugg down right now!
: Will’s agreed to fight with us for the time being, Lina! If anything, you can trust him on that!
: …
: Okay. Good luck, brother!
: Lina…!
: The enemy’s anti-air weaponry have been rendered useless thanks to the brave efforts of Joey’s team.!
: Do not allow this chance to escape our grasp! Rout the Skrugg menace!

Still can’t lose Heroman, Will, Zhang Fei or any ship, but now it’s just a straight fight against the Skrugg – hardly a challenge. Once you’ve taken Nick out, the plot’ll progress, so make sure you’ve cleared out the rest of the mooks and built up morale first.
Popping Confuse might also be a good idea, since there’s a ton of stuff right near Heroman and our people’ll need a turn to close that distance.

SRW UX - You Are Similar to Me

: Nick, you’re not a Skrugg! Please, come back to us!
: What, back to being that useless coward?! You’ve got to be kidding me!
: I’m not the boy I used to be! I’ve power beyond any other human! I’m a superior being now!

Nick taking damage: “I know you, of all people, can understand how I feel, Joey!”

: Ye pitiful man who’s turned into a monster…
: Not like I had any choice!
: It wasn’t my fault I wound up like this! I didn’t do anything wrong!
: Aye, yet the monstrous path you have trailed afterwards is fruit of your choices alone!
: And if such a path leads you to bar mine, then you had best prepare yourself for the consequences! Come!

SRW UX - My Fate

: Hahahaha! Do you have any idea how many people bowed before me once they saw my power?!
: I tell you, this Skrugg body is great!
: You can’t do that! Even if your body’s a Skrugg, your heart is still a human’s!

: Your anti-air weapons are already gone! Give up already!
: You’ve no idea how much stronger I am now! How much power I have!
: My days of losing to you are over! I… I’ll destroy every last one of you!
: This boy’s lost sight of his heart and now all he does is get high on his powers…
: Tch… Is cutting him and his hate down the only way for him to be free?!

: Your human heart is still in there, isn’t it?! Why are you doing this?!
: What difference does my heart make?! I’m already a full Skrugg everywhere else!
: I’ll wipe out humanity from the history books!

: The tables have turned now… I’ll get back at everyone who messed with me with my new power!
: Stop this! Revenge won’t help or change what happened before!
: I don’t care! This is what I wanna do!
: Tsk… Then, I’ll have to stop you with the power I was given!

: Are you seriously happy just rampaging around with that newfound power?!
: What I do or don’t do is my own business!
: I’m a changed man now that I’ve this power! I’ve changed just like Joey did when he got Heroman!
: Don’t you dare lump him together with you…!
: There’s a world of difference between what he does with his power and what you’re doing!

SRW UX - You Are Similar to Me

: That’s enough, Nick! Did even your heart get turned into a Skrugg’s?!
: Where do you get off talking to me like that?! It’s your fault that I’m like this!
: Yeah… you’re right, it is.
: And that’s why I’m taking responsibility for it. I’ll destroy all traces of the Skrugg myself… and you, too, if I have to!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjXFOJgN--8
Nick drops another Joey’s Coffee.

: Th-This can’t be happening! I’m a Skrugg… I’m supposed to be better than all humans!
: Fool. Your flesh may not be that of a human, but that does not make you superior to them.
: If… If this body doesn’t even make me strong, then what use is it?! What is left for me?!
: I… I can’t even go back to being who I was!
: Nick…
: Don’t give up, Nick. We’ll look for a way to turn you back to normal!
: Turn me back…?
: Yeah, that’s right! If you let Prof. Denton and the others take a look at you, I’m sure they’ll find something!
: And we’ll all help them as best we can. Please, come with us, Nick!
: …
: Is that true…?
: I can… really go back to normal…?
: You can. You’re still here, right?
: If so, then you can always start anew.
: Come on, Nick…
: You…

Stab!

: Gaah…!
: Ni-Nick…?!
: What happened?! Stay with us, Nick!
: …
: He’s… awakened… Be… careful…

: NIIIIICK!!
: Cattle will be cattle, I suppose. They can’t even serve as proper foot soldiers.
: This voice…?!
: Detecting a massive energy spike within the enemy fortress! But, it’s…!
: They’ve finished reviving him… Gogorr!!

: OOOOOOAAAAAAAAAARRRGH!!
: No way… Why is he back?!
: This is what the Skrugg were truly after…
: To use their remaining technology and the salvaged G Cells to revive their ruler, Gogorr!
: Then… that’s why you were attacking all those research facilities? To stop this from happening?!
: Hmhmhm… I have returned at long last! And I’ve even acquired power far beyond what I previously had!
: Look at how huge he’s gotten…! What happened to him?!
: H-Huh…? I feel the pulse of so many lives coming from him…
: I can hear their voices… They’re… in pain!
: Oh, no, you don’t think he…?!
: He ate his own servants… all to build up his power!
: Wh-What?! He ate the same guys who were working to save his life?!
: I, the ruler of the Skrugg, am the emperor of the entire universe!
: Everything… Everything is food to me!
: You monster…!
: I know we’re all for dialogue and whatnot, but I really don’t think that word exists in this guy’s lexicon.
: What he’s done is… inexcusable! How can anything like him even exist?!
: Gogorr! You’ve absolutely no respect for life… and, so, we can’t allow you to keep yours!
: Let’s go, Heroman! We’ll make sure he’s gone for good this time!
: Hmmm!

”Ultra” Gogorr
Pilot Skills:
Prevail L9
Support Attack L3
All Attack L3
Mech Features:
30% HP and EN Regen
All-Canceller

Gogorr’s rebirth has given him a full re-spec: no longer evasion-focused, he’s now taaaaanky and has a ton of long range attacks. Attack power is pretty high (though not higher than Nero or Lu Bu, since Gogorr’s expected to get a bonus from his huge size), but he’s also surprisingly accurate thanks to his S ranks and, as usual, big stats everywhere important. Of note, he has a MAPW that strikes with a similar AoE to Canaria’s: five 1-6 columns, alternating safe-zones between each one.
Gogorr’s essentially a huge wall, packing 180k HP (more, actually, due to events) and a ton of armor which, combined with that Prevail L9, means he can take quite a beating, but we have enough firepower on our side that we can still down in him one turn with healthy doses of Valor and Soul.
Attacking him from range is actually recommended with your dodgier guys, since both his strongest attacks have way less of an accuracy modifier than his close-range one. If you’re strapped for SP on someone, consider this to spare having to cast a defensive spirit.

Oh, and Gogorr’s brought back a bunch of Chimeras and, more importantly, four Balls with him, so take care not to let those debuff a Super’s armor.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KBbh8Go6FE
And I remembered that I never showed off Kazuki and Maya’s HAE combo attack, so here it is. Don’t forget that using this at least once (along with the other main HAE combos) is a requirement for the last Fafner secret!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVOaP109kH8
And the Dancouga MAXGOD’s second best attack, since it already has Absolute Nova Beast.
With that out of the way, let’s bring in the hurt to Gogorr.

SRW UX - Lion

: This planet isn’t your feeding ground! Get back to your own world, Gogorr!
: We Skrugg set off to find new worlds looking for resources. Isn’t that exactly what your kind did?
: Maybe… but outright war is never our first choice! We didn’t throw away our willingness to try and coexist with whoever we find!

Heroman OST - Joey and Heroman

: If you think I’m the same as I was before, think again… I’ve been reborn as an unstoppable being, with unmatched power!
: Kch, blast this undead… He’s drawn himself exceedingly close to the level of a god by gorging on the life of his subjects!
: Hah, that don’t scare me! He might be an evil god, but our god-slaying sword’ll put him right where he belongs!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpkYMjhzRvI
Here’s Gogorr’s best attack… getting no-sold. The animation’s the same, though!

SRW UX - A Bird’s Song

: Eating your own men to get stronger… There ain’t enough words to describe what a low-life you are, guy!
: Your sentimentality means nothing. It’s when an absolute being is born that a given species may ascend to rule all others!
: On the other hand, that means that if we just take you out, the Skrugg species will have all the wind taken from their sails.
: I can work with that! We’ll punt the Skrugg right off Earth after you’re squished again!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDHlDsbFUqM
And his second best attack.

Once you get Gogorr under 70%…

: Rgh…!
: Now! Go for his heart crystal!
: That’s a weak-spot found in all Skrugg! I learned of it when they turned me!
: I’m on it!
: Heromaaaan…ATTACK!

: Gwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!
: Did we get him?!
: …
: Too bad, cattle.
: What?!
: That is no weak-spot of mine!

: He-HEROMAN!!

: Heroman! Hang in there, Heroman!
: …
: N-No… Heroman…!
: Foolish creatures. Did you take me to be the same as a common Skrugg?!
: But now I’ve repaid the humiliation that toy thrust upon me. All that remains is consuming this planet whole!

RUUUMBLE!

: Wh-What’s happening?!
(TV): We’ve an emergency! Gogorr’s draining massive amounts of energy from Earth’s mantle!
: If he’s not stopped, it’ll only take a few hours before we see a calamity on a global scale!
: What did you say?!
: I can no longer be stopped! Accept your doom and watch, powerless, as your planet approaches its doom!
: Just like that lump of garbage!
: !
: …
: Y-You overgrown cockroach… Say that again!
: …
: You… You killed Heroman!

: Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaah!
: Joey…?!
: …
: I feel it… all this power inside me…!
: There’s no way he’ll survive if I blow all this right on top of him…!
: Joey, are you…?!
: Stop! You can’t be considering throwing your life away to beat him!
: If it’ll let me protect your future, then, yeah, I will!
: Just… Just like my dad did before!
: Your lives are more important than mine!
: Joey! NOOO!

: (Goodbye, everyone…!)
: UWOOOOOOOOO!

: ! Heroman…?!

Flash!

: U…ooo…
: Why did you…?!
: Can’t you tell?! He doesn’t want to lose you!
: ?!
: You fricking idiot! You might’ve been happy to go out a big hero like dad, but…
: But what about everyone you’d be leaving behind?! What about your family?! How the hell are we supposed to take that?!
: You might save everyone by doing this, but there’d be nothing to be happy about in a world without you!
: Sis… guys…
: Remember what you said to me when I’d almost forgotten who I was? You’re not fighting this alone – all of us, your friends, are here with you!
: And above all… Heroman’s here with you, isn’t he?!
: Heroman…
: …
: And you can be a hero because you’ve Heroman and all your friends!
: Your dad never gave up, did he?! He kept going ‘til the very last second!
: He didn’t give up…
: Yeah… You’re right, he didn’t!
: Enough of this drama! Your lump of garbage hardly has any energy left! This next attack will put an end to both your sorry lives!

: Nope! Heroes are indestructible!
: That’s… The MR-1?!
: Here you go, Joey, Heroman!
: Take in all of the MR-1’s energy!
: And have some of my spirit, too!
: Let thunder’s roar fill your ears!

: UWOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
: I-Impossible… That’s—!
: You look surprised! But, of course, I doubt you’d understand!
: That capacity to get back up after being beaten, even stronger than you were before…!
: That’s the mark of a true hero!
: Hero… a true hero?!
: That’s all we can do here! The rest is in your hands, folks!

: Alright, I reckon everything’s set for a classic comeback!
: Last up is the cherry on top: make it like proper heroes and take down the evil boss! Joey, Heroman!
: Hmmm!
: We’ve been together since the beginning! And together is how we’ll win back our future!
: Heromaaan… GOOOOOO!

: What a horrible sound… Don’t you hear it? All the lives you consumed are crying…!
: Hm? I’m afraid I’ve no ears for the voices of garbage!
: Mine is the only voice that should resound through the universe! My voice as its ruler!
: I don’t think so! What the universe needs isn’t a ruler, but harmony between all life!

: Hmhmhm… Accept your defeat. Destruction is all that awaits any planet I set upon!
: This is not something you can stop. It’s the fate imposed upon the entire universe!
: You’re too quick to speak of “fate”.
: The destruction you bring isn’t strong enough to claim our lives!

: You have absolutely no idea how the Skrugg you ate felt, do you?
: Oh, I doubt I need to try and understand how the consumed feel – not when I’m always the one doing the consuming!
: Fine, then I’ll make you understand! I’ll hammer that feeling straight into your skull!

: You’re a menace not only to other race’s planets, but even to your own people…
: It’s because of monsters like you that war never goes away…!
: Hmhmhm, you wish for a world without war, hm?
: Then, sit still and I’ll give one to you: a world of eternal silence!

: You and The Boom Army all figure you can have your way with our planet, but I’m here to tell you that that’s not happening!
: I’m rather appalled that you would tar me with the same brush as those vermin. I am Gogorr, the ruler of the entire universe!
: Appalling is that scum like you and them ever got the idea that you’re better than everyone else!

: Consuming your own people in a bid for power… How can you still call yourself their leader?!
: All life in this universe is no different from cattle, to be grown and multiplied as necessary!
: And it’s the sole purpose of their existence to sustain me, the ruler of all cosmos!
: A being of such callous disregard towards life is not fit to rule the cosmos! I sentence you to oblivion, tyrant Gogorr!

: Noisy little gnat! I’ll add all your vital energy into my own!
: What a powerful, dark aura… He’s like an avatar of destruction…!
: And it’s my duty as a Holy Warrior to rid the world of this force of chaos!

: Gch… the cries of all the life he’s defiled are echoing all around him…
: His invasion and cruelty are both ending here, though! The Nanajin and I’ll see to it!
: Know your place, worm! You and your kind are no more than meat for me to devour!

: Did the thought of coexistence, of mutual understanding, with humans never cross your mind?!
: Bwahahahaha! Tell me, do you make a habit of having a heart-to-heart with a loaf of bread before you eat it?!
: There’ll never be any hope of change for the Skrugg while you continue to exist…!
: Gogorr… I’m putting an end to your reign!

: I’m sure the Skrugg and the creatures of this planet could find a way to coexist! How can you not see that, Gogorr?!
: Hmhmhm… Oh, dear, when you put it like that, I might just consider it.
: That is, I’ll consider it if “coexistence” is how you call it when I devour you, cattle!

: Ah, you pathetic cattle. Please, feel free to continue wasting your time trying to oppose me!
: Hah… If we’re cattle, I suppose that makes you the moronic ‘master’ who’s about to get his hand bit off.
: Excuse me…?
: You can yell that you’re the ruler of the universe ‘til the cows come home, we cattle don’t give a damn! It’s chomping time!

: Hahahah… Are you going to take revenge on me? After I went through the trouble of giving you that wonderful new body?
: For a very long time I knew nothing but seething hatred over you changing me like this…
: But now I’m actually a bit grateful! Because this body’ll let me protect Lina and my family from your menace!

: You’re always a problem, aren’t you, brat…?
: That’s my line! But you can come back as many times as you want, we’ll always be there to put a stop to you!
: Is that a fact…? Then come closer and feel in your bones a power far greater than I had before!

Gogorr drops a Kazuki Cake (Range and Skill +10, Accuracy +5).

: Curse you all! You… You’ll pay for this, you blasted cattle!

: It was your arrogance that sealed your doom, Gogorr!
: You really shoulda looked a bit closer before you decided to take a stab at Earth!
: If you did, you would’ve seen that we… that the strongest hero of all calls this planet home!
: Go, Joey, Heroman! It’s up to you to save our world!
: JOEY!

: A true hero never makes anyone sad. You, and all my friends, taught me that!
: I’m not going to choose what to save anymore! We have to protect everyone…!
: We have to protect everything!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LXgujkWz5o

[video type=“youtube”]5LXgujkWz5o[/video]
Captions are available.

: Uurgh… H-How?!
: I… I am the ruler of the universe… How can I die in this backwater planet?!
: Isn’t that a shame, Gogorr?
: When this all started, I thought you were looking to build a friendly relationship between our two species…
: Never in my wildest dreams did I think that message I picked up would lead to anything like this happening…
: I can still remember it now: “gather at the beginning…”
: …?!
: Th-That’s…!
: (Hm? Why do I feel like…?)
: (Like I have heard those words…)
: (Somewhere before…?)
: …
: What… What did you say…?
: That message… It wasn’t you who sent it to us…?
: Wh-What?!
: Professor, what the hell…?!
: N-No, that’s not possible! You remember, don’t you, Psy?!
: We all heard it together! That message came from outer space!
: Hah…Hahahah… This is hilarious…
: In other words, we were being manipulated from the very beginning…?
: All this time, we were puppets moving according to the will of an unseen puppeteer… Absolutely hilarious…!
: Hmhmhm… WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

BOOOOOM!

: Gogorr…
: …
: (What does any of this mean? Those words were what I…)

: We’ve just received word from Hughes. It looks like everyone within the White House is safe and sound.
: Really? Ah, now that’s great to hear…
: Professor, I have to ask: since when have you been working on that guy’s MR-1?
: Hmhmhm… The NIA took it from Minami when they recaptured him, but they figured it could be useful in a pinch. So, they called and asked us to get it fixed.
: Though we sure didn’t expect to put it to use back there.
: And, from what the NIA says, they have no qualms with letting us continue to use the repaired MR-1.
: Then, we can now give Heroman an energy refill right during a fight?
: Yes, but it can only make one blast per battle. (Think of it like God Sigma’s Trinity Charge command, though it only appears on regular Heroman.)
: Wow, I can’t believe a weapon that harassed Heroman so much before would come in handy like that…
: I guess we owe a little bit of gratitude to that buffoon, Minami. A very little bit. Microscopic, even!
: Oh, and what did you say before the battle started, Joey? I couldn’t hear you over the explosions.
: Ah… No, that was…
: Hm?
: I think I remember… It was something like ‘I’ll protect you with my life’?
: Huh?!
: Z-Zhang Fei, please…!
: Ohoo… I didn’t take a late bloomer like you to have all that passion, Joey.
: Aw, come on, don’t start teasing me!
: …
: A hero, huh…?
: You really loved your father a lot, didn’t you, Holly?
: Wah! T-That’s…!
: Sis, dad didn’t choose other people over his family.
: …! You…
: And I’m sure he didn’t sacrifice himself just like that. He must’ve tried all the way to the end to get back to us.
: I understand that now…
: Joey…
: And I believe I understood something myself.
: What is it?
: How Joey and Heroman came to meet.
: It was Joey’s wish to become a hero that gave life to Heroman!
: That is to say, you were destined to meet each other!
: Say what? That’s not a very scientific thing to say, professor.
: Well, Prof. Denton is certainly a romantic. Perhaps a career as an artist would suit you better?
: Whuh?!
: Hahah, that’s our professor!
: Kheheh… Hahahaha!
: O-Oh, no… hahah…

And if you got the correct route flags and nabbed 200+ kills with Heroman by the end of the last mission:

: …

Will starts heading out.

: Hey, hey, where do you think you’re going, Will?
: …
: Don’t tell me you’re leaving again!
: You already have a hero by your side to keep you safe.
: You don’t need a creature of darkness like me.
: But you fought together with us back there – you helped keep Lina and everyone else safe.
: That makes you a hero too! It doesn’t matter how you look.
: I’m a hero…?
: And… you’re the only brother she has, aren’t you?
: …?!
: Can’t we just be together how we used to…?
: …
: I can’t promise you that.
: Brother!
: But I promise I’ll stay here with you at least until the battle’s over.
: I’ll work to be the biggest hero you can have!
: W-Will…! Thank you…
: (Thank goodness, Lina…)

And if you didn’t get the secret, Will just takes off and the scene proceeds like this:

: W-Will, wait…!
: Maybe it’s best to leave him be for now. He needs to put his thoughts in order.
: Let’s believe in him, Lina. I’m sure he’ll come back someday.
: He is the biggest hero you have, after all…
: …
: Yes…
: (I’ll be waiting for you, brother… For as long as you need…)

Location: New York – Rubens Foundation HQ

: Mr. Rubens, we’ve received a call from the White House.
: It appears all of the Executive’s staff, including the president, have already returned to office.
: Good. Have the backup plan scrapped and resume our regular operations.
: Yes, sir!
: “Backup plan”?
: Just a precaution in case anything happened to the president…
: You see, I was considering asking that you run for president of the Earth Federation, Rep. Athha…
: Wh-What…?!
: But it seems the event at Washington was dealt with without any troubles. Please, forget I ever said anything.
: …
: Mr. Rubens… may I ask the purpose of this meeting?
: All of the people assembled here share a past record of not only opposing the reform of the Federation Army to establish the Army of Mankind…
: But of, also, making a significant effort to have the Federation Government accept the UX as an active force.
: …
: …
: Thus, I’ve seen that we are like-minded individuals, and that you can be trusted with the truth.
: The “truth”…?
: The fact that we, mankind, are currently on the brink of destruction.
: Wh-What did you say?!
: As you are well aware, the Earth Sphere is currently facing an unprecedented crisis due to the siege by the ELS, Vajra and Festum.
: However, those are not the only enemies of our kind.
: What do you mean?
: …
: Lady Aila, I’ve been told that you possess the ability to see people’s thoughts and to catch glimpses of the future.
: …
: You have seen the truth I speak of, haven’t you?
: …
: This man is telling us no lies…
: I have had visions of a blood-red moon… and a powerful will emerging from it…
: Lady Aila…
: And what is that “powerful will”…?

Door opens.

: It’s the being that will bring about the destruction of mankind…
: …?!
: Y-You’re…!
: The chairwoman of the PLANTs Supreme Council… Lacus Clyne!
: …
: Even you came here…?
: Yes… So that we may confront our fate together…

: Master Kongming, you said you had something to talk to us about?
: Aye, it’s about the message Prof. Denton and Gogorr mentioned.
: That’s…!
: Hm, the ‘gather at the beginning’ message.
: I was wondering if you wouldn’t recall hearing those words as well.
: “As well”…?
: Ensign Berge, the truth is that…
: Every single person gathered here has heard the exact same message.
: Though I only have a very faint recollection of it…
: But we managed to remember that little bit after Denton and Gogorr mentioned it.
: …
: The people of the Frontier Fleet, the Mirishans, Princess Romina, Shou…
: What do all those have in common…?
: Madam Saya, would you, perhaps, also have knowledge of this message?
: Huh? M-Me…?
: I understand that, considering you were still asleep at that point, you may have no recollection of the time prior to arriving in this era with Maj. Richard.
: However, I think it safe to assume that you have also heard those words before.
: Are you implying that…!
: Hmhmm. Those words were heard by everyone who crossed space and time and wound up in this world.
: A-All those who crossed space and time…
: I understand… That’s why I heard it back then…
: I’d also crossed space and time when I was warped to where the nuke was projected to be…
: Parallel universes, trans-galactic warps, and time travel…
: All those who traveled through space and time heard that voice and, ultimately, arrived here. Which would mean…
: That what we deemed to be a chance meeting was, in actuality, quite the opposite.
: The voice I heard at that time…
: It was someone purposefully beckoning us to this world…?
: But who is the one behind it, Kongming?! For what purpose were we all gathered here…?!
: That is a question we have yet to answer.
: Still, while our vision remains dim, we have finally caught a glimpse of the center of the spider web encircling this world…
: The center of the spider web…

: …
: What’re you up to, eh? Why’d you call for me…?
: Katou’s plan is being a bit of a problem for my own, you see.
: And I’ve decided that needs to stop. That’s all there is to this.
: Hah, and you wanna ask me to help you with that?
: Hardly. I’m just going to give you what you’ve wanted for so long.
: What I’ve wanted…?
: Hmhmhmhm…
: Come closer and I’ll tell you… where you can find the last Machina…
: …?!
: Y-You…!
: …

More final bonuses for a bunch of folks:

Romina: +10% to all support effects
Sheryl: +30000 bucks earned at the end of a mission.
Ranka: +20 SP to everyone
Lina: Everyone gets +10 to their morale limit.

Mattman324 · July 27, 2018, 10:51am

This stage can be a bit of a dick even if you have used those three units on a first run if you try and kill all the mooks in the first part… so don’t do that, it’s not really worth it. EN efficiency will end you.

Nick didn’t survive past the initial invasion in the original source. He did in UX only to get fucking murdered here at the end, and that’s kind of annoying if you ask me. While it’s not the first time a villain from early in the show got to live to the end in SRW (I seem to remember that being pretty common in how Alpha Gaiden handled Xabungle amongst other things), usually the sympathetic ones don’t just die randomly later.

The weak spot thing is also kind of out of place. The show establishded that fact a bit earlier on in the plot, and the weak spot was a giant, obvious glowing thing, so Heroman, Joey, and Will triple teamed him to climb up his body and punch the thing out (It was the second use of Augment, the growing power, even.). The sequence took like a fourth of the episode and was really awesome, but in UX… it just kind of happened without context. They also showed off O-Spark before the fight (Heroman showed that Joey could pull the power out beforehand, but he didn’t get a chance to figure out what it was before they got called in - it was caused by him and Lina finally getting together in full).

The giant title card, though, that was in the show. That’s just a thing.

Also, in UX, the message sent by Denton was apparently heard by NO ONE out of the like ten alien invasions, and that is the most hilarious thing possible.

Oh, yeah, about Will - if you skip this scene, sometimes he doesn’t join if he didn’t in a past run, but also sometimes he just joins anyway regardless of whether you did the flags for his secret or not. Will’s secret is a little bugged, like the second Tobikage one (more on that later.). In the show, meanwhile, he just kind of up and fucking vanished midway through the final fight and while he is implied to have died, it’s not made clear.

But ho boy, next time Linebarrels of Iron goes nuclear in the official start of UX’s Endgame. Buckle in, folks - after next stage, every single stage will end at least one series plot, and next stage is a right doozy as well.

RYNO_Ross · July 27, 2018, 6:18pm

Figuratively, or literally?

Mattman324 · July 28, 2018, 5:01pm

Both.

Brunom1 · July 28, 2018, 11:56pm

Click to see the mission

And we’re back, having wrapped up the Heroman plot and convinced Will to hang around. There’s a lot to go through today, with Arnie, Saya and Aesap deploying as event units. Depending on previously unlocked secrets, your slots can range from 18 to 15 – since I got everything, we’ll be going like this:
Joe/Aesap
Liu Bei/Rennie
Kurou/Deceive
Shou/Tsubasa
Mazinkaiser/Soubi
Alto/Luca
Fei-Yen/Lockon
Maya/Akira
Heroman/Shouko
Kouichi/Kiki
Cao Cao/Moritsugu
Kira/Graham
Setsuna/Yulianne
Shinn/Lunamaria
Kazuki/Miu
Sun Quan/Domyoji
Tactician: Fei-Yen (I figured I’d give Kongming a rest, and, among the names given to me, Fei won the coin toss.)

Off we go.

: …

: Y-You want me to become the Stray Machina’s Factor?!
: I do. This Machina appears to be special, you see.
: Our analysis shows that this unit was a rather central figure among the future Machinas…
: Put it simply, we’ve determined that it’d serve as the Machinas’ ‘brain’.
: Wow… that is quite the special mech we found, then.
: And the information that Machina possesses will be extremely valuable to our plan of destroying them.
: I can see why. If that thing used to be the brain of the Machinas in the future world, then it should have the whole truth in its data banks.
: Precisely. You understand why I’m asking this, then, yes…?
: Hm. You want me to become its Factor in order to extract all that information it has.
: …
: I truly regret imposing this heavy a burden onto you. By rights, I should’ve been the only one to have to endure it.
: But I need someone I trust to do this… and I have no one else other than you, Ishigami.
: …
: We’ve known each other since before the war broke out. I was just a stammering junior officer back at Nagasaki, but you took me under your wing.
: Honestly, I’ve been expecting this to happen ever since.
: Ishigami…
: Do you remember the story about that 3rd A-Bomb? The one that was supposed to have been dropped at Kokura?
: Of course. I heard it was stopped by a young pilot of the kamikaze unit.
: I wonder what that pilot would think if he saw the current Japan – a nation that’s long since lost its imagination…
: Granted, our country’s leaders never had much imagination to begin with. I doubt that war would’ve broken out if they did…
: Hah, you have a point there…
: Japan… Rather, mankind has to change.
: And if becoming a Factor will help bring that about, then it’s something I, Kunio Ishigami, will gladly accept.
: Thank you, Ishigami. I’m counting on you.
: Sit back and wait for me. I won’t be long.
: Oh, but before I go, can I ask just one question?
: What is it?
: This Stray Machina…
: Was it one of the ‘human’ ones?
: I believe so, yes…
: It introduced itself when we tried to make contact with it.
: J-U-D-A-H… it said.
: “Judah”…?!
: Right… the Hebrew spelling of the name Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus Christ.
: Mind you, we don’t know whether that implies it’s a traitor to its fellow Machinas or to mankind.
: But, regardless, I’d wager there’s a significant reason for it to name itself that way.
: …
: A traitor Machina…

: …
: (Ishigami… what did you discover when you entered Judah’s cockpit? What did you see…?)

Location: Army of Mankind Base

: Katou’s losing his footing…?
: Hmhmm. The Advancers are being weakened daily due to Christopher Rubens growing political influence.
: I doubt the Katou Organization has the capacity to even carry out the schedule anymore…
: But Katou should still have one last ace up his sleeve, no?
: The last existing Machina…?
: While that’s true, I’m afraid Katou cannot use it.
: Why?
: Because the one thing Katou absolutely does not want happening is for all existing Machinas to have a Factor.
: That’s why he and his Organization went to such lengths to try and destroy every single one that wasn’t under their control.
: But now all of them have Factors of their own. All except the last one…
: Meaning he’s now caught between a rock and a hard place. He can’t give the final Machina a Factor, but he also can’t destroy it…
: Ah, I understand. Destroying the final Machina would leave the other Machinas as the only ones left. That would mean that all existing Machinas have Factors of their own – exactly what he’s trying to stop from happening…
: Precisely.
: That said, I don’t see the Katou Organization turning things around with their current forces.
: I don’t either, which is why I believe Katou’ll make one final play to clarify whether it’s he or Judah who is correct.
: He’s going for one last showdown with the UX…?
: Yes, and I want you to stop that from happening.
: You want us to finish off the Katou Organization?
: The opposite, actually: I want you to save Hisataka Katou.
: Save him…?
: Katou absolutely cannot be allowed to die here. If he does, all possibilities die with him.
: Which would, in turn, signify the destruction of mankind.
: …
: Understood. We’ll set out right away.

Jin and Ayul leave.

: …
: Are you certain of this?
: Of what…?
: Their units have seen quite the significant increase in power now that I’ve added my Aura Converter technology into them.
: However, that essentially means that their machines are consuming their Aura Power… that is, it’s consuming their vital energy.
: Synchro-Overdrive on its own is already hazardous to the pilot’s life. What do you think will happen if they do that with these machines…?
: …
: I suppose the only way I see that ending… is with their deaths…
: And you’re still going to send them into battle?
: …
: That is the path they chose to trail…

SRW UX - Prologue

: …
: Something on your mind…?
: No, I… I’m just wondering if Ishigami’ll actually tell us the truth…
: I hear ya. The guy’s been giving us the run-around since forever…
: And there’s also the fact that the old man used to roll with the Katou Organization…
: He was the captain of their 1st Unit, Katou’s right-hand man…
: …
: And, yet, he decided to become Katou’s greatest enemy. Why is that?
: Who can say? I can’t really imagine what happened between the two of them, but…
: If anything, I know what a sad affair it is when people who once trusted each other like that are forced to fight…
: Athrun…
: You go your separate ways, and the next time you run into each other, you’re on opposite sides…
: And regardless of how close you were before, now you each have different people to protect. And that means you need to kill one another…
: But I suppose I don’t need to tell you that, right, Arnie?
: …
: Once this battle’s over and peace has returned…
: What then…?
: I wonder if Jin and I’ll be able to greet each other with a smile… as we did so long ago.
: Ensign…
: We may never know what the right thing to do in these situations is… but giving up is the last thing we should do.
: …
: Because we can always choose what path to follow – and, so, we can start over…
: Yeah…
: (A battle between people who once trusted each other…)
: (Is that how both Ishigami and Katou look at this…?)

: Okay, looks like everyone’s here…
: Now, where should I begin?
: We do have a ton of things we’d like to ask you about…
: I suppose we’ll start with this: why did you cut ties with Hisataka Katou?
: Oh, that’s easy. We each have different visions of the future. End of story.
: That doesn’t answer anything-robo!
: Let’s approach this from another angle, then.
: You say you have ‘different visions of the future’. Now, we know for a fact that Katou has personally lived in the future of mankind’s extinction.
: However, such is not the case with you. You merely learned of the possibilities given to you by Judah and the expected outcome from those.
: Thus, my question is this: is your vision of the future truly correct?
: Are you suggesting Judah’s lying to him?
: Either that, or…
: It could be that the information within Judah is already misaligned with reality.
: Huh…?!
: …
: Wh-What do you mean by that?
: You see, there is a matter that has perplexed me for quite a while. Namely, the fact that these Machina are even here.
: Consider: humanity was extinct in the future society, so who sent those into our time, and how?
: Oh…
: Setting aside the Linebarrel, which had been united with Prof. Kizaki, and Katou’s Shangri-La, none of the other Machinas had Factors of their own.
: It’s inconceivable that they would have traveled through time by themselves.
: Then, who…?
: As we were told, the Machinas of the future began fighting one another in a bid to cognize the notion of death and acquiring imagination.
: However, I do not believe that was done solely to enable them to become ‘human’.
: At the end of the day, Machinas are still pieces of machinery. And machines only exist because they’ve masters who’d put them to use.
: But the Machinas would-be masters, humanity, had died out…
: So, they went on to try and make themselves a new master.
: A portion of the Machinas came to acquire imagination, and, so, became human…
: And from those, their new master was born.
: And that master’s the one who sent the Machinas to our time…?!
: But why?
: To observe mankind.
: Observe…?
: The Machinas sent from the future all have a bit of a trap set within.
: When all existing Machinas have a Factor, that trap’ll be triggered and cause… a certain something to occur.
: What something?
: That’s—

Alarm!

(TV): Guys, we’ve multiple heat signatures on approach!
: We’ve ID’d them as the Katou Organization!
: Here he comes.

Beep.

(TV): Do you hear me, Ishigami…?
: Katou…!
: …
: Ishigami, what are you after?
: What I’m after? Why, that hasn’t changed since this whole shindig started.
: I want to save humanity.
: Are you joking?! How would you save humanity by pushing it to destruction?!
: D-Destruction?!
: Hah…
: That’s a great speech coming from someone who’s killed God knows how many people to bring about his ‘dream world’.
: Hrm…!
: Let me ask you just one thing, then…
: Why didn’t you ever try fighting the Machinas that’d become human?
: …!
: I’m sure you could’ve done it, especially since you have that final Machina…
: I did try to fight them!
: But I could never reach them! They… The Human Machinas are all deep inside the moon!
: I-Inside the moon?!
: Huh? There are Machinas all the way up there?
: But that’s not possible. How would those Human Machinas even exist in this era?!
: No, he’s right. The master of the Human Machinas has always been camping out inside the moon, observing our civilization.
: W-Wait, that sounds just like…!
: Like Moon WILL!
: Ah, yes… The inorganic being that was based at the moon until the Dancouga destroyed him…
: We still do not know what connection there was between Moon WILL and the Human Machinas, but the fact is that they’ve all been on the moon since before our civilization even began.
: We can’t even begin to imagine how much they’ve evolved, what kind of technology they’ve developed, since arriving.
: And, so, you’ve chosen to just capitulate to them?!
: I don’t really care what you call it.
: …?!
: Ishigami, what the hell are you…?!
: Tsk… I knew it, Ishigami. Judah was a traitor to mankind!
: Only I was wrong who it was. It’s you… you are the real Judas!
: …

Mission 45 – Judas

: I’m putting a stop to your plan, Ishigami!
: The final Machina is still squarely within my grasp, and so long as it’s there, your insanity’ll go nowhere!
: Oh, yes, you’re quite right…
: Which is precisely why I’ve a plan to take it from you.
: What…?!

: Wh-What’s going on…?!

: Heheheh…
: The Idaten…
: Sawatari, what the devil are you doing?!
: Sorry, Hisataka, but that final Machina’s mine.
: What did you say…?!
: Sawatari! The final Machina’s at the bottom of the Shangri-La’s third shaft!
: Yulianne…!
: Yulianne, you traitor!
: Rrgh… Fire! FIRE! Destroy him, Shangri-La!

: Urrgh…! Heheh… Yeah, that’s the ticket!
: I’m gonna have to die if I wanna be a Factor anyway! Shoot me up all you like!

: D-Damn it, he made it inside!
: Hmhmhm… Looks like victory is mine, Katou!
: Y-You son of a bitch!

Beep.

: No, this battle isn’t over yet!
: …?!

SRW UX - The Proud Challengers

: Jin…?!
: We’ll take care of things here, Cmdr. Katou!
: Pull back and deal with the situation at the Shangri-La!
: The Special Mobile Troop of the Army of Mankind… Why are you helping us?!
: Prof. Novel’s orders! Now hurry!
: Novel Dylan?! Very well!

: (Why is Prof. Dylan helping the Katou Organization…?!)
: (Hmhmhm, I see how it is. One final trial before the True Override can happen, hm?)
: Okey-dokey, my UX friends!
: I’ve a new request for you: get rid of these guys, if you would!
: I-Ishigami…!

: You actually expect us to fight like this?!
: Any way you slice it, you’re the most suspicious guy here by a mile, Ishigami!
: You’re free to think whatever you want of me…
: But I don’t think the enemy up ahead’ll care much for your doubts, hm?
: …!
: Ayul, Knack, Colbie, are you guys ready?
: Neutrino Generators are all green!
(Knack): Ready to engage on your command, captain!
(Colbie): We’ll pay you back in full for that last defeat, UX!
: Jin, you…!
: … I don’t really get all this stuff that’s going on…
: But, whatever, we need to do something about the enemy first!

Take out Jin or Ayul, don’t lose a ship, Arnie, Saya or Aesap.
Downing either of them’ll trigger the plot and any enemies you haven’t killed’ll leave, so make sure you grab everything. Send your guys up north, but try and keep the slower units angling a bit due west – we’ll need to head that way later.
But this is still the same battle we’ve had before. Watch for Jin and Ayul’s MAPWs, draw them in and swarm.

SRW UX - The Proud Challengers

: The world Katou imagined… If there’s a chance that it’ll bring about a possibility, then I know what I’ve to do…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noWcPCiTEeQ
Heey, I finally got him to use another of his smaller weapons.

: The possibilities of this world won’t be extinguished… we won’t let them…!

SRW UX - JOEY AND HEROMAN

(Knack): (Mom… I’ve finally got her parents’ blessing!)
(Knack): (We’re going to get married next month… I have to get through this no matter what…!)

Knack, what the frick is you doing?!

(Knack): Uwaaaaaah!
: Knack…!

(Knack): A-Aah…! My unit’s on fire!
(Knack): N-No…! I can’t die yet…!
(Knack): My fiancée’s waiting…!

: KNACK!
: C-Captain…!
: Rrgh…! Damn you, UX! You’ll pay for this!

(Colbie): (Heheh… I just have to put in some good work with this unit and I’ll be on the fast track to a squad of my own!)
(Colbie): (Take a look… I’m making it all the way to the top!)

(Colbie): Gch… Th-The Proton Generator’s been hit?!

Power uuuuup!

: Particle Acceleration readings are spiking rapidly!
: At the rate it’s going, the anti-particles’ll run wild…!
: Colbie!

(Colbie): Uwaaaaaah! C-Captain… I can’t control it!
(Colbie): H-Help me, Captain!
: …
: Colbie… luck was just not on your side… (Area 88 reference)

(Colbie): A-Argh…!
: …?!
: C-Captain…!
: Forgive me, Colbie…

: Jin… How could you…!
: …

SRW UX - The Proud Challengers

: I’ve chosen to embrace any fate, no matter how dire, if it’ll help us create possibilities for our future…!
: There’s something flowing from his machine… It shouldn’t be possible, but…!

: A machine that houses the light of life… That power will lead us to the Beginning of Life.
: The Nanajin’s shaking… No, it’s… reacting to something?

SRW UX - Roaring Deathblow

: Arnie…! Our paths may be similar, but they really aren’t the same…
: Come on. We’ll have to determine a winner and a loser eventually, so we might as well do it now!
: I don’t know what is the sorrow Tsubaki mentioned you were familiar with, Jin…
: But I still have answers to find with Saya. And if that means having to bury my past for good, then so be it!

Jin drops another Alex’ Sunglasses.

: Hrm…!
: Cpt. Spencer!
: D-Don’t worry about me! This is nothing…!
: Now, come over here, Ayul! Give me synchro-overdrive on the Neutrino Generators!
: R-Roger…!

Had you dropped Ayul:

: Rgh…!
: Ayul!
: I-I’m okay… I’m still good to go!
: Come over here, then! Give me synchro-overdrive on the Neutrino Generators!
: R-Roger…!

Ayul tags in with Jin’s team.

: Neutrino Generators, emergency acceleration!
: Synchronization coefficient 97, 98… Pressure set, safety lock released!

: What… That light is…!
: It’s just like Aura Power’s…!
: I don’t think so, Jin! This ends now!

If the Orphes is still separate:

: Saya, we’re combining!
: Roger!

: Haaaaaaaaaaah!
: Here I come, Jin!

: Haah, haah…
: That’s far enough, Sawatari! I don’t know what nonsense Ishigami filled your head with, but surrender now and—
: Heh… Heheheh, you’re too late, grandpa!
: Wh-What…?!

Linebarrel OST – The Other Linebarrel

: Gwaah!
: Aah! C-Captain Sanada!

Beep.

: What is it, Sanada?! Did something happen?!
: Urgh… Th-That blasted Machina… It’s already accepted Sawatari as its Factor!
: What…?!
: Hmph, and I might as well kill you since I’m in the area, grandpa.
: …?!
: S-Sawatari, stop… SAWATARIII!!

: Rrgh…!
: Haah, haah…
: Shou, was that light just now…?
: …
: (If I’m right and their units are running Aura Battler tech, then…)
: (Shot, did you…?)
: H-Hrrgh…!
: Cpt. Spencer…?!
: Gch… Gwaaaaaaaaaaaargh!
: A-Aah…! This is… It’s my fault…! I just can’t control the engine properly…!
: Jin…!
: Kch… I-I’ll…!

: The Katou Organization…?!
: Y-You idiot…! Why did you come back?!
: …

: The Shangri-La’s…?!
: Sanada, do you copy?! Please answer…! Sanada!

Beep.

: Hahahah…
: Sawatari… You did not!

: Ishigami… I did good on my mission!
: The Lostbarrel’s all mine!
: L-Lostbarrel…?!
: Then, that’s…
: The final Machina…?!

RUUUUMBLE!

: Is that…?!
: A De-Fold?! No, I’m reading a far bigger space-time distortion…!

: Wh-What is going on?!
: …
: At the moment all existing Machinas have a Factor…
: The True Override will occur…
: Override…?!
: That’s like the Linebarrel’s chain teleport ability, then…
: No… The Override is a warp through time and space…
: And at the other side of the spatial anomaly… is the moon.
: Better put, it’s the world of the Human Machinas!
: W-W-Whaaat?!
: Then, what Ishigami was after…!
: Was to link the world of the Human Machinas to Earth…?!
: …
: It’s over… Everything is over…
: Not at all! This is where it begins, Cmdr. Katou… A battle for mankind to, once again, walk with its own two feet!

: I am the captain of the Katou Organization’s 1st Unit… Kunio Ishigami!

: What…?!

: Space-time anomaly detected within the moon! We’ve a lock on the source!
(TV): This is the ZAFT Lunar Fleet! Relay Colonies Fauré and subsequent have begun to reposition! 30 seconds until it’s complete!
: It’s time…
: …
: Does your heart ache at the thought of firing that hateful weapon yourself, Chairwoman?
: I…
: REQUIEM, the gigantic tactical beam cannon built by the Earth Alliance during their war with the PLANTs…
: Just a single shot of it took the lives of millions of Coordinators…
: …
: Lady Aila, is your mind showing you anything right now?
: …

Tzeeeeep.

: Fragments of hope reflected in their eyes… will transcend time… and depict our bonds into the future… (Proud lyrics.)
: Yes… This shot will embody both our hope that mankind shall yet earn its future…!
: As well as our requiem for their false god!
: …
: If this is the fate we are meant to choose…
: Then, let us play this accursed requiem! And may it bear joyful undertones!
(TV): Repositioning complete! Angle of fire is set!
: Here it is, Ishigami… We are now even!
: REQUIEM, fire!

Flash! And distant rumble!

: We’re reading a REQUIEM blast! It struck the moon!
: “REQUIEM”?!
: (Lacus… You’re also taking a stand against fate in the name of mankind’s future…!)
: Wh-What happened…?! They fired at the moon…?!
: It can’t be…!
: Yes, this is what I was after from day one.
: As you yourself said, we simply could not reach the Human Machina’s hideaway inside the moon.
: So, I figured our only option was to have them unlock the door for us.
: You used the warp field from their Override against them?!
: Yup; all we needed was a way to determine the location of their base. Once we had that, humanity was more than well-equipped to blast a hole right into moon…!
: Oh, boy, I’m so glad that worked! They’re pretty much defenseless now!
: …
: Then, you had never capitulated to the Machina…?!
: I did tell you way back when to “sit back and wait for me,” didn’t I?
: Ishigami… you—!
: Alright, we better save the rest of this chat for later.
: The Human Machinas aren’t so weak that a single REQUIEM shot would do them in, see…
: …?! They’re coming…!

: Wh-What the hell…?!
: …
: Those’re the Human Machinas?!
: T-They’re all ginormous babies!
: aaaaa…

All of Jin’s troops get blasted. Were they alive, Colbie and Knack would get killed here.

: Uurgh! H-How’re they so strong…?!
: W-We’re supposed to fight against such monstrosities?!
: Fight?! Giant or not, they’re just babies!

: Do not hesitate!
: You are allowing their appearance to bewilder you! That is precisely what they want!
: Reznor?! Jack?!
: Ishigami’s told us everything. Our enemies are one and the same!
: The same…?!

Beep.

: Masaki…
: I’m really sorry for leaving you alone all this time. No excuse could ever make up for it.
: Mr. Ishigami…
: And I suppose I should also apologize in advance, but I’m going to have to take back the position I gave you.
: The position you gave me…?

SRW UX - Proud

: That’s…!

: To battle…!

And I’m ending this part here because there’s still plenty to do.
We did miss one convo by going for Jin:

: Our lives might’ve been built with the same purpose in mind, Ayul, but…
: But now we have to fight! The future you two envision is completely different from ours!
: Then, I won’t think twice about this… The Major and the Ensign both put their trust in my life, and, together, we’ll earn our future!

NotoriousFAP · July 29, 2018, 2:48am

Ah, Lostbarrel. Such a painfully lame mech with a cool design.
Can’t really be upset that it’s just a momentary map sprite, especially considering the only thing it ever did was kill a guy off-screen and run off by the time of UX’s release.

Mattman324 · July 29, 2018, 5:13am

Man, you know shit’s off the rails when Shot Weapon - fucking SHOT WEAPON, the guy who nuked two worlds because he could and wanted to conquer the world through sheer butthurt - is going “maybe this is a bad idea”.

And here’s where Ishigami and Juda’s plan finally comes together. Everything - EVERYTHING - he did up to this point, was to set up for this exact moment. If not for Deus Ex Machina doing something completely unexpected his plan would have been a complete and utter success… unfortunately, things didn’t quite go to plan, but I’ll go over the timeskip after next stage.

Also, though I’ve mentioned why the Machina pilots have their eye colors at this point, let it officially be said: Sawatari’s are Red, Ishigami’s are Yellow.

So, fun facts: Jouji Nakata really wanted to voice some of the stuff from this part, because it’s pretty much inarguably Ishigami’s finest moment and way better than anything from the anime, and he obviously didn’t get a chance to do it before now.

But here we go - we’re at the top of the hill, and it’s all tumbling down. Grab your popcorn.

RYNO_Ross · July 29, 2018, 10:29pm

I can only hope that the image of the Machina-Humans one day disappears from my mind. Sweet lord, those are terrifying.

Brunom1 · July 30, 2018, 6:09pm

Click to see the mission!

SRW UX - Proud

: That’s…!
: I am the captain of the Katou Organization’s 1st Unit… Kunio Ishigami!
: To battle…!

: Wh-What’s the meaning of this?!
: He… He just introduced himself as a captain of the Katou Organization, didn’t he?
: Don’t tell me the president’s just turned on us?!
: No, he didn’t!
: But the Katou Organization is the enemy…!
: What’re you on about?!
: Look at that up ahead and tell me those aren’t the real enemy we should be fighting!
: …?!
: The real enemy…!
: Toooh!

: What about you, Katou?! What’re you gonna do?!
: Are you still gonna keep fighting us?!

Katou’s unit faces left!

: …
: To all units of the Katou Organization! We…
: We are going to help the UX!

All Katou units face left!

: H-He…!
: He’s teaming up with us…!
: I was waiting for that answer, Hisataka Katou! Things are looking up already!
: Jack, would you form up with me?
: Hm… Aye!
: Reznor, board the Shangri-La! Provide us with airborne support!
: Yes, sir!

: (Psh, what a pain this whole thing’s become.)
: (But I got the final Machina. Better blow this joint for now and take a stab at ‘em later!)

: Sawatari…?!
: Forget about him! Our priority now is the Human Machinas!
: …
: Back off, Jin! This is hardly the time for us to keep fighting!
: Hmph, do you take me to be that stupid?
: Even I can tell that they’re the real threat here!

Jin and Ayul turn into allied units.

: Ayul, ignore the UX troops! Our target’s the Human Machinas!
: Yes, sir!
: Jin…!
: Everyone, there is only one thing we must do at the moment!
: Yeah, and we all know what that is!
: We have to bash the Human Machinas into the ground!
: All troops, FORWARD!

Arnie and Saya aren’t essential anymore, but you can’t lose Ishigami or Katou now.

Judah (Kunio Ishigami)
Pilot Skills:
Factor – D-S.O.I.L. baseline is 60
Prevail L8
Support Attack L2
Support Defense L2
Predict
All Attack
Command L2
Spirit Commands:
Sense
Mercy
Exhaust/Daunt
Justice
Soul
Mech Features:
Sword
10% HP Regen
Squad Bonus: Exp +10%, Accuracy +5 (Exp +30%, Accuracy +30, 35% Double Image, Melee weapons attack +100)
Ishigami’s voice actor: Joji Nakata

Ishigami’s pretty dang good. Judah only knows how to attack with its sword, but it has decent range and hits hard – its strongest attack is only 100 points weaker than the Vardant’s new finisher, but costs 30 EN instead of 50 and has longer reach. More importantly, Judah has a frickin’ Pattern A on its weapon upgrades, meaning it’ll eventually be STRONGER than the Vardant and it’ll take a lot less money to get to that point!
It costs a measly 190k to max out Judah’s weapons from 0 to 10, whereas the Vardant (who’s a Pattern C), takes 410k! And Judah already comes 50% upgraded, so it’s even less!
And Ishigami himself is no slouch, having stats pretty much on the same level as Moritsugu (just, like, 1-2 points less), meaning he’s just shy of being the best Linebarrel pilot. All in all, Ishigami is a great short-to-medium range character.

Katou’s Tsukuyomi is a Pattern B bot itself, so it’s still pretty cheap to upgrade, but he won’t quiiite overtake the Vardant (unless you’re in Special Mode, with 15 bars of upgrades to close the power gap enough that Katou’s bonus can cover the difference). Still, he and Ishigami are pretty much tailor-made to be each other’s squadmates, so there you go.

As for Masaki, Jack and Katou, we already know what they have, so here’s just what their squad bonuses are:

Masaki: Armor +100, Ranged/Melee Attack Power +100, depending on whether he’s using the Glain-Neidr or the Naked (Armor +200, Ranged/Melee +300, S in Sky, EN +75)
Jack: Melee +100, Crit +10 (Melee +300, Crit +30, S on land (Akurasu says Sky, but that’s a typo), HP +500)
Katou: Money +10%, Mobility +5 (Money +30%, Mobility +30, 1500 Barrier, Melee +100)

The Human Machinas are pretty beefy for mooks, packing not only 30% HP and EN regen and nearly 50k HP, but a beam shower that’s both a very long range attack (1-8) and a 1-6 MAPW that strikes all around them (mind you, as BEAM weapons, they can’t really do anything against the Glain-Neidr).
They’re L size, too, which means a lot of our units’ll take added damage if you’re not bypassing the size difference. Mind you, that size means their accuracy takes a hit and their stats, while good, aren’t too stellar. Also, despite the HP pool, they are not very good on defenses.
Focus fire them one at a time to prevent the superlative regen from undoing a lot of your work and keep defensive spirits up just in case, especially if they’ve the morale to MAPW and you can’t Daunt them. Be very careful with your ships, because that’s a lot of range and firepower that can take you unawares and sink one of them.

SRW UX - You Are Similar to Me

: They were on the receiving end of a REQUIEM blast and that did nothing to stop their invasion…!
: But we’ll still fight them! We’ll confront our fate just as Lacus and the others did!
: Yeah…! That is what our battles are for…!

SRW UX - LEGEND OF KAISER

: Heh, these things sure picked the right look. They’re just about ready to break everything in sight with their tantrum.
: Then, get over here, kiddies! Uncle Kaido and Uncle Magami’ll play with y’all a bit, and then it’ll be nappy time!

: Mankind’ll never truly be saved until the Human Machinas are destroyed…
: Meaning there’s only one thing for us to do! Let’s get to work, Judah…!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8nbkd4mwPw
And here’s Judah’s best weapon, plus its swanky DK.

: Their appearance as infants could well be said to symbolize power devoid of any and all restraint…
: This rampage must be stopped! Muster your courage and sever any compassion their form invokes within you!
: Ye Humans descending from the distant skies, the tip of our blades shall demark the end of your offensive!

Dynasty Warriors 9 - Theme of Lu Bu -DW Epic Mix

: Jeez, what a roller coaster this is… I haven’t even had time to catch my breath. I didn’t think things would get this crazy.
: Indeed… However, our task now comes down to one thing and one thing only!
: And that is to make them imagine their deaths at the hands of the Katou Organization…!

: You’re really outdone yourself, Ishigami… I suppose my imagination was also lacking.
: …
: My days of fleeing from your shadow end now… Human Machinas!

When you kill two of the Human Machinas, the plot kicks in.

: Oh, what’s the matter? You’re not enjoying us working together for the first time in ages?
: …
: Ishigami, tell me the truth about your plan. Why did you need to keep me in the dark for so long?
: Ah, it’s about that.
: Well, as we first suspected, Judah is a traitor Human Machina. It went against the plan cooked by its brethren on the moon.
: …?!
: On that day… When I first entered its cockpit, a massive amount of information on everything poured into my head.
: But Judah determined that I shouldn’t tell you. Doing so would’ve greatly increased the odds of our plan ending in failure… making it impossible to save mankind.
: And that’s why you decided to keep everything a secret from me?!
: Eeh, I guess I should just come out and say it now…
: But your way of doing things is wrong, Cmdr.
: What…?!
: Once you figured it was impossible to attack the Human Machinas directly, you chose to hide the Lostbarrel and keep their Override from ever taking place.
: Then, you used the Advancers to manipulate the world, setting the Katou Organization as an ever-present symbol of death dominating the people.
: And you didn’t care how many lives you’d have to sacrifice to accomplish that…
: That’s right… Because, in doing so, I’d save mankind from going down the path of ruin…
: But is that what Amagatsu Kizaki really wanted?
: …?!
: What my father really wanted…?
: Mr. Amagatsu told you back then: what he wants is for us to ‘destroy the future penned by the Machinas’!
: The future penned by them…
: Another space-time anomaly’s been detected nearby! Another warp field is forming!
: Psh, they’re still coming!

: Aah…! Th-There’re so many of them!
: aaaaaa…!

: Aaaieeeeee!
: Kch… They’re kicking our asses!
: How are we supposed to fight against this…?!

Tzeeeeeeep.

: Do not falter!
: Th-This voice… It can’t be!

SRW UX - My Fate

: Th-That’s…!
: The Oukaou… Sakomizu?!
: The voice of Poseidon has given me the strength to live… and showed me the fate I’m to conquer!
: My mind is now as clear as the morning sun!
: Father…!
: Warriors who would confront the tides of fate! Open your ears and listen!

Tzeeeeeeep.

: Urk… Th-That’s…!
: Is… Is Sakomizu summoning the Yùxǐ?!
: Nay… This is!

: Do you hear the will of the land…?!
: L-Lu Bu and Diaochan…?!
: They… They still live?!
: While the fires of battle rage, the Shura know not death!
: Hmph, I understand. ‘The blade of the heavens shall emerge within the shadows… and as that blade is imbued with golden light, it shall turn into a heavenly fang to rend darkness asunder’!
: S-Such is a passage in the G-Records…!
: Then… General Lu Bu, a Shura, a being of shadows, has touched the light and been reborn as a blade of the heavens?!
: It is time! Gather at the beginning!
: Th-Those words…!
: (They have also crossed space and time…!)
: Haaaaaaaah!

: Young Suzuki, can you keep up?!
: Absolutely… I am a Holy Warrior!

We’ll see this attack properly in a jiffy because the DK deserves it.

: Your end comes! Behold— MY SOOOOUUUUL!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_hY2wwV8yk
Lu Bu has a ton of DKs in his attacks, so here’s the first one.
“The heavens themselves bow before me!”

: J-Jesus… They took out a Human Machina without even breaking a sweat!
: Ha-Hahah… First the Katou Organization, now King Sakomizu and even Lu Bu and Diaochan!
: All these old pains-in-the-ass are taking the day to start helping us out. Well, I’ll be damned!
: Hear me, Ultimate Cross! If your will to fight remains strong, then follow us into battle!
: The hammerblow of we, the hellish Shura, shall carve open your path!
: Folks, I don’t think we’ve anything to worry about anymore! Throw everything you have at them!
: Aye, aye!
: Let’s go wild!

Aahahaha, success! That’s another two secrets down, and two great units added to our roster (plus Diaochan, who’s just okay). Getting a secret, mind you, brings in another 4 extra Human Machinas to fight… but I consider that to just be more cash for us, so it’s good.

Sakomizu’s squad bonus is HP +500, Crit +10 (HP +1500, Crit +30, Range +2, Armor +100); spirit commands are Sense, Drive, Fury/Direct Hit, Ideals, Soul.
He remains a big huge powerhouse and about the best Holy Warrior we have: the Oukaou still has ridiculous range for a melee unit, and, by itself, hits just as hard as the Bilbine… but its combo attack with the Nanajin is stronger than anything the classic Aura Battlers have (plus, the Oukaou regens 20% EN, takes reduced damage at range, all that good stuff!).
Better yet, Sakomizu knows Soul and his stats are all great, so that’s a lot of firepower on a very worthwhile secret.

But that’s not who we’re really interested in, is it?

Lu Bu Tallgeese
Pilot Skills:
Soul of the Shura (修羅の魂) – casts Soul for free when HP goes under 50% (once per mission).
Prevail L9
Support Attack L2
Break Morale Limit
Counter
Predict
All Attack L2
Spirit Commands:
Soul - IT’S HIS FIRST SPIRIT COMMAND! He knew it at level 1!
Invincible
Strike
Fury/Direct Hit
Drive
Mech Features:
Sword
20% HP and EN Regen
Lu Bu’s Squad Bonus: Melee +100, Crit +10 (Melee +300, Crit +30, Armor +150, Mobility +5)

Diaochan’s spirit commands: Alert, Tailwind, Attune, Confuse, Love
Diaochan’s Squad Bonus: Exp +10%, EN +50 (Exp + 30%, EN +150, 1500 Barrier, Accuracy +5)

You don’t need me to tell you that Lu Bu is great and should have a spot on any team if he’s available. One of the hardest-hitting units in the game, he packs good range and that 20% EN regen means you can be a lot more liberal with him than you can with the other guys. Add in EN Save and, potentially, Infight, and you’ve a powerhouse.
Not much in the way of defenses, but his stats are still in the stratosphere which, when paired with an S rank, means nothing short of a boss should have good numbers against him (and it probably won’t kill, but, rather, send him into Prevail land and maybe trigger SOOOOUUUUL).
And he might just have something else in store for us as well…

As for Diaochan, she’s still the same as ever: good and reliable, with her main draw being the big debuff her Funnels apply… but with how prevalent All-Cancellers are, that’s not too significant. Still, her Squad Bonus is pretty great and she DOES come with 50% upgrades, so you could consider her for a squaddie to snipers like Fei-Yen. An extra Tailwind caster is never a bad thing, either.

Now, let’s go to town!

SRW UX - The Will of Man Awakens

: Even if you needed things to happen in just the right way, that doesn’t justify keeping everything to yourself…!
: You’re gonna have a lot to answer to when we beat the Human Machinas, Ishigami!

: Now we see what Mr. Ishigami was truly after… It was all for this moment…!
: These emissaries from the moon, another type of Humans born from our future…
: You’re not welcome in our planet, Human Machinas! Mankind does not need your surveillance!

Dynasty Warriors 9 - Theme of Lu Bu -DW Epic Mix

: Humans and Inhumans… All different possibilities beckoned by the heavens…
: Which are headed towards oblivion? I have no qualms with answering that question through deadly combat! Muster your life and showcase the essence of your very existence to me!

SRW UX - My Fate

: This phantom of the past was satisfied with entrusting all to the new generation…
: However, if I must wield my strength once more to assure that these children have a chance to create a better future, then I shall not hesitate to take up arms!

–

: Aesap…! I don’t see any Aura – any of the emotions of life – in them!
: How come? Didn’t all these Machinas become Human when they found the fear of death?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gPz_M_4pNY
Captions are available because it’s so pretty.

: The Machinas started fighting each other in order to gain imagination…! Were they also just trying to find a way to be, to exist…?!

Final Mission ~ Quantum Burst 1

: These are our enemies, right…?
: Yes, the Human Machinas that’d destroy mankind… We must work with the Katous and put a stop to them!
: If it’ll help save everyone… If it’ll help save mankind, then fine. I’ll do whatever’s necessary!

: Human Machinas… If your surveillance’ll bring nothing but chaos to our world, then there’s only one path for me to take!
: It’s up to the Celestial Being to destroy you and your surveillance!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h63iKzLCNM
It just hit me that I never shown off Setsuna’s absolute best attack since it chugs so much EN. Here it is, plus the DK.

SRW UX - Believe ver. HD

: Every now and then I’d get the feeling that I was being watched. That was you, wasn’t it?
: Which means… You Human Machinas are a bunch of creeps!

SRW UX - JOEY AND HEROMAN

: …
: This guise of a child… In a way, I suppose ‘tis representative of the end of life and the start of new ones. Do you find it difficult to face these, Kurou?
: No, none of this changes the fact that they’re enemies…! Time to put these babies to sleep the hard way!

: Thank God Mr. Ishigami didn’t turn out to be a bad guy…
: Come on, Heroman! He’s been fighting this battle all along, and now we’re bringing it to a close!
: Oooooo!

SRW UX - Tobikage Appears!

: …
: Um, Shou…! That’s a baby! A huuuuge baby!
: Don’t let their looks get to you, Shou Zama… These are monsters coming to destroy the entire world!

SRW UX - Lion

: I’ve no idea what you’ve been observing us for…
: But I’m shutting you down if you’re coming to make a mess out of this world!

: Ishigami’s been working to take out these Human Machinas all along, huh…?
: Well, that’s a load off my back. Now let’s go and drive these monsters off our planet!

Lisa Komine – Follow Your Heart

: These are our enemies… The enemies of all mankind!
: Come on, Linebarrel! We’re going to fulfill Mr. Amagatsu’s wish!

: W-We did it…!
: We beat the enemy!
: We’ve saved mankind…!
: …
: Ishigami, you said my way of doing things was wrong?
: That was why you…
: Do you want to know the first thing Judah told me? It was that I could never save mankind…
: However, what I could do was save the person capable of doing so.
: That person, the one who can save mankind, is you, Cmdr. Katou.
: …?!
: That’s why I never took steps to bring down your Organization.
: But by becoming your enemy, I could keep your attention set on me, which would let me guide you in the right direction.
: Y-You… were guiding me?
: Commander… I really do want to save mankind.
: And that includes you, too. You’re one of the people I want to save the most.
: …
: Then, your plan was…
: It was to save me from myself…?
: Yes.
: I-Ishigami…
: …
: You do not want to fight, but there are those you cannot protect without doing so…
: Our capacity to both hurt and support one another all comes from that desire to protect something…
: That’s why we keep on fighting, despite how difficult it is…
: (Humans bear so much sorrow, but they still carry on…)
: Then, all this time, I…
: We’ve both dirtied our hands plenty to get to this point.
: But I’m afraid we’ll need to save the soul-searching for later. It looks like things are taking a turn for the worse…
: What…?!

: T-The warp field’s open again…!
: Damn it, is there no end to this?!
: …
: I see… This is why I could never save mankind, isn’t it?

Ishigami moves towards the portal.

: Mr. Ishigami…?!
: Relax. I’ll have their warp field broken down in a jiffy!
: You’re going to destroy it?!
: Is that even possible?!
: I’ll deploy Judah’s own warp field at full power and crash into theirs! That should be more than enough…!
: You don’t mean…!
: You’re going to trigger a particle annihilation between your fields?!
: A-Annihilation?!
: Mr. Ishigami, your big plan is to follow on Maj. Richard’s footsteps?!
: Sorry, Ensign Berge…
: But it’s looking like my death is another necessary event for mankind to be saved…
: …?!
: This is the answer Judah and I found among countless possibilities.
: We’re to lay down our lives as foundation for a new future…
: Hahahah, a very fitting climax for an old Champion of Justice, no?
: M-Mr. Ishigami…!
: You…!

: Deploying field! Maximum output!
: DON’T DO IT!!
: …?!

: What’s wrong with you?! Why do you always act like you’re the one who has the right answers?!
: But I’m here to say that you’re wrong! If you really want to build any future, then you need to live!
: Live, fight, and take hold of your destiny!
: Y-You…!
: Hope for the future is a power given to everything. It’s what allows us to keep living, so don’t stop now…!

: It’s only by living that we can bring about the world of our dreams!
: Don’t walk away from it! Life itself is the real battle! (Cagalli line from SEED)
: Kira! Athrun…!

All three Gundams go after the portal!

: What are you doing?!
: We’ll unleash energy on par with a particle annihilation and break down the portal!
: Wh-What…?!
: Ishigami, if you’re another prisoner to fate…
: Then we’ll break those chains here and now!

: I-It’s still not enough…!
: We need more if we’re going to cancel out the energy of the warp field…!
: Then, they can have ours as well…!

Everyone gets around the portal!

: Haaaaaaah! Show me what you got, Tobikage!
: Demonbane, full power!
: This portal ain’t got nothing on the Kaiser!

Power uuuuuup!

: Neutrino Generator, emergency acceleration! Rgh… A-Aargh!
: Cpt. Spencer?!
: Forget about me! Rrgh… Raaaaaaaargh!

: Aaaieeeee!
: Stand down! There’s no reason for you people to also get hurt! This is my fate—
: The future has already been changed!
: …?!
: We told you before: reality is progressing in ways far beyond what Judah predicted.
: So, we know our wills are strong enough to make our own future… our own fate!
: Y-You…!

: Tsk… We’ve got more Human Machinas…!
: Liu Bei! Cao Cao! Sun Quan!
: The time has come to manifest the full power of legend!

: Aye!
: Quèshùn! Grant me strength!

: Ye soul of Hǔxiǎo dwelling within the Koteito… Bless me with your power!

: Ye light of Lóngdì… Entrust your power to me!

: Haaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Om-hnWF6DSg
Captions are available for the absolute strongest attack in the game.

: They beckoned all four Celestial Armors at once…?!
: Th-This… This is the work of the will of man, of their unfaltering resolve?!
: …
: With me, Ishigami!
: C-Commander…!
: While our wishes were the same, our eyes were set upon different futures…
: However… I know our eyes are now set upon the same world!
: The same world…!
: And will not turn from it ever again!
: Come on! We’ll live for the present, not for the future!
: …
: Yes, sir!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iSF1Erz8FU
And here’s the DK for Katou’s best attack.
Katou supporting Ishigami: “Hah… There’s no time for reminiscing, Ishigami!”

: Now! Send all your energy into the warp field!

BOOOOOOOOOM!

: …
: Wh-What happened…?!
: The warp field is gone…! We’re not reading the Human Machinas anymore!
: W-We did it…!
: We won! We pushed back the Human Machinas…!
: (The future has changed, hm…?)
: (Judah… I guess not even you could see this far…)
: …

: Where’re you going, Jin?!
: …
: Unfortunately, Arnie, our eyes are set upon different worlds…
: You’re still being like that?!
: You were standing right there! I know you realize who we’re really supposed to be fighting…!
: A-Aargh…!
: Jin…?!
: Stay away!
: …?!
: I-I told you before… There’s no turning back the hands of time…
: Our fates… have taken different turns…
: Cpt. Spencer…
: …
: Goodbye, Arnie…

: …
: Jin, you…

: Welcome to the Army of Mankind…
: …
: Why’d you call me here…?
: Why, I just thought to give you a new role to play.
: A new role…?
: Hah. What are ya, a casting director for the world? Where’s your couch?
: I don’t have one. And you’re free to interpret what I say however you’d like.
: That said, you do not want to exit stage having played nothing but a fool, yes?
: …
: Go to this location, if you would.
: Hm? This is the old Russian…
: Are you telling me to go into hiding?!
: Just until the right moment…
: The right moment…?
: Yes, you’ll take to the stage right after everything is over…
: Or, better yet, after everything has begun.
: …
: Who the hell are you…?
: Don’t worry about me. Just head underground and save your strength.
: You’ll need it for when the curtain rises on the new stage…
: …

: My beloved friends… Goodbye.

: And I think everyone’s here.
: What’s this about?
: You can probably guess, but it’s about our showdown with the Human Machinas.
: This really isn’t over yet, huh…?
: We succeeded in destroying their warp field, but that is simply a temporary setback for them.
: There are still a lot of them within the moon…
: As well as the Human Machina’s ‘master’, the cause of this entire conundrum.
: The Human Machina’s master…
: And mankind will not truly be saved until we defeat him.
: Mind, we speak of a being that has been observing mankind since time immemorial. Thus, we speak of something quite akin to God. Their powers are wholly unknown to us.
: Y-You’re going to fight God…?!
: Um, can we even win against a guy like that?!
: We have a plan. But, first, we’ve spoken to Cmdr. Katou and have something to tell you…
: …
: The Katou Organization is joining the UX – effective immediately.
: C-Come again?!
: What… Wasn’t our alliance with them just a temporary thing?!
: He’s after the same thing as Ishigami and the rest of our team. There’s no reason to break this alliance now that we know that.
: But…!
: You’re free to complain about it, but it won’t change the situation.
: …
: We have to focus on the Human Machinas, as they’re not going to wait around for us…
: But the problem is that to beat their boss, we’ll need to break into their lunar stronghold…
: Good news is that the REQUIEM shot opened one huge passage into the moon.
: Bad news is that we can’t get an exact location of their GHQ from the outside.
: Our guess is that there’s a powerful jamming facility inside the moon.
: Then, if we want to take the fight to their leader, we’ll first need to destroy that facility…?
: Exactly. But the passage leading into the moon is very narrow and irregular…
: Thus, we have decided that the destruction of the jamming facility must be carried out as a solo hit-and-run mission.
: A-A solo mission…?!
: You want to send someone, alone, into the Human Machina’s territory?!
: All we need is a few seconds…
: If we can detect their stronghold’s position for just a few seconds, we can get its coordinates.
: And if we have its coordinates…
: We can Fold over to it!
: O-Oh, I get it…!
: We just need to know where their GHQ is located, and then we can Fold our whole team over there…!
: Hmhmm, sounds good. And I reckon that’s our job to tackle, right?
: Our Valkyries are mobile enough that even going into the moon shouldn’t be too much…!
: No, I’m afraid I’m not letting anyone but me take on this mission.
: Y-You’re…!
: …
: E-Eiji… Kiriyama!

Three new tacticians for us! Here’s what they bring to the table:

Sakomizu: Melee weapons’ attack power +10%, Crit rate +30%, Ignore Size Difference
Ishigami: Pilot Debuff Immunity, Melee weapons’ attack power +10%, gain a random Skill Part at the end of the mission
Katou: Chain-Attacks damage +10%, Defense +10%, 10% HP Regen to everyone.

Furthermore, here are the battle convos I didn’t get:

: There were things like these hiding out on the moon…? I didn’t notice anything strange the last time we were up there.
: Well, we didn’t really have time to look around back then…!
: All the more reason why we need to set this right today. Let’s go wild!

–

: Look at the size of these buggers. Maybe we oughta close the distance and start pestering them by their feet?
: Careful. Move in carelessly and they’ll grab you. Long-range attacks are our safest bet…!
: The basics of battle are the same regardless of the enemy. We’ll have them routed in short order if every unit capitalizes on its strong points.

–

: I’m a bit worried that shooting at these is bad karma, but I guess this really isn’t the time to think about that, eh?
: And then some. You can put together a soul cleansing ritual for us later.

Phew, that was a lot to deal with, but there’s still more. If you couldn’t tell, Ishigami surviving was the Linebarrel’s secret, so that’s a big event changed. Sakomizu and Lu Bu arriving also changed stuff a bit, so let’s take it one step at a time.
First and foremost, when you kill two Human Machinas WITHOUT having saved either Sakomizu or Lu Bu and Diaochan. Ishigami and Katou’s convo is the same, Kouichi reminds him what Amagatsu really wanted and then it wraps up like this:

: The future penned by them…
: Yes, what he said…
: …
: Come on, folks! What say you we deal with these Human Machinas lickety-split and go secure ourselves a future?
: Absolutely! Observe the strength of humans and our pride, fiends!
: You heard him, maggots! Get your asses into gear and shove strength and pride down their throats!

And if you saved only one secret, you get the extra four babies and then the backup arrives. If you saved Sakomizu, it goes the same up until he says his mind is clear and then it goes like this:

: Father…!
: Shinjiro Sakomizu…!
: Admiral Katou, sir! I will now fulfill the vow I made before!
: Haaaaaaah!

Morale up!

: Young Suzuki, can you keep up?!
: Absolutely… I am a Holy Warrior!

Combo attack!

: Hah… Not even a Human Machina can withstand the combined might of two Holy Warriors!
: Oh, wow! There’s no way we’re losing this now, Shou!
: Yeah, having even a warrior of Sakomizu’s caliber helping us is a sight for sore eyes!
: Our counterattack begins now, Ultimate Cross! Charge!

And if you’ve only saved Lu Bu and Diaochan, the scene goes the same up until the new Human Machinas start blasting us:

: How are we supposed to fight against this…?!
: Is this all your souls amount to?!
: Th-This voice… It cannot be!

Appear!

: I-It’s…!
: They… They still live?!
: My name is Lu Bu! The warrior chosen by the will of the land…!
: The will of the land…?!
: Warriors who would confront the tides of fate! Open your ears and listen to the will of the land and of the heavens!
: …!

Tzeeeeeeep.

: Urk… Th-That’s…!
: The voice of the Yùxǐ again…?!
: Nay… This is!
: Indeed…!
: Gather at the beginning!
: Th-Those words…!
: (They have also crossed space and time…!)
: Haaaaaaaaaaah! Behold— MY SOOOOUUUUL!

TAMASHIIIIIII!

: H-He took out the Human Machina with a single attack?!
: Hmph, I understand. ‘The blade of the heavens shall emerge within the shadows… and as that blade is imbued with golden light, it shall turn into a heavenly fang to rend darkness asunder’!
: S-Such is a passage in the G-Records…!
: Then… General Lu Bu, a Shura, a being of shadows, has touched the light and been reborn as a blade of the heavens?!
: Ultimate Cross! If your spirit has not fizzled, then do battle beside us!
: The hammerblow of we, the hellish Shura, shall carve open your path!
: Ha, hahah… I can’t believe those pain-in-the-ass Shuras are now on our side!
: We’ll gladly borrow your strength once more, General Lu Bu!
: Troops, CHARGE!!

Now, at the end of the mission, if you didn’t unlock Ishigami, it carries on as you’d expect:

: Deploying field! Maximum output!
: STOOOOP!

: …

: …
: Wh-What happened…?!
: We’ve lost Judah’s signal…
: It and the warp field… have both disappeared…

: N-No…!
: The president… This has gotta be a sick joke!
: Mr. Ishigami…
: …
: ‘An old Champion of Justice’… A-Are you joking?!
: A real Champion of Justice… wouldn’t make people hurt like this!
: Kouichi…
: Rgh… damn it… damn iiit…

: This is why… I can’t stand old people…

Jin leaves the same way, but there’s an added scene back at Judah before we cut to Novel and Sawatari:

: …
: Cmdr. Katou…
: You are Ishigami’s…
: Mr. Ishigami didn’t tell a lot of things…
: So I was a bit unsure if I really should deliver this to you.
: What’s in the case?
: It’s… Mr. Ishigami’s final message.
: …?!
: Alright. I’ll hear it.
: …
: …
(TV): Oh? It’s recording already?
: Umm… Well, I guess it’s been a long time since we’ve had a friendly chat, right, Commander?
: And I am truly sorry for everything I’ve done to you over the years.
: Ishigami…
: Since you’re watching this, you probably already know everything but…
: Regardless, I think the future we know is slowly but surely changing for the better…
: Of course, that’s certainly related to Kouichi becoming the singularity of our possibilities…
: But I think an even bigger reason is all the various overlapping possibilities we’re seeing.
: Overlapping possibilities…?
: I suppose we could chalk it up to the underlying truth of the world…
: That great unseen will tying all our fates together…
: But, regardless, I… Ah?! H-Hey, what gives?! I told you: no one can come in right now!
: …?
: Heh… That’s just like you, Ishigami…
: I’m recording a very, very important video you know!
: …

(Katou): Ishi…gami…

Finally, over by the final scene, it changes a bit if you didn’t save Ishigami:

: Everyone’s here, I think.
: …
: …
: I know no one’s in the mood for this, but we need to keep facing onwards right now.
: Our showdown with the Human Machinas depends on it.

And the rest is the same.

Dragolord09 · July 31, 2018, 6:47pm

I don’t know if this counts as post-timeskip spoilers or not, but what are Lostbarrel’s capabilities and special features? (Besides making a good getaway vehicle for Sawatari)

NotoriousFAP · July 31, 2018, 7:56pm

Two beam sabers, Linebarrel’s Overdrive system, and Sawatari kills Miu and takes Pald and Roc

Mattman324 · July 31, 2018, 7:58pm

So, unless I’m totally wrong here, I think a little of what Ishigami said about Juda wasn’t revealed until after the timeskip. Neat!

Lu Bu knowing Soul at level 1 will never not amuse me. Anyway, silliness aside, all of the units in this stage except arguably Diaochan are very much worth taking to the endgame, and honestly it’s not even that she’s all that bad… just kinda outclassed at this point. I’ve taken her all the way easily enough.

And yeah, the Red Nanajin/Oukaoh combo is fucking beautiful, especially since MY FATE kicks in right as the DK starts rolling. It’s probably my favorite move in the game.

um.

I really do like Ishigami and Juda’s plan, at the end of the day. Didn’t quite work out, but they made the best of a terrible situation, to the point where some of their enemies even admitted it was probably a better plan than what they had. More on that after next update.

But oh man, THE FOUR GODS ARE UNITED. This is how you mulch the endgame. Because of the many multipliers the SD Gundam cast tend to stack, including Soul, and the absolutely fucking absurd base power of the attack, it is pretty much the only comboattack that you can always justify using over any “move + partner’s move” for bosses. It is absurdly, brokenly overpowered, and you absolutely can slap down any boss with it. That attack can 2HKO the final boss without an absurdly large amount of setup, something only one other person can do, and while we’ll get to him - any one of three people can do that for the SD Gundam group and without Zeal use (I think Sun Quan barely misses out, and you don’t want to do that, as the last boss can get tanky at higher Prevail levels).

Also, have probably said it at this point, but Jouji Nakata wanted to voice Ishigami’s farewell line, and UX gave him the chance.

It’s basically Linebarrel -, as it is the prototype of Linebarrel (and not the thing the game calls Linebarrel Prototype, which is just Kizaki Amagatsu going “I AM ANGRY! ANGRY ABOUT MACHINA!”). It has two beam swords, but more in the Gundam sense than the Linebarrel sense, and the Override system, but not the big ranged beam cannon that SRW always dials down the power on and it can’t do some of the absurd things caused by said cannon. Also, the thing in NotoriousFAP’s spoiler, but we’ll Talk about post-timeskip next time, after Linebarrels of Iron officially wraps up in UX.

Brunom1 · July 31, 2018, 8:10pm

It is supposed to be Shou’s portrait there, yes. He’s just talking to himself.

Or are you pointing out something else I’m not seeing?

Brunom1 · August 2, 2018, 11:38pm

Click to see the mission!

And we’re back, after one hell of a mission where we unlocked three of the best secret units in the game. But now I have a problem because I CAN’T HOLD ALL THESE POWERFUL UNITS and the game sure isn’t making it easy for me to deploy everyone I want.
That calls for some readjustments to condense my main team, as the finale only allows for 21 slots (though Arnie and Saya’ll deploy as event units). But that’s still off in the distance; Kouichi, Shou and Kiriyama are deploying as event units today, so here’s how we’re going:
Joe/Setsuna
Aesap/Sakomizu
Liu Bei/Rennie
Kurou/Deceive
Mazinkaiser/Hebi
Alto/Masaki
Lu Bu/Kiki
Ishigami/Katou
Arnie/Saya
Fei-Yen/Lockon
Maya/Akira
Dancouga/Eida
Heroman/Miu
Kazuki/Graham
Cao Cao/Moritsugu
Kira/Kenji
Shinn/Lunamaria
Sun Quan/Domyoji
Jack/Yulianne (just because I still need to show off his DK)
Tactician: Zhuge Liang

Also, keep in mind that this mission is the cut-off point for Kazuki to have 200+ kills if you’re going for the last Fafner secret.

Off we go.

: …
: …
: Reiji, I…
: You don’t have to say anything to me.
: I just need to look at you now to see what a different person you are.
: Whatever life you’ve been leading since that day has obviously changed you…
: Reiji…
: …
: Welcome back, Eiji. As far as I’m concerned, you’ve already earned my trust.
: !
: Thank you, Reiji…
: Thank you… so much…
: But are you sure about doing this? Your mission’ll be extremely dangerous.
: If a man like me can still be of some use, then I’ve no problems with playing sacrificial pawn. I’m ready to do as necessary…
: You’ll be fine.
: I guarantee that you won’t die.
: Reiji…

: …
: Hey, still with the silence? How long ‘til you get tired of that?
: …
: Do you need something…?
: We understand that we’ve fought against one another on several occasions.
: But now we are allies. If there is something bothering you, we are more than willing to help.
: There is nothing bothering me.
: Suppress your emotions and carry out your mission. That is how I live my life.
: …
: Still…
: Yes?
: …
: I confess I’ve grown emotional watching you people fight.

: I shut off my heart because I believed Mr. Ishigami betrayed me. But, then, he sacrificed himself and entrusted the future to us… I suppose he just couldn’t help causing trouble. (You only get these lines if Ishigami’s dead, of course.)

: Thanks to that, after over a decade of suppression, my emotions have found their way back to the surface.
: Masaki…
: And what worries you is that you’’ll be unable to fight in the same way you’ve been doing now that that’s happened, hm?
: I know you believed that being unfeeling on the battlefield gives you great strength, but–
: Embracing those emotions as you fight is what leads to even greater strength, hm? I suppose that’s how your group has always been.
: Heh, very much so…

: …
: King Sakomizu…
: Hm? Is something the matter?
: No… It’s just that…
: You… Come to think of it, you are Americans, right?
: …
: We all know that you’ve hated the US ever since WWII, but we…
: Do not worry. Americans, Japanese… the distinction doesn’t matter to me anymore.
: We are all people who call this planet home… Better put, our lives are the same – all born into the same universe.
: Father…!
: It was you, the UX, who helped me see that.
: I’m very glad to hear you say that, King Sakomizu!

: …
: …
: What is it? Do you, a living mouthpiece of justice, find allying with us Shuras so displeasing?
: Now what’dya mean by that, eh? We are Hell and folks’ve been hanging out with us just fine.
: I doubt anyone here’s gonna bat an eye with a couple of Shuras tagging along.
: Hah… You are Hell?
: There is something I’m a bit curious about, though.
: How did you two come to know about our world’s history and civilization?
: Your history…?
: You mentioned Penglai and the disorder between Yin and Yang. While those are featured in both the G Records and historical manuscripts in our world, we found it a bit odd that you were familiar with them.
: …
: There is a truth that can only be uncovered by those who have reached the heavens.
: You will understand in time, provided the heavens are where your gaze is set.
: …
: (A truth, huh…?)

: KOUICHI HAYASEEEEE!
: Wh-What in blazes?!
: Tell me… Why did you pilfer my rightful glass of milk?!
: G-Glass of milk…?!
: W-Well, this is kind of the break room, right?
: I figured anyone could help themselves to what’s in the fridge…
: But I had claimed it as my own by inscribing my name upon it!
: See here! Look well! What does it say?! It is ‘Jack’, is it not?!
: I-It says Jack…
: Hrrm! This is an outrage! You will pay for this offense with your life!
: Whwhwhaaa?!
: Would you people just quiet down? If you want milk that badly…

: Maybe you’d like to make do with some of mine?
: ?! O-Ooh…!
: Wow…!
: Where, exactly, are you ogling at, you gigantic fool?!

Cast magic missile!

: Waaaaaaaaaaah!

If you saved Lu Bu:

: Hmhmhm… Ye shameless wench. Do you seek the proof of life so?
: Huh? Wh-What’re you…?
: In that case, I shall grant it to you!

THUNDER!

: Behold— MY SOOOOUUUUL!
: Nooooooooo!
: F-Fengxian, please! Do not provoke needless misunderstandings with the dwellers of this world!
: Wh-What misunderstandings…?
: I don’t even know what I just saw…
: Hmhmm… That’s a Shura for you!
: It’s quite the fearsome man that’s joined us…

If you didn’t save him:

: Oh? Would you care to take a closer look at them, honey?
: M-Me…?!
: MS. YULIANNE!
: Go get ‘er, Emi!

: Jeez… doesn’t even look like our final battle with the Human Machina’s right around the corner…
: …
: This is too weird…
: What’s weird?
: Look at them. They’re all trying to strike up conversation, trying to be all friendly to people who were their enemies not too long ago…
: I guess… everyone’s just trying their best to be positive…
: I… I don’t see anything positive here. It’s just a sham…

She leaves.

: Kujo…

Location: Army of Mankind Base – Infirmary

SRW UX - Prologue

: Hm… Wh-Where—?!
: You’re awake… Thank goodness, Captain.
: I… I blacked out inside the cockpit, didn’t I…?
: I’m so, so sorry. If I could just…
: If I could control the Accelerated Particle Engines flawlessly like Saya, this would never have happened…
: You’ve done nothing to apologize for.
: This is the fate I wanted – the fate I chose of my own free will, remember?
: But…
: …
: Do you know the words ‘memento mori’?
: Memento mori?
: A literal translation would be something like ‘remember that you will die’.
: That’s…!
: Yeah. It’s pretty much what the Katou Organization said to all of humanity.
: I didn’t have the time to think about what Katou truly meant back then…
: But now I understand. It’s by imagining our deaths that we, humans, first come to understand life.
: Death lets us understand life…?

Door opens.

: The looming death in your fate has made you reflect on your own mortality, hm?
: Prof. Shot…
: Death, fate… God…
: It’s when we’re faced with an unopposable, absolute force that we, humans, understand how weak we truly are.
: However, that’s also what makes us strong. That will to face that obstacle, that strength to try and overcome it…
: I believe it’s when those finally manifest that our lives become something to be proud of.
: Proud lives…
: …
: (The core of Tatsumiya did everything in her power to show Arnie and his team what life meant…)
: (In that case, what I have to do for Ayul is…)

Final Mission ~ Quantum Burst 1

: We’ll be arriving at the rendezvous point shortly.
: The Federation Army’s Space Fleet is already orbiting the moon on standby.
: Oh, the Feds’ll be helping us?
: I had The Advancers rally their troops to reinforce our front against the Human Machinas.
: Aah, yeah…! Now we’re all on the same side.
: So, I guess those Advancers’ll start helping us too.
: Despite the issues they caused in the past, it is certainly reassuring to have such a lot on our side.
: (The Advancers… the clones of my father…)
: …
: Once we’ve arrived at the moon, Kiriyama will depart with his Pretender to carry out his solo mission.
: Are you clear on what to do?
: Yes: break into the Human Machinas’s stronghold, find the jamming facility and destroy it.
: I swear I’ll see it through, even if it costs me my life.
: Your comms’ll go down once you’re behind enemy lines. We’ll be unable to give you any instructions.
: If you believe it impossible to carry out your mission, then you are to retreat immediately, understood?
: Very well…
: Are you really going to do this…? You’re actually going kick off this ridiculous operation and oppose God?
: Hmph, ‘oppose God’? Perhaps we are…
: A false God that has observed mankind since ancient times…
: Yes, this is an act of defiance against that God. It’s a battle to free ourselves from its dominion, and we stake our dignity as humans on it!
: But…
: Mr. Ishigami, your Machina can see the future, right?
: Can you tell us if this operation’s going to work or not?
: The operation will fail.
: Huh…?!
: … Would you just give up if I said that?
: Is that a joke? We ain’t a buncha quitters!
: If you said that, it’d only make me even more amped up.
: Heh, that’s exactly what I figured you’d say.
: Whatever future Judah and I saw is already meaningless.
: No one can say for sure what awaits us down this path…
: Not even God.
: …

Beep.

: Guys, we’ve just received an urgent transmission from the Federation Fleet!
: They’re saying a massive number of Human Machinas have come out from the Lunar Pit!
: Tsk… They’re already getting to work!
: The Ptolemy and the Macross Quarter are headed for the Human Machinas!
: While they’re busy, you guys get ready to carry out the op!
: Understood! Sir Kiriyama, board the Pretender and prepare to depart when we give the word!
: Yes, ma’am!

Location: Lunar Orbit

: Gyaaaaaaaaaargh!

Boom!

#2: C-Captain! We’ve lost another three units!
#3: Kch… These are the Human Machinas?! The UX managed to beat these monsters…?!
: …

Prepare to fire!

#3: U-Uwaaaaaaaaah!

: Trans-AM… RAISEEEEER!!

Boooom!

#2: I-It’s… the UX! The UX are here!
: Skull Leader to all units! Cover the Fed troops and push back the Human Machinas!
: A mob of enemies are moving in! Engaging!

Swooosh!

: Okey-dokey… Time to roll up our sleeves, Haros!
: Roger! Roger!
: Deploying Rifle Bits! Deploying Rifle Bits!
: Random firing!

Blast, blast, blast! Booom!

: We’ll show these damned Human Machinas how the Zentradi do battle!
: Nene, Lalamia! Pixie Formation!
: Esekes (Roger)! Dispersing!
: We’re not going down here! We will come back alive!

Swoooosh! Booom!

: …?!
: Now, sis!
: Eat this and die!

: …
: The Lunar Pit… Whatever could be waiting in there…?

Beep.

: We’ve broken through the enemy’s defensive perimeter! It won’t last for long, but we’ve secured your way in!
: Kiriyama, are you ready to go?!
: Yeah. I’m all set!
: Catapult standing by for deployment! Igniting boosters!
: Mr. Kiriyama… Please be careful!
: 3, 2, 1… Commence the operation!
: Pretender, launching!

Mission 46 – A Beautiful Dystopia

: Kch…Rrrgh!
: Phew… I’ve made it…
: ?!
: Wh-What is going on here…?!
: This is supposed to be inside the moon, but…

: That looks just like Tokyo Tower!
: Why is there a broken-down Tokyo in here…?
: Plus… every part of this city is slightly different to the Tokyo back on Earth…

: Gch…?!

: It’s those new Arma models…?!
: …
: No, these have been equipped with AIs… They’re proper Machinas!
: Radar is still out, so I’ll have to eyeball this.
: As for the jamming facility…

: The Tokyo Tower was built to transmit radio waves, and even the location’s still the same. That’s got to be the target!
: Hold on, people. I swear I’ll pry open your way in here!

First step is to get Kiriyama over to the tower, and you obviously lose if he gets dropped. Downing all the Machinas’ll also make him auto-move there, if you care to squeeze out some extra cash from this mission (I don’t really need to).

As for Kiriyama, his spirit commands are Strike, Accelerate, Focus, Assail and Valor, with a squad bonus of Mobility +5, Accuracy +5 (Mobility +30, Accuracy +30, S in Air, Movement +2). Kiriyama’s a squaddie through and through, being on par with the Painkiller and Naked on terms of firepower; his stats are still good overall, but he just doesn’t have the capacity to stand out among the crowd.
Still, an Accelerate caster that boosts Air rating is a good fit with a lot of people (even more so if you get his 3-4 squad bonus, which also boosts movement).

I moved over here since I expected to get mobbed… but, as it turns out, the Machinas won’t actually chase after Kiriyama if he’s outside of their attack range.
But he does have a pre-battle convo for this bit, so assume that mook there took a stab at him:

: These people were willing to put their trust in me, despite all my past wrongdoings…
: I’ll see this mission done for them and for the one man I could call my true friend!

And the next turn…

: A brute-force strategy? That’s oddly old-fashioned of the Human Machinas.
: But they’re underestimating the Pretender’s mobility and that’ll be their doom!

(TV): That’s the first wave dealt with! Return to the ships and resupply quickly!
(TV): How’re things going on your end?
(TV): We have yet to hear from Sir Kiriyama!
: Do you think something happened to him…?
: …
: That’s enough waiting around! We gotta bust into the moon ourselves!
: No. We move in now, and our forces will be completely disorganized.
: We’ll wait until the jamming facility’s destroyed and, then, Fold everyone in at the same time!
: B-But…
: We must have faith in Kiriyama. That’s all we can do at the moment.
: Kch…!

: Haah, haah… I’m not pulling back!
: Running away now would be even worse than dying!

It’s fine, as the new wave of Machinas are also uninterested in pursuing him. The turn after the next, he’s already made it.

: Okay, I made it!

: …
: What…?!

: Urk…!
: But I’m sure I damaged the tower…!
: Just one more hit and it’ll—

: Urgwaaaaaaargh!
: Th-This can’t be…!
: …
: Did they know we were coming and had these lying in wait…? That’d mean…
: Is this… Is this whole thing a trap?!

(TV): Do… ead…
: There he is…!
: Do y… read me…?
: Kiriyama!
: You’re safe, thank goodness! What’s your status?!
(TV): It was… a trap…!
: A massive army of Human Machinas… inside the moon…
: What’d you say?!

Boom!

: Rrrghaaah…!
: Ki-Kiriyama…!
: Damn it…!
: Moritsugu, are you still going to tell us to just sit on our hands?!
: …

Alarm!

: A second enemy wave has emerged from the Lunar Pit!
: What?!
: Tsk, and at the worst possible moment…!
: Wh-What do we do?! Should we get out there again?
: We can’t! All units are to maintain level 1 alert status and stand by!
: The Federation Army’ll deal with the enemy!
: But those are Human Machinas they’re up against!
: We’re supposed to just watch as not only Kiriyama but the Federation Army gets slaughtered?!
: Settle down and think for just a second! Do you still not understand what they’re risking their lives for?!
: ?!
: ‘Tis all so we can successfully Fold into the interior of the moon! They are throwing their lives into the conflagration of battle solely to enable that!
: Are you going to make their resolve for naught?
: B-But that’s…!
: … Thank you, Hayase…
: Kiriyama…!
: Just the fact that you’re willing to help the man who once tormented you so… that is already more than enough for me.
: Wh-What are talking about?!
: …
: Sorry, Reiji… It doesn’t look like I’m going to make it…
: Eiji…
: But… I will get one last attack in…!
: I’ll destroy that facility… whatever the cost…!

Bloop.

: Kiriyama! Please respond, Kiriyama!
: Kch… Moritsugu, are you really okay with this?!
: …
: I…
: I also think this is wrong!
: …
: We’ll sacrifice a few but we’ll save many. Sometimes acceptable losses are just inevitable for the greater good…
: Says you, but I don’t give a crap about that!
: …!

: Uurrgh…!
: I-I’m not dead yet…!

: Yes, that’s it… come a little closer!

: Now…!

: GO!

: Haah, haah… Target confirmed destroyed…
: I-I did it… Reiji…

: Graaaaaaaaah!

: …
: Game, set and match, huh…?
: But I could help them see this through… I’ve no regrets…

Charge up beaaaaam!

: …
: …
: (Goodbye, Reiji…)

: Wh-What…?!
: If humans are so limited that saving one man would mean being unable to save many more…

SRW UX - Linebarrel (Full Intro)

: Then, I… I’ll surpass my humanity!
: Th-The Linebarrel…?!
: Why… Why are you here?!
: Isn’t it obvious…?
: It’s because I’m a CHAMPION OF JUSTICE!

: …?!

: Haah, haah…
: …
: Hayase… Just what are you?!

: …
: Vardants?! The Human Machinas even have those…?!

: Gaaaaah!
: Forget about me, Hayase! Get out of here NOW!
: Are you kidding?! I’m not leaving without you after coming all the way here…!

: Huh?! I-It’s…!

: The Ultimate Cross…!
: Looks like we made it in the nick of time!
: How did you guys…?
: Did you forget what I said?
: If we can detect their stronghold’s position, we can get its coordinates. And if we have its coordinates… we can Fold to it!
: …!
: Sheesh, that was a very crazy stunt you pulled!
: Still, with Hayase warping ahead of us, we just had to ping him and there were our precise coordinates.
: That’s our Champion of Justice for you! As you say, things are looking up already!
: Hah, hahaha… Oh, you guys!
: Never mind him, what I wanna know is why there’s a city inside the moon!
: Not just any city – this is Tokyo, isn’t it?
: It a little bit different, though…
: (Huh… Have I seen these ruins somewhere before…?)
: Hey, Shou… This city…
: Yeah, it sure looks a lot like it…
: But what’s it doing inside the Human Machinas’ lunar world…?
: I am very curious as to what mysteries lie within this land, but any investigation will have to wait until later!
: Our priority now is the elimination of the Human Machinas! Show them all the boundless possibilities of humans!

Kill everything, don’t lose a ship, Kouichi or Shou. Only beefy units for us to face, including the new MP Vardants; they can hit decently hard, but don’t have a MP Moritsugu to match, so they can’t use any of the bot’s best tricks (or even dual-wield swords!). Still, the Vardants and the Machinas (actual name) all come with over 10k HP, so don’t expect to oneshot them with big hits… or a FUB’d Demonbane sneezing in their general direction. As before, be wary of the giant babies and their MAPWs.
Now, do be mindful that the plot kicks in after you’ve wiped out 12 enemy squads, and it’ll result in all your guys taking a -30 hit to their morale. That said, UX is nice and any systems that you trigger BEFORE that will stay active, so, in the interest of making things easier on you, try and spread out morale as best you can and make sure to combine the SKL, Dancouga and Odyssea as soon as can be.
Oh, and Kiriyama is still waaaaay up top, so pull him back right the next turn.

SRW UX - Envoy from Jupiter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4zN84kpxUg
Hahaaa! I like how Kurou actually conjures the Scimitar of Barzai to parry instead of just pulling it out of a back-pocket as it usually happens.

SRW UX - Linebarrel (Full Intro)

Accept no imitations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIA4Wj6WLRc
And here’s Jack showing the MP bots how to make proper use of their swords.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knOzr8Ew2sc
Also, the DK for Sakomizu’s second strongest solo attack.

SRW UX - Believe ver. HD

SRW UX - A Bird’s Song

And then 12 squads have been taken out.

: I knew it…! This place is…!
: What’s the matter?
: This is what I saw when I was inside the Linebarrel’s cyberworld…
: It’s the world of the future that Mr. Amagatsu showed me!
: Th-The world of the future?!
: Yeah, I remember now! We saw this city when the Wings of Rean showed us the destruction in our future!
: It most certainly is… I remember this dilapidated landscape well!
: W-Wait just a minute-robo! If this is from the future, what’s it doing in the present…?!
: And inside the moon, of all places?!
: The Human Machinas came from the future, so do you think they built a replica of their world in here?
: No… That’s not what this is.
: Hm? Did you realize something?
: Y-Yeah… This city is…!
: …
: This is the Tokyo I knew…!
: This is THE Tokyo from our parallel universe!
: …?!
: S-Say what…?! But I’m sure this is what I saw before…!
: What’s going on here?!
: There’s a Tokyo from the world of the future inside the moon, but it’s also the Tokyo from a parallel universe…?
: Alright, I’m officially as lost as a nun on a honeymoon!

Ruuuuumble!

: Huh…? What was that?!
: We’re detecting an Override signal! Something is warping over!
: An Override?!
: Can it be…!

: …
: Th-That’s…!
: A Machina… No, it looks like!
: That’s right…
: If Judah’s intel is correct, that’s the being who oversees all the Human Machinas…

: He’s the cause of everything…!
: Then, that’s…!

: The boss of the Human Machinas?!
: Aye… He is that which, by rights, ought to not exist. A mechanical god made by the hands of man…
: An Extra Deus Machina… That is to say—!
: A Deus Ex Machina…! A god comes to bring down the curtain onto our world…!
: …
: Ah, so that’s what it was…
: It took a while, but I finally see why Hisataka sent us to take look at Arkham City back then.
: Deus Machina, a mechanical God, and Deus Machinas, godly machines born of sorcery…
: They are alike at first glance, but their essence is very different…
: …
: At long last, you have made it here, humans…
: H-He can talk…?!
: You have so much strength…
: Yet you insist on heading towards your destruction? Why?
: Our destruction?
: Nature does not allow creatures who have lost their imagination to exist…
: Thus, death is the sustenance of imagination…
: Death is the beginning of life…
: …?!
: By taking away that sustenance, humanity will once again head towards its end…
: Wh-What’re you talking about?!
: The sustenance that is death – that is, life-threatening crisis…
: W-Wait a minute, do you mean…?
: …
: That the closer we humanity gets to peace… the closer we also get to our destruction?
: Correct. It is not we who would be the end of mankind.
: No, that is you. You will be the cause of mankind’s downfall.
: Wh-What…?!
: Again, and again…
: You understand nothing, and, in your ignorance, doom your kind…
: By fighting and prevailing against threats to mankind, we slowly but surely earn a lasting peace…
: And, in doing so, we set humanity closer to eventually flipping its Suicide Switch… We’re the ones who initiate the countdown…
: …
: Then…
: Everything we fought for…

Everyone loses 30 morale!.. Except Kaido and Magami, who get +30 morale (this could be a bug, but I like to think it isn’t)!

: Sophistry! Do not let his words dampen your spirit!
: C-Cao Cao…!
: Yeah… Why is it that we simply can’t have peace?!
: A world without war has always been the dream of not only us, but of so many!
: B-But… that stuff about the Suicide Switch in our DNA is all true, right?
: Which would mean…!
: Kch… Damnation! These people held such conviction in their battles and now…!
: His words have shaken them to their core…!
: We’ve been given a proper portent of doom…
: How are we supposed to fight him like this?!
: Come, humans…
: I will grant sustenance to your imaginations once more…

Deus Ex Machina
Pilot Skills:
Double Movement
Prevail L9
Support Attack L3
Break Morale Limit
Counter
Predict
All Attack L3
Command L4
Mech Features:
Override
30% HP and EN Regen
All Canceller
Deus Ex Machina’s voice actor: Tessho Genda (other roles: Gu-Landon in SRW OGs, Kirks in Masoukishin, Ryujinmaru in Wataru, Sleggar and Dozle in the original Gundam, and a ton more)

Now that’s a big boss: stats are massive all across the board, 200k HP plus a ton of defenses, Override and that Skill stat means your hit %s’ll take a big hit and, of course, he hits like a truck.
We haven’t had a boss with a properly threatening MAPW yet, and Deus comes to change that with one that blasts anywhere in 2-8 range with a 4x4 AoE (only blind spot is at point-blank range). Thankfully, his AI seems hard-wired not to use both movements on that – he’ll pop it and, then, move in to bash someone’s face in. Not that he needs to weaken a unit, because his strongest attack – appropriately named Overkill – is strong enough that it can probably oneshot anyone except our beefier guys (good news is that its range is only 1).

Confuse is the name of the game, because you absolutely don’t want to risk him tagging folks with that MAPW – especially if you don’t have Kongming boosting their dodge rates with S ranks. We need to take care of him to beat the mission, and with everyone’s morale effectively reset back to 100, you’ll need to get back to work on the newly-arrived mooks. Deus’ll give you one turn and then he’ll start closing in, so spread out and kill as much as you can (this is why activating all those skills prior to the morale hit is very recommended).
Get him under 70% for the plot to progress.

SRW UX - LEGEND OF KAISER

Final Mission ~ Quantum Burst 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26H-WQEQ1ME
And here he comes.
Deus vs. Kurou: “You, just as humanity, cannot escape the curse that binds you.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRpv0HjlQKk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B3nlwLNGoU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWvdcqoMc9U
And while we’re at it, here’s a couple of more DKs from Kiriyama, Lu Bu and Sakomizu. I particularly enjoy the sight of a giant space baby getting judo flipped.

And when the morale’s good enough, turn your sights back to Deus. He’s likely already in your face.

Deus vs. Fafners: “The moment you lose your imagination is the moment you’ll cease to be there.”

And after more than a few overridden attacks, because I’d apparently forgotten what happened with Amagatsu…

: This strength…
: It’s because you have this strength that mankind will be destroyed.

: Wh-What the…?!
: All the damage we did just vanished!
: His regeneration is off the charts… This goes way beyond the level of nanomachines!
: ‘Tis… a power in the realm of the divine!
: Why are humans incapable of existing as humans ought to be…?
: Why do you not embrace the paradise that was granted to you…?

BLAAAAST!

: Gwaaaaaaah!
: Do you wish to live? Does death frighten you?
: That is imagination… That is life.

: Aaaiieeee!
: Stop! Don’t kill them!
: Th-This pain… This anguish, this is what life is?!
: Why are you so set on opposing God that you’re willing to suffer like this?!
: Sh-Shut up, Kurusu…!
: …?!
: “The paradise that was granted to us”… What a load of bull!
: A world where people are fighting nonstop, where they’re kept up at night for fear that they might end up dead…!
: What the hell kind of paradise is that?!
: B-But…!
: He’s right… We’re not puppets to be controlled! We’re humans!
: Peace will lead us to destruction?! I…
: I’ll never accept anything as ridiculous as that!