Support NeoGAF

[jonjonaug]

So, I just bought EOU2 now and played for ~2 hours. I finished everything except for one drop quest and could go to F2. But holy shit, the beginning of this game is so much harder than any other. It can only get better! xD

The very start of Story mode is tough as balls due to your reduced party size, reminds me of early game hard mode in SMT: Nocturne, Persona 3 FES, or SMTIV where you can die during the tutorial segments if the game feels like it.

It evens out as you go along. I'm playing on Expert mode and I've just cleared the 3rd stratum and the only place I've had any real problems since the first floor was the most recent boss fight where I died something like four or five times before clearing it.

Speaking of Story mode in EOU2 I have a question about it, spoilers for events directly after the 3rd stratum boss:

Spoiler

So I'm halfway through the current events in Ginnigu-whatever and I elected to go forth past the spooky door myself instead of letting Bertrand do it. But then they came back to save me and Bertrand got separated from them. I'm getting the impression that where I'm at right now (exploring the 4th floor minus Bertrand) is where I would have ended up no matter what I picked, is that right?

 

[omlet]

To your spoiler question, yes. You'll see why shortly.

 

[Scher]

Yeah, the Something Awful Etrian community does good stuff and is probably the most technically-inclined part of the fandom, as far as tearing the games apart. Definitely the source for some of the craziest single-character challenges.

It is super interesting to read a lot of the stuff they do and all that. It's interesting seeing people take on those kinds of challenges and reading how they approach and ultimately handle the various issues that will come up as a result. That kind of stuff is part of what helped motivate me to start playing through the series! One of my favorite things was one of them beating Abyssal God without any subclasses, stat books, or retiring. Doing that really limits the amount of damage you can do in a turn, but seeing how that situation was handled is a large part of what helped me to understand how the boss functions at lower health thresholds.

 

[Nachos]

It is super interesting to read a lot of the stuff they do and all that. It's interesting seeing people take on those kinds of challenges and reading how they approach and ultimately handle the various issues that will come up as a result. That kind of stuff is part of what helped motivate me to start playing through the series! One of my favorite things was one of them beating Abyssal God without any subclasses, stat books, or retiring. Doing that really limits the amount of damage you can do in a turn, but seeing how that situation was handled is a large part of what helped me to understand how the boss functions at lower health thresholds.

Yeah, I'm really curious to see how their experiments with the blind food against Ur Devil go. I don't have the DLC yet, but it sounds like the battle becomes a lot more bearable, even without any fine-tuning.

 

[jonjonaug]

To your spoiler question, yes. You'll see why shortly.

Such a railroad plot...not that I really mind.

Also my entire party except the MC wiped on the second to last turn of that boss fight, so now my MC is two levels higher than the rest of my party.

 

[Sölf]

So I now reached the halfway point on floor 3, where I get the mission to find the guards. Is it just me or is money even more rare than it is normally? I can't afford anything. xD

 

[Robin64]

Just picked up Millennium Girl and played a little last night. Loving it so far!

I played a little bit of each mode, though, and I can't decide which I want to stick with first. I love the purity of Classic, but Story is really nice too.

 

[Zweizer]

Unless you played the original, I'd say play Classic first, as Story butchers quite a bit of the experience.

 

[Robin64]

Unless you played the original, I'd say play Classic first, as Story butchers quite a bit of the experience.

That's what I figured. Thanks. (And yeah, I've not only not played the original, but this is my first EO game full stop)

Currently I've gone..

Front: Landsknecht, Protector
Rear: Alchemist, Medic, Hexer

Hopefully a decent starting party to get me going, but I notice I still have 20 slots. Guess the game intends for me to drop in and out classes depending on situation.

 

[Zweizer]

That's what I figured. Thanks. (And yeah, I've not only not played the original, but this is my first EO game full stop)

Currently I've gone..

Front: Landsknecht, Protector
Rear: Alchemist, Medic, Hexer

Hopefully a decent starting party to get me going, but I notice I still have 20 slots. Guess the game intends for me to drop in and out classes depending on situation.

Yeah it's a pretty balanced party, and as you guessed the additional slots are there to have some different squads for different roles (namely gathering materials).

 

[spiritfox]

You can play the entire game without switching classes. The extra slots are just for experimentation and if you want to run additional parties.

 

[Robin64]

You can play the entire game without switching classes. The extra slots are just for experimentation and if you want to run additional parties.

Oh, this is good to know.

 

[Sölf]

Man, even if I don't finish this game (again xD), at least I started working on my EO clone with RPG Maker 2003 again. Maybe I finally finish it this time (doubtful, since the game only has 11 finished floors from planned 20 + postgame so far... after like 2-3 years xD).

 

[spiritfox]

Man, even if I don't finish this game (again xD), at least I started working on my EO clone with RPG Maker 2003 again. Maybe I finally finish it this time (doubtful, since the game only has 11 finished floors from planned 20 + postgame so far... after like 2-3 years xD).

Oh, got any pictures? More dungeon crawlers are always welcomed.

 

[Sölf]

Oh, got any pictures? More dungeon crawlers are always welcomed.

Yeah, but it's completely in german. Since the game isn't finished I definitly wouldn't start a translation, but I could translate (at least in a .txt file) all skills and maybe items.

As for screens, have fun (some editor shots as well; And regarding those EO graphics, I started this back in the day before the RM2k3 was available outside of japan, so I said fuck it xD):
http://imgur.com/a/vVpZb

I tried my best to copy as much as possible from EO, but stuff like drawing your own map is basically impossible on the 2k3. D:

 

[spiritfox]

Hah, those FOEs. I'll be interested to see what you do with it, and don't worry about the translations for now.

 

[Sölf]

Hah, those FOEs. I'll be interested to see what you do with it, and don't worry about the translations for now.

While the game is not finished, floor 1-11 is completely done and can be played through. as well as 4 "mini dungeons". The story so far doesn't really exist aside from "Go into the labyrinth and explore", but I have things planned. I could send you the current version, since I am working on an off since 2012 on this. And I highly doubt I will complete the game this time. xD

 

[Zweizer]

Hah, the good old RPG Maker graphics.

 

[omlet]

That's what I figured. Thanks. (And yeah, I've not only not played the original, but this is my first EO game full stop)

Currently I've gone..

Front: Landsknecht, Protector
Rear: Alchemist, Medic, Hexer

Hopefully a decent starting party to get me going, but I notice I still have 20 slots. Guess the game intends for me to drop in and out classes depending on situation.

Not a bad starting setup for someone new to the games. However, Landsharks are pretty mediocre in EOU once you get past the first few floors and skills start mattering more than having beefy basic attacks*, so you may want a Ronin or Dark Hunter up front instead. Your back row is solid.

And yes classic mode is the way to go for your first time through EOU if you never played EO1.

*Unless you are not playing on Expert mode, in which case

Spoiler

shame on you

you hardly have to put much thought into your skills and party.

 

[jonjonaug]

So I now reached the halfway point on floor 3, where I get the mission to find the guards. Is it just me or is money even more rare than it is normally? I can't afford anything. xD

Cash flow works a little differently in EOU2. Early on cash is harder to come by, but there's alternate methods of making money that open up as the game progresses.

 

[spiritfox]

While the game is not finished, floor 1-11 is completely done and can be played through. as well as 4 "mini dungeons". The story so far doesn't really exist aside from "Go into the labyrinth and explore", but I have things planned. I could send you the current version, since I am working on an off since 2012 on this. And I highly doubt I will complete the game this time. xD

Do I need to have RPG Maker? It's not a very good time since games are out, but if you've anything you're willing to send, sure.

Also for EO2U, the restaurant is a big investment at first, but it'll eventually give you a good stream of money.

 

[Sölf]

Do I need to have RPG Maker? It's not a very good time since games are out, but if you've anything you're willing to send, sure.

Also for EO2U, the restaurant is a big investment at first, but it'll eventually give you a good stream of money.

You only need the RTP (Runtime Package, includes all basic files) from the inofficial RPG Maker 2003 version, since the game was started in 2012, over 3 years beforte the RM2k3 became officially available. I can send you a download via PM, as well as the game (or I wait a bit until I played though the first stratum at least xD).

Cash flow works a little differently in EOU2. Early on cash is harder to come by, but there's alternate methods of making money that open up as the game progresses.

Ah, okay. Getting much less from gathering definitly hinders me, as enemy drops are not worth much and equipment is already expensive as fuck. xD

 

[Robin64]

*Unless you are not playing on Expert mode, in which case

Spoiler

shame on you

you hardly have to put much thought into your skills and party.

I started on Picnic. Am I a terrible person? I'm not far in though, so could restart if you think I'd have a better experience for it.

 

[spiritfox]

I started on Picnic. Am I a terrible person? I'm not far in though, so could restart if you think I'd have a better experience for it.

You can adjust your difficulty anytime in the options (while in town). Also just play whatever you're comfortable with. Expert is fun cause it's hard, but it might not be for everyone.

 

[omlet]

I started on Picnic. Am I a terrible person? I'm not far in though, so could restart if you think I'd have a better experience for it.

It just depends on what you want out of the game, I guess. To me Picnic is boring as shit because the most fun thing about EO games to me is seeing my choices in building my party work to overcome enemies that feel like worthy foes rather than punching bags. The Untold games (and 4) are designed around the hardest difficulty and then easy modes are added, so Expert is tough, but fair.

As spiritfox mentioned you can change the difficulty in town at any time without starting a new game. Personally I think the EO experience is far far better and more rewarding on the hardest difficulty, but if you get really stuck on a boss or something you could always drop it down to Normal temporarily.

Also despite all this I'm saying, I still really appreciate Picnic mode for endgame. Once you fully explore all the dungeons, picnic is nice to switch over to for leveling up some different characters to try different party compositions. Also for speeding up grimoire farming.

My stance is do all the exploration and beat each enemy at least once on expert, then after that use picnic for new characters, party experiments, grimoire farming, etc. Have I beat/explored this yet? No -> Expert mode. Yes -> Picnic mode unless I want the challenge again.

 

[jonjonaug]

Ah, okay. Getting much less from gathering definitly hinders me, as enemy drops are not worth much and equipment is already expensive as fuck. xD

If you're playing story mode or have a Survivalist in Classic, put one point into the Natural Instinct skill. Eventually that party member will spit out enough grimoires to get it on your other party members too. Even at level one and with the lower trigger rate than the regular Mine/Take/Chop skills, getting the skill onto multiple party members will increase the amount of materials you get by a noticable amount.

 

[Sölf]

If you're playing story mode or have a Survivalist in Classic, put one point into the Natural Instinct skill. Eventually that party member will spit out enough grimoires to get it on your other party members too. Even at level one and with the lower trigger rate than the regular Mine/Take/Chop skills, getting the skill onto multiple party members will increase the amount of materials you get by a noticable amount.

I will do that then, since I am nearly level 10 and the second slot will be unlocked then.

 

[omlet]

Yeah, unless I was adjusting stones for a boss fight, I always had Natural Instinct on everyone in my party after I unlocked the 2nd or 3rd slot.

 

[Sölf]

I am now 6:20 hours in, reached the first shortcut on F4. Also killed my first FOE. Killing your first one still feels great, but god damn it confusion is like horrible this early on. Everyone except the MC died, at least I got the conditional drop. xD
I also unlocked the other money making method (didn't get a Natural Instinct stone so far). And the development... Etrian Mystery Dungeon? xD

 

[Scher]

Here's a few things that I thought might be relevant to the interests of this thread!

Super Marcato Bros., a podcast dedicated to discussing video game music, did their most recent episode on the Etrian Odyssey series. It's an hour and a half, but if you just want some background noise while doing other things, it might be worth listening to! They play a few tracks from each game while discussing them, and it's kind of cool to hear them just dote on Yuzo Koshiro a whole bunch.

The other thing I thought might be worth mentioning is there's a kickstarter for the translation of a deck building game called Heart of Crown. I mention this here because one of the contributing artists for this game is Yuji Himukai. I figure there should be some fans of his art in this thread, so this might be something worth looking into! They also have the person who did the art for the Etrian Odyssey 2 manga. according to the list of artists.

 

[omlet]

I already have all the Tanto Cuore sets and Barbarossa, why can't I hold all these anime deckbuilders?

Spoiler

Thanks for sharing.

Spoiler

Why did you do this to me.

 

[Rizzi]

Big shocker, Untold 2 is already impossible to find in stores here.
Atlus pls.

 

[Sölf]

Currently on 5F in EOU2. Kingsnails are the horror. xD
Still 2 quests to do and a bit to explore before I will fight the first boss. I also still have to try the two FOEs (Raptor and Bat) and maybe the special one (not sure how strong that one is). And getting money is still a pain, especially since no Natural Instinct Grimoire wants to drop. D:

 

[kagamin]

Big shocker, Untold 2 is already impossible to find in stores here.
Atlus pls.

Too much stock here, too little stock over there.

 

[Scher]

I already have all the Tanto Cuore sets and Barbarossa, why can't I hold all these anime deckbuilders?

Spoiler

Thanks for sharing.

Spoiler

Why did you do this to me.

Embrace despair.


I finished EO4 100%, yay! I'm pretty happy about that. At first, I always feel like I should be grinding out levels for post game and stuff, but I never have the motivation to grind so I just experiment a lot with how bosses work. EO4 is admittedly pretty easy compared to the first two games, but doing a lot of the post game bosses at lower levels presents some pretty fun challenges to work around. Despite being the big super boss of this game, Warped Savior wasn't all that much of an issue. The BDSM dragon caused me much more trouble. Although, I do kind of want to go back to EO4 sometime and try to build a team for taking on Warped Savior at full power, but that will have to be much later.

Now I finally get to start on the remakes, and I've already had my expectations set really low for the story mode of Untold, so I'm excited for that!

 

[Sölf]

Defeated Chimera in the second try. Well, third, but in the first I actually accidently ran into her when it had 100% HP... xD
On the second try I forgot my Force skills, but 2 characters still died due to poison. On the third try I managed my TP a bit better and also changed the way I damaged it. The random ailment skill from Chloe also triggered Fear while it was still in the hole, giving me 2 more free turns, as well as sleep, which gave me another free turn. Arianne still died at the end due to poison and me only having one Nectar, which I had to gave Bertram earlier.

But holy shit, this fight is probably the hardest first boss so far. I thought Narmer was bad in EO 3, but this thing is so much harder in comparison, imo.

 

[Zweizer]

Just started the game (Story mode, since I already played the original), and damn, they already ruined the Guildmaster's surprise.

Not that they could've done much else with voices, but still.

 

[Sölf]

Just started the game (Story mode, since I already played the original), and damn, they already ruined the Guildmaster's surprise.

Not that they could've done much else with voices, but still.

The opening cinematic shows the battle with the Overlord as well as those two. And you are angry about the GM? xD

 

[Zweizer]

The opening cinematic shows the battle with the Overlord as well as those two. And you are angry about the GM? xD

That too, but at this point I'm already used to opening spoilers. These at least can be skipped, which I always urge new players to do so with the first Untold.

You can't skip the surprise with Marion ( ; _

 

[spiritfox]

... I just realized I never actually fought Great Dragon in EO2U.

 

[Anteo]

Just started the game (Story mode, since I already played the original), and damn, they already ruined the Guildmaster's surprise.

I turned off the voices before starting, I recently put them back on. I was surprised.

 

[kagamin]

Just started the game (Story mode, since I already played the original), and damn, they already ruined the Guildmaster's surprise.

Not that they could've done much else with voices, but still.

Haha, remember my last avatar?

 

[jonjonaug]

Holy shit I just beat the Juggernaut.

Holy shit fuck the Juggernaut. Took me over an hour to figure out how to fight it and kill it. On my last run I fucked up on the turn I expected to kill him. It was right after he used Eradicate, but he was a good deal in the red, so I triggered Akashic Nova + level 20 Link Order + level 10 Link Order + Summer Rain, but he had just a little HP left and I still had buffs on my party. I managed to take him down on the turn after where he would have wiped my party (I'd already used Perfect Defense on a turn earlier to keep damage up while low on HP) if I didn't beat him right there. What a crazy intense fight, and there's still two or so major bosses left I think.

So many bosses in this game seem to have some move that'll wipe the party if you don't know how to take care of it. I'm guessing the final bosses will have some bullshit going on with that too.

 

[Zweizer]

Haha, remember my last avatar?

Yeah. Now I know why.

 

[Baloonatic]

Seems like they are for sure following the same free DLC schedule as the US release of Untold 2, new stuff went up the other day. Don't forget to check every week fellow EU folk.

 

[jonjonaug]

Just beat the final boss of Story mode in EOU2. I'm proud that I went with Expert instead of Standard like in EOU1 and didn't lower the difficulty at all throughout the game except to do that "kill a bunch of these rhinos" sidequest.

Spoiler

The Overlord almost gave me more trouble than the Juggernaut and having to redo the braindead first phase of his fight and watch a bunch of cutscenes every time started to get old pretty fast. Once I got past his dumb "curse/fear all" move though he went down pretty easily in the middle of his lightning attack phase.

The Yggdrasil Core was also difficult, but I managed to just get it beat the first time I fought it. I don't think I'd have lasted another turn or two, his Armageddon spam was on the verge of wiping out my party at the end. Story mode in general was pretty OK, I liked the characters and the class selection allowed you to do more interesting things than with EOU1's story party.

I'm not sure if I'm going to do postgame or move onto other things. With EOU1 I got to B30F and just stopped because I wasn't really having fun with it.

 

[Zweizer]

Grimoire Fevers are the best thing.

 

[whiterabbit]

I'm listening to the soundtrack that came with EOU2. Still have to do a classic run of the game.

 

[Zweizer]

AHAHAHA I'M NOT FALLING FOR IT YOU DAMN SQUIRREL!!

 

[spiritfox]

AHAHAHA I'M NOT FALLING FOR IT YOU DAMN SQUIRREL!!

But it so cuteeee

You know you wanna