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The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC |OT| More Olivier Than Ever
- Thread starter Dandy Crocodile
- Start date
Dragon1893
Member
Finished chapter 1. Bummed that I missed the
sidequest.
Plot is definitely moving faster than in FC which is good.
Sunday school
Plot is definitely moving faster than in FC which is good.
Do dialogues change when you swap the character in front? I know the dialogue of some NPC changes when you move the plot forward.
Go fish in the lake to the west. Take the trail to the farm and on the first screen go north and you'll find a lake. If you fish in that lake with the right bait/pole combo you'll get a
pearlglass
OH GOD I HOPE NOT.
Probably not.
...
some games do, though... and I've always found it infuriating for some reason
chaosblade
Unconfirmed Member
I actually got it in the river near the bridge. That seemed to match the location description best. Guess there is more than one way to do it though.
Found chapter 4 oddly easy, it didn't really have anything challenging throughout the whole thing. The monster chests, the extermination quests, the boss. Especially the boss, after chapter 3 I was expecting a pretty meaty challenge and then... nothing. It felt like a slightly harder regular old encounter. In fact I'd say the chapter as a whole was relatively weak compared to the rest of the game, but it did have some good sidequests.
Feel like I should probably change up characters more. Most of the time I'm dragging around the same two optional characters along with the two mandatory ones, and that combination (
Kloe and Olivier
You aren't alone. Something to enjoy next time though.
Berserker976
Member
So, I'm absolutely loving this game, but I'm having the same issue I had in FC. Namely, I really suck at the orbment system. Like... reeeeally suck at it.
If someone would be so kind as to outline a basic path to speccing the main characters, I would be very grateful. Not asking for a quartz by quartz breakdown or anything, just generally what direction I should be taking characters in.
I'm currently in Chapter 2 and my party is:
If someone would be so kind as to outline a basic path to speccing the main characters, I would be very grateful. Not asking for a quartz by quartz breakdown or anything, just generally what direction I should be taking characters in.
I'm currently in Chapter 2 and my party is:
Estelle
Scherazard
Tita
Kloe/Olivier
Scherazard
Tita
Kloe/Olivier
Dragoon En Regalia
Member
I'm getting into a groove of keeping my characters even leveled, though ultimately Shining Pom farming lands your story-mandated characters at levels way higher no matter what. Estelle and
Schera
Luciola's fog duo made for a great fightI had the same amount of difficulty fighting them as with Orguielle + Kanone, just in a more compact way. Kloe and Olivier did most of the buffing/Earth Wall shenanigans while Schera was the nuke with Estelle mostly doing impedes
Esmelas Tower
In terms of chapter rankings, Chapter 4 is tied with Chapter 3, same with Chapter 1 and Chapter 2. There's been an even incline towards really interesting story detours and characterization. Chapter ending spoilers!
Estelle's dream sequence is handled surprisingly well upon close reading, starting with how Luciola hijacks the game's narrative voice in a way suggesting how she might be equally intoxicated by the spell thrown upon Estelle
Disguised as Lena, Luciola just can't pull off a good insult ("If you want to have it, you should try making it yourself") without giving Estelle the gift of focus, perhaps a turning point for the protagonist
I also enjoyed the staging of that sequence in general: how Estelle gradually fell in and out of childhood reverie, movement patterns and dilation of time, and a romanticized, somewhat metaphorical storage closet (not saying that just because it became Joshua's room laterthere's a ladder going almost to the ceiling and a trap chest holding the most important of secrets)
The Enforcer reveal here isn't depressing (like with Renne) so much as it is ambiguous, bringing into question the suddenness with which old friends/acquaintances return as antagonists
Rolent
Grancel
Text changing depending on your non-combat party formation? Oh wow, I never thought of it before, probably because it sounds like the most brilliantly insidious way to hide text. I don't get the impression that FC and SC work this way, thankfully.
As for missing side-quests, I somehow missed both Ruan's
hotel
Limestone Cave/King Penguin/Jimmy's echo
See, Olivier's whole act is being as interesting, whether in a contrived or dashing way, as he can be in order to keep allies and enemies on edge.
Estelle
"I always knew you had the mind of a wolf, but tell me, when did you develop the heart and loyalty of a serpent?"
I'm talking from the POV of First Chapter as I'm not too far into SC at the moment.
A general advice would be to play to everyone's strengths. If someone has strong physical attacks, then focus on giving them orbments (& equipment) that boost their attack power, frequency, CP accumulation etc. even further, so that they do as much damage as often as possible. For them, Arts aren't necessarily all that important, they can just use physical attacks & crafts. For someone who is perhaps relatively low in strength from a stats POV, they can perhaps be given stronger Arts & maybe at least one character with strong healing capabilities. Give them healing spells and maybe try giving them one or two more powerful offensive spells (AoE ones are preferable), so that they can mostly focus on healing in tougher fights, but can sometimes dish out damage to a larger group of enemies when no one is in dire need of healing.
With middling characters you can go which ever way you like. They can do decent physical damage, but giving them strong supportive and/or offensive arts can work as well. All in all it's good to have a team that can dish out decent damage in all kinds of ways (physical attacks & crafts, Arts of different elements) even in situations where constant healing is necessary.
Also, don't get too stuck with a single orbment setup for your party. It can be sometimes wise to change them up completely, depending on what kind of needs you have for battles and what kind of party you have at that moment. In some situations Estelle can be a good character who can kind of do a little bit of everything with decent strength, in others you might want to make her the main healer of the group while others focus on dealing damage.
Of course you also have to understand how the whole Orbments work. Each character has a completely different kind of Orbment structure, so that can kind of dictate how strong & what kind of Arts you can learn with a particular character. If someone has has some "Wind only" quartz slots, then of course you shouldn't even try to shift the focus of that characters Arts away from Wind related spells too much.
Only about an hour plus into the prologue in SC. I don't want any spoilers or anything, but could someone kindly warn me what missable stuff there is in SC? In FC I missed a couple of quests, pretty much all the collectible novel chapters, and a few issues of Liberl News. Am I looking at the same sort of stuff that's missable in SC? Are there more optional things which can be missed? I just want to be more prepared since this is the second game and I'm already familiar with the framework so I should be less likely to miss stuff this time round. Thanks!
Barrylocke
Member
I haven't been in here in awhile but I decided to stick with Hard Mode after getting a tip for beating Spear Jeigar at the end of the Prologue and hearing that it gets more manageable when you get more powerful Quartz, Arts, and more party members. I just got
in Chapter 1 and I definitely am feeling like I can manage a Hard Mode run after all. Having access to the various stat effect Quartz and more area spells is a big help.
I decided to go with
because I really didn't spend much time with her in the Final Chapter of FC. It does mean that my party is very magical based between her and
, but it's working well.
Now that I have control to go back and explore the world again, I'm falling right into the mood I had with FC. It's still a very laidback but interesting way of playing, just taking the time to see how people are handling stuff
. I feel like the sidequests in this game might be a tad better than in FC.
.
He really was pretty crazy. I feel like I can empathize with Estelle
I decided against using retry offset, though if I had continued to get stuck I might have broken down.
In the end, it's the extra turns that the enemies get that makes Hard Mode tricky for me, not the extra HP or even increase in strength.
Olivier
I decided to go with
Scherazard
Olivier
Now that I have control to go back and explore the world again, I'm falling right into the mood I had with FC. It's still a very laidback but interesting way of playing, just taking the time to see how people are handling stuff
(the election in Chapter 1 being the big topic)
The teaching of the class in particular really showed a nice bit of character involvement with Estelle showing how far she's come from her pre-Bracer days
He really was pretty crazy. I feel like I can empathize with Estelle
being pissed when she realized they were the other Senior Bracers all along, even though it retrospect it should have been obvious.
I decided against using retry offset, though if I had continued to get stuck I might have broken down.
I wish the game let you make more food for this segment. The Surprise Cookies in particular were surprisingly powerful (heh), but because you lose access to buying ingredients after a certain point, I was only able to use the one I got in the chest. The tip that saved me was getting the ladies to one of the corners so that you could not get flung around by his attacks and properly use La Tear. Even then it was a tense fight since you have to do a solid rush near the end to beat him from healing back up.
In the end, it's the extra turns that the enemies get that makes Hard Mode tricky for me, not the extra HP or even increase in strength.
bishopcruz
Member
The same kind of stuff, you can miss a new series of books, the Liberl News, and of course Bracer Quests. Some, like Sunday School in Chapter 1 are REALLY easy to miss if you don't have a guide or are obsessively checking the job postings. There are also a few quests that aren't on the boards at all but so far they have been less common than they were in FC.
Barrylocke
Member
One thing I'll say about the Sunday School quest that resulted in me making sure I caught it is that when I did my comb around, I remembered the nun worrying about her special Bracer guest speaker, so that was what prompted me to keep up with the job board and ultimately accept and complete the quest. Glad I did, it was really cute
except for that damn studying guy asking specific questions and making me ruin my perfect lecture. Aren't you too old to be studying in Sunday School anyways? -_-;
KimonoNoNo
Member
I fancy getting FC (and SC down the line) but not sure whether to get it on Vita or PC.
I'm leaning Vita but is there any advantage to the PC version instead?
I'm leaning Vita but is there any advantage to the PC version instead?
BassForever
Member
Can be patched to fix bugs, typos, etc and has enhanced visuals. Vita version is just portable in your pocket.
YianGaruga
Banned
I'm playing on Vita because it's much easier to get time in and finish it, but I have to say I'm a bit envious when I see the PC screenshots. The HD art is really beautiful.
Still, I would recommend getting it on the platform that you prefer playing on, since you'll put 100+ hours into it. The differences apart from the visuals should be minor.
Have some respect for others and tag your bloody spoilers.
Se7enSword
Banned
There's also trading cards if you buy the steam version which you can sell
Also, not being restricted to 30 fps is always a plus in these types of games.
KimonoNoNo
Member
Oh I didn't realize they touched up the visuals as well for PC version. I was worried the game would look rather naff when blown up on the monitor.
Hmm, decisions,decisions.
BassForever
Member
Buy both versions
then you can try both and doubly support xseed for all the shit they went through to bring these games to usShake Appeal
Member
With regard to these characters specifically, because I have the exact same party right now:
Tita will be very weak when you get her, and I think she stays fairly weak. Her usefulness is in her physical attack, because it's the only one in the game (to my knowledge) that has an area of effect. So I put Impede 2 and status effect quartz (like Blind, Seal, etc.) on her because she will have more chances than most party members to take advantage of their percentage chance to hit. In general, I focus on her attack and range. Whatever Arts that gives her, I don't really care; her "spiky" Orbment setup shows that Arts aren't her strength.
Both Kloe and Olivier are magic users, as their long Orbment slot chains suggest. Kloe is a healer/support, and you should focus on that almost to the exclusion of everything else. Because both these characters are magic users, you also want to focus on upgrading their slots as soon as possible, as that gives you more EP to play with. With Kloe, especially, try to concentrate on her healing (blue quartz) first: at this stage, you'll want, at the very least, Tear/La Tear/Teara/Curia/Thelas available on her.
Schera and Estelle are both very flexible and can be built a number of ways. Because you have two relatively frail characters in Tita and one of Kloe/Olivier, you should probably make her a little more physical than she is otherwise suited to be. I have both her and Schera built to withstand and deal out physical punishment, with Schera leaning more towards Arts/flexibility. They also both have good range with their physical attacks, so I sit my entire party back from the front line of the grid in case it gives me an edge on enemies who are moving first. (Obviously you should be moving first more often, because you are getting preemptive attacks against normal monsters every time.)
In general, I err on the side of having more characters able to cast a broader array of Arts than putting high-level Arts on anyone. This is largely because of the prohibitive costs of higher-level Arts, but also because those spells are just a less efficient use of EP, kinda overpowered against enemies at this stage, and I like having more flexibility if I encounter enemies that have a hard weakness/strength against certain Arts. You want to have at least one character able to use each kind of Arts, and preferably two or more.
Also, a good trick is to dump everyone's quartz out and compare their default stats on the Status page. You'll see their relative strengths and weaknesses and know what to emphasize on each. Then look at what quartz they are required to have, if any. Look up that magic page in the Bracer Notebook and see what will be most efficient/effective to work toward on that character. (So, in Kloe's case, look at the available water/blue quartz).
Both Kloe and Olivier are magic users, as their long Orbment slot chains suggest. Kloe is a healer/support, and you should focus on that almost to the exclusion of everything else. Because both these characters are magic users, you also want to focus on upgrading their slots as soon as possible, as that gives you more EP to play with. With Kloe, especially, try to concentrate on her healing (blue quartz) first: at this stage, you'll want, at the very least, Tear/La Tear/Teara/Curia/Thelas available on her.
Schera and Estelle are both very flexible and can be built a number of ways. Because you have two relatively frail characters in Tita and one of Kloe/Olivier, you should probably make her a little more physical than she is otherwise suited to be. I have both her and Schera built to withstand and deal out physical punishment, with Schera leaning more towards Arts/flexibility. They also both have good range with their physical attacks, so I sit my entire party back from the front line of the grid in case it gives me an edge on enemies who are moving first. (Obviously you should be moving first more often, because you are getting preemptive attacks against normal monsters every time.)
In general, I err on the side of having more characters able to cast a broader array of Arts than putting high-level Arts on anyone. This is largely because of the prohibitive costs of higher-level Arts, but also because those spells are just a less efficient use of EP, kinda overpowered against enemies at this stage, and I like having more flexibility if I encounter enemies that have a hard weakness/strength against certain Arts. You want to have at least one character able to use each kind of Arts, and preferably two or more.
Also, a good trick is to dump everyone's quartz out and compare their default stats on the Status page. You'll see their relative strengths and weaknesses and know what to emphasize on each. Then look at what quartz they are required to have, if any. Look up that magic page in the Bracer Notebook and see what will be most efficient/effective to work toward on that character. (So, in Kloe's case, look at the available water/blue quartz).
eastx
Member
Somebody might've already done this, but I added the Steam intros for FC and SC to YouTube as a single video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weLe4r0g9UU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weLe4r0g9UU
Pellegri Testament
Member
Most likely yes, all the other rods are gotten through doing sidequests and raising your bracer rank high enough.
Dragon1893
Member
Glad I decided to check the lighthouse before leaving Ruan at the start of chapter 2 when going to Krone Pass for a monster extermination sidequest.
Make sure you drop by.
Make sure you drop by.
Why? I went there and don't recall anything special happening.
YianGaruga
Banned
Dragon1893
Member
YianGaruga
Banned
Maybe I remembered wrong, we're talking about the quest where you help him test his light system right?
Dragon1893
Member
Yup.
BassForever
Member
Yeah only have to talk to him once for that to happen and you can do it at any point while in Ruan for chapter 1 or 2. I guess on a replay I'll try bringing Olivier and Kloe to see how the dialogue changes
Dragon1893
Member
I had them with me, they don't have any lines.
BassForever
Member
Pretty sure Kevin did (my memory may be trash though).
creid
Member
It's crazy to think that, as of 2 weeks ago, only 1 Trails game was out in English, but by this time next year there will be 4.
That's pretty crazy indeed. I'm tempted to import the non-translated games and follow a fan translation online (if such thing exists [which I'm guessing it does]).
Do we know for sure that Cold Steel II is coming within a year of Cold Steel I? Have they even confirmed it's a 2016 release?
hosannainexcelsis
Member
I am not aware of any fan translations for the Trails series. As we know with the difficulties XSEED had in translating SC, these games ask a lot from translators, with their sophisticated level of Japanese and voluminous amount of text. So they're not particularly attractive for fan translation teams. There are English guides for 3rd/Zero/Ao on GameFAQs, which might allow you to get through those games with some effort, but they won't help much in understanding the dialogue.
Ahh, thank you. I'll just keep my fingers crossed and keep supporting on day one with hopes of seeing the others then.
YianGaruga
Banned
Lol. I finished the prologue in SC and started the first chapter. The plot scenes have gone full Xenogears. Roflmao. I like how while the player-centric tone seems to have undergone a sort of reset to bring Estelle back to basics for the start of a new adventure, the background tone is very much consistent with the end of FC. The world has changed, and the expanded scope of ShitThatsHappening(TM) continues to unfold. Cool stuff.
hosannainexcelsis
Member
They have.
Considering the state of the PS3, it's imperative for XSEED to get Trails of Cold Steel II out as soon as possible so they can still have some possibility of success on the platform.
Chapter 9.
(Not really a spoiler. More about a gameplay choice).
Edit: (This is a spoiler)
I'm cloaking through pretty much every non-chest/story related encounter. The other fights offer little exp for the time invested, so hopefully I can get away with this... All my toons are 80-85 at the moment with a pretty nice gear set each.
Edit: (This is a spoiler)
Agate just 6 shot (with a lil help from Joshua) the Bleublanc fight, so I guess I'm fine for now, haha.
Dragoon En Regalia
Member
Awesome! Glad XSEED got that fixed, as I knew they would.
Heroes of Legend is a very promising translation group, especially on the hacking side (the most important since there's way less translation hackers than actual translators/editors). I hope they'll do a good job if XSEED never does Crossbell (I'd rather they do ofc).
Having more plot/context sequences before starting Chapters (or in the midst of them) makes the story in SC more active for sure. Some things are just so outrageous that learning of them via Estelle's travails would be overload, but the game also just wants you to see cool things you won't understand for a few Chapters or so.
Thank Aidios for that.
I got that sidequest and spoke to him several times after that hoping he'd ask me to find him an apprentice. I'd have been sad if I'd somehow missed another.