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[Hugstable]

That's disappointing :/ I first entered satori marsh at night and it was a straight game changer

It's still an amazing area even on the 3DS, was just kinda surprised last night when I got into it. Plus that music at night makes everything better :3. That said I'm still sticking with my 3DS copy as it's the most enjoyable way for me to play the game (I hate playing this game on the Wiimote with Nunchuck and everytime I've tried the game on dolphin I get this horrible sound glitch where the music keeps popping)

Yep! Right now I flip between three sets (until 7 arrives):

1) Melia/ Dunban/ Shulk

2) Riki/ Dunban/ Shulk

3)Dunban/ Shulk/ Reyn

Each is so fun in their own way that it offers enough variety for me to stay interested and keep having fun.

Love this game.

You are able to play without Sharla for heals? . When I played the game and got to Makna forest previously on Wii, I always kept Sharla in my party and never switched her out, was always scared about dying with no heal bullet or heal round

 

[Rich!]

Post your playtime and level! Mine:

Level 91

 

[theprodigy]

You are able to play without Sharla for heals? . When I played the game and got to Makna forest previously on Wii, I always kept Sharla in my party and never switched her out, was always scared about dying with no heal bullet or heal round

Sharla's healing is never vital at any point in the game, the increased damage output from someone else is more useful.

 

[Hugstable]

Sharla's healing is never vital at any point in the game, the increased damage output from someone else is more useful.

So I should be gravy if I already replace Sharla for Dunban while I'm in Satorl Marsh? It's gonna be hard to give up on Sharla since I like her so much lol. But that increased damage output would definitely be nice.

 

[Rich!]

So I should be gravy if I already replace Sharla for Dunban while I'm in Satorl Marsh? It's gonna be hard to give up on Sharla since I like her so much lol. But that increased damage output would definitely be nice.

Should be cool, but make sure you level up your arts.

You may need Sharla for the igna fortress sidequests and for the sororal statues battle depending on your level.

 

[Dice//]

So I should be gravy if I already replace Sharla for Dunban while I'm in Satorl Marsh? It's gonna be hard to give up on Sharla since I like her so much lol. But that increased damage output would definitely be nice.

Sharla's good for tough enemies where you don't wanna stress as much (some Unique ENemies in Satorl had me use her, and also to build needed affinity with her). By the end-game point she heals more than is usually dealt, but because she's healing she just slows everything down. Riki has a GREAT healing ability and Shulk has his (and Melia too to an even lesser extent). Sharla is handy, but i'd argue the sort of "weakest link" among a team of much harder hitters. If the game didn't heal you up so fast the second you finish a fight then maybe she'd have more use.

 

[EvilMario]

Yeah, I tend to drop Sharla when we get to the Marsh. She can be useful against some of the tougher monsters where the battle is going to be very long either way, but Dunban's dodging and Shulk's occasionally healing tend to be enough. At end game by first time through I forgot about her for the most part with Riki being the player character handling healing easily.

 

[chaosblade]

Boss in the Ether Mines almost feels like a dead end. Level 22 wasn't cutting it at all and felt impossible, especially with some of the trash armor I'm stuck with, but I got level 23 and a couple new arts on one of my last attempts that might make the difference.

Sharla is the deadest of dead weight and Reyn is only slightly better without her support. She dies in basically 1-2 hits from the boss, and his attacks are aoe. And she steals aggro like a madwoman.

First story enemy that actually provides a challenge on par or greater than the unique monsters though, lol. Night Cardamon is an assssss, I got kind of lucky on him since he only used Ether Fireworks once, aoe 1HKO on both Shulk and Sharla.


Edit: I could probably spend a ton of time crafting gems, actually. But I dunno. That would almost be cheating. Think I've crafted one agility gem so far, have quite a few things I could make (including better agility gems).

 

[Zing]

Sharla's healing is never vital at any point in the game, the increased damage output from someone else is more useful.

Is this if you are overleveled? I definitely suffer using a Dunban, Shulk, Amelia party. I can't take any uniques. With Sharla healing and Reyn tanking, I'm fine.

 

[chaosblade]

Is this if you are overleveled? I definitely suffer using a Dunban, Shulk, Amelia party. I can't take any uniques. With Sharla healing and Reyn tanking, I'm fine.

No, you can play underleveled fine without Sharla. You mention Melia last, do you mean you aren't controlling her? If so that's part of the problem, she's a waste of space in that case and would be better off replaced with anyone. She's great if you use her yourself and know what you're doing, her AI is just abysmal and ineffective.

 

[theprodigy]

Is this if you are overleveled? I definitely suffer using a Dunban, Shulk, Amelia party. I can't take any uniques. With Sharla healing and Reyn tanking, I'm fine.

Melia AI (and Shulk's AI isn't the greatest either) is horrible, also you fell into the noob trap of having a traditional tank/healer in Reyn/Sharla (Dunban is a better tank against unique monsters anyway because dodging attacks>eating attacks)

Riki's healing is more than sufficient if needed, especially lategame

 

[El Odio]

I love when the camera/cutscene zooms out enough while it's raining. Reminds me of The Truman Show:

And honestly, I can't think of character more badass and honourable than Dunban.

This and the Satorl Marsh night downgrade are bugging me so much. S, weird question, but is there any real reason that Valak Mountain is snow covered? IIRC before you first enter it it's brought up that it's cold because its one of the higher regions of the Bionis but Eryth Sea and the removed shoulder area are both higher than it and sunny while Sword Valley and Makna forest are basically on the same level as it and just as nice as the other two.

 

[Zing]

Melia AI (and Shulk's AI isn't the greatest either) is horrible, also you fell into the noob trap of having a traditional tank/healer in Reyn/Sharla (Dunban is a better tank against unique monsters anyway because dodging attacks>eating attacks)

Riki's healing is more than sufficient if needed, especially lategame

I've tried controlling Dunban as the "tank" but he dies so much faster than Reyn, even with agility gems. He also can't keep aggro.

 

[theprodigy]

I've tried controlling Dunban as the "tank" but he dies so much faster than Reyn, even with agility gems. He also can't keep aggro.

Dunban should be able to dodge fairly well even when decently underleveled...you also aren't using Heat Haze are you

 

[chaosblade]

I've tried controlling Dunban as the "tank" but he dies so much faster than Reyn, even with agility gems. He also can't keep aggro.

If his agility is high enough he should barely be getting hit at all. You should have light armor on him, not heavy armor since that impedes his agility.

His Peerless aura will help him draw aggro and increase his strength. If you get to the point he does well with aggro, Serene Heart dramatically increases his agility, and as a result his evasion.


Also, don't use Heat Haze, ever. It's got to be one of the worst and most counter-intuitive arts in the game.

 

[Hugstable]

I've tried controlling Dunban as the "tank" but he dies so much faster than Reyn, even with agility gems. He also can't keep aggro.

Time to get naked

 

[chaosblade]

I have to try this. Thanks.

edit: peerless heart and serene makes so much sense!

"Ever" is kind of an exaggeration, but in general it is terrible. It removes all aggro toward Dunban and prevents him from gaining any while it's active. The "only" benefit is that you get 100% critical rate, but in reality this is only good for building the party gauge because critical hits only do like 25% more damage.

There are much more effective ways of building the party gauge than using heat haze, and Dunban's ability to evade attacks is his greatest attribute, much better than what heat haze offers.

Time to get naked

That would actually be decent if the agility skill came earlier. By the time you are far enough in the game to have enough SP to unlock it, you're sacrificing way too much for a 30% agility boost to be worth it. Serene Heart is better (and both combined is kind of redundant, there is a minimum hit rate).

 

[Rich!]

Oh dear.

End game spoilers

Spoiler

just got to the tyrea/makna telethia quest near colony 6

Everything about that quest, including the story, acting and cutscenes is fucking terrible. Never realized before.

Ah well. Heh, most people will never see it.

 

[Heng]

This and the Satorl Marsh night downgrade are bugging me so much. S, weird question, but is there any real reason that Valak Mountain is snow covered? IIRC before you first enter it it's brought up that it's cold because its one of the higher regions of the Bionis but Eryth Sea and the removed shoulder area are both higher than it and sunny while Sword Valley and Makna forest are basically on the same level as it and just as nice as the other two.

From what I understand, the shoulder is covered by the shadow from the Bionis. Iirc, the sun doesn't actually set like it does in the real world, and is fixed in 1 location. I cannot check since I'm not far into the game on the 3ds and I lost my wii save file.

 

[chaosblade]

From what I understand, the shoulder is covered by the shadow from the Bionis. Iirc, the sun doesn't actually set like it does in the real world, and is fixed in 1 location. I cannot check since I'm not far into the game on the 3ds and I lost my wii save file.

This would make sense... if not for the in-game day/night cycle

It's one of those things that works better when you just don't try to think about it logically.

 

[ChrisD]

15 hours played and I just found out that the Inventory has more tabs than Weapons/Equipment. Was wondering why my Arts were still being limited to level 4 when I knew the Book had been bought.

Now to go back and buy all those Art books I was passing up on because they "weren't working yet." Thought it was a story limitation. :X

 

[Peltz]

Sharla's healing is never vital at any point in the game, the increased damage output from someone else is more useful.

Idk... If you load her up with all healing spells, I feel like she's a pretty good companion character. Especially when mixed with Dunban if you load him up with agility + agro buffs.

 

[jorgejjvr]

Idk... If you load her up with all healing spells, I feel like she's a pretty good companion character. Especially when mixed with Dunban if you load him up with agility + agro buffs.

I used Sharla all throughout my first play through back on Wii, and I also agree she was very useful, had no complaints. Now on my second play through on new 3ds, I am currently using Shulk, Reyn, and Dunban, and I have to say at times I wish Sharla was there, Dunban and Reyn tend to die on me at times, I've been using too much of my chain attack bar to revive them. I am going to keep trying different sets of characters for my second playthrough and try not to use sharla (And Reyn and shulk) throughout my entire second playthrough since I have already done that. But man, Sharla's healing is a great compliment, i wouldnt put her down.

 

[chaosblade]

Assuming I beat this stupid boss tomorrow, I'm going to wish I could drop Sharla. But I'm going to need to keep her in the party because she has a skill link I'll likely need, so I need to increase affinity with her.



That's why I'm getting lots of collectables though. Hopefully she likes a lot of that junk I've been picking up.

 

[chaosblade]

A lot of the bosses in the latter half of the game are bested by a combination of buffs/debuffs and high damage. In those scenarios, its easier to have a third member of the party dish pain while one or two work on dazing/debuff/buff rather than heal.

The object of a battle is better served making a target's life hell rather than outlasting it by healing alongside incremental damage in my opinion.

Yeah, she basically helps you win battles through attrition. It's not necessary though, you can beat enemies more quickly with other party setups and not need to win that way.

Not actually sure of any party combinations that are outright ineffective, but I don't remember the mid game well enough. I'm sure some are fairly terrible if you don't have certain arts available.

 

[jorgejjvr]

A lot of the bosses in the latter half of the game are bested by a combination of buffs/debuffs and high damage. In those scenarios, its easier to have a third member of the party dish pain while one or two work on dazing/debuff/buff rather than heal.

The object of a battle is better served making a target's life hell rather than outlasting it by healing alongside incremental damage in my opinion.

Well, I managed to beat the whole game with Shulk, Reyn, and Sharla soooo.....

There was only ONE occasion in the game where I switched those 3,

Spoiler

It was in that boss battle towards the end (i think it was in Bionis interior), it was a girl boss I think, cant remember that well, but ether/magic attacks worked best. I had to use Melia as my controllable character, and funny enough I dont remember who were my two other team mates in that scenario, but I dont think I had sharla

 

[foxuzamaki]

People love to say that Sharla isn't useful but the thing is many people find her useful regardless, even Chuggaaconroy had to double back somewhat on saying Sharla is useless when she kicked ass and got him out of more than a few pinches.

 

[QFNS]

Well, I managed to beat the whole game with Shulk, Reyn, and Sharla soooo.....

There was only ONE occasion in the game where I switched those 3,

Spoiler

It was in that boss battle towards the end (i think it was in Bionis interior), it was a girl boss I think, cant remember that well, but ether/magic attacks worked best. I had to use Melia as my controllable character, and funny enough I dont remember who were my two other team mates in that scenario, but I dont think I had sharla

That particular fight is hellish.

Spoiler

Without some ether damage as you mentioned, its really really hard. I died on it tons of times swapping out people every so often until I found that Melia was doing well. Man that was a really annoying fight.

 

[thomaszyj]

If his agility is high enough he should barely be getting hit at all. You should have light armor on him, not heavy armor since that impedes his agility.

His Peerless aura will help him draw aggro and increase his strength. If you get to the point he does well with aggro, Serene Heart dramatically increases his agility, and as a result his evasion.


Also, don't use Heat Haze, ever. It's got to be one of the worst and most counter-intuitive arts in the game.

I do not agree with you. Heat haze is the most useful arts when you are 6 or lower levels than the monsters and Dunban can also recover hp through critical attack with the skill. Using heat haze and topple gem, I can use chain attack to let the mosters toppled for a relatively long time and when it gets up, party gauge is filled. Reyn is better for tank when you face the monsters whose lv is 6 or higher than you.

 

[Linkhero1]

I'm playing the Wii game but still haven't finished it. I feel so proud of myself for maxing out everyone's affinity. It took forever to do.

 

[chaosblade]

People love to say that Sharla isn't useful but the thing is many people find her useful regardless, even Chuggaaconroy had to double back somewhat on saying Sharla is useless when she kicked ass and got him out of more than a few pinches.

I think "inefficient" is the word I'd use to describe her, at least under normal circumstances (because she is certainly useless for me at the moment...). She does her job well enough and it's a simple setup, but you can nearly always do something more efficient without her but it isn't always as easy or straightforward.

I do not agree with you. Heat haze is the most useful arts when you are 6 or lower levels than the monsters and Dunban can also recover hp through critical attack with the skill. Using heat haze and topple gem, I can use chain attack to let the mosters toppled for a relatively long time and when it gets up, party gauge is filled. Reyn is better for tank when you face the monsters whose lv is 6 or higher than you.

Not sure I agree, Reyn isn't going to hold aggro as well because he's not going to be dealing any damage. You also practically require Sharla in your party because he's going to be eating mad damage even while he does tank. If Dunban is set up well enough he can tank monsters 6+ levels higher without too much trouble (I've done it), and a tanking Dunban should obviously never use heat haze.

Double attacks heal combo is also better than relying on heat haze plus the critical drain skill. (Though it is an expensive skill link)

And if you are basically topple locking tanking doesn't matter anyway. And Reyn is of course king in that case since he has both Wild Down and Shield Bash.

 

[theprodigy]

People love to say that Sharla isn't useful but the thing is many people find her useful regardless, even Chuggaaconroy had to double back somewhat on saying Sharla is useless when she kicked ass and got him out of more than a few pinches.

chuggaaconroy is also TERRIBLE at paying attention to things in combat (or in the equipment menu), so ok...

 

[thomaszyj]

I think "inefficient" is the word I'd use to describe her, at least under normal circumstances (because she is certainly useless for me at the moment...). She does her job well enough and it's a simple setup, but you can nearly always do something more efficient without her but it isn't always as easy or straightforward.




Not sure I agree, Reyn isn't going to hold aggro as well because he's not going to be dealing any damage. You also practically require Sharla in your party because he's going to be eating mad damage even while he does tank. If Dunban is set up well enough he can tank monsters 6+ levels higher without too much trouble (I've done it), and a tanking Dunban should obviously never use heat haze.

Double attacks heal combo is also better than relying on heat haze plus the critical drain skill. (Though it is an expensive skill link)

Reyn has Sheer Determination which can boosts 15% physical defense when his hp is half and Mental Fortitude which can grants 10 % physical defense against higher level monstersat the start of battle. Reyn also has last stand which can recover hp before inactivation. Reyn has very high hp and his skill can increase 10 % max hp. I use Shulk/Dunban/Reyn as my party and I prefer to use this party to challenge the monsters whihc is lv 6+ higher..

 

[Adamator]

Does this game use up battery more than your average 3DS game?

I clocked in just shy of 2 hours yesterday total playing throughout the day on my breaks at work and after 2 hours of play plus a day's worth of standby, I was down to 2 battery bars. I feel I usually play my 3DS a lot longer before I even drop one bar...

 

[Xbro]

S, weird question, but is there any real reason that Valak Mountain is snow covered? IIRC before you first enter it it's brought up that it's cold because its one of the higher regions of the Bionis but Eryth Sea and the removed shoulder area are both higher than it and sunny while Sword Valley and Makna forest are basically on the same level as it and just as nice as the other two.

Because

Spoiler

the Bionis gave Mechonis the cold shoulder.

 

[TheMoon]

Because

Spoiler

the Bionis gave Mechonis the cold shoulder.

loooooooooooooooool

dat secret backstory

 

[Hugstable]

Because

Spoiler

the Bionis gave Mechonis the cold shoulder.

ayyy lmao

 

[Parshias7]

Because

Spoiler

the Bionis gave Mechonis the cold shoulder.

*actual endgame spoilers*

Spoiler

I always thought it was the other way around. Zanza thinks he's the Alpha and the Omega, but he's really just the Beta.

 

[Sodding_Gamer]

Any tips for defeated Xord? Keep getting owned. I'm Level 26 I think.

 

[Hugstable]

Any tips for defeated Xord? Keep getting owned. I'm Level 26 I think.

Kill all the little dudes around him to build up your chain gauge, then chain that big asshole and topple him.

 

[Xbro]

Any tips for defeated Xord? Keep getting owned. I'm Level 26 I think.

I gave some advice a bit back. Here you go.

I remember I had some trouble on this, but for now keep the aggro on Reyn, keep your healing up with sharla, and build up your party gauge with Shulk. You'll want to build some tension before initiating a chain attack. You'll want to break / topple / <anything> / buster during the chain. This should get a huge buster that is 4x damage. This should be a one-hit KO if done right, if not then it shouldn't take long after to finish him off before the topple ends.

If you are having trouble getting your tension up for a longer chain, switch Sharla to the front, Reyn to the second, and Shulk to the third. This is risky because Shulk might use buster or enchant before you initiate a chain. If you can pull it off, you can get a break with sharla, topple with reyn and a 3x buster with shulk.

 

[Sodding_Gamer]

I gave some advice a bit back. Here you go.

Nice one thanks Will give this a go in a sec

 

[Xbro]

Nice one thanks Will give this a go in a sec

Another thing someone else mentioned is killing all but one of the side enemies so they don't respawn.

 

[Hugstable]

I've been making such slow progress today, downloaded Dragon Quest 3 on my phone yesterday and have been on a nonstop binge. But hey, progress is still progress! I switched my Sharla out for Dumban, and I fought up against some level 30 elite enemy in the marsh and my level 28 party got their asses whooped without my heals, but since I played about another hour and have been getting more used to the new party formation.

Quick question though, while Dunban still doesn't have that skill where he gets 30% agility while nekkid, is it more worth it right now to stack him with strength and not have him using his taunt skills so that Reyn takes most of the hits, or should I leave him lite and agile so that they can both pull aggro and try to mitigate the damage between both of them?

 

[hoserx]

Just got the game Tuesday.......... I've played a couple hours and I'm really enjoying it so far. Impressed by many things. Can see myself getting totally lost............

 

[The Elite]

Sharla's healing is never vital at any point in the game, the increased damage output from someone else is more useful.

Interesting to know. I just reached the point when I can add other members to the team and was debating whether or not I should take Sharla out.

 

[WonkyPanda]

You can sell the worthless gears, but I would suggest keeping the loot the animals drop. Some NPC offer trades for quest items sometimes, which you can trade those loot for them. However, you can just farm for those quest items if you just want the gold.

Here's a list of all useless, non-quest items you can sell right away. It's sort of buried within the OP, and inventory space is annoyingly limited in this game which otherwise seems to be perfect for doing everything else.

Also, old, but it always blows my mind that you can see Colony 9 from Colony 6's Splintered Path. I think it's only part of what makes Xenoblade amazing is not only the unique setting or the massive overworld... but the dedication to tiny details and their overall vision. Details GET noticed and never go unappreciated when gaming, IMO. Just got there today myself --- sadly the lower res makes it much harder to make out...but I think I'm actually really enjoying this game as a handheld....LONG LIVE HANDHELD GAMING.

Thanks, guys!

 

[Brakke]

I just got Mel and maaaan she's cool. I really love the character play mechanic diversity they got going. Dunban with his combos, Mel with the buff/discharge, Shulk with positioning, Sharla with managing your overheat downtime.

Also I understand everybody talking about Mel's AI being terrible now, she's kinda complicated.

Goddamn this game keeps busting out the fun surprises. Pretty much every time they've introduced a new gameplay element I've thought "man that is super smart".

 

[mgs2master2]

So I just encountered the sound glitch during the story quest of

Spoiler

finding the 4 items for the alter. So we can go to the top of the bionis' head

any work around for it?

 

[GaimeGuy]

Just got

Spoiler

Melia

and I think I'm going to stop for a while and do a ton of sidequests - especailly since my party is only level 28 and most of the enemies in this jungle are 30-31