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[Edgeward]

Man, I still don't understand the trinity/unity system. I got through the prologue/chapter 1 boss simply by attrition because the game pretty much won't let you lose there. I was only able to do it once, and then spent the rest of the time hitting him for 1 hp and very slowly whittling his health.

 

[LPC]

I wish I could discover the game again like you guys! Absolutely loved it last year, the game is a blast! And it keeps going better and better!

 

[SecretMoblin]

Man, I still don't understand the trinity/unity system. I got through the prologue/chapter 1 boss simply by attrition because the game pretty much won't let you lose there. I was only able to do it once, and then spent the rest of the time hitting him for 1 hp and very slowly whittling his health.

I'm not sure what you mean by trinity/unity... are you referring to break/topple? If so, you need to have a character use a move that inflicts break - which looks like two vertical wavy lines - and then have a character use a move that inflicts topple. If the character you choose to control doesn't have a move that inflicts break, the AI-controlled party members will occasionally break the enemy, giving you a chance to topple. If you break the enemy and a party member has a topple move available, they will almost always attempt to use it. The enemy can be further debilitated with daze, which can only be used on a toppled enemy.

It's the primary strategic element in battles throughout the game, so it's important to learn it, get used to it, and practice it.

 

[Muskweeto]

for once it real British and not the fake US British

God I hate fake British, GOD I hate it.

 

[Edgeward]

I'm not sure what you mean by trinity/unity... are you referring to break/topple? If so, you need to have a character use a move that inflicts break - which looks like two vertical wavy lines - and then have a character use a move that inflicts topple. If the character you choose to control doesn't have a move that inflicts break, the AI-controlled party members will occasionally break the enemy, giving you a chance to topple. If you break the enemy and a party member has a topple move available, they will almost always attempt to use it. The enemy can be further debilitated with daze, which can only be used on a toppled enemy.

It's the primary strategic element in battles throughout the game, so it's important to learn it, get used to it, and practice it.

Ah, I meant the chain attack system. I didn't understand until I read a wiki that it requires full bar to activate. Which sucks when you fuck up on that boss because you will never build it back up again in that fight.

 

[chaosblade]

He might also mean chain attacks.

In order to do a Chain Attack, your party gauge (the blue gauge at the top of the screen with 3 bars) needs to be completely full. Then you can select it from the center button in your arts menu.

To maximize damage, you can increase the damage multiplier by using arts of the same color. Each attack increases it by 1 and it can go as high as 5. Talent arts increase the multiplier as well and act as a wildcard, allowing you to use any color afterward and continue raising it.

And a note about the party gauge, it increases during pretty much every action in battle all the way down to auto-attacks. Hitting the QTEs at the right time will boost it a good bit, and using arts can too.

Edit: Well, yeah, I guess so since he beat me to posting this while I copied from the FAQ.

 

[Ledsen]

I can look in to the distance/across a vista and be reminded that I'm on this huge ass

Sadly that part of the Bionis isn't in the game

 

[SecretMoblin]

Yeah, sadly the chain attack mechanic isn't as balanced as it could be. Once you get good at timing the button prompts it gets easier, and there are a ton of useful skills related to them. But for most of the game you have to use it sparingly because your bar fills too slowly for it to be of much use... and depending on your levels, you might have to grind your party gauge so you can use it for difficult enemies.

 

[Edgeward]

Oh? Well, that's not comforting. Is there a way to save up the gauge and not use it in battles till you want to? To me, it seems like you have to use it when the game tells you to.

 

[SecretMoblin]

Oh? Well, that's not comforting. Is there a way to save up the gauge and not use it in battles till you want to? To me, it seems like you have to use it when the game tells you to.

Yes. Outside of battles the gauge will deplete slowly - there's a skill to make it deplete even more slowly - so if you're having trouble with an enemy and want to start the battle with a nearly full party gauge, you just need to fight easier mobs and build it up.

 

[chaosblade]

Sadly that part of the Bionis isn't in the game

Depends on how you look at it,

Spoiler

Satorl Marsh is on the lower back.

Speaking of locations on Bionis, I still don't get why that one area with all the snow had snow. The in-game logic doesn't really hold up at all.

Oh? Well, that's not comforting. Is there a way to save up the gauge and not use it in battles till you want to? To me, it seems like you have to use it when the game tells you to.

The gauge drains over time, but there are skills that reduce the amount it drains. Chain attacks really aren't that important most of the time. There are only a few points in the main story you'll really need it, and you're already through at least one of them.

I don't really think it's balanced poorly, because the ability to use chain attacks almost at will makes battles far too easy.

 

[McNum]

For leveling up Arts, is there any priority on which arts to level up first? Like for the main character, Can I focus on leveling up Monado attacking arts first?

Shulk is hard to mess up, he's fairly straightforward in his Arts. Except for one:

Spoiler

Monado Shield

. You need to keep this one level higher than the highest enemy Art you've seen so far. So if a boss uses [at name] III, you want that skill at level IV. as soon as you can afterwards, because the next boss might be throwing a level IV art at you, which you need a level IV

Spoiler

Monado Shield

to block.

 

[Rebel Leader]

I called their 800 support number. They will send you a shipping label with instructions. You have to send them the Wii and the game. They can send the shipping label via email if you like too but I have two Wii's and I wanted to play the game a few days before shipping it off to Nintendo so I opted for them to send the shipping label through the mail.

Thanks I may not have to send the Wii in because when I can get xenoblade to play on the Wii... there are no oddities during gameplay and I have played for hours without problem... So the Wii can still read the disc. I hope lens cleaning work... enjoying the game? =D

 

[Zenaku]

Depends on how you look at it,

Spoiler

Satorl Marsh is on the lower back.

Speaking of locations on Bionis, I still don't get why that one area with all the snow had snow. The in-game logic doesn't really hold up at all.



The gauge drains over time, but there are skills that reduce the amount it drains. Chain attacks really aren't that important most of the time. There are only a few points in the main story you'll really need it, and you're already through at least one of them.

I don't really think it's balanced poorly, because the ability to use chain attacks almost at will makes battles far too easy.

I've always assumed it was to do with

Spoiler

the sword (which was in contact with the arm) absorbing Ether, coupled with the worlds source of heat being directed around the Bionis' back, both preventing the arm from supporting a lush environment and allowing it to be cold enough to produce snow.

 

[dark10x]

Satori Marsh. Night. Music. Sometimes I just warp there and change the time just to listen to the music.



I'm surprised you aren't playing it in Dolphin.

I've tried but I don't like it on Dolphin. Most games end up feeling a bit unpolished around the edges as emulation isn't flawless. I'd rather deal with poor image quality and have a proper experience.

 

[batbeg]

Oh fuck me is this game dual layer? It isn't working

 

[Mikey Jr.]

Ok, 2 things.

1. Has it been confirmed that jumping is faster than running to your destination? Looks faster, but I don't know.

2. Also, I just got the

Spoiler

monado

, but what happened to that art that was originally there? it was like "break" or something.

 

[Ultratech]

2. Also, I just got the

Spoiler

monado

, but what happened to that art that was originally there? it was like "break" or something.

It's gone and you don't get it back. What you get is a lot better though.

 

[Data West]

One thing I hate about this game is how vague quests are. Go find me this hat. Where is it? lol Iunno. Like, 20% of the time, they might give you a general idea of where to go. It's a huge pain in the ass when you look at how large the land masses are and how time can change what appears. You don't need to put a waypoint on it, but tell me a general direction to go.

 

[Antagon]

Ok, 2 things.

1. Has it been confirmed that jumping is faster than running to your destination? Looks faster, but I don't know.

2. Also, I just got the

Spoiler

monado

, but what happened to that art that was originally there? it was like "break" or something.

1) Don't think it is.
2) It's gone. That's not a problem though, as you should already have another ability that inflicts break on groups of enemies.

 

[SecretMoblin]

One thing I hate about this game is how vague quests are. Go find me this hat. Where is it? lol Iunno. Like, 20% of the time, they might give you a general idea of where to go. It's a huge pain in the ass when you look at how large the land masses are and how time can change what appears. You don't need to put a waypoint on it, but tell me a general direction to go.

Precisely why you shouldn't worry too much about doing every quest that comes your way; if you explore things naturally, you'll take care of most of it. There are no specific directions for most quests, but many will give you a location or a landmark so you can search the area. And time of day only affects collectibles. If there is a unique item for a quest - a glowing red orb - it will be there all the time, and show up on your minimap as a red exclamation point.

 

[Spieler Eins]

Oh fuck me is this game dual layer? It isn't working

Yes. I was surprised by the same problem last year.

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

I have only played for 4 hours and I haven't even left for my first quest outside of Colony 9 lol. Really loving this game and it feels incredibly deep.

 

[wsippel]

One thing I hate about this game is how vague quests are. Go find me this hat. Where is it? lol Iunno. Like, 20% of the time, they might give you a general idea of where to go. It's a huge pain in the ass when you look at how large the land masses are and how time can change what appears. You don't need to put a waypoint on it, but tell me a general direction to go.

Which is why you shouldn't think so much about it. You usually solve most quests at some point by accident, anyway. And only some of the questlines by named NPCs are really worthwhile, as those might provide additional background information about the world or give you unique rewards like

Spoiler

hidden Monado arts, the fourth and fifth skill trees and some ultimate weapons and armor

.

 

[The Technomancer]

Just got to the

Spoiler

Central Pit... at least that's what I think it's called. It's the mine underneath Colony 6 with the spinning shaft thing that appears to serve no useful purpose whatsoever.

Accidentally removed some armour from

Spoiler

Sharla. She's basically this game's Tifa. Does she ever wear anything apart from hotpants and cleavage tops?

I'm pretty sure I've found at lease one piece of armor for

Spoiler

Sharla

that

Spoiler

shows her nipples

Spoiler

They even went as far as giving her own 3 talent trees! And they looked great to use to, which I will never know now.

Haha, yeah, I did like how they set you up like that.

 

[entremet]

Can I use the original Classic Controller with this game? Or is a CCPro required? I still have my three original CCs.

 

[wsippel]

Can I use the original Classic Controller with this game? Or is a CCPro required? I still have my three original CCs.

Yes. Shape aside, they're the exact same thing. The Wii can't even tell the difference.

 

[clemenx]

Depends on how you look at it,

Spoiler

Satorl Marsh is on the lower back.

Speaking of locations on Bionis, I still don't get why that one area with all the snow had snow. The in-game logic doesn't really hold up at all.

Isn't it because that part of the Bionis never gets sunlight? I think they explain it in the game.

Spoiler

Makna Forest is the back of the bionis and Valak would be the chest, I guess?
Either way, geography doesn't make sense in Xenoblade I still can't wrap my head around the Sea being floating in Bionis' head.

 

[Owzers]

These side quests are all garbage, but made easier by not having to always travel back to the quest giver to receive the award. Now a game just needs to combine the two aspects by having worthwhile side quests that don't require you to travel back to the giver to collect the reward.

8 hours in and i'm enjoying the game despite a lot of complaints. I don't really like the party members so far, i'm more of a fan of "unique" characters with personalities as party members than just random guy/girl that you find walking down the street.

 

[Rebel Leader]

Just ordered component cables from Amazon... I am on why way to Colony 6

 

[IAmtheFMan]

Yeah, made me glad I pretty much had a no knowledge of anything of this game prior to playing it so seeing that happen made an impact on me.

Spoiler

Especially since I went and bought those bikini outfits, I thought for sure she would be around

Yeah, same for me. I was actually surprised something in the plot of a JRPG could still get a reaction from me.

Plus the music that was playing at the moment was really fitting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMjN_WoQfQI

 

[Alucrid]

Yeah, made me glad I pretty much had a no knowledge of anything of this game prior to playing it so seeing that happen made an impact on me.

Spoiler

Especially since I went and bought those bikini outfits, I thought for sure she would be around

When those outfits were the best gear at that time I thought, "Man, this game thinks of everything."

 

[Zornica]

Spoiler

They even went as far as giving her own 3 talent trees! And they looked great to use to, which I will never know now.

I saw a guy, who

Spoiler

got her up to level ~50 in new game+ , completing at least 2 trees.

if you are interested in strange personal accomplishments, go for it

 

[batbeg]

Yes. I was surprised by the same problem last year.

*throws xenoblade in trash*

 

[DrAndonuts]

PC-Gaf, I need 2 minutes of help. I'm trying to convert my PAL save over to the US version, but I'm not able to run the .bin files in this save converter on my Mac. If anyone could take a couple of minutes and help me convert it, I'd really appreciate it. The instructions are in the "pack save" folder.

Converter, instructions, + my save:
http://www.yousendit.com/download/M3BsVWRoZEsyWGNLSk1UQw

 

[The Technomancer]

Isn't it because that part of the Bionis never gets sunlight? I think they explain it in the game.

Spoiler

Makna Forest is the back of the bionis and Valak would be the chest, I guess?
Either way, geography doesn't make sense in Xenoblade I still can't wrap my head around the Sea being floating in Bionis' head.

Regarding the Bionis Head:

Spoiler

When you get a good look at it at some point it becomes clear that the Bionis head is really oddly shaped; its almost like a flat disc shaped valley that extends back from the head to form the basin for the sea

 

[Zornica]

*throws xenoblade in trash*

you could try 4 things:

1) someone in this thread got the game working after he played ssmb first, strange but effectiv.

2) get a cleaning kit

3) contact nintendo, and let them send you something for a free repair.

4) install homebrew if you've got an external harddrive and an sd card and rip the game to your harddrive playing it with an usb loader.

I can't even understand how 1 worked out, as Brawl is another dual layer game. I figured 4 is my best bet, it'll just be a while longer to wait

noone understands how it works, but it seems to... just try it, maybe it will work (only if you already got the game)

edit: -> http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=36756679&postcount=1598

 

[batbeg]

you could try 4 things:

1) someone in this thread got the game working after he played ssmb first, strange but effectiv.

2) get a cleaning kit

3) contact nintendo, and let them send you something for a free repair.

4) install homebrew if you've got an external harddrive and an sd card and rip the game to your harddrive playing it with an usb loader.

I can't even understand how 1 worked out, as Brawl is another dual layer game. I figured 4 is my best bet, it'll just be a while longer to wait

 

[Alrus]

I had the dual-layer reading issue a while ago (when TLS came out), I just used an old disc drive cleaning kit and it worked perfectly after that. I'd suggest trying that out before calling Nintendo.

 

[Rebel Leader]

Oh fuck me is this game dual layer? It isn't working

*throws xenoblade in trash*

I get unable to read disc... but I can still play it

I did order the lens cleaning kit from Nintendo waiting for it to be shipped

 

[Rebel Leader]

you could try 4 things:

1) someone in this thread got the game working after he played ssmb first, strange but effectiv.

2) get a cleaning kit

Actually now I just keep the disc in... if it doesn't spin... I hit reset button.. wait a minute

Now if it doesn't spin I repeat


It take me atleast 3 resets

As you can see here

----
Crap.. I have a timed quest.. must hurry

 

[Hazanko]

I recommend trying to complete the affinity chart. There's something quite satisfying about seeing what people think about each other. You might have to talk to a person a few times to get the full story though.

 

[Splash Wave]

It lets you take skills you have learned on one character and give them to another character. Raise affinity between two characters to increase the number of skills they can take from one another. For each level of affinity you can link an additional skill but you can only link a skill that fits the shape of that slot (ie, Circle, Star, Square, etc.). Which shapes are in each slot are character specific. Each skill you are trying to link costs a certain amount of "Affinity Coins". Each character gets one affinity coin per level and one affinity coin per boss/unique enemy. So when you set a skill to a character that another one has already learned it will have a specific Affinity coin cost. If you don't have enough affinity coins for that skill you can't link it. You can unequip linked skills at any time and you get refunded your Affinity coins when you do so. To access the skill link menu you hit "-" (Using CC) while looking at the Skill trees.

Thanks! Are there any in particular you recommend focusing on?


edit: Is this making anyone else really want to go back and play FFXII? I loved it at the time, but I was entirely too busy to properly devote myself to it when it came out.

 

[Zornica]

Thanks! Are there any in particular you recommend focusing on?

raising everyones agility is probably the best choice, as agility is by far the most important attribute in the game. Focusing on it early makes every battle more manageable.

Crap.. I have a timed quest.. must hurry

there is no need to hurry, there is no real time limit.

 

[Bisnic]

What's the problem with dual layer? My day 1 Wii can play the game just fine and its not homebrew or anything. Although the CD drive did make an awful noise years ago and i had to send it to Nintendo so they could repair it. Maybe they changed the CD drive to one that can read dual layers without any issue. Dont remember if it was before or after Smash Brawl release though.

 

[Rebel Leader]

How awful?
---
Oprainfall retweeted my video.... hope it works for other people

 

[Aeana]

USB Loader is really the best way to deal with this situation. Nintendo is pretty much done updating the Wii at this point (hasn't been an update in a loong time now), and it's pretty much risk-free if you follow Clipper's instructions at the GAF wiki. Then you can play imported games no problem, and you can install games to any USB storage device or SDHC card and get the added benefit of very much decreased load times.

 

[Bisnic]

How awful?

It was years ago, so im not sure... but i think it sounded like an electric razor. It was really annoying and hard to ignore. It's still the same old 2006 Wii, but they probably changed the CD drive back then.

 

[Man God]

I'm playing the US version from disc this time because my HD is louder then the Wii's optical drive.

Barely notice the difference most of the time from when I played the PAL version.

If your Wii has problem reading dual layer games though I can sympathize.

 

[Papercuts]

What's the problem with dual layer? My day 1 Wii can play the game just fine and its not homebrew or anything. Although the CD drive did make an awful noise years ago and i had to send it to Nintendo so they could repair it. Maybe they changed the CD drive to one that can read dual layers without any issue. Dont remember if it was before or after Smash Brawl release though.

I'm not sure what the real issue is, but the wii always seemed to have an issue with it. My launch window system played every game fine, even Brawl, but it wasn't until about 6 or so months when I wanted to play Brawl again that it just would not find the disc at all. Nintendo did repair it for free, but it still takes awhile to find the Xenoblade disc to boot, which is what it started doing to me for Brawl before it completely stopped.