* * * * * Chrono Trigger - Week 5 * * * * *

(Plain English: Scroll down to the bottom of the "OP" if you're lagging behind for previous weeks)


TABLE OF CONTENTS
Prologue:
i Okami Club
ii Fire Emblem Club

Epic Center:
01 Ogre Battle
24 Secret of Mana
39 Phantasy Star IV (cont'd)
67 Earthbound (cont'd)
99 Breath of Fire II (cont'd)
110 Paper Mario (cont'd)
123 Golden Sun (cont'd)
136 Chrono Trigger

(ALL VINTAGE EC GAMES ARE CONTINUED IN THEIR OFFICIAL DISCUSSION THREADS!)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Hello, true believers! Welcome to Negative World's newest RPG-centric Club Hub, springing off the heels of the Fire Emblem Club. Way back when, Nintendo Power introduced a monthly walkthrough / in depth Role Play Game section (right around the beefiest SNES RPG era), but since they aren't around anymore to use it, Negative World will bring it out of the ashes, dust it off, and roll with it (two things of note: #1, this is not in reaction to Nintendo Force Magazine at all -- I know that because I thought of it in the shower this morning, so THERE; and #2, I just looked up "Epic Center RPG" on Yahoo, and there is apparently another RPG-based site that has that, ugh. I guess we're looking at a "Ghostbusters" / "Real Ghostbusters" thing now... Whatever..).

For anyone who grew playing SNES RPGs, and were a fan of them, they surely resonated to the point where they still hold office as some of your favorite games of your entire videogame life, systems, generations, and decades later. The NW Epic Center (run primarily by myself, with the aid of some special friends occasionally) will help to expose some of those games that didn't quite get the recognition they deserved, and also to relive some of the greatest games EVER as we play through them again -- together -- and open up a whole new dialogue on these lost treasures.


Next up..



Chrono Trigger is held by many (myself included) as The Greatest RPG of All Time, pun not intended. It is a benchmark title in the genre, and even after 20 years the game is discussed daily and held in high regard, even in the face of juiced-up, HD "masterpieces." Is simpler sometimes better? Sure, but we're not talking "Dragon Warrior" simple here; we're talking 16-bit perfection at its finest. I'm personally a bit worried about pursuing this game once more; it's been a long time since my last jog through it, and I'm afraid I might have the rosiest pair of glasses that any shot of nostalgia could ever produce. We find out later this month, for better or for worse. (C'mon, it's gonna be fine -- we're talking Chrono Trigger here!! THE BEST, JERRY, THE BEST!!)

Sunday, August 30th marks the start of Week 1 (if you prefer to start your own quest AFTER Sunday, like Monday, or Tuesday, or Wednesday, thats fine!). Golden Sun ran 6 Weeks. GameDadGrant will be our DUNGEON MASTER for this one, and we figure the playthrough to run about the same length. Less than two months. I'm told the total quest should last you between 20 and 30 hours.


See ya soon!!


CHRONO TRIGGER

Dungeon Master: GameDadGrant

You Did It! Chrono Trigger Complete:
VofEscaflowne
Scrawnton
Mop it up
Ludist210


Week 4 Complete:
GameDadGrant
mrbiggsly
DapperDave

Week 3 Complete:
Mr_Mustache (and Mrs_Mustache!)

Week 2 Complete:
Smerd
Dark weres
warerare
sirmastersephiroth

Week 1 Complete:
Anand

Triggermen:
HammerLord
Koovaps

Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5

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@Pokefreak911

It's not so much that it's just the ridicuous XP & life system the game uses where one false step can lose you a whole pile of XP if you're not careful. I go into more depth here

I'm actually pretty far in, like 6th or 7th dungeon. I put it down because I was waiting for the updated version to come through so I could max out my lives abuse save states on the way to the final palace.

I think that hit a while back, but I haven't gone back to the game yet.

@Shadowlink
Life system never bothered me and neither did the XP. Once you find a good place to grind for XP you're good.

@Pokefreak911

That's the point. It's Zelda. There shouldn't be grinding.

@Shadowlink
But it's a Zelda/RPG hybrid. It also went in a completely different direction.

@Pokefreak911

The wrong direction. That's why Zelda III was the completely epic A Link to the Past.

@Shadowlink
Pah, you obviously don't get Zelda II's greatness.

@Mr_Mustache

I probably could... I just hate having too many games going on at once cause then I start ignoring some and hate jumping back into them after not having touched them in a while It's a vicious neverending cycle.

@Pokefreak911

Bought what? Zelda II? Metroid? Kid Icarus? ..Ogre Battle?

@Shadowlink

I'm pretty much with you on this. It is just..not a friendly game. Isn't there a lot of stuff that you'd never know unless you knew what to look for / do exactly? I never beat the game, but I've seen videos of guys falling through floors and stuff, even where you SHOULDN'T fall through places. Its like Simon's Quest, bleh. Kneel with the White Crystal facing the mountain for 5 seconds...what is this....

@VofEscaflowne

Games in the Clubs, like this, to me, seem like games that SHOULDN'T really be distracting from other games. I mean, there is only so much you can do on this (""legally"") each week, so its not like you'll get hung up forever, unless you're stuck looking at your guys' numbers/stats and trying to make the ultimate set. I'll admit, I spent a lot of time in Fire Emblem working my guys over and messing with experience and forging weapons, but a lot of that is my own fault, OCD-style. There is the POTENTIAL for someone like ME to get hung up sliding guys around here, but I don't think its nearly as bad as Fire Emblem, and I think a normal person would just leave it. You should be fine.

What games are you currently working on big time? I mean, I have a lot of "playing" games as far as the NW Database is concerned, but I haven't touched some of them in months, and I wasn't really planning on touching them soon. I'll keep up on baseball again when I get the itch to play some baseball, know what I mean? I'm just finishing up Batman now, Ninja Gaiden is waiting in the wings, and I'm working on Madden nightly. Ogre Battle will be a weekly installment thing, and I just did that for MONTHS with Fire Emblem and came out smelling like roses, and other lovely scents.

I don't like forcing people to do things especially if they're going to drop out / fall behind / curse my name / avoid anything else I do in the future, so I'll leave it up to you (and Ludist -- He's a Strong Maybe!). I like you dudes, and I'd like you to play this radical game, but if you think its going to screw up everything else you're doing (again, I don't think it will), and you're going to hate the game and be disgruntled, that is no good.


Lemme know! Just a few more days, EEK!

@Mr_Mustache
Ogre Battle.

But that's the beauty of it. It's like Zelda 1, it doesn't baby you and that's what gaming is missing these days. To many games handhold and tell you what to do and that ruins the fun of it. Skyward Sword is a great example of handholding ruining a game.

@Pokefreak911

Oh..well, with Ogre Battle Club, I'll spoil stuff out. You're free to do as you please with that information. I know Zero likes a "sense of discovery," so he'll just be doing whatever. More on that then.

@Mr_Mustache
I don't mind hints. I just cannot stand handholding.

Woo! Ogre Battle tomorrow! My skin has been ITCHING for weeks now! WOW!

How are our maybes doing? Have you guys upgraded yet? I might have Mrs_Mustache playing side-by-side with me, too: literally. It has been a dream of mine to see if I could guide her through a game almost as if I was playing. I mean, SHE should be able to beat Zelda on NES if she's mirroring my moves, right? Or will things go completely different? We shall see.. (MAYBE!)

I'll have the first week's instructions up later, we'll officially go green at midnight. Pumped!


@Pokefreak911

Alright, lemme know if its too handholdy. The game is..semi-structured so I can't really force you to do too much, but some stages open up where you're able to go one of two ways (but needing to do both in succession), and you're free to do as you please there. We'll see..

One more day... I can hardly wait! Although I know just getting through the first map will probably be boring, considering it's a tutorial level with no battles, I guess you can play it over and over to try and get a set of good cards.

IIRC, you want cards that damage, but do not kill, your opponents. This way, you can send a weak unit in, use a card to reduce the HP of your enemies, and the weak unit can finish them off!

If you use a card that kills opponents, all the EXP goes to Destin Faroda (Your character), and there's already been an explanation about why you shouldn't level him/her too much.

@Dark Weres

Yes, that is true. I was going to do a "Tarot Cards" *Little Help* thing, but this'll serve nicely.

Any damage incurred by your Tarot Cards will NOT go towards the total damage (which decides which side wins the battle). However, if you kill a guy early in the fight, obviously he won't be able to fight to do damage to you.

--Destin? Isn't Destin someone else? I think they're different people. Hmm...

EDIT- Huh. I never put that together somehow, haha!! I remember having him in Ogre Battle 64 along with some of the other guys, and I think I was thinking of Tristan the whole time or something. Look at you, woo!

Can't wait to play tonight! Or maybe tomorrow morning. Or maybe BOTH!

Alright, I'm gonna throw some stuff up here now.. Let me know if this needs to be tweaked, if its too much info, not enough info, etc.


WEEK 1

-Make your character! I like to answer the questions truthfully, but you may answer them however you please.
-Scene 1: The Beginning: Castle of Warren - Hidden Cities / Temples: 1 - Hidden Treasure: 2
-Scene 2: Rally: Sharom Border - Hidden Cities / Temples: 3 - Treasure: 1
-Scene 3: Revolution: Sharom District - Hidden Cities / Temples: 2 - Treasure: 3

General Tips and things to remember:
-You make money off of Cities you Liberate/Capture; they pay you at the end of the day. You CANNOT keep collecting money forever; after a while your Reputation will start to drop. Remember that your friendliest characters (if thats your thing, and it kinda should be; incredibly important if you want the best ending) should be Liberating. Occupy with whoever you want afterwards, do not give them up again if you can help it. Also, when getting a new city for the first time, you will draw a Tarot Card. Most of them will be nice effects, but a few of them are no good. You can only hold so many, so don't save 'em up forever.
-You don't get Money from Temples, and it doesn't matter who takes that over with, naughty unit or not.
-If you get close to an enemy unit (boss included), you will be immediately pulled into battle. If you wish not to fight yet, be careful.
-Check your Unit's movement type. You will go quickest through that medium. High Sky is a direct route, and fastest.
-When encountering a Neutral Character, IMMEDIATELY hit A to enter your command menu (TAROT CARDS ARE FROM THIS MENU, TOO!). The option to Befriend is there, and if he likes you, he'll join. Charisma of your leader helps, but I don't know if its completely necessary. You can encounter an enemy while moving, but not standing still, so if your guys have nothing to do, just move 'em around and hope for the best. They're all over the place, too; Forests, Mountains, Waters..Mulva?

Spoilers / handholding, of course..
Chapter 1 Tips: Lans is a recruitable character, hidden in a City on the NE island. You don't need to deploy him; save yourself some cash and just do it alone. Treasure is SW of Zolzak, and the Southernmost Island.
Chapter 2 Tips: Cities hidden to the east of Jindark (Boss place), SW of Valikesh where the road leads nowhere, and a Temple is on the Island above the right side of the map (A "HEROSTAR" is given to you here, and possibly you-you, so make sure you get it. Very important item.). Treasure is on the island right below Ellery, a hidden city. Have Lans find the Boss from some extra talkage! TENSE! After the Chapter ends, go back in and return to Fallsala (sending You alone w/o a supporting unit will cost nothing, and you won't be in danger. If you want to spring for a Gryphon to carry you around, you'll get there quick, but it might cost you a few bucks), and they'll give you a "NUGGET." Sell it. If you return to Valna, you'll be told of a wizard dude looking for "LEXICON." This is the book of the dead (in this game); return here for an Undead Staff or Undead Ring. Very helpful later (which is around the time you'll likely stumble across one).
Chapter 3 Tips: Some of these city names might be wrong due to localization / translation errors. Blah. The Boss Base has a moat around it, so if you're told to go there (by name), uh, don't. City hidden in the little clearing below Chang' Ga, Temple hidden West of the Boss below the mountain where the road ends. Treasure in the tippytop marsh area, the island below Bah' Wahl, and in the mountain clump, SE corner of the map, where the road starts/ends. Getting Canopus / Gilbert: Must be done WHILE PLAYING, not after. Liberate Latingure (Shop Town) to hear about Canopus, Liberate Bah' Wahl to answer questions, revisit Latingure to hear about Yulia, find the Hidden Roshian Temple, take the Wing to Bah' Wahl and Canopus will be pumped up. Have him fight Gilbert, and you SHOULD get both.. HOWEVER, I've actually avoided Gilbert somehow before even after having Canopus fight him, which some walkthrough folks have never seen. Hmmm.. --HEY, GOOD LUCK!!


Woooo!!

Well I'm all ready to go.

Playing on my old Wii and so far so good, though I have already seen one game over screen. I dumped a couple dozen hours into Ogre Battle 64 when that came out, and I'm slowly remembering how that game went. Being kinda sloppy right now, but I expect to get better. I'm using my cool Super Famicom classic controller, so I kinda feel authentic playing the game.

Chapter 1
Done, all secrets found.

First Impressions
Really liking it. It's easy to control and looks nice. Definitely going to enjoy this. Love finding secret stuff. Combat seems a little simple but I like that.
Still don't quite get tarot cards though.

Finished the first two chapters.