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[John Harker]

Finally started. Woa the map is TERRIBLE. I can't believe I'm asking this, but how do I even get to the Tephra Caves?? I can't even find it, and I've been wandering around for like 45 min. It seems elevated on the map to a place I can't seem to find

 

[1stStrike]

Finally started. Woa the map is TERRIBLE. I can't believe I'm asking this, but how do I even get to the Tephra Caves?? I can't even find it, and I've been wandering around for like 45 min. It seems elevated on the map to a place I can't seem to find

Really? I never got lost even once... I just followed the arrows. You leave the town, go up the hill and follow it around to the cave at the top.

Not sure how you're having difficulty with that.

 

[Mockingbird]

Woot! Just beat avalanche abassy with Melia, Dunban, and Sharla in what was probably the longest battle ever.

Now just two superbosses left: ancient daedala and the blizzard thing.

 

[Kenka]

Geez guys, spoil your quest details, there are people who have yet to reach your point, like me !
Started the game yesterday evening and I haven't been sucked into a game for God knows how long. Last time was probably Resident Evil 4.


Game is beautiful and super engaging, exactly what an AAA title must be.

 

[Zornica]

Geez guys, spoil your quest details, there are people who have yet to reach your point, like me !
Started the game yesterday evening and I haven't been sucked into a game for God knows how long. Last time was probably Resident Evil 4.


Game is beautiful and super engaging, exactly what an AAA title must be.

I am not sure what are you refering to, so I guess you mean the talks about daedala, abassy etc?
If so, that's hardly a spoiler. They aren't part of any quest or the main story and chances are high that you'll never encounter them, like most people who played and beat the game.

 

[ThankeeSai]

Had the game on Wii, but for one reason or another, I never got that far into it. Have recently re-started on WiiU and loving it.

Anyway, I have just got to a boss fight against

Spoiler

Mechon M71.

Can't seem to beat the second section of the fight - I keep getting killed by

Spoiler

the attacks that you get glimpses of before they happen. I can't seem to balance things properly - I'll use the Monado to enchant everyone else's weapon, then within a few seconds, the Mechon will perform some attack or other, the Monado hasn't recharged so I can't do anything to try and stop it. How does the Monado recharge? Is it just a case of hitting enemies with standard attacks to get it to recharge?

Have tried a few times now, but just can't seem to beat him.

I'm sure I'll get there eventually...Maybe I'm trying to do it too fast an need to slow down and concentrate better. Maybe I need to level up? Think I'm level 19 atm.

Any other tips, GAF?

 

[Zornica]

that's correct. the monado charges on normal hits. Maybe you already got a doubble hit gem from a quest? If so, those help a great deal early in the game.
I am not sure who M71 was... I guess that was the

Spoiler

mechon with the tentacles?

The most important thing about this fight is dodging. If a vision pops up, you need to counter it in the right way. Is the text red? use monado speed on the target. Is the text white? use monado shield. Don't waste your Monado charge on stuff like buster.
Your level should be sufficient. If you got some agility gems, put those on too! (they are the best gems in the game)

good luck

 

[ThankeeSai]

that's correct. the monado charges on normal hits. Maybe you already got a doubble hit gem from a quest? If so, those help a great deal early in the game.
I am not sure who M71 was... I guess that was the

Spoiler

mechon with the tentacles?

The most important thing about this fight is dodging. If a vision pops up, you need to counter it in the right way. Is the text red? use monado speed on the target. Is the text white? use monado shield. Don't waste your Monado charge on stuff like buster.
Your level should be sufficient. If you got some agility gems, put those on too! (they are the best gems in the game)

good luck

That's right sorry, should have made it clearer,

Spoiler

M71 is the one who's got Juju and you have to rescue him.

Thanks for the tips, will give that a try tonight

Oh and

That's a fight where you learn a new Monado skill, so expect that scripted attack which can be countered by your new ability. Hold off on using Enchant until afterward.

White = Use Shield
Red = Use Speed
Purple = Topple, switch aggro, heal up, or otherwise protect yourself

Auto-attacks fill the talent gauge, and you need a full talent gauge to use Monado Arts. So after you use enchant hold off on using arts until it fills up again.

Oops, didn't realize other people had replied.

Thanks guys

 

[ag-my001]

That's a fight where you learn a new Monado skill, so expect that scripted attack which can be countered by your new ability. Hold off on using Enchant until afterward.

White = Use Shield
Red = Use Speed
Purple = Topple, switch aggro, heal up, or otherwise protect yourself

 

[upandaway]

I feel like I'm being a bit too straightforward about how I'm doing this. I just choose the stuff with the highest stats and upgrade what I use most every once in a while, and dump in all the best attack/ether/agility/defense gems I have.. but is there a smart way to go about this? Like particular gem layouts with specific armor sets, or a particular set of attacks that work well together, or something. This is reminding me of Advance Wars, and I'm terrible at that series. I feel like I'm just bashing my head against enemies until they die when I could be smarter.

Also, is there a nice list of side stuff to do, and when to do them? I thought it was all "kill x monsters" and ignored it until now.. I'm right after

Spoiler

Sword Valley, at level 54

.

 

[chaosblade]

Had the game on Wii, but for one reason or another, I never got that far into it. Have recently re-started on WiiU and loving it.

Anyway, I have just got to a boss fight against

Spoiler

Mechon M71.

Can't seem to beat the second section of the fight - I keep getting killed by

Spoiler

the attacks that you get glimpses of before they happen. I can't seem to balance things properly - I'll use the Monado to enchant everyone else's weapon, then within a few seconds, the Mechon will perform some attack or other, the Monado hasn't recharged so I can't do anything to try and stop it. How does the Monado recharge? Is it just a case of hitting enemies with standard attacks to get it to recharge?

Have tried a few times now, but just can't seem to beat him.

I'm sure I'll get there eventually...Maybe I'm trying to do it too fast an need to slow down and concentrate better. Maybe I need to level up? Think I'm level 19 atm.

Any other tips, GAF?

Auto-attacks fill the talent gauge, and you need a full talent gauge to use Monado Arts. So after you use enchant hold off on using arts until it fills up again.

Oops, didn't realize other people had replied.

 

[Zornica]

I feel like I'm being a bit too straightforward about how I'm doing this. I just choose the stuff with the highest stats and upgrade what I use most every once in a while, and dump in all the best attack/ether/agility/defense gems I have.. but is there a smart way to go about this? Like particular gem layouts with specific armor sets, or a particular set of attacks that work well together, or something. This is reminding me of Advance Wars, and I'm terrible at that series. I feel like I'm just bashing my head against enemies until they die when I could be smarter.

Also, is there a nice list of side stuff to do, and when to do them? I thought it was all "kill x monsters" and ignored it until now.. I'm right after

Spoiler

Sword Valley, at level 54

.

forcing your way through works, but towards the end of the game you will hit some iron walls. I am not sure what kind of party constelation you are using, but I am guessing you stuck to the original formation of shulk . reyn sharla? If so I'd advice you to get familiar with other characters rather sooner than later because the farther you get the weaker this party becomes.
dumping sharla and reyn seems hard in the first moment because you have to overthink your approach to battles, but you will thank me in the end. To make the transition easier I'd recommend some agility gems for everyone in the party. I'd also recommend having riki as a party member because he has a good healing spell and also deals a good amount of damage. just focus on his damage over time spells.

I'd also advice you to become familiar with melia because that would make some fights later in the game a lot easier... there as a guide in the OT.

 

[Chris R]

So I'm finally going to play this after starting and trying in Dolphin several times before. Got about two hours in today so far and I'm liking most of this, but there are a few confusing things. Do I complete a quest as soon as I get items or do I need to find the giver to finish it? Also, the cave has dudes that are pretty damn tough for me (as in multiple party members dying) at my level of 9, should I go outside and grind some experience to give me a better chance against them? The little enemies are no problem, just having problems with the bigger ones like the big caterpillar.

 

[1stStrike]

So I'm finally going to play this after starting and trying in Dolphin several times before. Got about two hours in today so far and I'm liking most of this, but there are a few confusing things. Do I complete a quest as soon as I get items or do I need to find the giver to finish it? Also, the cave has dudes that are pretty damn tough for me (as in multiple party members dying) at my level of 9, should I go outside and grind some experience to give me a better chance against them? The little enemies are no problem, just having problems with the bigger ones like the big caterpillar.

No need to return to the quest giver (in most cases). Once you get the items or kill the specified mobs you automatically complete the quest an a dialogue pops up telling you as much.

Also, the tougher enemies in the cave you're not supposed to kill right now - just ignore them, follow the story, do sidequests as per normal and then come back when you're a bit higher level. You'll run into enemies throughout the game that are mingled in with lower level enemies - they'll be significantly higher level than you (like lvl 70) so you won't be able to touch them for a loooong time. So, it's like that on purpose. Just avoid them

 

[BlackGhost]

I'm on the hunt to find this game now, nearest Gamestop that has it right now is like 50 miles away so hoping it appears on the Gamestop site again or locally

 

[1stStrike]

I'm on the hunt to find this game now, nearest Gamestop that has it right now is like 50 miles away so hoping it appears on the Gamestop site again or locally

Good luck... need to watch the gamestop site like a hawk. The last time a copy appeared on the gamestop site I bought it

 

[Chris R]

No need to return to the quest giver (in most cases). Once you get the items or kill the specified mobs you automatically complete the quest an a dialogue pops up telling you as much.

Also, the tougher enemies in the cave you're not supposed to kill right now - just ignore them, follow the story, do sidequests as per normal and then come back when you're a bit higher level. You'll run into enemies throughout the game that are mingled in with lower level enemies - they'll be significantly higher level than you (like lvl 70) so you won't be able to touch them for a loooong time. So, it's like that on purpose. Just avoid them

I was just double checking to make sure. Never played a game that doesn't make you return to sender for most things when you are sent out to collect a set of items.

So I guess I can skirt around the harder ones, even though they were only a few levels higher than me? Is there no method to properly con a mob? The game explained how certain monsters sense and attack you but didn't go into difficulty levels and linking.

 

[1stStrike]

I was just double checking to make sure. Never played a game that doesn't make you return to sender for most things when you are sent out to collect a set of items.

So I guess I can skirt around the harder ones, even though they were only a few levels higher than me? Is there no method to properly con a mob? The game explained how certain monsters sense and attack you but didn't go into difficulty levels and linking.

You'll notice some symbols around the special mobs names in the name box (kinda squiggly) - usually they give better drops and are typically mini boss class monsters. Even if one is like level 10, at least in the beginning, you should be around level 13 or so when you face it since they will fuck you up pretty bad. Can't really kite them or cheese them in this game.

 

[Zornica]

No need to return to the quest giver (in most cases). Once you get the items or kill the specified mobs you automatically complete the quest an a dialogue pops up telling you as much.

thats not entirely true. most quests don't autocomplete. only the ones with generic names like "XYZ Quest 2" most of them are numbered. In the beginning of the game, most quests are like that, but that changes rapidly. Quests with unique names never autocomplete, so you have to return to the quest giver. Those quests are sidestory related, autocomplete quests are just for gaining xp and items.

edit:
I don't think unique mobs are that much harder, BUT the caterpillar is probably the toughest enemy in the game, relative to it's level. There is hardly anyone who could kill it at level 10, so don't feel bad about it. all other uniques are way easier to kill (which you should do btw, they drop great gear and a ton of xp)

 

[1stStrike]

thats not entirely true. most quests don't autocomplete. only the ones with generic names like "XYZ Quest 2" most of them are numbered. In the beginning of the game, most quests are like that, but that changes rapidly. Quests with unique names never autocomplete, so you have to return to the quest giver. Those quests are sidestory related, autocomplete quests are just for gaining xp and items.

edit:
I don't think unique mobs are that much harder, BUT the caterpillar is probably the toughest enemy in the game, relative to it's level. There is hardly anyone who could kill it at level 10, so don't feel bad about it. all other uniques are way easier to kill (which you should do btw, they drop great gear and a ton of xp)

There were quests that you had to return to the NPC for, but I honestly skipped most of those and just did the kill x mobs and collect x items quests because they were along the way. I still completed a good number of sidequests with just doing that. So, yeah, if you do -all- of the sidequests there are ones that you have to back track for.

Oh, and I found as I leveled up and got more gems plus better equipment the level gap wasn't so important anymore, but there were definitely enemies along the way that wtfpwned me if I wasn't at the right level. I recall a guy in the marsh inside of a chamber with a bunch of minions around him and I attempted him about 5 times and he beat my ass every time once he started getting low on HP. Needed a couple more levels to be able to take him out.

 

[Laurentius]

Nope. The odds of more copies being produced is quite slim at this point. Even if they did so, it would make more sense to have it in the form of an HD version, but I feel that is extremely unlikely too.

Unfortunate...I'd really like to play this, but I also really don't want to have to pay the amount it's going for on Amazon/eBay.

 

[chaosblade]

thats not entirely true. most quests don't autocomplete. only the ones with generic names like "XYZ Quest 2" most of them are numbered. In the beginning of the game, most quests are like that, but that changes rapidly. Quests with unique names never autocomplete, so you have to return to the quest giver. Those quests are sidestory related, autocomplete quests are just for gaining xp and items.

edit:
I don't think unique mobs are that much harder, BUT the caterpillar is probably the toughest enemy in the game, relative to it's level. There is hardly anyone who could kill it at level 10, so don't feel bad about it. all other uniques are way easier to kill (which you should do btw, they drop great gear and a ton of xp)

I beat that unique at some combination of level 9s and 10s (and I don't mean on that NG+ playthrough). It's fun!

Mischievous Naberis and Majestic Mordred are harder though, IMO. Without good blaze protection their opening attacks will destroy you, and you can't topple them to cheese the fight. Add in the crap load of HP, high defense and damage output, and Titan Stamp...

Naberis is probably harder just because you have less options when you reach it. No M. Armor, and I've never had much of anything in terms of blaze protect gems at that point in the game aside from that mediocre unique armor.

Unfortunate...I'd really like to play this, but I also really don't want to have to pay the amount it's going for on Amazon/eBay.

You can import a PAL copy for significantly less if putting homebrew on your Wii isn't out of the question. It's like $45-$50 I think.

 

[ThankeeSai]

Thanks for the tips yesterday guys. Got home last night and beat him first time. Have now moved onto

Spoiler

Colony 6 sewers

I'm loving this game

 

[Bisnic]

I'm not sure if i can ask it there, otherwise just send me a PM please.

I'm trying to find the full OST of Xenoblade in a single download file if possible, just looking for a link. Thanks.

 

[1stStrike]

I'm not sure if i can ask it there, otherwise just send me a PM please.

I'm trying to find the full OST of Xenoblade in a single download file if possible, just looking for a link. Thanks.

Go out and buy it. Nobody is going to condone pirating on GAF.

 

[upandaway]

forcing your way through works, but towards the end of the game you will hit some iron walls. I am not sure what kind of party constelation you are using, but I am guessing you stuck to the original formation of shulk . reyn sharla? If so I'd advice you to get familiar with other characters rather sooner than later because the farther you get the weaker this party becomes.
dumping sharla and reyn seems hard in the first moment because you have to overthink your approach to battles, but you will thank me in the end. To make the transition easier I'd recommend some agility gems for everyone in the party. I'd also recommend having riki as a party member because he has a good healing spell and also deals a good amount of damage. just focus on his damage over time spells.

I'd also advice you to become familiar with melia because that would make some fights later in the game a lot easier... there as a guide in the OT.

I'm actually using Melia/Dunban/rotate because of this thread and because Melia is about 2 billion (scientific assessment) times more fun than Shulk to play as. I stopped using Reyn ever since I had 4 members.

I don't think I have any more agility gems since I put them all on Dunban.. should I take some off of him? Is smart gem usage just "AGILITY EVERYWHERE"?

I'm having a bit of difficulty, but not really. I just want to have more fun with the game without the feeling that I'm rushing stuff. Maybe my google-fu is weak but I'm not finding any good sidegame guides.

 

[Mockingbird]

Ugh, finally beat ancient Daedala. Was level 97. Used Shulk, Sharla, and Dunban. spike damage is the main trouble. I didn't have 100% spike resist gems. also the crazed aura. It wasn't until I found out it could be sealed in a chain where I finally won.

all the superbosses are done (though I cheated with Blizzard Belzaga...) quests are done. Now I can beat the game and consider it done!

Edit: Just beat Blizzard legitly! Couldn't let it go with the crystal cheat. I think I'm done with the game. Over 160 hours. What an adventure. Loved it! My only complaint is most of the areas from sword valley onward (save the arm) were meh in comparison to the areas in the beginning of the game. Bionis Leg is my favorite of the areas cause it's freaking huge with lots to explore.

I hope most of the areas in X will be like Gaur Planes as opposed to Sword Valley and onwards.

In regards to the end game Unique Monsters I dislike how most of them were all about gemcrafting.

 

[Zornica]

In regards to the end game Unique Monsters I dislike how most of them were all about gemcrafting.

depends on your party I'd say. The only gem you really need is debuff resist against the dragon. everything else is optional depending on the characters you use. But having at least one agility VI gem per character makes everything way easier ofc.

 

[katkombat]

Hmm this was sent to me by my grandma in a text message... SOON.

 

[JaseMath]

Hmm this was sent to me by my grandma in a text message... SOON.

That's awesome. Especially being your grandma.

 

[Ookaze]

There were quests that you had to return to the NPC for, but I honestly skipped most of those and just did the kill x mobs and collect x items quests because they were along the way. I still completed a good number of sidequests with just doing that. So, yeah, if you do -all- of the sidequests there are ones that you have to back track for.

It's not "there are ones", it's most. In my encyclopedia, I have 122 basic quests (where you don't need to go back to the quest giver) for 483 total quests, so roughly 1/4th of quests are like you describe. You didn't do a lot of quests in the game then, as often the named NPC quests require several trips to other characters.

Oh, and I found as I leveled up and got more gems plus better equipment the level gap wasn't so important anymore, but there were definitely enemies along the way that wtfpwned me if I wasn't at the right level. I recall a guy in the marsh inside of a chamber with a bunch of minions around him and I attempted him about 5 times and he beat my ass every time once he started getting low on HP. Needed a couple more levels to be able to take him out.

That's true. The first caterpillar Unique (that's how they're called) can be beaten at level 9, but you need to master the combat system before, which can only happens far into the game. I can consistently kill him with the start characters, but when you start the game for the first time, you will need to be higher level of course.

 

[Ookaze]

Mischievous Naberis and Majestic Mordred are harder though, IMO. Without good blaze protection their opening attacks will destroy you, and you can't topple them to cheese the fight. Add in the crap load of HP, high defense and damage output, and Titan Stamp...

Naberis is probably harder just because you have less options when you reach it. No M. Armor, and I've never had much of anything in terms of blaze protect gems at that point in the game aside from that mediocre unique armor.

Naberis is the first of this class of Unique and the harder to beat IMHO when you don't know the above ground trick. These were the hardest Unique to beat to me, especially since access to them is time limited as they become inaccessible once some events happen. I actually had to grind 2-3 levels to beat Naberis (I was ashamed, the first time I had to do that), because I didn't find the good spot to attack its head, and had to fight on the ground, where he destroyed me. When you can find the good spot to attack them above the ground, they become very easy to beat : most of their devastating attacks are eliminated as they can't reach you anymore, it's almost pathetic. They're still strong but not the hardest anymore once you do that. These are my favorite Uniques to beat. But most people missed them as they are well hidden.
Naberis is a unique you see once you get to level 50 monsters.
First time I saw Naberis, he took me by surprise

Spoiler

: his routine path is made to take you by surprise. As soon as you pass a precise line, he starts walking up to that line, and there's a row of enemies you have to pass, made to get your attention, and not see him get upon you until it's too late.

It gave me the same feeling that the start of the game, and there's a very good reason for that

Spoiler

it's exactly the same location, and it's even possible that's the one we see go to Dunban, Mumkhar and Dickson in the intro.

.

 

[Ookaze]

Ugh, finally beat ancient Daedala. Was level 97. Used Shulk, Sharla, and Dunban. spike damage is the main trouble. I didn't have 100% spike resist gems. also the crazed aura. It wasn't until I found out it could be sealed in a chain where I finally won.

Most people seem to have problems with every single Unique that has spike damage when they fall to the ground. There are two main classes of monsters that have these kind of spike damage, and sometimes one Unique in other classes. Must be because everyone use the topple lock technique with the swordman, which makes him die pretty fast. Daedala was the easiest to beat for me, as I didn't beat him with topple lock nor night vision, ans also, I got used to "spike damage when toppled" right when it started in Makna forest : that's the first time the tutorial appears, and there's a Unique there that does these kind of damage. People say Reyn is not useful anymore, but I always beat these uniques easily with him, as even without anti-spike gems, Reyn HP are far more manageable with Sharla or even with Shulk : he has a lot and doesn't attack as often, he gest the aggro, so when your higher DPS characters start being in critical condition, you can step back from the monster (if you get the aggro, you can't do that).

In regards to the end game Unique Monsters I dislike how most of them were all about gemcrafting.

You can beat most of them without, but it's true that there's an evolution in fighting them. The lesser level Unique (lvl 99) drop gems that can greatly help you beat the next higher level Unique, and so on until Abassy.

 

[chaosblade]

I know you can attack them from high ground, but that's cheating in my opinion I only did that on my first playthrough with Mordred. Every other time I went at ground level.

 

[katkombat]

That's awesome. Especially being your grandma.

Yeah, it's pretty kickass, isn't it? The only copy GameStop had within 100 miles was in her town, but when I called them before she went, they said "OH MAN WE CAN'T FIND THAT COPY SORRY MAN" and she went anyways the next day and they didn't have it so...she bought an 83 dollar copy off of eBay. I even told her not to get it, but she insisted haha.

 

[1stStrike]

It's not "there are ones", it's most. In my encyclopedia, I have 122 basic quests (where you don't need to go back to the quest giver) for 483 total quests, so roughly 1/4th of quests are like you describe. You didn't do a lot of quests in the game then, as often the named NPC quests require several trips to other characters.

Nope! Fuck side quests.

 

[katkombat]

YEEEES.

 

[1stStrike]

nm

 

[cooljeanius]

Who do you think is easier? Abaasy and Belgazas are definitely harder, and Arsene is harder IMO because of his high dodge rate, topple resistance, and massively damaging arts.

Nah, both Abaasy and Belgazas are easier, it only took me a few tries to take down Belzagas, and I would have easily had Abaasy if I hadn't had to leave for college. Meanwhile Daedala took ages of grinding for Skill Points. Also Daedala is Mechon so you either have to use worse weapons, or use Monado Enchant at a time when you could be using your Monado art for shattering a vision.

 

[daripad]

Almost ending spoilers:

Spoiler

I just finished beating Lorithia, it was an exhausting battle and I had to grind till level 73 to kill her, and after 99999999 tries my team (Melia, Sharla and Riki) took her down, I hope the next bosses are easier because I want to see the ending already

 

[chaosblade]

Nah, both Abaasy and Belgazas are easier, it only took me a few tries to take down Belzagas, and I would have easily had Abaasy if I hadn't had to leave for college. Meanwhile Daedala took ages of grinding for Skill Points. Also Daedala is Mechon so you either have to use worse weapons, or use Monado Enchant at a time when you could be using your Monado art for shattering a vision.

When can Shulk get his fifth skill tree? I don't remember the quest involved, but I don't recall it requiring a high level fight like some others (Reyn, 7th, and Riki for sure). I know Dunban's can be gotten before you even hit the final dungeon.

If you can get it that early, it's probably worth just focusing on that through the entire post-game since that last skill basically breaks the game. Would make Enchant a non-issue for that fight.

Almost ending spoilers:

Spoiler

I just finished beating Lorithia, it was an exhausting battle and I had to grind till level 73 to kill her, and after 99999999 tries my team (Melia, Sharla and Riki) took her down, I hope the next bosses are easier because I want to see the ending already

Most people consider that the hardest boss in the game. The only one had I more trouble with on my first playthrough was the one after it, but that was entirely due to my game apparently glitching out on me (

Spoiler

Purge wasn't negating spike damage for some reason

).

 

[Mockingbird]

When can Shulk get his fifth skill tree? I don't remember the quest involved, but I don't recall it requiring a high level fight like some others (Reyn, 7th, and Riki for sure). I know Dunban's can be gotten before you even hit the final dungeon.

If you can get it that early, it's probably worth just focusing on that through the entire post-game since that last skill basically breaks the game. Would make Enchant a non-issue for that fight.



Most people consider that the hardest boss in the game. The only one had I more trouble with on my first playthrough was the one after it, but that was entirely due to my game apparently glitching out on me (

Spoiler

Purge wasn't negating spike damage for some reason

).

The only reason I found her difficult was confusion which would force me to walk into the pool of acid. The terrain is to your disadvantage. I don't think it's the hardest boss in the game though.

 

[chaosblade]

Well, the whole game was easy honestly. I don't remember having trouble with any boss fights except that one I mentioned in my previous post. But I was also doing a ton of sidequests (though without a guide I was definitely missing some) so I might have been a bit overleveled.

 

[B-Dubs]

Hmm this was sent to me by my grandma in a text message... SOON.

Sounds like your grandma is a total badass. It also sounds like you've got someone to play co-op with when X comes out.

 

[katkombat]

Sounds like your grandma is a total badass. It also sounds like you've got someone to play co-op with when X comes out.

Haha it seems like I do! Wow I'm 4 hours and

Spoiler

FIORA IS DEAD?! I figured she was like a main character...

Man, what a bunch of jokers... I love this game so much.

 

[JulianImp]

Haha it seems like I do! Wow I'm 4 hours and

Spoiler

FIORA IS DEAD?! I figured she was like a main character...

Man, what a bunch of jokers... I love this game so much.

I highlighted the spoiler since I'm four hours in as well, and that was exactly my reaction.

I had only played the tutorial about a month ago and the game didn't seem like much at the time, but yesterday I played it again and had a blast. The real time combat system is really fun, and it's great how they've kept the original japanese voice clips and made the language selectable, so I can practice it some more (I love noticing the differences between the original and translated scripts). However, I found it strange that Fiora's most advanced outfit so far is a bikini (I guess I should've known better).

By the way, I have a question about the game roughly four hours in:

Spoiler

Are all my unfinished quests in town lost forever unless I use an earlier save? If that's the case, I'll probably reload an earlier save to make sure I do all the stuff before the point of no return. I've also been thinking about removing the HP up gems Fiora had on her gear, if there's a way to do so.

Another question I'd like to ask is if Collectables are supposed to be sold or not. I don't want to miss out on stuff that would require them later, for example, but I don't want to endlessly hoard them while not having enough money to buy some good gear for my party.

I guess I'll be playing this in the coming days, since the story so far has been interesting, and the music was so good even my mom remarked on it as she was passing by the TV. My only complaint so far is how bad it looks on my 4:3 CRT TV, with even character portraits and text getting a bit jagged and hard to read. Will it look better if I plug my Wii into my 1080p monitor/TV, despite only having the basic RCA cable? Also, woud it be worth it to get my hands on the other one?

At first I didn't believe the hype, but now I think I'll be getting the other two Operation Rainfall games as soon as I can (ie: in a few months at best). I haven't played too many RPGs, and I've finally realized I've been missing out on a pretty compelling (if somewhat formulaig) genre.

 

[Zornica]

By the way, I have a question about the game roughly four hours in:

Spoiler

Are all my unfinished quests in town lost forever unless I use an earlier save? If that's the case, I'll probably reload an earlier save to make sure I do all the stuff before the point of no return. I've also been thinking about removing the HP up gems Fiora had on her gear, if there's a way to do so.

missable quests are marked with an hourglass. Everything you encountered so far isn't missable so there's no need to load an old save file. also... every item

Spoiler

fiora

had should be back in your inventory, if not, doesn't matter, it's not worth losing some hours of progress over a simple hp gem.

Another question I'd like to ask is if Collectables are supposed to be sold or not. I don't want to miss out on stuff that would require them later, for example, but I don't want to endlessly hoard them while not having enough money to buy some good gear for my party.

ok, here is the thing: you don't buy equipment - the only thing you should by are art books. buying equipment is a waste of money. Enemys, especially unique ones, drop way waaaaaay better gear than what you'd be able to buy in stores. if you plan on doing a lot of quests, you shouldn't sell anything untill you have to. (it usually takes about 20-30 hours for your inventory to run out of space.)

I guess I'll be playing this in the coming days, since the story so far has been interesting, and the music was so good even my mom remarked on it as she was passing by the TV. My only complaint so far is how bad it looks on my 4:3 CRT TV, with even character portraits and text getting a bit jagged and hard to read. Will it look better if I plug my Wii into my 1080p monitor/TV, despite only having the basic RCA cable? Also, woud it be worth it to get my hands on the other one?

the crt part is strange
as for the lcd... just try it, but don't expect some miracle. I think wii games can look very good on an lcd, even with the cheapest cable, but that heavely depends on the tv used and how good it scales. I guess you have an american wii? so 576i is probably not an option than (which certainly would improve the image quality on crts and lcds a lot).

At first I didn't believe the hype, but now I think I'll be getting the other two Operation Rainfall games as soon as I can (ie: in a few months at best). I haven't played too many RPGs, and I've finally realized I've been missing out on a pretty compelling (if somewhat formulaig) genre.

you should know that they are nothing alike though.

 

[JulianImp]

Thanks for the quick reply! Lots of useful information.

Yeah, I have an american Wii. What's strange about the CRT, the fact that I have one or the game looking bad? I guess the game has to compress the image vertically to make it fit after adding black horizontal bars, so it's jaggy like hell.

By the way, does that mean the art books I missed are gone forever, or will they be in stock in the next town I get to?

It's funny how the game sometimes skims by some explanations and prompts you to look at detailed tutorials. I didn't know about the hourglass icon thing, but thankfully I haven't gotten stuck without knowing what to do so far.

Regarding the other Operation Rainfall games, I expect them to be different from Xenoblade, but I think I can trust GAF's advice now, mostly since I'd hate to miss out on them and have them become as impossible to get as time goes on (I'm still trying to get my hands on a new copy of F-Zero GX). I guess I shouldn't talk about it anymore in this thread to avoid derailing it.

 

[upandaway]

Just spent about 6 hours just going around everywhere unlocking the

Spoiler

4th skill branches

for whoever I, basically, could (which, by sheer luck, are the 3 I use the most).

Of those 6 hours, 2 were spent looking for freaking Jarack, 2 more were spent trying to jump to the freaking ant lair, and the last 2 were spent just finding out that I probably won't ever do it for those characters, because I either couldn't find the right guy or he wouldn't talk to me or I couldn't find his friend or that friend wouldn't talk to me. Then I got the last one (7th) in like 10 minutes.

Yeah I think I'm good on the sidequests for a while! That sure lasted long, hahaha. Phew.

Back to main quest.

 

[Head of Vengarl]

Just spent about 6 hours just going around everywhere unlocking the

Spoiler

4th skill branches

for whoever I, basically, could (which, by sheer luck, are the 3 I use the most).

Of those 6 hours, 2 were spent looking for freaking Jarack, 2 more were spent trying to jump to the freaking ant lair, and the last 2 were spent just finding out that I probably won't ever do it for those characters, because I either couldn't find the right guy or he wouldn't talk to me or I couldn't find his friend or that friend wouldn't talk to me. Then I got the last one (7th) in like 10 minutes.

Yeah I think I'm good on the sidequests for a while! That sure lasted long, hahaha. Phew.

Back to main quest.

Oh got that fucking lair. Took me forever to make that jump too.

As far as the bolded goes, two things will help:
1) You need more affinity for that area
2) The Xenoblade wikia really helps for finding NPCs. Here's Jarack, for example. Just be careful as certain links can contain spoilers.