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[Zornica]

When do characters stop learning new Battle Arts? I've been holding off on leveling up anything because I'm worried that I might end up getting a new art that is just a better version of one I upgraded.

there aren't any similar arts which do the same thing as another one. they are all unique, and you really shouldn't hold of leveling them just because you might get something better. You definitely will get better stuff, but if you aren't willing to spend dozens of hours farming for art books, you won't get past stage 8? anyway.Which means, you have will have more than enough points to experiment with different arts.

I came across a sidequest where I was supposed to kill a named creature...Problem is I already killed it before the quest became available. Now the creature isn't up and I don't know if there's any way to spawn it. Am I screwed?

you can wait for it to respawn, which is kinda random, or you force it to respawn. there are more techniques:

- save once and reload untill it spawn.
- or just set the clock again and again, you don't even need to change the time. just open and confirm.
- warping around the map (which isn't very practical)

 

[Doorman]

Just about 20 hours into the game so far, though I feel like the last 6 or so of that has just been me wandering and doing subquests in the Leg area and making very little effort to advance the storyline.

The storyline so far is alright, but doesn't feel all that exciting quite yet. Still, just the act of playing this has a way of drawing me in for way longer than I intend to play on any given sitting and I know this is one that I'm going to have a lot of time sunk into in the coming weeks. I do have a few niggles though, most notably with regard to equipment and inventory management. When the game seems to love hurling random weapon and armor drops at you at such a high clip, the act of comparing pieces and swapping gems around and such feels really cumbersome and it makes rearranging my party's gear more of a hassle than it should be.

I'm glad that they left the British voice cast intact, too. For some reason it makes the story feel a bit cooler than it has been so far.

 

[MetatronM]

Damn you, hand, for highlighting that!!!

Lol. I'm fighting the

Spoiler

talking Mechon guy after the sewers in colony 6

. How far am I from all the stuff you're talking about? As it definitely has me interested! I agree, story has been pretty boring so far - but what you're saying sounds like it could really pull me in.

ZenaxPure is about twice as far in as you, at least in terms of the main plot.

 

[Jswanko]

I think I'm going to start ignoring sidequests unless I need money. There are too many of them.

What do people spend their money on? Im 12 hours in and Ive barely spent a dime. Cant you buy Art Books somewhere?

 

[Golbez]

Generally I always had way more money than I knew what to do with. I don't remember buying much other than the odd art book whenever new ones popped up.

 

[SecretMoblin]

What do people spend their money on? Im 12 hours in and Ive barely spent a dime. Cant you buy Art Books somewhere?

Yes, you buy Art manuals from several of the shops in the game. They allow you to level up your Arts further.

 

[Adam Prime]

What do people spend their money on? Im 12 hours in and Ive barely spent a dime. Cant you buy Art Books somewhere?

Yeah every new merchant has Art Books, buy one of each (don't be stupid like me and think that purchasing 12 of the same art book is a good idea).

That's about the only thing. Once you get further along in the game and you walk into a new area they'll typically sell you some good equipment, but it's the same equipment that you are going to be getting in drops of loot once you start fighting the enemies in that area. So basically you pay for the nice equipment "now" instead of fighting the monsters to get it "later".

 

[Bisnic]

Does stats reach a cap every lvl or something? I could put an Agility II gem on a weapon slot for Dunban, but his total Agility do not improve at all. There is an Agility Up 50 written in green in the bonus stats though, doesnt matter if i have that particular gem on or not.

 

[Jive Turkey]

you can wait for it to respawn, which is kinda random, or you force it to respawn. there are more techniques:

- save once and reload untill it spawn.
- or just set the clock again and again, you don't even need to change the time. just open and confirm.
- warping around the map (which isn't very practical)

Thanks for the reply. I tried the clock thing but I had already re-cleared the area where it spawns and nothing respawned when I adjusted the time so I figured it wasn't working. I'll give it and the save thing a try.

 

[SecretMoblin]

Does stats reach a cap every lvl or something? I could put an Agility II gem on a weapon slot for Dunban, but his total Agility do not improve at all. There is an Agility Up 50 written in green in the bonus stats though, doesnt matter if i have that particular gem on or not.

(most?) Stats from gems have a cap, yes, including Agility. When a stat can't improve any more its font turns green. The cap is the same regardless of the character's level or gem level.

 

[Bisnic]

(most?) Stats from gems have a cap, yes, including Agility. When a stat can't improve any more its font turns green. The cap is the same regardless of the character's level or gem level.

So Dunban can't get more than 142 Agility, no matter his lvl? Guess i'll use some Strength gems instead then. Or maybe HP Up since he does the tanking job.

 

[SecretMoblin]

So Dunban can't get more than 142 Agility, no matter his lvl? Guess i'll use some Strength gems instead then. Or maybe HP Up since he does the tanking job.

He absolutely can get more than that, because his Agility will increase as he gains levels, acquires skills that give him more, or wears gear that improves Agility. The cap is only gem-related.

 

[Hobbun]

Do the ether lamps do anything for you? I'm in the first town and the lady (merchant?) keeps pushing to buy ether lamps, but when I talk to her, I can't buy any, she just keeps trying to push her sale.

If you can't buy them, fine, but I'm kinda curious what they do (if anything).

 

[burgerdog]

That can't be right... I thought I had played for 30 mins but apparently it was 2 hours. Good stuff, I've enjoyed what I've played so far. Question: should I wait until I have at least two or more party members before tackling most side quests? I've died to a few unique monsters already.

 

[EvilMario]

That can't be right... I thought I had played for 30 mins but apparently it was 2 hours. Good stuff, I've enjoyed what I've played so far. Question: should I wait until I have at least two or more party members before tackling most side quests? I've died to a few unique monsters already.

There's no need to wait. Everyone levels up, whether they're your party, or not. You are no missing anything by doing them right away. But don't overwhelm yourself with sidequest if you get tired of them, because for the most part, there's no harm in waiting to do them either.

 

[burgerdog]

There's no need to wait. Everyone levels up, whether they're your party, or not. You are no missing anything by doing them right away. But don't overwhelm yourself with sidequest if you get tired of them, because for the most part, there's no harm in waiting to do them either.

That's great advice regarding the side quests. I simply could not touch skyrim or kingdoms of amalur after 20 hours because I forced myself to do as much as possible before continuing the story. Eventually(20 hour like I said before) I didn't have the will to play either game.

 

[John Harker]

Okay internets, you won again. Just picked up Xenoblade. (And Kid Icarus. And Silent Hill: Downpour. Oh, still haven't opened Uncharted 3, Skyrim, or Kingdom's of Amular yet. Damn you, internet. Damn you).

Considering I get through about 1 big game every 3 months these days...
I'm in trouble.

 

[Yaboosh]

The gameplay in this is great so far, but I just can't get over how terrible the writing and the voice acting are.

It is crazy the amount of systems going on at once too, slowly diving into a few at a time.

 

[Jive Turkey]

Okay internets, you won again. Just picked up Xenoblade. (And Kid Icarus. And Silent Hill: Downpour. Oh, still haven't opened Uncharted 3, Skyrim, or Kingdom's of Amular yet. Damn you, internet. Damn you).

Considering I get through about 1 big game every 3 months these days...
I'm in trouble.

Save Xenoblade for last. I'm 16.5 hours in and I'm probably only ~5-6 hours into the story. So much to explore.

 

[Yaboosh]

Is there any way to automatically remove gems from unequipped items?

 

[EvilMario]

Is there any way to automatically remove gems from unequipped items?

No, but they will be removed if the item is sold if that's your concern. Otherwise you can just equip it on to a new item and it'll automatically be removed.

 

[Yaboosh]

No, but they will be removed if the item is sold if that's your concern. Otherwise you can just equip it on to a new item and it'll automatically be removed.

Yeah, I just noticed that you can pretty easily see when an equipped gem isnt actively being used by anyone. Thanks.

 

[John Harker]

Save Xenoblade for last. I'm 16.5 hours in and I'm probably only ~5-6 hours into the story. So much to explore.

That's what I'm scared of. How rewarding are all the side quests? Like, do I really need to do most of them? Realistically speaking, I'll never get through the game if it'll take more than 40-50 hours.

(I'm 12 hours in Skyward Sword, and 24 into Mass Effect 3 before I even get started on the above unoponed ones). Damn job and stuff!

 

[Papercuts]

What's a good way to level up artes? Should I be upping all of Shulk's stuff, or focusing on specific ones? I've been doing everything but light heal so far, but it seems like I should put some into shield specifically.

That's what I'm scared of. How rewarding are all the side quests? Like, do I really need to do most of them? Realistically speaking, I'll never get through the game if it'll take more than 40-50 hours.

(I'm 12 hours in Skyward Sword, and 24 into Mass Effect 3 before I even get started on the above unoponed ones). Damn job and stuff!

A lot of them are done while normally playing. Stuff like kill x enemies, collect x whatever, the quests autocomplete when you do them. If they don't you can track what time the person is present and look around, but I've only had a handful like that so far. I'm loving the world/music/combat so I've been doing pretty much everything, but it doesn't seem necessary at all.

 

[Jive Turkey]

That's what I'm scared of. How rewarding are all the side quests? Like, do I really need to do most of them? Realistically speaking, I'll never get through the game if it'll take more than 40-50 hours.

I've done probably 30-40 sidequests already (the main reason behind my inflated playtime) and really only one or two has given me useful equipment. Fortunately most of the quests auto-complete and you don't have to return to the person for your reward. The game also has the good sense to give you all the "kill x monsters" and "gather x items" all at once so you can load up on them when you enter a new area and finish them as you make your way through said area.

 

[Hiltz]

What's a good way to level up artes? Should I be upping all of Shulk's stuff, or focusing on specific ones? I've been doing everything but light heal so far, but it seems like I should put some into shield specifically.

You pretty much want to upgrade all of Shulk's red and pink colored arts. Light Heal and another blue colored art starting with the letters "Sh" are probably the only ones worth upgrading. There's another different colored art which you'll likely want to upgrade as well that relates to the Topple system. Upgrade as many of Shulk's Monado Talent Arts as you can. Shield is useful because it blocks enemy physical attacks. It is particularly helpful during vision attacks whenever a monster's type of attack is highlighted in a white color on its blue vision tag. Shield specifically blocks this type of enemy attack.

 

[Bisnic]

You pretty much want to upgrade all of Shulk's red and pink colored arts. Light Heal and another blue colored art starting with the letters "Sh" are probably the only ones worth upgrading. There's another different colored art which you'll likely want to upgrade as well that relates to the Topple system. Upgrade as many of Shulk's Monado Talent Arts as you can. Shield is useful because it blocks enemy physical attacks. It is particularly helpful during vision attacks whenever a monster's type of attack is highlighted in a white color on its blue vision tag. Shield specifically blocks this type of enemy attack.

Speaking of which, what does upgrading the Monado shield actually do? I dont see any improvement in the window showing the next upgrade compared to literally everything else.

 

[SteeloDMZ]

That's what I'm scared of. How rewarding are all the side quests? Like, do I really need to do most of them? Realistically speaking, I'll never get through the game if it'll take more than 40-50 hours.

(I'm 12 hours in Skyward Sword, and 24 into Mass Effect 3 before I even get started on the above unoponed ones). Damn job and stuff!

Don't start Xenoblade yet. Take your time and finish Skyward and ME 3, 2 of the best games of this gen, and then start and dedicate time to Xeno, which is also fanastic.

 

[Trancetronic]

Collectapedia is pretty awesome. It makes collecting all that stuff fun.

 

[EvilMario]

Speaking of which, what does upgrading the Monado shield actually do? I dont see any improvement in the window showing the next upgrade compared to literally everything else.

It blocks enemies Talent Arts based on level, but only specific ones. ie; if your Shield is up to IV, and a monster uses Gore II on you, your Shield will block it. If the text isn't in White, or doesn't have a number after the attack name during the vision, it won't block it. Shield can be really handy in many fights, but you don't need to only focus on it.

Back Slash is what I level early on my Shulk. It can do a ton of damage early on with things like First Attack, or Back Attack gems, out pacing Monado Buster, or basically any other single attack. And I like to go around OHKO'ing monsters.

Collectapedia is pretty awesome. It makes collecting all that stuff fun.

And it can give you plenty of good equips and gems.

 

[SecretMoblin]

Do the ether lamps do anything for you? I'm in the first town and the lady (merchant?) keeps pushing to buy ether lamps, but when I talk to her, I can't buy any, she just keeps trying to push her sale.

If you can't buy them, fine, but I'm kinda curious what they do (if anything).

It's just dialogue intended to add atmosphere to the market; you can't buy them.

 

[MetatronM]

Speaking of which, what does upgrading the Monado shield actually do? I dont see any improvement in the window showing the next upgrade compared to literally everything else.

Shield will only block enemy talent arts that are of a lower level than Monado Shield is. So if an enemy uses Donkey Punch IV and you've got Monado Shield VII, the talent art will be negated. If your Monado Shield is only III, though, then you're fucked.

Basically, as long as you're steadily putting points into Monado Shield as you go, you will pretty much always outpace the enemy's talent arts by a level or two.

 

[EvilMario]

Shield will only block enemy talent arts that are of a lower level than Monado Shield is. So if an enemy uses Donkey Punch IV and you've got Monado Shield VII, the talent art will be negated. If your Monado Shield is only III, though, then you're fucked.

Basically, as long as you're steadily putting points into Monado Shield as you go, you will pretty much always outpace the enemy's talent arts by a level or two.

Sadly, there are lots of talent arts later on that can't be blocked with the shield.

 

[whalleywhat]

Is their crafting other than gems? Or am I only collecting all these items just to sell them?

 

[MetatronM]

Sadly, there are lots of talent arts later on that can't be blocked with the shield.

I don't remember there being any XI talent arts in the game. Am I just forgetting some?

 

[SecretMoblin]

Sadly, there are lots of talent arts later on that can't be blocked with the shield.

I think some, like (MAJOR LATE-GAME SPOILER)

Spoiler

Gadolt's laser

, are understandable, though.

Is their crafting other than gems? Or am I only collecting all these items just to sell them?

No crafting other than gems, but there are a bunch of uses for collectibles. Fill the collectapedia, fulfill quest requirements, and gift them between characters to raise affinity before you think about selling them.

 

[EvilMario]

I don't remember there being any XI talent arts in the game. Am I just forgetting some?

No, I mean ones that are not numbered, or are based on Ether, or otherwise are unblockble. There's a lot of visions for those attacks later that you can't get around with only Shield.

 

[MetatronM]

I think some, like (MAJOR LATE-GAME SPOILER)

Spoiler

spoiler removed

, are understandable, though..

That one is only a level V talent art. I'm pretty sure it's blockable with Shield. Some of his other attacks are blue, though, which Shield doesn't block. Those visions can only be shattered with a nicely timed Reflection from Melia or any of your "alternative" means of shattering visions.

 

[MetatronM]

No, I mean ones that are not numbered, or are based on Ether, or otherwise are unblockable. There's a lot of visions for those attacks later that you can't get around with only Shield.

Those aren't talent arts. Those are ether arts. You need Melia to reflect them or to just heal up to avoid death or shift aggro or topple/daze or something.

Red attacks aren't blocked with Shield either. They're dodged with Speed.

 

[EvilMario]

Those aren't talent arts. Those are ether arts. You need Melia to reflect them or to just heal up to avoid death or shift aggro or topple/daze or something.

Red attacks aren't blocked with Shield either. They're dodged with Speed.

Yeah, I didn't know what the 'terms' were for the other arts.

 

[Tenck]

Is there a way to have the game tell you where you might finish a quest? Or do I have to walk around looking for specific creatures and rely on compass directions from the description?

 

[whalleywhat]

Is there a way to have the game tell you where you might finish a quest? Or do I have to walk around looking for specific creatures and rely on compass directions from the description?

I think it depends on the quest type (i.e. if you're looking for a specific item/person), but sometimes there's a red exclamation mark on the mini-map. You have to be near it though.

 

[ivysaur12]

I don't remember there being any XI talent arts in the game. Am I just forgetting some?

I think where MID-LATE GAME SPOILERS E

Spoiler

gil is in his golden Mechon and tries to destroy Bionis. I actually had leveled up Shield all the way and could technically block it but... it didn't happen. I think that was it, anyway.

 

[DragonGirl]

Ok folks, I want to hear your "oh shit" stories, because I can't tell you how many times my exploration expeditions ended with my party dying by getting poked by an unexpected level 70 monster. One that made me jump was finding this observation platform on the Gaur Plains and taking in the sights, only to get annihilated by a giant bird thing that flew up behind me, or walking along a beach and agroing a level 70 fish!

 

[wanders]

Ok folks, I want to hear your "oh shit" stories, because I can't tell you how many times my exploration expeditions ended with my party dying by getting poked by an unexpected level 70 monster. One that made me jump was finding this observation platform on the Gaur Plains and taking in the sights, only to get annihilated by a giant bird thing that flew up behind me, or walking along a beach and agroing a level 70 fish!

My "oh shit" story: Discovering a part of a map 100 HOURS LATER. Really feels like I uncovered Atlantis.

 

[TDLink]

I think where MID-LATE GAME SPOILERS E

Spoiler

gil is in his golden Mechon and tries to destroy Bionis. I actually had leveled up Shield all the way and could technically block it but... it didn't happen. I think that was it, anyway.

That isn't targeting you though so it makes sense why it wouldn't work.

 

[Wyndstryker]

I went through 40 hours of the game so far...only to just realize you can trade with people by pressing Y....

And I would probably have gone through the whole game if it wasn't for an accidental slip of the controller while passing a named NPC.

I really need to stop skimming through text sometimes.

 

[Scofield94941]

Um I think (ABOUT a certain character)

Spoiler

There is a spoiler on the "reverse" box art. You see Fiora alive and with new people. I'm only about 4 hours in. I'm almost certain she comes back to life. Shulk probably can change the past some how or something

 

[jump_button]

Um I think (ABOUT a certain character)

Spoiler

There is a spoiler on the "reverse" box art. You see Fiora alive and with new people. I'm only about 4 hours in. I'm almost certain she comes back to life. Shulk probably can change the past some how or something

way off

 

[boiled goose]

Just started playing.
British VA is funny but well done I think. I like the overall tone.

Graphics are PS2 level and hideous haha.

So many sidequests. Im gonna enjoy the game I think .