And yeah, as the realization started to dawn on me what was going on, the thought of the inevitable appearance of a certain someone had me cackling. And it didn't disappoint!

Yeah, I'm in complete agreement here. Relating to this, there's this article in the Imperial Chronicle of CS3, issue number 8 about Douche Cayenne's sentence. What I find interesting is that the 'waging of the [civil] war itself, excluding the pillaging and slaughter' is not considered a crime, which basically clears most provincial military personnel from any guilt/responsibility. Though the wording seems to indict Helmut Albarea's order to burn down Celdic. I don't think it alleviates any of the terrorist acts committed by the ILF, though at this point in the timeline, Crow's still legally dead.

Also interesting that the destruction of Garrelia is laid at Cayenne's feet. The article insinuates that Crossbell's independence declaration and asset freeze by Dieter were all coordinated. Considering that in the beginning of CS2, Crow talks about the comparative power-level of Ordine vs Aion-alpha, it seems that Douche Cayenne and the Crois were in cahoots from the beginning. Well, I guess Ouroboros served as intermediary.

Poor MWL just can't catch a break. The Mishneider fight was about equal parts silly and tearjerking. And then they threw a nostalgiariffic dungeon at us including some old friends from The 3rd. Those mirror fights were creepy and between the Crow fakeout and Rean's reflection going Schwarzreaner on us the tension really ratcheted up before the inevitable mindscrew at the end. I thought I had the mystery machine figured out but... I guess not? Even though it's got all the signs of being a fusion of the different Knights. That left me with more questions than it answered, and Schwarzreaner getting the garbled name is definitely Not Good.

Lloyd's route was a stroll in the park by comparison. Fun to see Mainz again, some great friendship moments, one hell of a reintroduction for Estelle and Joshua and the Moon Temple was gorgeous in 3d. Creepy, but gorgeous. And then the bell started ringing... Wazy, you're a Gralsritter, do your damned job and take care of those things. I'm also very glad I had some anti-Death accessories equipped or that boss fight would have ended pretty quickly.

Both routes end on the same note and are linked, so I'm wondering what Rufus' is going to throw at me.

- This Chapter opened gloriously with Lapis being so excited to relate what happened to her and Rufus at the end of the last one. Apparently so excited this is the third time she's told the story. And then Rufus has to ruin the moment by negating the d'awwwww factor it had because he slipped a tracking device on Lapis.

- That Chapter title. That Chapter title!

- Rufus, Rufus, Rufus, please stop reminding us that you're a smug backstabbing cheating bastard. And while you're at it, stop bullying Duvalie.

- Will the real Arios MacLaine please stand up? Oh, there you are... Guess it's time to break back into this prison we were last seen breaking out of.

- Given the existence of multiple Arios robots and McBurn at least not knowing he wasn't the real deal, I'm beginning to suspect that Falcom is setting us up for a 'you thought you had the mystery solved, lolnope!' moment when we find out that 'our' Rufus is also a duplicate. Aside from being a double-twist it would nicely resolve the question of how you cheer for the guy considering everything he's done. I mean, I love a well-done redemption story myself but I'm not entirely sure I want that for Rufus. He's been more reactive than anything else since it was an attempt on his life that started this whole mess and it's not like he's shown much remorse for anything except in that scene with Lapis back in Chapter 3.

- I'm also wondering, given where I am, if I'm going to break into this prison and find Dieter and Garcia still locked up...

- They seem to have really front-loaded this dungeon when it comes to the insane bosses. Matteus and Orie weren't too bad and neither was the funky mecha at the end, compared to the CUBE with its 'HP to 8' spamfest. I'm worried that the other shoe is going to drop.

- These Episodes were a lot of fun and a nice way to bring in the Branch Campus characters without needing to find roles for them in the main plot. Wasn't expecting Emperor to show up in Team Big Sis' story like that, some surprising political stuff came out in the quartet's story and like I said, Super Justice Bros was glorious.

- And then there's Cedric's episode, in which I ended up getting murdered by Gilbert's joke Craft. Somehow that just seemed perfect, but alas I retried to finish it properly and it looks like he's now Enforcer XIX. I'd expected XVIII but he fits a reversed The Sun too so it all works out. I'd also be quite surprised if he isn't one of the people they add in the October expansion since he's already fully set up as a playable character.

- ;New Orbal Gear Development Project (Part I)'?! Oh no, oh noooooo... I wasn't expecting that at all. Erika continues to be overprotective, Tita takes Mint's ideas seriously (Aidios help us all) and... it works?! Oh wait, what's Emperor doing here too? And why did he swipe that flight orbment? Guess I won't know until whenever the second half unlocks. Please oh please let the reward for this be a reskin of the Orbal Gear for Tita, even if it doesn't change her performance.

- Project Tryfing was fun but the controls took some getting used to since the dash and rifle buttons aren't the most intuitive and the response time is a bit slow. Surprise cameo from Laura at the end there too. Guess she's decided that she won't be a Proper Erebonian Blademaster until she can wreck things in a giant robot too, like Aurelia.

- Oh, speaking of which that's who I got for my third character pull.

While reading the introductory narration, there's something I have to ask: there's one line when the Erebonian military remnants are called 親衛隊 once, which is the Taiwanese and according to wikipedia also Japanese term for the German Waffen-SS. I remember how in CS4, Kurt also used this term once during the first Crossbell section right before new Class VII meet Eugent at Ursula and see Rufus and Vandyke exit the car. Is this also used in the original Japanese?

Stripperific outfits aside, the dance scene with the princesses of Sun, Moon and Star brought a tear to my eye. Seeing Illya all healthy is awesome and Rixia's voice actress nailed her lines. She sounds happy, but also vulnerable as if she can't believe this moment is really happening. And then we have Sully sounding all confident while standing between two athletic titans. The little pickpocket from North Ambria has come a long way.

Seeing Sergei in 3d is weird. But I do like his look and voice. It's so un-anime in a good way.

And Zeit arrives to save the day, nuking a Zaubersoldat like a boss.

Juna shows off her mech piloting skills, learned from an Erebonian military academy. Oh, the irony. She also speaks her countdown entirely in German, lol. Considering that Erebonia is fantasy-Prussia, I wonder if this is a sign of 'Miss-I-want-my-Crossbell-back' going native.

The SSS breaking into Orchis Tower is a nice example of how Zemurian tech is constantly improving. Back in Ao, the ILF and the Calvardian terrorists didn't manage to defeat the glass with their aircrafts. To be fair, they weren't willing to ram their vehicles into the building unlike Juna, but still...

Also, I like how Tio cast a barrier around the mech to protect her teammates from the air drag. I'm a total sucker for these kind of little touches which show that characters are subject to the laws of physics. Of course we all know that Falcom throws physics out the window when Rule of Cool comes knocking.

Of course Tio has made a recording of the Arc-en-Ciel performance. Always on top of things, the girl.

Gameplay wise the prologue is pretty tame even on nightmare. Crafts are still king and the Craft synergy between the core SSS members is impeccable. Oh, and that new turn bonus 'Zero Craft' is just begging to be abused.

When Llyod and co finally make it to the top, they present the Erebonian commanders with a power of attorney, signed by the provisional Erebonian government. I mean, the douches obviously don't accept this slip of paper. But considering that Red Constellation presented the SSS with a similar slip of paper back in Ao during the Trade Conference aftermath, it seems like Falcom is on irony overdrive. 

Randy dishing out the verbal roast. "You telling me that choosing the difficult road and enduring hardship to reach a satisfying conclusion is something you Erebonians can't manage? I happen do know a bunch of Erebonians who did exactly that, you know?" (Cue flashback of Class VII)

I guess that big mech is supposed to be romanized 'Asmodeus', right? Subtle, Falcom. Real subtle.

Btw, why are the commanders not participating in the boss fight? Not that it would've made much of difference...

Oh, and the improved character animations are awesome. When Randy gives Juna a head rub or that brofist with Llyod while he sports that cheesy grin - it really makes him come alive.

In Japanese 親衛隊 can be used in the more generic sense of 'bodyguards' and it's part of the term translated as the Royal Guards in Sky (王室親衛隊) with the shorter word also being used frequently. The word in Japanese has been applied to all manner of historic bodyguard units from the Praetorian Guard in the Roman Empire to the modern Republican Guard in France.

That said, it's possible that its particular use in relation to the SS in Nazi Germany was intentional or at least serendipitous.

- Probably just Falcom deciding that using German would sound cool. Kurz (or Kurt in localization) from Liberl uses random German in SC when he's pretending to be a jaeger including counting up to three, so funny as it is I wouldn't read too much into it. As opposed to all the other stuff in the game that you can totally read too much into. xD

- Zero Craft is broken as hell but there are times when it's been a lifesaver on Hard, which has been quite pleasantly challenging for the most part even with all the ways the game gives you to break things. And you're playing on Nightmare...

- In Japanese it's 'Asmodain' which is derived from the alternate name Asmodai/Asmodee, but same demon nonetheless. I have no idea why that rouge N was added to the end of the name, but it's pretty obvious what Falcom intended with that one.

- The expansion is named 'To the Other Side of the Reverie' and is labeled in one screenshot as 'Extra Chapter', so it sounds like it's being treated as a postgame Chapter unto itself.

- Based on screenshots, the 'Deep Domains' expansion to the Corridor will extend to at least a seventh level. I'm on the Last Chapter and just cleared the third level so assuming that one more unlocks in this one, sounds like at least three new levels getting added?

- The option will be given to raise enemy levels from the fifth level of the Corridor and up, in increments of 50.

- The level cap will be raised from 180 to 250.

- As mentioned before, new playable characters, Episodes and minigames will be added. I'm hoping this includes a post-series 'episode' for Magical Alisa because having just cleared the second stage last Chapter and seeing the preview labeled 'Final Episode' it sounds like there's just one more. I'd be down for more of that minigame.

- Pomtto will have an added 'Endurance' mode and Beryl's quiz game will have 'Maniac' difficult. In The 3rd that was the one where all the questions were insanely meta, so I'm looking forward to that one.

- A new difficulty level for the entire game called 'Abyss' will be added. Falcom really loves playing around with these titles. Ys games have had Inferno and Lunatic, now we've got this. xD

- A collectable book series called 'Sunran, Archer of the Moonless Dawn' will be added. No word on how we'll acquire it.

- There are screenshots showing some of the new Corridor which reveal at least one of the new playable characters, which I'm not too surprised on. There's also a blurb on new Episodes (which I skipped over because I like surprises) and a VM-based minigame in which Wald is apparently teaching us how to be Manly Masters of the Cards. I'm guessing this means more people to challenge and new cards being added.

- At the very end they mention another Episode that will serve as a bridge to the next arc. I didn't look at that in detail either after seeing the description.

Huh, I was randomly watching the secene in CS3 where Rufus talks about not being Duke Albarea's son and he totally does the hand-to-face pose (or something close enough to it) that C/Rufus always does in this. Neat little hint.

Thanks for the explaination about 親衛隊. I'm still inclined to believe that the relation to the Waffen SS is what Falcom wanted to go for, albeit it's not as explicit as I initially believed. The commonly used term for these bodyguards is 衛士隊 throughout CS4 and Hajimari and the two instances when 親衛隊 was shown, the context implies that the usage is meant to be deragotory. During CS4 Kurt has good reasons to feel resentment towards them as their unit usurped his family's position and he first called them 衛士隊 only to correct himself, while the unit accompanied Rufus who at that point was considered a clear enemy. In Hajimari 衛士隊 was only changed when the narration pointed out that Crossbell's unlawful occupation has persisted for three and half month and during that time, 親衛隊 has entered common usage instead (probably among Crossbellians).

About Juna, I'm mostly just joking around. CS4 has developed her into Estelle-lite which is a good thing in my book, but I do miss her salty attitude from CS3 on occasion. So I was just imagining her being all flustered when someone hypothetically pointed out how she was going natural. Then again, you are totally correct that Jägers (to use the German 'Umlaut') are far more prone to spouting random German bits than Erebonians.

The ending didn't surprise me as I already peeked into the spoiler sections. That underground orbal terminal was suitably ominous though, what with it colored all red and talking about entering second phase of project Babel.

This is one continous trip down memory lane. Wazy reminds us once again why he's best troll, taking every opportunity to rile up people in general or about their romantic prospects in particular.

"You [Noel] and Juna are really similar. Both of you are earnest to the point of being a little foolish and you have funny reactions when teased."

Kind of sad that at this point, Juna is far more fleshed out as a character than Noel. Then again, they have quite some similarities, too. Okay, from today on I consider Juna an EstellexNoel hybrid.

Randy and Mirielle. I feel the love in the air.

Sergei and Sonya, huh? Wazy is of course quick to remind us that they are ex-husband and wife (that scene back in Ao when Douglas told the SSS about their relation was funny as hell) and cue Sonya deflecting Wazy's trolling like a pro. Thinking about it, Sonya gives me similar vibes comparable to Aurelia. Mature and powerful women with command authority who play pivotal roles in mentoring player characters. (In her case Randy and Noel) Shame that we've never seen her fight.

And is Sergei seriously using a honorific when talking to his ex-wife?

And our beloved Bracer Duo who behave like freshly smitten teenagers despite being a couple for how long now? About five years?

So they are on a diplomatic mission issued by ambassadors Crainagh and Cochrane. And is Josh calling them by their given names? This implies quite a close working relationship. Whatever, I really like the political worldbuidling. Unlike Dieter's independence movement in Ao, Crossbell has Arteria's backing this time and both Erebonia and Calvard are willing to establish embassies here. This is serious. This is big.

Oh my, Shizuku has grown up. I can already picture her leaving a trail of broken hearts once she becomes an adult. And Arios can exchange advice with Rean about scaring off suitors.

Buhahaha!! Did Bracer Scott seriously call Arios his 'senpai' in being a father? I'm so rolling on the floor right now.

Agate and Titaaa, sitting on a tree.... and then came Erika to set things straight.

Tio and Tita are already discussing a fouth generation Orbal Gear. Well, perhaps this iteration is going to be a proper Zemurian battlesuit which won't leave the pilot exposed at the front. And seriously, did Erika just jump about three to four arge from a sitting position without any run-up? I mean, she destroyed a wooden crate with a single tackle in 3rd and apparently has enough arm strength to lift her father off the ground. This is just further proof that she would be viable as a player character. And unlike her daughter she could shoot and punch things to death at the same time.

Elie and Alisa deepening their friendship and they even throw Towa into the mix. Falcom, stop spoiling me!

And here we have the JUSTICE duo. Man, these two could be brothers. Shame that starting with CS1, the Combi Crafts were dropped. If anybody deserve a Combi Craft in glorious 3D, it's Machias and Dudley.

based in what Ive read. Nobody even mentioned the grandmaster. Is she still virtually non-existant in this game? Do we not learn more about her identity, personality, etc?

She appears in a Star Door 14-style episode, but it's more mystery/world  building than anything else. That said, the story relating to the Corridor doesn't seem to be finished, so we may get more on her in the October update.

You can tell this game was influenced by/developed in tandem with Ys IX with the cooperating to get through dungeons etc..

 

Yeah, of all the things I was expecting, Zemuria Singularity-ing itself as a consequence of all those linked networks and the septium veins getting together and having an AI baby that can calculate the future was not part of it. Though the way that it can reproduce Artifacts is certainly a surprise and explains a few things, if not how Robo-Emperor could be transformed like that as if he were a living being. Reminds me of what we saw back in The 3rd with Loa's Demon Lance though.

(Re)-Liberating Crossbell was all fun and games until the dual boss fight. I was expecting another shoe to drop since the fights were surprisingly easy, even the one against the second Asmodain. So of course we get to fight Ilya with her Deathblow-spammage at the same time as Rufus with his buffing. Also, loved the intercutting between parties as you run into each other, Rufus being Rufus and the return of the New Imperial Picnic Front. And then the other other shoe drops and it turns out the Singularity AI built its own superweapon laser fortress. RIP Juno.

Seeing everyone while running around Crossbell was nice, especially loved the scene between Tita and Erika. Running around and finding pieces of the puzzle with an RP reward at the end felt like Crossbell and the questline to investigate Guy's death all over again.

And then the operation starts while we're on a deadline before Erebonia and Calvard launch their own offensives and oh boy, everyone showed up to help! I wouldn't have minded if Wazy or Gaius had, I dunno, said something like 'We'll have the Heretic Hunter, X and Y joining us' like they did when we first heard about Barkhorn. You can't show off a couple of new Merkabahs like that and not give us something to chew on, Falcom! And then some Ouroboros forces drop in too, on Vita's request. Have we finally found something that isn't according to the scenario in the Secret Dead Sea Scrolls Grandmaster's predictions?

Just inside the dungeon now so I assume I'll finish the game tonight.

Speaking of lots to do, that was a whole ton of Episodes and some of them were long. I would not have minded a post-match save option for the tournament, but that reward was worth it and went straight on my dodge-tanks. Free damage boost every time they do what they do best? Yes please! And speaking of which, that Rank A reward was another nice one, the Rank S accessory was... eh. By the time I got that I already had one of the uber-Grail Lockets.

Magical Alisa: It was all just a dream... OR WAS IT???! Dammit Falcom. xD

Crow getting his own custom Tyrfing model was not something I saw coming (nor was Gaius being an opponent) and I'm sad that we don't have any battles involving them in the main plot. Maybe we can get this minigame expanded in the update. For that matter, I'd be down for more Magical Alisa regardless of how they ended it.

I could pretty much sum up the rest of the Episodes as 'I loved them'. Between all the callbacks to The 3rd in the Lechter one (with him getting frog-marched back to Liberl to attend the reunion at the end) to finding out what happened to Emma's mother to the antics in Jingo's Episode (and of course Beryl knows what the Happiness Stones are, because Beryl) they were a ton of fun and there was a lot of worldbuilding slipped in to them, especially during the crowning jewel that is the second half of Tita's Episode. Sure, we still don't know why Emperor was running around stealing stuff from the RMP and Tita's experiment but we saw Renne pulling a tea party out of thin air and the glory that was Erika's pre-fight 'warmup', not to mention the ending...

I appreciated Lapis saying Lloyd was the only one who'd be able to get to the bottom of this case. Between Rean's gravity-defying antics in Nord and Rufus destroying his robot-self, it felt like our ace detective had a bit of a poor showing in this game, but he'll show 'em that Bannings spirit yet!

Oh and how about the super badasses deflecting a giant laser with the power of swordsmanship? Top that, Calvard folks!

I'd somehow gotten it into my head that the device Schmidt gave to Tita was some sort of anti-grav artifact (which helped the Orbal Gear fly) that was recovered from the Black Workshop, which in turn ended up being part of the Emperor's set of artifacts and he was retrieving it. Was that not the case?

Speaking of artifacts, if Elysium/Elysion (seriously, which is it?!), could replicate them, did it do that for Olivier's one? If so, was it mentioned where the original ended up? Was it the one in the giant terminal they find, or was that the replica? Aaaaghhh so many duplicates and replicants and fakers running around this game!