A look back at: Secret of Mana

Welcome back to my look backs. Often it's been way too long before I make one of these, obviously due to me doing other things or being caught inside an RPG myself. Though Secret of Mana isn't entirely that long of a game. Plus it's super easy to play through. Surely enough, a lot of what Sword of Mana takes came from here, chest traps, enemies on field, ring menus, spell and weapon levels, AI controlled partners, and a mostly simple storyline. Secret of Mana surprisingly was more linear than I expected, which I sort of am getting tired of at this point.

The game's overall plot ends up being pretty interesting at first, although the part about "finding a weapon and getting monsters released then getting banished from home" was something I saw in Wild ARMs before this, I know this game had that first. The girl's plot of finding her preferred lover was a nice tie-in that manages to combine well enough with the boy's plot of being a chosen one and finding the mana seeds. The sprite's plot is a little less so, but has the somewhat typical amnesia plot, yet the sprite still stays with the group long enough to make things more fun.

Really if there's anything to really take away from Secret of Mana, it's that the game is perhaps one of the few early tries at making a cooperative RPG, one that can have extra players join in and control a character, making the usually frantic action a lot more interesting in ways. The ways characters and enemies flinch ends up being strange and awkward, especially if reactions are delayed in some ways. There's a lot of time I spent grinding weapon and magic levels, then I stopped altogether when I found out the last few weapon orbs end up being random drops in the end dungeon. These kinds of things aren't worth busting your butt over getting, the game is already easy enough at that point where you can beat the final boss in several 999 damage hits. Oh and speaking of hits? Evasion is something I don't understand about this, some enemies just flat out don't get hit at all here, which is because of their evasion stat, but it doesn't make sense often how it occurs. Same with characters at times. Secret of Mana really is a strange game and while I had my fun I'm not sure if I want to relive it again.

Terrible RPG Dungeons: Part 7

Oh of course, you didn't really expect there to be a shortage of these, right?

Sylx Tower/Forbidden Land Eureka/World of Darkness - Final Fantasy III

Nothing quite describes ending fatigue as much as this set of dungeons, particularly in this game's original Famicom release. These are the last few dungeons in the game, but you'll be dealing with not only their longevity, but the complete lack of savepoints. Luckily Forbidden Land Eureka is optional, and near the Sylx Tower entrance, but you might as well make an attempt to tackle it, because it has the best jobs and shops. But to get through the tower and the World of Darkness without a single point of saving is an issue, and then there's the rule of four with taking out bosses once you reach the World of Darkness. Lots of items and magic points are needed as well as lots of time.

The final lairs - Secret of the Stars

The above dungeon is bad enough for ending fatigue, but Secret of the Stars' endgame is downright insulting for an already bad game. It's cool, we go to a familiar location to beat the bad guy. Hey, remember those Kustera guys you may or may not be using? Hope they are up to snuff! We've got resurrected generals to kill again! It involves going through mazes and having both parties solve them! Why did they barely do this before the endgame I wonder? Each of these mazes is a slog with numerous encounters before the boss. Then you take the spiral of random encounters to the bad guy, oh wait he's not beatable yet cause it's an illusion! Time to backtrack to find the secret power to get past the illusion, and then...oh boy...GO ALL THE WAY DOWN THE SPIRAL AGAIN! Outright nauseous, and one of the worst things about this entire game.

Victory Road - Pokemon games

Why? Why would we need yet another cave area just to get to the league? There's next to nothing interesting in terms of Pokemon to catch, yet the twisting and turning Victory Roads of the series pull in the encounter rate with numerous high-level trainers as well as segments requiring the use of HMs. And yes, the requirement of HMs is more than enough to make me hate this crap. It's a blessing there's a free heal at the league at least. My biggest problem is it tries to be a "last challenge before the finish line" yet no one really wants this kind of thing in the first place.

Space Fortress - Robotrek

Prison floors, difficult random encounters, fatiguing bosses, generally long length with loads of backtracking, an easy case of ending fatigue right here. At least in the grand scope of the game this final dungeon isn't entirely memorable, but like every other final dungeon I just want it to end already.

Doraat - Suikoden V

Alright finally something that isn't ending fatigue, which luckily this game does well. You might wonder what this is doing here especially since it's a town anyways. Well, having been familiar with the first few Suikoden games having dungeons that are essentially one-time only (Toran Lake Fortress, North Window) I would imagine that the treasures in Doraat when you first infiltrate it would be gone. They still stay after liberation, but I never knew that at first. But the town layout has an outer wall that is laid out in a stupidly unorthodox way with chests well out of the way, then there's the street fork where the side paths are unusually long. All this compounded by the random encounters being Godwin soldiers, enemies that are always easy but the game will actually not let you run from them (it just flat out doesn't give you the option to).

Up next, dunno.

A look back at: Star Ocean: Blue Sphere

Guess I didn't finish yet another game. That's what happens when I get bored with something that has an unfinished translation and I have no idea what I'm doing. At least gameplay-wise it's very, very impressive for the GBC, managing to have an active-time battle system as well as item creation mini-games and a skill system. That's sure a lot of work. Enemies tend to be quite annoying though, since they are what I would call "move spammers" where they use the same thing over and over again. Kinda like those moronic players who miraculously beat experience Tekken/Mortal Kombat/Street Fighter/Fatal Fury/Guilty Gear/any other fighting game franchise I can think of by finding a move they find super good on the whole and just using it over and over. Indeed, the fighting game-like battle system is privy to that.

Landing combos is hard work in itself, having to press A at the proper time. Getting killer moves though? I couldn't get it for anyone who wasn't Bowman or Ashton, and I STILL don't have a clue how to really unlock killer moves overall. Apparently female fighters like Opera and Chisato get theirs through the machinery skill, while other male fighters get theirs through, I guess fighting? Can't really tell. And statuses get really debilitating, especially the ones that knock you unconscious, basically meaning free attacks. Not to mention attempting to potentially unlock that killer move or get that killer 20-hit combo, then realizing your character is completely fatigued and won't make any moves until hit. This game makes mages seem a whole lot more useful than in Second Story.

Again, though, despite my complaints above, it's obvious gameplay is the true highlight of Blue Sphere, since I can't figure out a damn thing for plot and the unfinished translations somehow make things worse with lots of gibberish. I don't think I'm gonna bother with this game for a long time.

A look back at: Pokemon Glazed

No mod is perfect, especially since bugs tend to be overlooked and found by the most prying eyes such as myself. Glazed though is honestly a worthwhile mod, giving us loads to do for an Emerald hack while keeping any bugs to a minimum. Not to mention giving a plot that winds its way in and out of every trainer's goal, numerous sidequests to gain the legendaries, and some really tough trainer battles. The whole Team Fusion plot is another case of "these guys want to manipulate legendaries", giving the twist that after the main bad guy fails and realizes his failure, the freaking wife divorces and continues it. This is compounded by their son fighting against his mother, as well as some crazy church guys who are very strict but still hostile to the enemy team. It ends poorly, with Pius and Regina for some dumb reason exclaiming they love each other, and while you don't see them again, what's even up with that ending?

Well on the Pokemon side of things, you can communicate with some mons on the field, particularly talking to the legendaries as well as that annoying red-scarfed Pikachu. I like how the legendaries have noble personalities fitting for their characters, and most of which actually accept your challenge to fight or capture, the exception being the Swords legendaries (Cobalion, Virizion, Terrakion) who are just sort of assholish. Mew is perhaps the oddest, deciding to immediately become one of your mons for some sort of redemption after you return to the scene.

There's some inconsistency in terms of plot when a legendary is caught by an enemy, notably after Moltres and later Zapdos, the weather gets worse, but when you decide to catch them, the weather is fine. Speaking of weather, my god there's just too much rain, especially in the Johto region, and there's no real explanation as to why it rains so much everywhere. Also some places, like that route outside of Johto's Safari Zone or the area after Bamboo Forest, are sort of bugged in that some menu options aren't available. What gives with that?

On the whole though Glazed is worthwhile, decent gym challenges, an interesting Elite Four that specializes in colors instead of types, difficult rival battles that somehow manage to be enjoyable, and different uses of moves on the field (okay I don't like HMs but hey, using Headbutt on a tree to get a Pokemon is nice and consistent with the Johto region that had it in Gen-2).

The connections between the individual Stars of Destiny in Suikoden games - Part 3

Continued from the previous post

73 - Chiin - The Hidden Star - The White Spotted Snake
Mina, Karen, Roland Lesaurus, Mitsuba, Miakis
With the exception of Roland, all are female playable characters, with Mina and Karen being dancers. Roland I think is just paired with Leo in the previous star (they are both knights, but don't fit the pretty boy knight stars, and they probably used up all the other duo stars already). You have to duel Mitsuba and Miakis to get them to join.

74 - Chii - Peculiar Star - The White Faced Goodman
Milia, Lo Wen, Sharon, Lilan, Sharmista
All females, Milia and Sharon are both Dragon Knights, and both are subordinates along with Lo Wen and Sharmista. Lo Wen is part of the Lampdragon trio. Lilan is probably a subordinate of the mermaids, as she is much younger than the others.

75 - Chiri - The Star of Justice - The Nine-tailed Turtle
Kamandol, Tenkou, Nicolas, Nataly, Zunda
Tenkou, Nataly, and Zunda are all window changers, and Kamandol although a usable party member is partnered with Gen for making boats. Nicolas is an odd man out as he is just a member of Duke's men.

76 - Chisyun Star - The Elegant Star - The Iron Fan
Juppo, Gadget, Gadget Z, Nao, Sorensen
Except for Nao, usually a trickster or nerdy guy (Juppo and Sorensen) or an actual invention (the Gadgets). Nao is partnered with Mao for growing herbs, although he can be seen as quirky.

77 - Chiraku - The Star of Music - The Iron Whistle
Kasios, Annallee, Nei, Etienne, Cornelio
Always the soundtrack playback person in the HQ, although Cornelio needs his whole orchestra first. Aside from him, both Annallee and Nei have other members in their music group.

78 - Chitatsu - The Quick Star - The Spotted Neck Tiger
Viki, Viki, Viki, Viki, Viki
All Viki

79 - Chisoku - The Star of Haste - The Arrow Wounded Tiger
Rubi, Koyu, Young Viki, Kate, Zweig
Except Koyu and Zweig who are plot-relevant, these characters apparently require someone else to recruit (Rubi needs Kirkis, Kate needs Mizuki, Young Viki needs Viki). No really good connection I can see.

80 - Chichin - The Suppressing Star - The Lesser Indominable One
Vincent De Boule, Vincent De Boule, Augustine Nabor, Charlemagne, Josephine
Always a narcissist and generally holder of the Red Rose Rune (except Vincent since it didn't exist in II and Charlemagne as Reinbach has it instead).

81 - Chikei - The Halted Star - The Dagger Devil
Meg, Meg, Belle, Rita, Lu
Generally a genki girl who likes gadgets or inventions. Belle and Rita both use hammers. Meg is closest to "dagger devil"

82 - Chima - The Devil Star - The Guardian God in the Clouds
Taggart, Mukumuku, Koroku, Oleg, Maroon
For II, III, and V, they are leaders of a five-animal group, although only the beavers in V are all stars, while only the leaders in II and III are stars. Taggart and Oleg are both useless once you recruit them.

83 - Chiyou - The Magic Star - Eagle Who Flutters Against The Sky
Giovanni, Marlowe, Arthur, Perrault, Taylor
Usually the reporter especially in the later games. Marlowe is a biographer after the war. Giovanni is out of place, mostly being a butler.

84 - Chiyu - The Obscure Star - The Sick Tiger
Quincy, Richmond, Kidd, Deborah, Oboro
Usually the detective, except for Deborah (who's a fortune teller and could still help in finding others) and Quincy (who's a playable rogue).

85 - Chifuku - The Hiding Star - The Gold Eyed Tiger Cub
Apple, Apple, Apple, Agnes, Lelei
Always female, brown hair, stays very close to the main strategist (odd how Apple has several).

86 - Chihi - The Orphan Star - The Warrior Who Wars Against Tigers
Kai, Long Chan Chan, Kenji, Trishtan, Genoh
The first three are fitness or combat trainers by profession, and all are old along with Genoh. Trishtan is out of place.

87 - Chiku - The Empty Star - The Little Conqueror
Lotte, Millie, Mel, Noah, Meroon
A teenage girl with an animal affinity, which is actually different for each game. Meroon actually is a beaver but has a weird catchphrase, and Mel has a puppet (making her the weakest example I'd say).

88 - Chiko - The Lonely Star - The Gold Spotted Leopard
Mace, Tessai, Peggi, Adrienne, Dongo
Always the blacksmith, or for Mace, the master blacksmith.

89 - Chizen - The Finished Star - The Devil Faced
Onil, Taki, Martha, Setsu, Fuyo
All are old people (Fuyo looks young though). Onil and Taki are gossipers. None are combatants.

90 - Chitan - The Short Star - Dragon Out of the Woods
Kuromimi, Gengen, Wilder, Nalkul, Logg
91 - Chikaku - The Corner Star - The One Horned Dragon
Gon, Gabocha, Rhett, Champo, Lun
A duo of non-human stars, except in V. As I said before it would make more sense to switch Logg and Lun with Lance and Flail, especially since Logg and Lun are fishers.

92 - Chisyu - The Prisoned Star - Water Beast on Dry Land
Antonio, Yuzu, Louis Keeferson, Funghi, Shun Min
Either a cook (Antonio, Funghi) or a kid associated with cooking (Shun Min plays it straight, while Yuzu's animals are used for food. Louis has the Cooking support skill).

93 - Chizou - The Hoarding Star - The Smiling Tiger
Lester, Hai Yo, Maime, Pecola, Retso
Other than Pecola, they are all cooks. Pecola looks like she can be an extravagant chef, although she's more of a home remodeler instead.

94 - Chihei - The Smooth Star - The Iron Armed
Kirke, Kahn Marley, Ruby, Maxine, Egbert Aethelbald
Except Ruby, these are all usually shady individuals, perhaps by profession or by overall character. All except Egbert are usable party members, Egbert is support.

95 - Chison - The Wounded Star - The Single Flower
Rock, Barbara, Muto, Basil, Chuck
Always the storagekeeper, except Basil who just plays a minigame.

96 - Chido - The Serving Star - The Pursuing Star of Death
Ledon, Sid, Landis, Igor, Byakuren
It says "creepy/ugly". I can see Byakuren being creepy, and especially Ledon and possible Igor are ugly. Sid and Landis are creepy Wingers.

97 - Chisatsu - The Searching Star - The Blue Eyed Tiger
Sylvina, Shin, Kathy, Lilin, Kisara
All except Kathy have some role in the plot and join automatically, and all except Shin are female. No other connection I can find.

98 - Chiaku - The Fierce Star - The Faceless
Ronnie Bell, Oulan, Emily, Karl, Nikea
Always fist fighters or martial artists. Karl is the only male one which is odd.

99 - Chisyu - The Ugly Star - The Stone Warrior
Gaspar, Shilo, Billy, Gunter, Linfa
All are gamblers. Interesting that Gaspar, Shilo, and Gunter all play the same game.

100 - Chisu - The Mathematic Star - The Lesser Yu Tse
Window, Alex, Mike, Desmond, Faylon
Other than Faylon (who's just paired with Faylen below) they are all HQ service people, though all are different and often have positions other stars tend to have. Window is a window changer, Alex owns the item store, Mike is a gambler, and Desmond can change party members.

101 - Chiin - The Shadowy Star - The Female Tiger
Marie, Hilda, Luce, Louise, Faylen
Aside from Faylen (see above) usually is an innkeeper (Marie, Hilda, Louise) and often a maternal figure (this helps to fit Luce in).

102 - Chikei - The Avenging Star - The Gardener
Zen, Bob, Sanae Yamamoto, Kevin, Subala
With the name Gardener, Zen fits, and he does grow the plants in the HQ in I. Other than that, no real connnection I can find here overall other than Kevin being paired with Pam below.

103 - Chisou - The Strong Star - The Female Savage
Sarah, Ayda, Anne, Pam, Urda
Other than them all being female there's not much connection I can find. Well, Ayda and Urda are archers and forest protectors at least.

104 - Chiretsu - The Inferior Star - The Lively Female
Sansuke, Pico, Goro, Taisuke, Miroon
The bath house person, except Pico (Tetsu has that role). Odd how despite being called The Lively Female every star under this is male.

105 - Chiken - The Mighty Star - The Vanguard God
Qlon, Alberto, Piccolo, Nalleo, Chisato
Usually an HQ service in some way. Alberto is paired with Pico and Annallee, Chisato is a puppeteer and allows for voice changing, Qlon is an intro person to the castle, and Piccolo although a usable party member is also a fortune teller. Unsure about Nalleo.

106 - Chimou - Rat Star - Rat in the Daylight
Templeton, Templeton, Rody, Haruto, Takamu
Usually the mapmaker (Templeton and Takamu) or the navigator (Haruto). Rody doesn't really fit their molds.

107 - Chizoku - The Thieving Star - Flea on a Drum
Krin, Hoi, Guillaume, Oskar, Roy
Generally a hated character and usually a thief, bandit, or con artist (except Oskar, but his support skill is something thieves would normally do and find treasure). Hoi and Roy both impersonate the hero.

108 - Chikou - The Dog Star - The Yellow Haired Dog
Chandler, Gordon, Gordon, Chadli, Sairoh
Either the trading post (Gordon in II, Sairoh) or the item shopowner (all others)

The connections between the individual Stars of Destiny in Suikoden games - Part 2

Continued from the previous post

37 - Chikai - Chief Star of Earth - The Wily Warrior
Leon Silverberg, Klaus Windamier, Albert Silverberg, Tanya, Cius
While it says "Secondary Strategist" that only really applies to Klaus and Albert. Leon actually doesn't seem to do anything for whatever reason, while Klaus and Albert are definitely strategizing. Tanya just studies under Elenor and Cius is a bodyguard.

38 - Chisatsu - Violent Star - He Who Rules Three Mountains
Georges, Gilbert, Mua, Jeremy, Raven
Honestly don't know of any connections here.

39 - Chiyu - Brave Star - The Sick Warrior
Ivanov, Tetsu, Dominic, Gareth, Shinro
All are HQ staff, though interestingly their individual roles all differ. Ivanov and Gareth are artists, and most of these characters talk about the beauty of what they do.

40 - Chiketsu - Star of Noble Wisdom - The Ugly Warrior
Jeane, Jeane, Jeane, Jeane, Jeane
May also refer to The Disgraced Warrior. Very unfitting for Jeane.

41 - Chiyu - Heroic Star - The Guardian Star God
Eikei, Wakaba, Shabon, Lilon, Norden
From I-III all martial artists. Lilon is staff (runs atelier with other mermaids) and I don't think Norden does anything important when recruited.

42 - Chii - The Majestic Star - Victor in a Hundred Battles
Maximillian, Maximillian, Fred Maximillian, Gary, Isabel
A Maximillian knight who fights for justice in a Don Quixote way. Gary is an exception but still has a Don Quixote personality.

43 - Chiei - Star of Courage - The Eye of Heaven
Sancho, Genshu, Rico, Ema, Mathias
Except Genshu, all are squires or partners of the above Maximillian knight star.

44 - Chiki - The Strange Star - Swift in Water
Grenseal, Camus, Percival Fraulein, Sigurd, Rahal
45 - Chimou - The Ferocious Star - Warrior of Fire
Alen, Miklotov, Borus Redrum, Hervey, Roog
A duo of stars that consist of good-looking knights (well Sigurd and Hervey are pirates, but they are still good-looking).

46 - Chibun - Learned Star - The Scribe of the Divine Hand
Tesla, Jude, Twaikin, Micky, Gunde
An artisan of some sort. Tesla and Micky both fit with the "scribe" ordeal, as they both are writers. Twaikin and Gunde are both dwarves and party members. Jude is just a sculptor.

47 - Chisei - Guileless Star - The Iron Faced
Jabba, Lebrante, Nadir, Nabokov, Bastan
Generally the appraiser, except Nadir, who runs a different service

48 - Chikatsu - The Eminent Star - Eagle in the Clouds
Lorelai, Lorelai, Duke, Frederica, Lorelai
Not much of connection besides the characters having vendettas on others, with Lorelai against Killey (and Zweig to a lesser extent), Duke to Geddoe, and Frederica to Graham Cray.

49 - Chitou - The Folding Star - The Red Eyed Lion
Blackman, Tony, Bartz, Mao, Goesch
Grows the plants for the HQ, except Blackman (Zen has that role), who is still a gardener by occupation. Mao is one of two "gardeners" I guess.

50 - Chikyou - The Strong Star - The Five Hued Tiger
Joshua Levenheit, Gijimu, Bright, Bartholomew, Fuwalafuwalu
Joshua is leader of the Dragon Knights, and Bright is a dragon. Gijimu is leader of the Lampdragon bandits so for the first three they are connected to dragons in some way. Fuwalafuwalu and Joshua are both old leaders, so the only one that's out of place is Bartholomew.

51 - Chian - The Strong Star - The Five Hued Leopard
Morgan, Rikimaru, Toppo, Helmut, Richard
All male warriors, usually are troubled by something. Morgan lost his eyesight, Rikimaru's too poor to afford good meals and inns, Helmut deals with losing Razril and Richard just looks up to Mueller because that's all he's got. Toppo is the weakest example but it can be inferred that him not speaking unless in an acting role is troubling.

52 - Chijuku - The Axis Star - Thunder That Shakes The Heavens
Mose, Gantetsu, Beecham, Pablo, Wabon
Again, all male warriors with little overall connection. Well, apart from Wabon, they are servants to someone superior (Mose to Mace, Pablo to Warlock, Beecham to Lucia, and Gantetsu to whoever was in Qlon temple).

53 - Chikai - The Star of Gathering - The God of Accounting
Esmeralda, Simone Verdicci, Gau, Bang, Luserina Barows
First two are narcissists and Luserina comes from a generally foppish family. Gau and Bang don't really fit the narcissist fold however, so I got nothing here.

54 - Chisa - The Aiding Star - The Lesser Duke
Melodye, Connell, Reed, Liloon, Rania
Melodye, Connell, and Rania can change the game sounds, while Liloon is part of the mermaid atelier. Reed is just paired with Samus in the following star.

55 - Chiyu - The Helpful Star - He Who Is Like Ken Kuei of Old
Chapman, Hans, Samus, Lilen, Mohsen
Generally the armor shopowner, although again Lilen is part of the mermaid atelier, which still gives armor items. Samus is just paired with Reed above (Dominic is the armor shopowner in III).

56 - Chirei - The Clever Star - The Magic Physician
Liukan, Huan, Mio, Yu, Silva
Generally the chief doctor of the HQ, except Mio who is actually a nurse.

57 - Chijyu - The Beast Star - The Purple Bearded
Fukien, Tuta, Tuta, Carrie, Murad
Generally the secondary medical assistant and subordinate to the previous star, except Fukien who isn't actually a doctor but a priest (he still resides with Liukan though). Tuta is the superior doctor in III but joins later than Mio.

58 - Chibi - The Least Star - The Dwarf Tiger
Futch, Futch, Futch, Dario, Gavaya
All playable characters, usually having some minor plot relevance and some misfortunes in some way.

59 - Chikyu - The Intelligent Star - The Ten Foot Green Snake
Kasumi, Kasumi or Tomo, Lilly Pendragon, Millay, Hazuki
All female warriors, all except Tomo and Kasumi use swords of some kind.

60 - Chibou - Barbarous Star - The God of Death
Maas, Badeaux, Jefferson, Reinhold, Moroon
All except Jefferson are playable. All are male. Jefferson, Reinhold, and Maas all have HQ services, but all are different. Badeaux and Moroon are loners. Not much else.

61 - Chizen - The Silent Star - King of the Devils who Roil Earth
Crowley, Mazus, Sarah, Warlock, Levi
All powerful mages, and all are somehow found in deep dungeons (except Sarah, but she's still usually around ruins and ancient areas mostly).

62 - Chikou - The Wild Star - The Curly Haired
Fuma, Mondo, Watari, Akaghi, Shigure
Always a ninja, and often paired with the below star.

63 - Chikyou - Star of Ambition - The Lone Fire
Moose, Sasuke, Ayame, Mizuki, Sagiri
Except Moose, who's out of place, another ninja, often associated with the previous star. From III onwards, a female ninja who uses the Shrike Rune.

64 - Chihi - The Flying Star - The Eight Armed Lo Chao
Meese, Leona, Sebastian, Ornan, Marina
Sebastian and Marina are both innkeepers, and Leona and Sebastian can change party members. Ornan is often sitting near the innkeeper despite not being the innkeeper, so that's still connected. Meese just provides blacksmithing.

65 - Chisou - The Walking Star - The Heaven Flying God
Sergei, Adlai, Shizu, Manu, Babbage
All are elevator operators and deal with machinery.

66 - Chikou - The Cunning Star - The Jade Armed Warrior
Kimberley, Raura, Hortez VII, Rene, Haleth
Generally has to do with scrolls (Raura, Hortez), maps (Rene) or corruptions of writings (Haleth, Kimberley)

67 - Chimei - Clear Star - The Magic Iron Flautist
Sheena, Sheena, Elaine, Ameria, Nifsara
Other than Sheena, they are considered sexy women warriors. Unsure of how Sheena fits in but he is a fighter in some way.

68 - Chisin - The Forward Star - Crocodile Out of the Hole
Kessler, Kinnison, Jacques, Nico, Yahr
69 - Chitai - The Retreating Star - The Oyster that Turns the River
Marco, Shiro, Joker, Wendel, Nelis
Usually a duo of stars, except in I (Kessler is paired with Ledon while Marco is a cup minigame person). Jacques and Joker are part of a larger group.

70 - Chiman - Full Star - The Jade Banner Pole
Gen, Amada, Wan Fu, Tov, Muroon
Gen, Amada, and Tov are naval engineers, and Muroon is a beaver so naturally is associated with building dams or perhaps boats. Wan Fu is out of place but his attire perhaps explains that he is more inclined to warmer areas by the sea.

71 - Chisui - The Fulfilled Star - The Strong Armed Gorilla
Hugo, Emilia, Eike, Phil, Alhazred
Basically the HQ librarian who you give Old Books to, except in IV where Tanya does that. Phil is a tailor. No idea how he would fit in here or in #37.

72 - Chisyu - The Complete Star - The Gorge Leaping Tiger
Hellion, Zamza, Leo Gallen, Eugene, Bergen
Hellion and Zamza are powerful mages, and Bergen wants to learn magic. Hellion, Zamza, and Eugene have fixed runes to them (Mother Earth, Fire Dragon, Firefly, respectively), but other than that the connections are kinda flat. Leo and Bergen have open rune slots, and I think Leo is just paired with Roland in the following star.

To be concluded

The connections between the individual Stars of Destiny in Suikoden games - Part 1

As you might know, I love the Suikoden series so very much, for continuity nods and interesting character-driven plots. With Suikoden V finally out of the way I can try my hand at analyzing the possible connections of the 108 Stars of Destiny each game had to offer. I got the inspiration from a forum thread that did the same thing, but here's my take on these possible roles. This will be three posts long just so you know.

1 - Tenkai - Chief Star of Heaven - The Opportune Rain
Tir McDohl, Riou, Thomas, Lazlo En Kuldes, Freyjadour Falenas
I've made a post on this one already, but I'll reiterate, it's usually not just the game hero but the gatherer of stars, which would explain Thomas here, since he wasn't the main hero in III.

2 - Tengou - Star of Conflagration - The Jade Ch'i lin
Lepant, Ridley Wizen/Boris Wizen, Sasarai, Lino En Kuldes, Raja
All are generals and leaders of some kind, always plot-relevant in some way and always loyal with strong units in war battles.

3 - Tenki - Star of Wisdom - The Great Intelligence
Mathiu Silverberg, Shu, Caesar Silverberg, Elenor Silverberg, Lucretia Merces
The main strategist for the HQ in the game and always the most cunning individual who specializes in strategy.

4 - Tenkan - Star of Idleness - Dragon Entering the Clouds
Luc, Luc, Luc, Ted, Zerase
Always powerful and reliable wizards with unique runes. This star is often a Tablet Guardian in the case of Luc in the first two games and Zerase.

5 - Tenyu - Star of Bravery - The Great Sword
Humphrey Mintz, Humphrey Mintz, Dupa, Tal, Craig Laden
Usually a plot-relevant, powerful general and/or a party member who joins through plot. Tal isn't a general, but he's still a powerful physical fighter.

6 - Tenyuu - Star of Heroic Ferocity - The Leopard Headed
Kasim Hazil, Hauser, Yuber, Izak, Galleon
Another powerful general and plot-relevant party member like the previous star. Izak again isn't a general but still a powerful physical fighter. Same with Galleon but he's more of a senior knight.

7 - Tenmou - Star of Swift Courage - The Fire in the Thunder Clap
Kwanda Rosman, Kiba Windamier, Shiba, Axel, Boz Wilde
The Suikosource tablet page says "strong village leader" although I'm sure that starts from III to V. And even then, they aren't the real leaders of their places (Dupa is the lizard chief, not Shiba, Axel is the son of Na-Nal's chief). Kwanda and Kiba are both enemy generals fought who defect to the player's side. Usable generals in war too.

8 - Teni - Star of Majesty - The Double Whip of Iron
Pesmerga, Pesmerga, Lucia, Selma, Nakula
Generally strong party members and/or leaders. Usually has a vendetta against someone. Nakula against Sagiri and Nether Gate, Pesmerga against Yuber, Lucia against Teresa in II then later Chris. Selma may or may not have a vendetta, but it would probably be against humans as a whole.

9 - Tenei - Heroic Star - The Little Li Kuan
Gremio, Sierra Mikain, Yuiri, Aldo, Lyon
It says "sworn protector" and I guess that makes sense, especially with Gremio and Lyon being protectors of the main hero. Aldo feels the need to protect Ted as well. As for Sierra and Yuiri, they are usually protectors of their villages I guess.

10 - Tenki - Lofty Star - The Little Whirlwind
Warren, Teresa Wisemail, Salome Harras, Schtolteheim Reinbach III, Talgeyl
It says "town mayor" but I don't think any of these apply to anyone other than Teresa and Talgeyl, and even then they are acting mayors. Salome is the most bureaucratic of the Zexen Knights I guess, while Reinbach is the son of a mayor. Warren I'm not sure about.

11 - Tenfu - Star of Wealth - The Eagle Who Smites the Heavens
Kun To, Nina, Jimba, Chiepoo, Euram Barows/Eresh
Well, I'd say they are all wealthy in some way, Jimba being Wyatt Lightfellow can afford a nice house in Zexen, and Euram is of course wealthy. Chiepoo strives to be wealthy and Kun To is a notorious smuggler which hints he's wealthy. Nina could afford college I guess. Generally though, all do something rather important to each game's plot in completely different ways. Only one that's odd here is Eresh, which has no connection.

12 - Tenman - Star of Abundance - The Beautiful Bearded
Cleo, Abizboah/Feather/Siegfried, Juan, Paula, Dinn
25 - Tentai - Retreating Star - The Winged Tiger
Pahn, Abizboah/Feather/Siegfried, Cecile, Jewel, Shoon
I put these two together because they are both generally connected as subordinates to the Tenkai Star, especially in I (Cleo and Pahn both bodyguards to Tir), III (Juan and Cecile close friends to Thomas), and IV (Paula and Jewel both are Razril knights along with Lazlo). No real connection between Dinn and Shoon, although both were friendly with the Prince before he became the Tenkai Star I guess, which would make sense for the rest too. And the Listening Crystal monsters in II are out of place I'd say.

13 - Tenko - Lone Star - The Tattooed Priest
Viktor, Viktor, Sergeant Joe, Kika, Kyle
Always a powerful plot-relevant warrior that serves as a right-hand man sort of star to the hero (Sgt. Joe is a bit of an exception due to being only Hugo's right hand man, not necessarily for the other protagonists).

14 - Tensyo - Wounded Star - The Hairy Priest
Valeria, Valeria or Tomo, Hugo, Keneth, Zegai
With the name "Wounded Star" I assume that the people here have lost something of sorts. Both Valeria and Hugo have lost homes in their games, while Zegai loses his freedom and to a lesser extent Keneth as well (both of them don't enjoy the comforts of the places they are in I guess or something like that). Tomo is an exception to this I guess, although her father leaving her for a bit may count as "wounded"

15 - Tenritsu - Star of the Standing Spear - Warrior of the Two Spears
Griffith, Fitcher, Bazba, Ramada, Isato
All are involved in plot, though usually in tertiary or relatively minor roles, especially Bazba. Fitcher and Ramada, the two non-playable ones, have the biggest roles overall in their games, but other than plot relevance I know no real connections to think of.

16 - Tensyo - The Swift Star - The Featherless Arrow
Clive, Clive, Yun, Travis, Haswar Falenas
Yun and Haswar are both spiritual mystics of sorts, while Clive and Travis are generally loners who hang around mysterious locations perhaps. I guess they are all connected in the settings they are usually found in.

17 - Tenan - Dark Star - Blue Faced Beast
Flik, Flik, Edge, Snowe Vingerhut, Belcoot
Dashing swordsman archetype, usually good-looking and plot relevant (except Edge)

18 - Tenyu - Guardian Star - The Wielder of the Golden Sword
Camille, Tsai, Yumi, Rachel, Norma
The forum thread says the title is "Master Halberdier" which fits all except Yumi since they use polearms. Yumi is certainly out of place there, but I can't figure out any other connection.

19 - Tenku - Empty Star - The Swift Vanguard
Kreutz, Jess, Fubar, Helga, Ax
This one I can't really find much connection on, other than Fubar and Ax being animals and all being playable except Jess.

20 - Tensoku - Speedy Star - The Magic Messenger
Stallion, Stallion, Nash Latkje, Cedric, Cathari
Other than Nash, all are super speedy thanks to the True Holy/Godspeed Rune they have. Nash is still a fast character.

21 - Teni - Strange Star - The Red-headed Devil
Kage, Georg Prime, Aila, Keen, Georg Prime
The thread says that these stars all do something dedicated but would make them seem bad. I guess that's fair especially for Georg and Aila, Georg moreso in V due to his role and Aila for joining with the HSBDF despite being Karayan. Keen ends up joining to keep a tab on Sigurd while Kage is a ninja for hire. All are technically assassins except Aila.

22 - Tensatsu - Murderous Star - The Black Whirlwind
Fu Su Lu, Hanna, Hallec, Gau, Ernst
All are considered beastly fighters who have animal motives or instincts, the first three just being powerful warriors with animal skins (Hanna is the least beastly), while Gau is feral and Ernst is cursed.

23 - Tenbi - Lowly Star - The Nine Dragoned
Kirkis, Killey, Chris Lightfellow, Gretchen, Killey
Can't find a connection here other than them all being party members.

24 - Lewd Star - The Indominable One
Milich Oppenheimer, Anita, Estella, Konrad, Shula Valya
Except Shula, all are well-versed in magic, with Milich and Anita being good with swords as well. Milich and Shula are quite narcissistic as well.

26 - Tenjyu - Star of Longevity - The Dragon Who Roils Ivers
Sonya Shulen, Nanami, Geddoe, Katarina Cott, Bernadette Egan
All are related to parents or parent figures of the protagonists. Sonya loved Teo. Nanami was Riou's sister, who's adoptive father was Genkaku. Bernadette is related to Ferid, Prince's father. Lazlo's father wasn't Glen but he was a parental figure I guess, although he was Katarina's actual father. Then there's Geddoe, who, in line with the Longevity issue, has lived long, but he's also related to Wyatt, Chris's father, who was his comrade-in-arms. Both Katarina and Bernadette have their own father issues it seems.

27 - Tenken - Dagger Star - God of Swift Death
Anji, Rina, Melville, Lo Seng, Volga
29 - Tenzai - Star of Sin - The Short Lived
Kanak, Eilie, Alanis, Lo Fong, Wasil
31 - Tenpai - The Vanquished Star - The Fierce King of Devils
Leonardo, Bolgan, Elliot, Lo Hak, Orok
Obviously a trio of stars who are usually together, will usually stay united together in any case.

28 - Tenhei - Leveled Star - The Boatman
Tai Ho, Tai Ho, Ace, Shiramine, Lance
30 - Tenson - Broken Star - White Stripes in the Waves
Yam Koo, Yam Koo, Queen, Ugetsu, Flail
A duo of stars, usually involves fishermen in the case of I, II, and IV. For V, I wish Logg and Lun were swapped with Lance and Flail here, since the latter two are non-human and the former two are fisherman. Ace and Queen are part of a larger group.

32 - Tenrou - The Goal Star - The Sick Kuan So
Hix, Hix, Franz, Rakgi, Yoran
33 - Tensui - Star of Intelligence - One who heeds not his life
Tengaar, Tengaar, Iku, Rikie, Nick
Another duo of stars, usually a boy/girl pair with the exception of Yoran and Nick who are both male.

34 - Tenbou - Savage Star - Double-Headed Snake
Varkas, Freed Yamamoto, Scott, Jango, Wilhelm
35 - Tenkoku - Wailing Star - The Double Tailed Scorpion
Sydonia, Yoshino Yamamoto, Ernie, Brec, Mueller
Yet another duo of stars, except for Scott and Ernie in III who aren't a duo. Will usually join together and in I and II, party members while in IV and V, war units.

36 - Tenkou - Clever Star - The Prodigal
Eileen, Chaco, Dios, Flare en Kuldes, Toma
Usually connected with the Tengou Star for the most part, with Eileen and Flare being relatives and Dios being Sasarai's closest partner. Chaco and Ridley's connection is that they both fight for Two River. Toma and Raja's connection is perhaps the weakest, but both fight together so why not.

Continued in the next post

A look back at: Suikoden V

Hooray, I finally get done with this one, a game that returns to a form nicely and without too much grease put in. Yeah, I love the series as a whole and it's way too easy to pick on IV, but is V better than its predecessors? I'd say it's about on the level of III in terms of enjoyment, but I and II are forever classics, Tactics is long but somewhat enjoyable, and III works out despite its quirkiness. IV of course was a flop due to several changes, and therefore V needed to improve on that. It most definitely isn't made to eclipse the classic formulas, but did well enough despite bad sales to be a worthwhile, yet long, adventure.

Many say this game is too easy. I mean, you've got Zerase's Star Rune, the Beaver and Dragon Cavalry war units and their advantage over everything in water, Richard's crazy evasion and counter rates plus criticals, Georg's criticals, Viki's Chain Magic skill, Galleon's impenetrable defense, the Creation rune unite magic, and that second rune spell Ernst has just breaking the game wide open. But then again, rude rare encounters, clustered war battles, and worst of all, a distinct lack of money or skill points unless you grind like crazy even out the easiness. To even max out somebody's weapon or so you need about 365000 potch, and then there's the ultimate armors that are available for a whopping 999990 potch each for characters with proper defense. Not to mention the epic skills which will certainly be hard enough to grind up.

The hardest thing about Suikoden V is the way you recruit people. You meet most of the recruits well before you recruit them, which for some characters like Shoon (an automatic recruit though) is bad because you get them too late to be useful. But it's bad that you get to see a recruit very early before he finally joins your army, making them highly obsolete. I tried using a few of the later recruits as much as possible, like Hazuki, just to see how well they are in comparison to earlier recruits, and it's pretty much mixed. Then you have several recruits that are outright pains in the ass to recruit. Genoh? Need to have an old guy like Alhazred at around the same level your main character is, then go all the way through that waterfall basin. Same for Richard although it just means leaving and coming back. Sairoh wants the price of salt to go down, which is based on the trade rumors, if you don't know what you're doing this will take a long time. Byakuren needs either Levi or Genoh to recruit after you beat it in a battle, otherwise you'll have to wait until 20 more recruits show up, which may take a while.

There's some interesting consistency with some recruits, that if one of their friends dies in battle, then they leave your group forever. Isabel and Mathias are examples, if one dies in battle the other leaves to bury them away. The war battle system tried to be interesting but has glaring flaws in that enemy AI is downright absurd, either directly running to your nearest weakest unit or just sitting there until you head close.