Ambrosia Software Web Board: Cythera Youtube Playthrough - Ambrosia Software Web Board

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

I seem to recall that Wizard experimented and determined that it affected the character's regeneration rate.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

Except then I'd be carrying around a bunch of things that I don't need and won't use, when they have a productive use (being used for the grimoire).

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

In this instance, perhaps so, but it backs up my argument of the intent of the scrolls. I see nothing wrong with using them for their intended purpose .

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

I think there are several ways through the trees. You'd have to look at Wizard's map.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

I don't tend to use death strike in combat. It costs too much mana and (before you counter with the use of the scroll) the targets generally don't hold still, making the cast wasted in any case.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

I don't think so, although you might be right.. In any case, examination of future videos will reveal the answer.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

Wait...

You mean that you've solved a long-running mystery in Cythera--indeed, a search of almost all topics on this subject seem to indicate Prusa's actions are random--a mystery worthy of an update to Slayer's Guide itself (!)...and the only person you told was Wizard ?

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

It could be your summer chron submission!

Oh, wait...

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

Thank you , I've learned several things through your comments. (You also learned that Atyminus eats breakfast at House Attis, which may be something new to me as well actually.)

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

Thanks, I'll have to try that in future.

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It does, but it's still quite possible to beat the game. (Admittedly, in my games I've gone back to Alaric for healing periodically. I haven't noticed you doing that, so I guess props to you for not wasting Alaric's last traces of magic.) I do usually eat, but I've gone through the game without eating before.

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Not very productive, since you could just as easily have learned those spells in Pnyx.

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What about Directed Nexus and any other scrolls that are available in the main Pnyx library?

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It doesn't cost any mana if you use the scroll :P
Casting the spell is expensive, but I think it's worthwhile when fighting demons. I always save before casting it (unless I'm cheating & have plenty of mana) in case the demon moves out-of-range, but I try to position myself so that's unlikely.

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Dude, this Prusa stuff is old news. I'd pretty-much had her figured out before doing the dialogue collecting (and discussed it on the forum), but that's when I figured out her exact rotation of dialogues. I uploaded the dialogue files so anyone with an account could've downloaded & read them. And Wizzy posted them publicly on his Cythera site. Apparently, you were just too lazy to read them. *Shrug*

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I don't think that would qualify with the Chron challenge requirements? Oh wait, you like ignoring the requirements.

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Oh yeah! I should keep a running list of everything I'm learning from this series ^_^ I think there was one other minor thing that I can't remember right now :\

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 07:54 PM, said:

Why don't we just leave at this: you prefer to use the scrolls instead of mana and I don't like carrying them around.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 07:54 PM, said:

In general, I find daemon fights to be either fairly easy or fairly hard, and I'm not sure what the determining factor is. Of late, they have not been hard, but, in this game, unfortunately, they were. In any case, controlling the character was somewhat difficult in this game.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 07:54 PM, said:

I've only checked once, but I only found one mention about Prusa and that was concerning the first day. I'll look into it and probably adjust Slayer's Guide appropriately.

Why would I read all the dialogue online? I can still play the game .

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 07:54 PM, said:

I don't actually recall ignoring the requirements. I generally don't bother to check if submissions match them exactly, but most people generally don't bother submitting anything.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 03 October 2014 - 07:54 PM, said:

Is it that Eioneus leaves the forge at lunch? I didn't recall that.



The next part of the playthrough--here and here--is now available. In this portion, I talked to Prusa (again), raided the Tyrant's Tomb, and entered Ayrit. No doubt 453 will find the tomb raid appalling: I didn't remember to check the guide for the levers sequence and, in spite of my best efforts, my character seemed to think that walking on spike traps was fun. I did pause and consult the guide at one point (when ringing the bells).

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Aww, you're done arguing about something pointless? :(

(For the record, I rarely use the scrolls either; but I certainly don't waste them on my grimoire. I just waste them my leaving them sitting in my pouch the whole game.)

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I look forward to watching to your demon-fight videos to see if I have any ideas on why they were harder than sometimes. Maybe because you never trained enough in defense & physical combat? :P Or maybe it has to do with your followers' attack strategies? It might be easier to kill a demon if it's running around chasing Aethon than if it's actively attacking you. Also did you get odd helmets and the Sword of Heroes before going after the demons?

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Oh :( Do you know why?

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If you come across my old posts confidently explaining my previous theories about Prusa which I've since disproven, feel free to delete them ;)

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Show-off :[ Although checking the dialogue collection might have saved you some time...

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No, I knew that... I've got a list on my computer now of things I learned from your playthrough, so if I think of anything else, I'll add it to the list.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 05 October 2014 - 03:12 PM, said:

I would guess that my party members and I were not sufficiently leveled.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 05 October 2014 - 03:12 PM, said:

Indeed, I had not played the game in some time and rushed somewhat more than usual.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 05 October 2014 - 03:12 PM, said:

Right, I'll pin them as soon as I find them .

BreadWorldMercy453, on 05 October 2014 - 03:12 PM, said:

I generally forgot to check the guide and other reference material in advance. Once I started playing, I tried to avoid pausing to consult outside sources.



The next part of the playthrough is available. In this part, I visited Ayrit and talked to Sabinate and the other Seldane. I then stopped by LKH to improve my defense slightly. Finally, I returned to Cademia and began to explore the sewers. I also raided the stores for the Guild, which will, no doubt, horrify 453 .

Maybe Selax needs to get a twitch stream so we can do #cythera plays Cythera.

I don't know what a twitch stream is, but that sounds amazing! :D

The next part of the playthrough has now been uploaded. In this portion, I finish the Cademian sewers and recover the Cloak of Hercules. I had to pause for one moment to look up the notes for the lyre. I completed the quest concerning Chrysothemis, talked to Thuria and Opheltius, and then spent the rest of the video trying to get the book from Prusa (again).

Avatara, on 05 October 2014 - 10:48 PM, said:

We need to consult the mushroom steak
space9

I almost forgot: my replies to 453's youtube comments on parts 9 through 12.

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I didn't recall that the prompt (which I had already used in my previous conversation) changed after speaking to Itanos, and I do eventually find the treasure .

As for Prusa, so far as Slayer's Guide and old topics suggested, talking to her all the time as much as possible was the only way known to get the book. I'll have to examine your data and update Slayer's Guide.

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…would you step on the tile and get burned for no reason?

Honestly, my impression is still that the author of the Cyper Manuscript is not native to Cythera. First, the author mentions the elemental forces in Cythera as though he is not one of them. Secondly, only Alaric (albeit in a weakened state) has been seen to demonstrate the ability to summon people from Earth to Cythera, and it took him an extreme effort. To summon a whole (presumably small fleet) would take immense power. I'm not certain any single elemental (not even necessarily Ur-Sylph) possesses such strength. Thirdly, I think we may have discussed this before (only briefly it seems but still), so there's no point in derailing this topic .

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Is there any harm in opening Ur-Sylph's prison? I was in the area but was not prepared to cross all that lava.

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Now you understand why--when I forget to consult the guide in advance--I simply continue on rather than pause frequently .

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Nothing to complain about ?

You should rest. You must not feel well.

Buzzzzy, on 06 October 2014 - 05:34 PM, said:

Oh man, my old mushroom steak/Prusa theory! That was bad :x Two faulty theories combined, it was quite deranged. No one seemed concerned, so I guess you're all used to insanity from me. Oh well, at least I understand Prusa now, though I still don't quite understand the mushroom steak. I've gotten it several times but can't tell you exactly why sometimes it came about one way and sometimes another way...

What does space9 mean?

Selax, on 06 October 2014 - 06:20 PM, said:

Talking to her 50 times is ridiculous. I'm not sure why that ever became a method of getting the book of beauty. I'm confident that it's as simple as I wrote in the dialogue collection ^_^

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Yeah, I guess I do. A tiny bit of HP or a considerable amount of mana... I'd pay the HP. I wonder how you'll handle Land's End? You'll probably just wait around for Alastor to finish the boots @_@

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I like pointlessly derailing topics! I still think Magpie fits perfectly. He refers to the elements as though he's an outsider because he's not accepted as a seldane or an undine. He's the one who recommended Alaric summon Bellerophon to Cythera, so he was familiar with the possibility. Magpie may be twice as powerful as Alaric, since Alaric's half human; and besides I think it was only so hard for Alaric because he was already sick.

This post has been edited by BreadWorldMercy453: 06 October 2014 - 09:18 PM

BreadWorldMercy453, on 06 October 2014 - 08:27 PM, said:

That's not actually what I was referring to, but wasn't the steak connected to character classes or lockpicking or something?

BreadWorldMercy453, on 06 October 2014 - 08:27 PM, said:

Well, Cythera doesn't have a start button…
http://gaming.stacke...tchplayspokemon
Also, http://en.wikipedia....ys_Pok%C3%A9mon

This post has been edited by Buzzzzy: 07 October 2014 - 12:02 AM

So wait, if we do a Cythera twitch stream, we'd all control the player together? o_O That sounds crazy and really fun!

BreadWorldMercy453, on 06 October 2014 - 08:27 PM, said:

I think that I might examine it more closely myself. A couple of older topics have one or two posters speaking about getting the book on various different days, although I'm not certain if they're using game time or measuring time relative to their first conversation with Prusa. I'm pretty certain that you are correct though.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 06 October 2014 - 08:27 PM, said:

I prefer (generally) to avoid pointless injuries. As for the volcano, that would seem the reasonable course of action, although I suppose you'd prefer to see my character burn to death .

Oh, and I started a separate topic on the Cypher Manuscript to hinder your efforts to derail this one .



The next part of the playthrough is available--here and here. In this portion, I spoke with Prusa (again), acquired the alligator boots from Alastor, and finally located the buried treasure chest. I then talked to Prusa again and finally got the Sapphire Book. Afterward, I visited Ur-Sylph. I stopped by Pnyx but, since I had all but one book, decided to wait until I could turn in all six at once (just for the fun of it). Then, I met with Charax, but I forgot to speak with Palaestra first and so could not speak with him. Finally, I went to the Temple of the Cult of Scylla, although the game froze before I finished it. Thus, that segment is completed in the next video.

The next part of the playthrough is now up--here and here. In this segment, I finished exploring the temple and returned to Pnyx. After some additional training in mana and casting, I entered the catacombs and visited Elder Diones' workshop. I tried to activate the wishing fountain, but it seems that I don't remember how to do so. At the end of this portion, I returned to the Iron Mine.

First, my response to 453's youtube comments:

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I don't know if the fountain has any additional effects. I seldom visit that area. I didn't know it existed until I mapped the zones.

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Actually, I think you're the only person watching the videos…

I think you are probably correct, but I always like to check things, especially before updating the guide.

Thank you, and I think finding the chest was worth the trouble .

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I suppose it might have been shorter to head through the mountain pass from Ur-Sylph's prison, but I suspect I was still debating my destination at the time. I also don't see the harm in leveling somewhat before going after the ruffians and I didn't have the equipment I wanted either.

I stopped by Pnyx to reunify my followers in case I had to deal with polyps before reaching Charax's house.

I haven't really experimented with Meleager and other weapons. I just tend to leave him weaponless since I'm going to give him the gauntlets at some point anyway.

I honestly didn't notice the pouch (even though I was searching for it), but I did remember to go back through and get it in the next video.

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Most probably, I was called away from the computer to attend to some other task.

Thank you , although I'm surprised you aren't complaining that I'm killing native wildlife.

I have experimented with other AI settings (although not recently). Sometimes they're more effective and sometimes they're not. I just tend to stick with targeted attack because it seems to work well enough.

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Thank you, but the next daemon fight in Abydos didn't go particularly well.

I don't think I usually use odd helms against the daemons in Pnyx or Abydos. Daemons don't seem to use fear and such as often as liches do, although the one in Abydos did cast fear on Aethon.

I prefer to not have to worry about spells malfunctioning .

Yes, I preferred to have Timon ready to heal if necessary.



The next part of the playthrough is up. In this segment, I spoke with Jhiaxus and went to Abydos. My first attempt to kill the daemon didn't go as well as I wanted (Meleager being far less effective than some other times), so I reverted the game (unfortunately not having saved as recently as I would have liked) and tried again. The second attempt was satisfactory. After recovering the last Sapphire Book, I headed for Land's End Volcano.

Selax, on 09 October 2014 - 02:43 PM, said:

You mapped the zones? I thought Wizzy did all that :x

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Really? Come on guys, you don't know what you're missing out on! This is the most fun I've had on this board since Grapper's Return returned! :D

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Your logic frustrates me :P You're basically saying you fought polyps and demons to train up for fighting ruffians? Okay...

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Odd helmets protect against all kinds of magically-induced status problems, not just fear, right? I've always considered odd helmets to be as helpful against demons as they are against liches.

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I'm pretty sure there's still a chance of spell failure at 15 casting, though maybe I'm remembering wrong. I'm not convinced the risk of spell failure at 15 casting is significantly less than the risk of spell failure at 8 casting. I wish I could play Cythera and experiment with it!

BreadWorldMercy453, on 09 October 2014 - 03:57 PM, said:

I'm referring to the mapping described in this post.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 09 October 2014 - 03:57 PM, said:

I'm saying that if I used the advanced equipment to fight a few polyps and daemons (actually, I only fought one of these without the more advanced weapons, two without the helmets) I'd miss out on the fun of getting to it on multiple ruffians .

BreadWorldMercy453, on 09 October 2014 - 03:57 PM, said:

I believe they protect from paralysis and confusion, yes, but daemons don't seem to use those as wildly as the liches do.



The next part of the playthrough is available--here and here. In this segment, I visited Land's End Volcano and completed the quest concerning Jinrai. I then returned to the mine and spoke to Jhiaxus again. I visited Pnyx, dropped off the Sapphire Books (although the quest didn't get marked as completed), and went to the last three Halls. Finally, I returned to LKH and talked to Magpie.

Well, I actually uploaded this earlier, but it's been a bit of easy day.

Anyway, in this portion, I visited Cademia and finished the Iron Mine quest. Then, I obtained the mystic helmet and spoke to Sabinate. Finally, I went to the swamp and talked to Larisa.

In response to 453's youtube comments:

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I don't really use death strike for much due to its mana cost. (No, I'm not interested in discussing the potential uses of scrolls .)

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I have had issues with "wait" before, but I don't think there related specifically to Aethon. In general, I find the command safe to use.

Do you usually just let your assistances burn when you enter the volcano or tell them to "leave"?

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…is there another reason to use the journal?

You're welcome .

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I'm not certain what the nature of the difference between "sword" and "attack" is. I would probably train higher in "attack" depending on how my character levels, but I don't think that I had much occasion to do so in this game.

I tend to sleep when I want my character to regenerate or time to pass, although I do seem to recall that--because there isn't so much that one can do in a city during the night--I tend to have the character sleep at night somewhat regularly.

…you memorize the sequence of buttons you use to activate the strange device? I think that I stuck it on Aethon because he didn't have a better helmet and I don't consider it very useful, since it offers none of the protections given by the odd helmets.

I think that I knew that about Larisa but had forgotten it.



The next portion of the playthrough is available--here and here. In this segment, I visited Maayti. 453 will probably find it appalling, since I tend to just press button at random to get the doors to open. Once I collected the third Crolna shard, I returned to Ayrit and spoke to Sabinate.

Selax, on 12 October 2014 - 12:53 PM, said:

I let them burn if they're stupid enough to step on hot lava, which they only do if I happen to step on the same lava tile on that turn. Otherwise they avoid the lava, even if it means they can't follow me all the way in. (If I remember correctly, they won't avoid lava if I use Resist Fire on them, but it seems a waste of mana)

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When I was a Cythera newbie, I wrote everything in the journal ^_^ That would eventually glitch up the journal :( Apparently the journal isn't designed to contain every single game dialogue. So then I started only using the journal for stuff that seemed useful, the pnyx passwords, the code for the Kosha grotto, Demodocus' comments about Neoptolemus, etc. I don't remember what all. Now I pretty much don't use the journal at all unless I want to know what day it is. Is there an easier way to figure out what day it is than to record something in the journal & check the journal for the timestamp?

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According to the Cythera Documentation:
"Attack(R) - This skill is used to determine the base chance of hitting during combat."
"Sword(R) - This skill determines how well you can use a sword in combat. It adjusts not only your chance to hit, but also the amount of damage you do (since, when trained properly, you can use the weapon more effectively). This includes swords (all sizes and shapes), daggers, and spears."
That implies that while Attack is more versatile, Sword is better to train in if you've chosen to use a sword. But, the accuracy of the Cythera Documentation is questionable, and even it's right, I don't know if Attack might increase the chance of hitting more than Sword does. It's something I've always been curious about @_@
(Edit: I didn't mean to put registered trademarks on Attack and Sword when I was quoting the documentation, I hope it's not illegal to accidentally put a registered trademark on something. I'll see if I can fix it by adding an empty code.)

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No, just while I was watching the video I thought to myself "I'd click that button, now I'd click that one," etc., and was surprised that you were actually doing the same thing ^_^ (Now the buttons below Maayti I actually memorized because I often used a guide, so I used the same sequence every time. But I don't think I have them memorized anymore. The only ones I can remember off the top of my head are: First room, 21,21,211, & last room, 123,123,321 :D)

This post has been edited by BreadWorldMercy453: 12 October 2014 - 01:28 PM

BreadWorldMercy453, on 12 October 2014 - 01:26 PM, said:

I seem to recall having difficulty with them trying to cross lava if the distances involved are large (e.g. Land's End Volcano as compared to the much smaller Ur-Sylph's prison). Thus, I generally just tell them to wait.

BreadWorldMercy453, on 12 October 2014 - 01:26 PM, said:

I find it easier just to click the buttons at random, rather than attempt to remember (or figure out) something I rarely use. Alternatively, I could try creating a scroll of fetch with a few dozen uses.

The next part of the playthrough is up--here and here. In this portion, I visited Kosha to sell gems (453 will probably accuse me of being excessively greedy for doing so) and then went to the crab cove to recover the Timeflux book.

The next part of the playthrough is available. After a brief stop at Kosha, I raided the ruffian encampment and then headed for the harpies' den.

In response to 453's youtube comments:

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Actually, we tend to use assumptions, simplifications, simulations, etc.

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In Ayrit? Do you mean Maayti? Some of us don't play the game often enough to memorize all routes .

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What? Do you mean you can raise the price you sell them at?

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Considering the spear would just have stuck to the hydra and I still would have had to wait on the mana, I'd rather wait to recharge the mana. I don't consider the spear to be any more useful than the helmet.

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Are you saying Timon's sister wouldn't want him to have dry feet?

I wasn't certain if dropping things counted. Hence, I move them twice to err on the caution.

I try to update their equipment as I find it. I noticed he needed a new helm, got him one, found the odd helms, and got him one.



Well, I actually uploaded this yesterday, but I didn't get a chance to post here. In this segment, I visited the harpy cave and recovered the mystic armor. I then went to Odemia and learned of Opheltius's murder. I also spoke to Thersites (who managed to appear to be in two places at once) twice about Antiphus and examined the jail cell. Finally, I headed to Cademia to investigate the murder.