[DS] Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard

I was interested in the first game but never bought it for some bizarre reason, and it's probably a good thing I didn't since the sequel is supposed to be more polished. One question though. I've been reading some stuff on the official website and there's info about the Beast. Is the Beast an actual character class, or something else? I want to get a wolf 'cause I love wolves.

I've never played any Wizardry game so how do you guys think I'll like this? I already know about the punishing difficulty this series has.

Can someone recommend a good beginner party for me?

How ya doing, buddy?

So you guys are saying there isn't a set group of classes that totally sucks when you take them to a dungeon? There's no consequences for mix and matching classes?

Originally Posted by Kagosin

Well the thing about the Beast class is

Spoiler:

You don't unlock them until you complete the 5th floor

Really? Awww :(
I read up on Beasts and they do have some unique abilities. Would be fun to try them. I checked the wallpapers and didn't see one for them so I thought they were allies ie: they don't take up space in your party, but help out on the sidelines.

Hmmm that's a lot of classes I can fiddle around with. I'm able to keep characters in reserve to use whenever I want, right? How many can I have in total?

BTW, what is 'map support?' That really doesn't make much sense.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Heh, one reason why I hated 1st person dungeon crawlers back in the day was because you were forced to make a map on separate paper and I was too damn lazy to bother writing crap. Therefore, the ability to map as you go right on the DS screen appeals greatly to me :3

Can't pick it up til end of next week though as I can't get to the mall during the weekdays. Gonna get the Spore Creature Editor too while I'm at it :D

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Originally Posted by CelticWhisper

I actually memorized layouts rather than making paper maps.

What? Do you have photographic memory or something? I'd never be able to do that :D

Ah, so that's what map support is like. That actually sounds interesting, although it also sounds like Survivalists are crappy fighters despite their class title :D

I don't actually mind less storytelling in dungeon crawlers. To me they sound more like an exploration type game than one with a set goal like, say, save the world.

Glad to see the game's nice and cheap. It's $26.99 at Amazon CA, so I assume it's the same price in stores.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I saw the first game discounted for $20 something at EB once, but I didn't have the funds to pick it up. Then I went home, checked online and saw a sequel was coming in just a few weeks. It's a good thing I didn't get it then.

Ah, Survivalists aren't what I thought then. So they're decent fighters with some mad support/map skills. They'd be nice to have in a party I'm sure!

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What? Really? It came out today? I hope it's in stores tomorrow though. Sometimes it takes several days before stores here even get games in. Unfortunately, it's already past closing time so I can't call in.

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Originally Posted by Kagosin

When I called in yesterday, they said they had it in stock, so i'm picking it up today.

Lucky. The closest EB to me said they only have one copy, and that's a pre-order, and the second closest EB to me won't get it in until next week. Another EB further away sold out. That sucks. There's also a HMV and Best Buy close by, but I doubt they'd have it in as they don't specialize in games. Guess I'll wait 'til next weekend then :(

FELIPE NO

Hell no. Next day shipping costs way too much and I don't have oodles of money to throw around. Hopefully maybe something unexpected to come up next week and I'd be able to get it. I can't believe it's sold out though. It's a niche title.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

I never got the first game. What is this code everyone is talking about and do you get a cool item with it? If so, can I have a code?

Additional Spam:

Originally Posted by Taco

I just picked up my copy today, got the only one that wasn't a pre-order

Lucky you :(

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Argh, you guys are lucky to be playing it. I went to a different EB on Tuesday and guess what? They were sold out. I wasn't expecting for the game to be sold out. I figured it was such a niche title that nobody wanted it...guess I was wrong. Hopefully the other stores will get it before the weekend. There was nothing today *le sigh*

On the bright side, I did get the Spore CC. Apparently only Wal-Mart of all places had it.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

YIPPEE!! I went to EB today (the one that said they were getting it yesterday) and they had it in! YAYYY!!! They only had two copies left apparently. Lucky me!! Apparently the employees there know about Atlus' limited runs, and one of them said the game's good, haha. I didn't play it yet as I didn't have a code handy.

I'm thinking of going Landsknecht, Survivialist, Medic, Protector. Yeah, I'm going traditional here, but when I get more experience (with the game), I'll start trying out other classes.

Gonna be switching back and forth between this game and Brave Story :3

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Oops! In that case, I went Hexer. Mesmers in Guild Wars are awesome and Hexers are basically Mesmers.

I named my team after characters that I created. Guild name is Schatten (shadow in German if I recall).

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I mapped the entire Floor 1 and I am too scared to explore Floor 2. I ran past the 1st FOE just to run straight into a second one

My party is at level 7 right now.

Can anyone tell me where I can find a Benty Twig whatever? I need it for a quest.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I never played the first one and am enjoying the second one. It's too bad I can't get a class I want right away though.

Oh, and I have a really stupid question....how can I avoid FOEs? I wanna map the second floor but everytime I get close to the rooms they are in, they always manage to zero in on me and I never get past them :( How do you guys do it?

Update: Ah I just walked randomly around in the room before and wait until they're far away from me before entering. Now there's a horde of FOEs on my tail as I map and amazingly I haven't been caught by them yet. I even found the stairs to the third floor but I'd probably get raped there with my levels. My party is almost level 9. My heavy hitters so far are my Landsknecht and Survivalist.

Okay one more question. Does the time affect my party? Like say, if I go into the labyrinth and stay in there for a full 24 hours, will my party get into any sort of penalty, or does it just affect when I can go grab more freebies are various spots?

Why does the price go up everytime I want to sleep? :(

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I didn't know Line of Sight was part of their AI. I guess 'chased' isn't the best word to use. It just seems that they're always close by the door and ready to pounce on me as soon as I enter. After I get past the rooms though, yeah, they're not actively chasing me. Sometimes they even disappear as they get towards me.

What's a good level to get to so I can make it to floor 5?

Update: I wonder why there's two bears in Beast class. Why can't there be a reptile?

FELIPE NO

I went to a dead end and there was a little squirrel there and it stole my warp wire!!! That was the only one I had! I had to go all the way back to town and than risking heading further into the dungeon. Grr stupid nasty events!! Makes me afraid to press 'A' to check things. I guess that's EO for you, unforgiving!

I should be prepared now for the third floor. I can plow my way through the 1st and 2nd floors with my eyes closed.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Man, I can't get enough of this game. Played a lot today and couldn't put it down. I mapped all of floor 3 now, and I successfully defeated Gashtor and er, the one on floor 2. Added a Gunner and Ronin to my guild too. My party's at level 13 now. Is that good enough to do the next primary mission? My tanks hit for a lot, over 45+ DMG, and my Ronin hits over 80.

Closer and closer to getting Beast.

Update: I forgot to add that when I defeated the two FOEs, they disappeared from the game. Do they ever come back?

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I made it to floor five today ^_^

Unfortunately, I also found out that

Spoiler:

I can't get Beast class until I defeat the boss. I haven't seen the boss yet, but got any tips?

Survivalists sure are strong.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

The boss on the first floor stays in one spot so you can simply walk around it. The FOEs on the second floor run in a set pattern so once you figure it out, you can avoid them. I used to have trouble with them before and now I can get past them without batting an eye. Also take note that they won't chase you if you're not in their line of sight, so pay attention to the direction they're facing on the map. This applies to those aggressive FOEs on floor 3 and above.

I learned a lot from the vets in this thread. I'm also an EO newbie :3
I normally hate 1st person dungeon crawlers, but I love this game.

How ya doing, buddy?

You can't get past the closed door yet.

You don't need to grind that much to advance in the game. I can't beat down on the 3rd floor FOEs, yet I am currently at the 5th floor. There's absolutely no reason to even fight any FOE. Just avoid them all and beat up the regular enemies.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

OMG your idea worked, Taco. Thank you very much! Wasn't expecting to win so soon.

Spoiler:

I got the boss on my 2nd try. The first time the last 2 remaining Slaveimps came into the fight and I got creamed badly. The second time I got all the Slaveimps except one but I took care of that one easily when it came into the fight. Sweet.

Now that I got Beast, I hear a lot about how Loyalty sucks 'cause it dies too often for it to be useful. If I just wanted to make one a tank, is Loyalty needed? Also, with autocure at max, how much HP does it get back?

Update: I'm digging the writing style when you explore the dungeon. It sounds professionalk. Speaking of the 5th floor...

Another update: Man, this thread sure became dead in a hurry

Spoiler:

Did everyone in Guild Beowulf die? Even the cute wolfie?

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Ah well I wanted to get Beast class unlocked, hence my 'rush' to the fifth floor. Now that I have it unlocked, I can play at a slower pace. I rested several of my party and now I'm just concentrating on leveling up before I start getting serious with the 2nd Stratum. The jump in difficulty there makes me want to get better skills first before I make the attempt. I mapped just a small portion of it so far.

Floor 5 spoiler.

Spoiler:

Poor Beowulf Even though I barely met them, I still felt sad. At least I got to avenge them though.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Don't tackle it now 'til you level and get some nice skills. Besides, there's a quest at the bar later on that requires you to kill it, so I'd recommend waiting until then.

FELIPE NO

My party is currently Ty (Ronin), Warfang (Beast), Chase (Survivalist), Lai (Medic), Ross (Gunner). All are either level 28 or 29. I'm not even sure how they all ended up at the same level since I rested several times.

Has anyone gotten any glitches yet? I was in town and went into the Duke's Palace, but the top screen never loaded, only the bottom screen. I then turned the game off and restarted, only to not have the game recognized (it went to the DS menu screen). It worked fine after I restarted again. I was using my DS Lite (I just got it yesterday), so I I'm hoping it was just a glitch and not a problem with the Lite itself, although I doubt there could be a problem with the system.

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Ouch, that sounded pretty bad. Good thing it didn't occur again. I guess I can now chalk up my missing top screen as an actual glitch then.

How are you liking the game so far, DN? I'm terribly addicted to it. I even find myself playing it in bed.

Jam it back in, in the dark.