Maidens of the Kaleidoscope
~Beyond the Border~ => Akyu's Arcade => Topic started by: VIVIT on September 13, 2016, 12:36:28 AM
-
(http://i.imgur.com/lQDQX0E.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/LPeUktD.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/lETCADG.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/WhWMzwv.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/iHE6yeC.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/OjhlxKU.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/GQo7W7b.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/M4bkXH6.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/yEvJgyb.png)
This is ill-advised to say the least. I have just enough experience with this game to beat this game with a whole lot of grinding (although I suppose it isn't technically grinding -- more on this later), and I have ZIP ZILCH NADA GOOSE-EGG experience with Let's Plays, screenshot or otherwise.
Ah, what the hell; let's do this.
Mystery Dungeon 2: Shiren the Wanderer is a console roguelike developed by Chunsoft for the Super Famicom in 1995. It was never exported to the US until a 2008 DS remake, which I won't be playing because of personal nitpicks, mostly about the loot generation tables.
The game is a classical roguelike, which means that it's got all of the standard roguelike conventions beyond simple permadeath and procedural generation: turn-based and grid-based exploration and combat, item identification, and hard-as-balls difficulty. Being a console game, it's got a few concessions to make the game easier for the kids, but funnily enough, those very things that make the game easier just make the game more painful to play. If that doesn't make sense to you, you'll see what I mean soon enough. Perfect for a filthy masochistic bitch like me, and perfect for filthy sadistic LP readers like you. Mark my words, there's a world of delightful agony in store for us.
The plot is simple enough that you've already seen most of it. What's really endearing about this game fluffwise is its cast and setting. We'll be introduced to both soon enough, so I won't waste any bandwidth on either here. Our hero is an enigmatic ronin samurai, about whose past little is ever revealed. That's really all you need to know to give him a name:
(http://i.imgur.com/lILVfL6.png)
What shall it be, Maidens? 6 characters max.
-
Let's go with...
Well, samurai, right? Might as well go with Youki.
-
Well, samurai, right?
Even that much is barely explained. He's the "aimless wanderer" archetype in the context of fantasy feudal Japan, and the most congruous profession to that is the ronin -- a samurai who was left without a liege after their liege's death or fall from nobility, but chose to suffer the dishonor rather than commit seppuku. They became drifters, the comparatively honorable ones serving as mercenaries (usually bodyguards or trade caravan escorts) and the rest getting involved in banditry or organized crime. Our hero does neither; he simply seeks... something. Glory? Adventure? Fulfillment? Fortune? Again, we know very little about him.
-
Well, given that most of Youki is fanon amyway, let's go with that name.
Unless someone else has an alternative or objection.
EDIT: Fixed "Gabon" to "fanon". Damn you, Autocorrect!
-
I'm envisioning Shiren as being characterized by misfortune. Someone who is fated to stumble into traps or meet his untimely death.
A good name for that would be 'Wile E' (as in Wile E. Coyote). 'Coyote' by itself would also fit into 6 characters.
-
What a coincidence, I recently picked up a copy of the DS version when I was looking for a roguelike to play on my DS when I'm travelling. It was the only one I could find that the internet seemed to agree was any good. I haven't given it a try yet though.
-
I've been emulating Shiren SFC on my smartphone for bus rides. I've almost unlocked the Super Impossible Bonus dungeon on that version. I like burning time with roguelikes: they're time consuming, but highly technical and skill-intensive rather than mindlessly grindy. Shiren (as you guys will see) can be either depending on how you play it.
Anybody else have votes on names? I'd like to get this party started soon.
-
Anybody else have votes on names? I'd like to get this party started soon.
Wait, how's that work exactly? Do we submit names and you pick the one you like the most, or does the name submitted most often get picked?
Given all the praise you've been showering this game with lately, and my modest interest in roguelikes, I'll be following this thread carefully.
-
Wait, how's that work exactly? Do we submit names and you pick the one you like the most, or does the name submitted most often get picked
Something like that? I'll go by whichever gets the most votes unless something that's just too good to pass up is mentioned. What do you think he should be named?
-
Something like that? I'll go by whichever gets the most votes unless something that's just too good to pass up is mentioned. What do you think he should be named?
Understood, I was just wondering because it doesn't seem likely that multiple people would suggest the same name.
In any case, my pick is "Denton". Too bad JC Denton doesn't fit.
-
Understood, I was just wondering because it doesn't seem likely that multiple people would suggest the same name.
In any case, my pick is "Denton". Too bad JC Denton doesn't fit.
Welcome to Table Mountain, Denton! May as well start using your codename now.
-
Anybody else have votes on names? I'd like to get this ball rolling as soon as possible.
-
I think I'll change my own vote to "Denton". The Deus Ex reference did it for me, and the possibilities for shenanigans are much greater than with Youki, I believe.
-
I know very little about Deus Ex, though, so I wouldn't be able to do anything interesting with that name. But sure, I'll run with it.
Last call on name votes for anybody else?
-
I know very little about Deus Ex, though, so I wouldn't be able to do anything interesting with that name. But sure, I'll run with it.
Oh, too bad, it is one of the best games ever made. You could always try to include something from this classic moment (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bP4aKDaFd64) somewhere in the LP.
Welcome to Table Mountain, Denton! May as well start using your codename now.
Paul... I... I... I thought you were a GEP gun. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uOA3IqJDdY)
-
Hope this isn't abandoned before it even started?
-
AHAHAHAH
HAHA
AHAHA
HAHA
HA
O YE OF LITTLE FAITH
BGM - "Story" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_j6HYDRr0pU)
(http://i.imgur.com/y3xvvjZ.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/MDln4Pd.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/thFlxZc.png)
His name was Denton.
Heeding a friend's dying wish, he started out on a long journey.
It's been half a year since we met. Though we're constantly bickering...
(http://i.imgur.com/lj8vphx.png)
Denton! Over there!
(http://i.imgur.com/3xHxlxB.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/MPI0FeL.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/exxIUlJ.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/vaZ6vbM.png)
Come on! Let's go!
BGM - "Koppa's theme" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjxSvvTwhHU)
(http://i.imgur.com/Z2smyEP.png)
I'm Koppa. I'm one of a rare breed of "Talking Weasels." It was me that suggested we come to impasse valley. That's 'cause I heard the rumors of the Golden City. But getting this far has been really tough! Well, I was just sleeping in the luggage...
(http://i.imgur.com/NlUyuHO.png)
-
You know, looking at the opening shots I have questions about what kind of erosion patterns could create this so called "Table Mountain"...
Maybe the answer lies within the Golden City!
-
Jesus Christ, Denton! You're alive!
-
AHAHAHAH
HAHA
AHAHA
HAHA
HA
O YE OF LITTLE FAITH
Let's compare the date's between nav''s last post before your update and your actual update itself.
? on: October 06, 2016, 09:42:36 pm ?
While your own post was:
? on: May 05, 2017, 09:11:30 pm ?
I don't think "little faith" accurately describes my own situation...
-
Look at the bright side: At least this LP is revived. I hope it won't be abandoned after 1 significant (yet short) update.
-
Also, do any Kappa appear in this game? Just wondering.
-
(http://i.imgur.com/trQhPyv.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/0A0moPQ.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/WQhKq57.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/HSW5abk.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/gDlbSca.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/ZgU06By.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/EyAXQzP.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/3joLerg.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/hX4eTPJ.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/8VWMLl4.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/HE75CL1.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/aTdeTfR.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/HSlqPtZ.png)
-
(http://i.imgur.com/0YOj5uN.png)
BGM - "Valley Inn" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDM_wjO_XMQ)
This is the Valley Inn, the beginning area of the game. After every death, of which you will undoubtedly see many over the course of this Let's Play, we get sent back here. Although it doesn't serve much purpose mechanically, It's a nice, comfy little area to start our quest each time we die horrible, and really helps add to the flavor of the game -- there's no real urgency to our hero's quest, no looming threat to the world that must be taken care of as soon as possible; Denton has all the time he needs to tackle Table Mountain. This allows the game to maintain plot continuity between runs -- if you get halfway through the dungeon before dying, any progress you make on any sidequests along the way is remembered by your save file, and is considered canon to the story. This stands in contrast to classic computer roguelikes, where "permanent death" means that every time you start a new run, you're creating an entirely different character -- even if most players will just reuse the same character template over and over. In this game, on the other hand, no matter how may times we splat, it'll still be the same Denton waking up in the same Valley Inn for a different day of horrible torture on the same road to the Land of the Sun.
(http://i.imgur.com/PeXitMN.png)
Koppa: "It's a memento of his friend's. True that you don't see many Wanderers wearing them nowadays though."
Man: "Whoa, you're a talking weasel! That's pretty uncommon too!"
(http://i.imgur.com/ORL0CjC.jpg)
Yes, very astute observation of you, Mr. Unnamed NPC. Any other smart remarks?
(http://i.imgur.com/Cabw27A.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/Fsy4fQI.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/Llmq3IP.png)
Hmm -- an inn in a town called "Valley Inn". Fascinating.
(http://i.imgur.com/clBMQos.png)
The man to the right is the warehouse guard, who explains to us how to properly take advantage of the warehouse -- but we'll be leaving him alone, because I'd rather explain it myself.
Warehouses are the first of the game's "mercy mechanics" as a console roguelike. Anything you stash in here will be saved between runs, leaving all its special properties intact, allowing you to hoard the best loot from your runs before equipping it all at once and heading for the Land of the Sun for real! This mechanic is probably the most important one out of all the mercy mechanics in the game, and the one that most distinctly sets it apart from more traditional mainframe roguelikes. There are some caveats to this mechanic, but we'll cross those bridges when we come to them.
In roguelike jargon, rules that keep track of some kind of progress between runs rather than during are called metaprogression. The most traditional of roguelikes have no metaprogression at all, so this can naturally be a very heated topic among roguelike purists! By the standards of indie neo-roguelikes, the metaprogression mechanics in Shiren the Wanderer are actually pretty weak, in that they don't have a significant impact on the overall gameplay experience, but by the standards of traditional roguelikes, the metaprogression elements in Shiren are quite strong.
(http://i.imgur.com/ehgyxsR.png)
The kanji for "warehouse" or "storehouse" is painted on a banner to the side of the door in elegant calligraphy. Denton stops to admire it. The localization in the DS release of the game changes all kanji signs to small pictures, like a sword or a mug of beer, hinting at the nature of the business inside, but this fan translation leaves all the kanji in for flavor -- and, presumably, the convenience of not having to edit any sprites.
(http://i.imgur.com/rawcRpv.png)
No inn town in an RPG would be complete without a bar, of course. To our left is another kanji banner, this time with the kanji for sake on it -- this is the one that would be replaced with a slightly setting-inappropriate mug of beer if we were playing the DS version.
(http://i.imgur.com/06m42SM.png)
"You've got promise. So I'll tell ya something. Equip your arrows, then use the L button... and fire! Fire!! FIRE!!!!!"
Oookaaay. If I ever find any arrows, I'll keep that in mind, sir.
Denton takes note of the pub and reminds himself to come back to it later if he needs a little something to forget the horrors on the road ahead.
(http://i.imgur.com/jlYysyD.png)
Heading east, his attention is drawn to a sign hanging out in the middle of the path. Denton stops for a moment to read it.
(http://i.imgur.com/77rU1jt.png)
It appears to be a scoreboard of some kind -- perhaps for a local gambling tournament.
Wait... who was that Shiren person anyway?
(http://i.imgur.com/JVixOgj.png)
The last object of interest in the town is this one last building. There don't seem to be any people standing around by it, and it has no sign with a name on it -- only another banner, with the kanji "番" -- ban, meaning "turn", "round", or "number of a series". I wonder what goes on in here?
Next update -- exploring the buildings!
-
Yay, content! Excellent, verbose content! And even a weasel ready to rip someone's aorta. Keep this up, Vivvy.
This is what I was made for, isn't it? This why I exist? Alright. Let's do this.
--JC Denton, Helios ending
Does the Warehouse mean you'll be retreating every time you find a particularly good piece of equipment, or what?
-
What do the kanji on he scoreboard read?
Also, how are the drinks here?
-
Does the Warehouse mean you'll be retreating every time you find a particularly good piece of equipment, or what?
There are a total of three warehouses in the game, with two others in two more towns further down the road. We can also get items into warehouses by hiring NPCs, and by magical means. Good thing, too, because I don't believe this version of the game allows backtracking.
What do the kanji on he scoreboard read?
Also, how are the drinks here?
The kanji on the scoreboard read "風来人番付" or "wanderer rankings." As for the drinks? Well, booze is booze.
-
Seeing nothing else of interest in the town, Denton decides to check out the bar.
(http://i.imgur.com/sSJZtsd.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/obvs7LZ.png)
Listening in, we hear two men talking at our right:
(http://i.imgur.com/s6kPzZ8.png)
Adventurer: "Have you gotten past Tenma Pass?"
Traveller: "Nah. It takes me everything I've got just to make it to the stream. Shit, if only I had a buddy to take with me, it'd be a lot easier..."
Oh, foul-mouthed fansubs. Whatever would we do without you?
Turning to us, a scruffy-haired wanderer speaks:
(http://i.imgur.com/5Gq9h7E.png)
"Strangers that pass out in the wilderness always end up getting sent back here to the Valley Inn. And nobody yet has made it to the Land of the Sun."
He explains to us a bit of how roguelikes work.
From the far corner of the room, a fellow rain-hat-wearer catches our gaze and blurts out to us in the boisterous mumble of a drunken man:
(http://i.imgur.com/w6Dystt.png)
"*Hic*... I believe the stories! I believe the Golden Condor legend passed down from generation to generation here in Impasse Valley!"
(http://i.imgur.com/F5RzZGd.png)
Ignoring him, we continue to look about the r-
(http://i.imgur.com/0Twrv0u.png)
My my, who have we here?
(http://i.imgur.com/HsDUuqm.png)
"...Ah, sorry! But take a look around, there are nothing but grubby guys here, you know? And a lot of dirty old men too. So I'm glad to see a young guy like you for a change. Pleased to meet you!
"Talk to my dad, he'll give you some food."
Taking the girl's advice, we stop by the counter, speaking to the elegantly mustachioed gentleman we can only assume is the father of as fine a girl as present company.
(http://i.imgur.com/tJuukuk.png)
Shall we tell him, Maidens, or shall we remain silent, fitly for an mysterious drifter like Denton?
-
No idea what the consequences of this decision are, but I'd exercise caution. A secret operative should not be too nonchalant about revealing their identity.
-
Let's keep quiet for now.
Making noise is not a very Denton thing to do.
-
I vote that Denton is still wearing his nametag from the Valley Inn PTA meeting, so while he intends to go with option 2 and stay silent, it ends up as option 1 anyway.
-
Denton is still wearing his nametag from the Valley Inn PTA meeting.
PTA meeting?
Parent-Teacher Association meeting? I didn't know Denton had kids. I thought he was a wanderer/ronin/UNATCO augmented agent.
-
It was a poorly thought out undercover/blending-in operation.
-
I vote that Denton is still wearing his nametag from the Valley Inn PTA meeting, so while he intends to go with option 2 and stay silent, it ends up as option 1 anyway.
PTA meeting?
Parent-Teacher Association meeting? I didn't know Denton had kids. I thought he was a wanderer/ronin/UNATCO augmented agent.
It was a poorly thought out undercover/blending-in operation.
I like this idea. I'll go with something like this idea.
(http://i.imgur.com/i2AEBPK.png)
Denton opts to stay quiet for the time being. The bartender seems rather disappointed. An awkward pause passes before the bartender notices the name tag on Denton's vest.
(http://i.imgur.com/M6LX82x.png)
"And teh weasel's called Koppa. Well, you better know in advance that the trip through Impasse Valley is pretty rough. Better not overextend yourself trying to get there. Here's some food for ya. Take it with you."
Denton got Big Rice Ball!
Denton awkwardly thanks the bartender for the gesture. It looks like this whole "mysterious stranger" schtick isn't working out as well as anticipated. Denton's gaze soon begins wandering around the room restlessly, as is its wont.
(http://i.imgur.com/6NpSTk2.png)
"You'll be just as powerful as you were before, but you can use that monster's 'Skill' as well. If you want to use a skill, you can pick it with the X button, or just use it directly with the L button."
How strange! What Dreamland might the beasts of impasse valley come from? Denton vows to get to the bottom of this mystery, but immediately begins to feel that this attempt at apply logic to this strange land to be a wild condor chase.
(http://i.imgur.com/annQocI.png)
Denton then turns to an elderly looking-man and attempts to make smalltalk, when...
(http://i.imgur.com/2YZgLnV.png)
Aw hell nah. Seasoned wanderer Denton already knows all about the workings of magical pots -- he doesn't need to hear it from this geezer! Denton leaves before the man even realizes that his pot-addled pedagogical ramblings have fallen on deaf ears.
Finally, Shiren listens in on the conversation of two a grubby-looking men sitting next to the pot aficionado.
(http://i.imgur.com/Vga55NO.png)
"I tried to steal something, but the shopkeeper was darn powerful. And when I tried to get past him, I suddenly had even stronger guards and guard dogs after me... if you run into them, you'd better not try and face them straight up."
"If you're gonna steal, you gotta use your head, man! If you can think up a good plan you can get away with stealing easy," replies his companion.
Ah, good ol' Izchakian justice. Theft is a roguelike mechanic introduced by Hack, and depending on the game it can be anywhere from easy-cheesy-bordering-on-broken to prohibitively suicidal. This game hits a happy medium at "dangerous for the unprepared."
(http://i.imgur.com/TSCUdqp.png)
Satisfied, Denton leaves the now-familiar pub with a stride in his step.
Next update -- Let's hit the road!
-
Hmmm, pots... This calls for a Legend of Zelda meme. But I will resist. I must.
Shopkeepers are an interesting aspect of games in general. As a tightwad, I prefer games that let you rob shopkeepers, but it's best when the action carries meaningful consequences, like getting Doomed in ADOM or facing/evading a truly terrifying encounter. But I also enjoyed looting poor Dunmer merchants clean in Morrowind because they insisted on keeping all their items in a chest in plain sight. Very unwise indeed.
-
Hmmm, pots... This calls for a Legend of Zelda meme. But I will resist. I must.
Woah no. We won't be smashing lots of pots in this game. Pots are valuable in Impasse Valley, and not just for their contents! We'll see when we start finding them -- but the pots in this game have magical properties.
(http://i.imgur.com/2RqUx0v.png)
Having grown restless of the chattering of the tavern, Denton heads east toward the beginning of the road to Table Mountain.
Next to the gate is a funny-looking man in a funnier-looking outfit. He speaks with a thick and unfamiliar accent -- perhaps he is one of those pallid-faced barbarians of the southern seas?
(http://i.imgur.com/bQJsCQt.png)
"If you make it through four areas, you'll come to a town. If you make it that far, there's a smith you can get help from there. Careful out there, brother. May Chron, the God of Travel, give you a fair wind!"
He's awfully polite and well-mannered, though -- he even knows the name of one of the gods!
(http://i.imgur.com/Y9mK9VY.png)
If only the same could be said of this fellow. Denton holds back a sigh of frustration.
If we say we don't know, the guy explains to us an elegant bit of Mystery Dungeon's interface as a console roguelike: by holding down the "B" button, we can swap places with any friendly NPC who is not deliberately blocking our path. This is the sort of nicety that I really miss when I play classic mainframe roguelikes.
(http://i.imgur.com/VChRAzv.png)
Politely shoving the man aside, Denton presses on.
-
BGM: Old Cedar-lined Road (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTCfdTn4HxU)
(http://i.imgur.com/fcvqstU.png)
We begin our quest proper on an Old Cedar-lined Road. It's a nice place to get acclimated to the exploration and combat mechanics of the game. That little critter at the bottom-right of the screen is a bean bandit, probably the most dangerous enemy in these woods, though that's not really saying much. This one is asleep, making it even more harmless.
(http://i.imgur.com/0wPk3HB.png)
You'll notice some funny little geometric shapes on the left side of the screen -- that's the mini-map. It automatically fills itself in as we explore the world. The yellow dot represents us, while the red dots represent other monsters. This is another little hack the Mystery Dungeon games use to get around the difficulties of creating an interesting and accessible console roguelike. Classic rougelikes will show you the maps of entire floors drawn with ascii art. On a standard-sized computer terminal this would afford us an even two thousand tiles to display at once, minus 160 or so for the message lines, but the SNES only has room for so many decent-resolution sprites on the screen at once. Mystery Dungeon compensates with a mini-map on the HUD providing much of the information that the main display would tell you in a computer roguelike.
(http://i.imgur.com/uh8sAZN.png)
As Denton attempts to sneak up on the creature, he quickly finds himself surrounded! Not only have his clumsy footsteps awoken the bandit, but other creatures in the clearing have also taken notice of him. Suddenly, the odds are not looking quite as great.
(http://i.imgur.com/kv1Md6E.png)
Denton makes a strategic retreat.
(http://i.imgur.com/UvXrwdA.png)
While he escapes, a small woodland mamul nips at his heels! Mamuls, being the weakest enemy on the path to table mountain, pose little threat to our hero -- far less than the bean bandit to the west, which would have gotten a free stab at Denton had he not chosen to take a hit from the mamul instead.
(http://i.imgur.com/Kro8AOX.png)
As he passes by, Denton takes a hit from another mosnter as well, this time a kid tengu whipping at him with its hair.
(http://i.imgur.com/3dswoWP.png)
With a stab from one of the bandits, Denton has already lost over a third of his health. Koppa smugly reminds him not to underestimate small woodland creatures.
(http://i.imgur.com/zORzIop.png)
After that, though, it apprears Denton is safe from attack! He hurries forward a brisk pace, with the monsters close behind, dancing just out of the reach of their attacks.
(http://i.imgur.com/W8erjXS.png)
And with that, Denton has the high ground! By guarding a choke point, Denton forces the monsters to attack him one at a time.
(http://i.imgur.com/IDyyIQ4.png)
His health getting low, he decides to retreat again to buy time...
(http://i.imgur.com/DYbPj9r.png)
Aw fuck.
(http://i.imgur.com/XOazQ6m.png)
Fuck.
(http://i.imgur.com/3CWWjyC.png)
Fuck.
(http://i.imgur.com/jgfmefI.png)
(http://i.imgur.com/qSMfaZf.png)
And with that, Denton's first forays into impasse valley have come to an end. The wilds at their very weakest have bested him. It will surely be a long road ahead.
If you're wondering at all what happened up there, it might help if I explained the turn system of Shiren -- and other classical roguelikes. It's about as simple as a turn-based system can get: time is divided into turns, and on each turn, every standard unit may take exactly one action. They can move in any of the eight cardinal directions, attack in any of the eight cardinal directions, use any special ability, or, in the case of the Denton, use an item or talk to an NPC. There is no zugzwang; both Denton and his enemies may also choose to pass a turn, though few monsters ever actually choose to do this. The whole system is simple and elegant, but deep and engaging enough that roguelikes have been using it for nearly 40 years now with almost no alterations.
Denton decides that maybe his quest can wait for now.
Next update: the mysterious fourth building!
-
So how do we not get swarmed by a bunch of woodland creatures?
Also, kid tengu? As opposed to a crow or wolf tengu?
-
I was reading recently that those one-toothed clogs Aya wears are called "tengu geta". They are strongly associated with Tengu mythology but they are apparently not impossible to wear by real people.
Ever since I can't help but immediately notice how every depiction of Tengu will be wearing them, even when it is a tiny 2d sprite that is only a dozen pixels tall.
(http://i.imgur.com/IbuPWUj.jpg)
-
So how do we not get swarmed by a bunch of woodland creatures?
Firstly, I should have realized that there were waking monsters in the clearing with me before I decided to try to sneak up on that sleeping bean bandit. Sleeping monsters don't wake up unless you step next to them and they succeed some kind of awareness check, or you attack them. Had I gone straight for the choke point, I would not have had to skedaddle the way I did and give the monsters a bunch of free hits on me while I was running. Furthermore, it only takes a few kills for you to get enough EXP for your first level up, so by the time I had to deal with any other monsters like the unseen bandit making its way down from the northwest, I would have been able to put up a bit more of a fight. You'll see that I did level up earlier when I was being surrounded by enemies in path between the trees, but unfortunately I was already hurting enough already that I wasn't able to make it.
Also, kid tengu? As opposed to a crow or wolf tengu?
A tengu of the long-nosed humanoid type, who just happens to be juvenile.
(https://www.goodsfromjapan.com/images/product/1226/1226-image1.jpg)
To my knowledge, the wolf tengu is just a Touhou Project thing, but don't quote me on that.
I was reading recently that those one-toothed clogs Aya wears are called "tengu geta". They are strongly associated with Tengu mythology but they are apparently not impossible to wear by real people.
Ever since I can't help but immediately notice how every depiction of Tengu will be wearing them, even when it is a tiny 2d sprite that is only a dozen pixels tall.
The more you know! Thanks for that little tidbit, Dos.