LET'S PLAY HERO'S REALM! EPISODE 5 HAS ARRIVED!

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Scourge
I used to make games. I still do, but I used to too.
1605
Let's Play Hero's Realm!
With Scourge!

The title says it all! Welcome to Let's Play Hero's Realm with Scourge!
So first, some background information. Hero's Realm is the brainchild and masterpiece of Kentona, who runs things around here these days. It's heavily inspired by Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy, which means it's old school to the core. Save points, a blank slate party, and some troperiffic writing; they all show up.
Seriously though, if you've spent more than a few days on this forum, you've probably heard about it. Which is why this LP is just on this forum. I'm also putting this on neoseeker just kidding, neoseeker's deader than dead these days and perhaps Something Awful so I can hopefully drum up some interest in RMN and its games. I plan on following Hero's Realm with LPs of other games on this site, such as Master of the Wind, Hellion, and Star Stealing Prince.
But enough about my plans; here comes the LP.


Ohh, sexy.
Notice that I've already got a continue option. That's from playing, and beating, this game twice before. Yeah, this ain't my first rodeo, which is why you folks will be picking the classes of my adventuring buddies. Self-imposed challenge for the win.
Anyways, I guess I'll be going with New Game, so this LP can have a point.
Let's fire 'er up.

The first time I saw this screen, I freaked out because I thought the entire game was going to be in black and white. Even after looking at the game profile images. I was not the brightest bulb at the time and it's the same today. I guess the entire point of LPing an indie game is so the creator can have loads of feedback, but Kentona's got more than enough of that. So I'll be playing this like I would a commercial game. I won't offer advice or ruthlessly mock story, characters, or gameplay. In short, I'll try to show some respect. *gasp* Respect? In an LP? This is crazy!
And, if you haven't noticed, this isn't your average LP. I'll only be doing videos for boss fights, due to a shitty microphone and recording setup.
Let's get that picture to text ratio back to where it should be.

I'll watch the introduction, of course. This is one of my favorite openings simply because it's so, well, nice. There's no in media res, like many other games have, there's no long exposition; there's just a cool pan of the world map and some credits. Speaking of which, that area behind the sword is Paranor. It'll become very important later.

Speaking of credits... Ranmaru Mori sounds like the evil priest from the second Indiana Jones. Temple of Doom, right? He sounds evil, but he makes some pretty good graphics, I guess. I have no idea where this area is. South of Tyrsis, maybe? I haven't played this for a while, and I always get lost on the World Map anyways.

And there's the Pit of Peril, home to one of the fabulous Elfstones. Those let you change class. I'll be heading there the second I get a ship. We're just to the north of our first hero. Wait, that might not be the Pit of Peril. Don't listen to me; I'm just some guy with a keyboard and a poor sense of direction. After a brief shot of a guard heading south to a small cabin, or maybe before, I suck at time too, we have this lovely splashscreen.

I'd like to think of the children, but my lawyer says that's what got me into this mess in the first place. Pedophilia jokes aside, I like the shout out to Dragon Quest IV. And those sexy looking borders. We'll be seeing this screen a few more times; it shows up at the beginning and end of each chapter. Nice framing device.
Following the guard, we enter a small cabin in the woods and see the next exchange.

But first, do you have an inhaler? This asthma crap is killing me!
And yes, our first hero is indeed a woman. I missed the Huntress comment the first time, and ran around with a blue haired transvestite named Arthur until I decided to restart. Moving on,


Looks like the hide tags hate youtube.

Fuck yah.
Where have all the good men gone?
Ahem, sorry....

Holdana, and yes I'm using the default names, is a badass of the third degree. Just ignore that bow comment. Holdana's best weapon is a sword that would make Cloud Strife blush. And that whole magic thing is incredibly true. Holdana gets access to Thordain, which Kentona might as well have named Game Breaker spell, because that's what it is. Holdana, despite being a butch loner, is my favorite out of the four heroes because she's got the humblest beginnings and best character. She doesn't get many lines, but I always imagined her as a deadpan snarker character, staying calm and collected while making Bond one liners and kicking demon ass.

Don't mind if I do. First thought, it's time to loot this place. Everything that isn't nailed down goes in my pockets. First things first though.

Appearance is everything, they say. Notice the guard has apparently gone into time out. I always thought it was strange that he just stays here and wanders around your house for the entire game. You'd think he'd need to go get that asthma checked out or at least report back. Anyways, time for lootin'

Aw yeah. There's another one in the pot behind me (Heh, medicinal herb in a pot) and that's all there is hanging around here. Holdana doesn't have any money, so we head outside armed with her medical marijuana supply and a utter lack of direction.

Bite me, Mom. Note the well in the upper right hand corner. We can go down it, but there's nothing there but annoying enemies that grant almost nothing in terms of EXP or Gold. I will grind like a fiend later, but it's suicide to try the fights on the world map with only one character and poor weaponry and armor. For now, let's hit the world map and head straight for Castletown, the real name of which escapes me. It might be Norsland, but I think that's the name of the country.

Holdana's modest hut is just a tile or two to the south of this screen. Not much to show here, but I'll take a second to explain terrain on the world map. The plains, what Holdana's standing on, are simple. They have an average encounter rate. Forests, which you can see to the north and south, have a slightly higher encounter rate. I think they slow you down a little too, but that might just be lag. Then we have the hills, right behind the castle. The encounter rate in hills is quite high, and I'll take steps (ba dum tish) to avoid them whenever I can. Finally, for now, we have the mountains and sea, which are impassable until we get an airship or regular ship. Stepping into the town, we're rushed along to the palace.


They're really sick of living in a place called Helminsk, but I can't do anything about that.
My fingers are itching to search underfoot on that tile behind the throne. Hidden treasure senses tingling...

Sir, yes sir! I, Ragnar Holdana, will hunt down this missing children and then immediately return to my simple lifestyle because there's no way this will lead to any greater conflict!

Onwards! And, yeah right. If my predictions are correct, I'm gonna wind up with nothing but Mesmers and Bards for support. But first, hidden treasure time!

YES. ONE DOWN, NINETY-NINE TO GO.
If I can track down 100 of this suckers, which is pretty damn hard, I can get the Lightsabre, which kicks nine kinds of ass. Let's finish looting this place and head downstairs for some game mechanics and the end of this update.


Yeah, baby! The hunt for treasure goes quite swimmingly. There's some modest start game loot in here, nothing too special. The real prize is the knife in the underwater chest, which costs a whopping 80 gold. I'll probably give it to Holdana, who was made for tanking.

There's more treasure downstairs, but I'll need the Magic Key first. Shoot. Chatting with NPCs in the castle reveals basic game mechanics, such as how to search underfoot (Press Shift) and some other stuff.


Pictured: Other stuff.
I like how there's no bullshit deus ex machina in this game though. The Goddess shows up in the form of statues and revive and uncurse spells cast by her followers. She doesn't step in to save the day or to conveniently provide exposition.

Pictured: Blatant lies.
Fuck this random guard. Paladins are the WORST fighter class. They have shit growth, poor spell selections, and little versatility. God help the player who decides to take a Paladin instead of a Druid. Of course, I'll probably wind up with one in each party, since you folks are picking my companions.

I steal a Blaze Scroll from the old man at the top of the stairs, and we have a short chat.


Chekhov's Out of the Way Location?
Not a great story though. I am disappoint. That's all I'll be showcasing in the castle. There's some random loot lying around, and a few NPCs to chat with, but let's close off this update with a trip to the barracks.

Well, here we are.
NEXT TIME!
~GRINDING!
~PARTY SELECTION!
~EQUIPMENT!
~SIDEQUESTS!
~AMAZING FEATS OF STRENGTH!
~ECCENTRIC WELL DWELLERS!

And, before I forget, here's how we're choosing Holdana's party. There are three open slots; first three to comment get to choose the class, name, and gender of her three party members. You can find the list of classes here. Gender and name are pretty obvious.
Here goes. Hope this manages to catch on.

Oh, and I won't be accepting any clones. I will not be building a party of three Mesmers and Holdana, thank you very much.
Given the physical strength of Holdana, and the fact that I think I put more tarot cards in this chapter than usual (iirc) I think you should grab a Harlequin. But if not that, then I'd recommend a Witch or Warlock. I think they are underrated :<
Go for a male warlock named Wormwood.

Also, for people new to the game, could you give an overview of the different classes and their strengths and weaknesses? Might be interesting to read your thoughts on mechanics and that sort of thing, and it might help to sell this particular game to people who haven't played it as well.
How about....

Name: Madame Ma'am
Class: Witch
Gender: Female

This looks like a fun thing to do! Cant wait to see the whole LP!
Male Harlequin called 'Weiner'.

...I still count, right
author=Lyric
Male Harlequin called 'Weiner'.

...I still count, right


I think so, unless he accepts Kentona's as one. (Was it a suggestion? I think so...)
Scourge
I used to make games. I still do, but I used to too.
1605
Done, done, and done. I decided to break my own rule and bring a witch and a warlock along.(They're the same class with different names.)
I will absolutely add my opinions on classes in an update. Probably the next one. I differ from Kentona's estimations quite a bit, but I agree that Warlocks are underrated.
EDIT: I combined Kentona and Lyric's suggestions. Brought a male harlequin, named him Weiner.
Scourge
I used to make games. I still do, but I used to too.
1605
Update 1.5
Classes and YOU!
Yeah, yeah, double post. This is a pure text update; sorry about that. I'll have actual game stuff up soon, I promise.
So, yamata asked for me to put my opinions on the Hero's Realm classes down in the hopes that it might help sell this game. My thoughts don't line up with Kentona's ordering of classes, so we'll see if this helps anyone.
Da Mages
Druids:
Kentona puts these guys right in the middle, and I have to agree. They aren't stellar by any means, but they are the most effective healers. You won't make it far without them. Earth and poison spells are nice, and Explodet is insanely strong, but its the last spell they learn.
Verdict: Useful, but not incredible.
Wizards:
Once again, smack dab in the middle for Kentona and myself. Wizards are useful, but not essential. You can get by without them, but they come in handy at the beginning of the game. They have a solid mix of offensive spells and some buffs and debuffs that come in handy, but they're outclassed by Sages and Channelers.
Verdict: Solid and dependable, especially for players too lazy to track down the Elfstones.
Mesmers:
Kentona puts these guys in the low tier. I put them even lower. Mesmers are the WORST mage class in the game. The WORST. Demi is the lone useful spell they learn. They only come in handy during boss battles, which makes them pretty close to useless the rest of the game. They have the dubious honor of being in the same category as Paladins and Bandits.
Verdict: Crap, but I guess they'd be useful if you have a difficult time with boss battles.
Witches and Warlocks:
Another mid-range class, in Kentona's opinion. I'd rank them a wee bit higher than that. Actually, quite a bit higher than that. Recipes are super useful, especially since medicinal herbs become worthless an hour or two into Chapter Five. And, the best part, they learn Vivify nine levels before a Druid, considered the healer class. Vivify is a revive spell, and quick access to it is wonderful. No more Temple visits. Toss in some solid support and offensive spells, and you've got the best non-secret mage class in the game.
Verdict: Awesome. Versatile. Way better than mid-range.
Sages:
And now we're into the secret classes. Sages are in Kentona's Top Tier, and I agree with that. The only reason I would ever rank them lower is because they lack multi-target spells, but careful use of Chainmagic negates that drawback. Not much else to say here. They're useful, have loads of MP, and a solid spell selection.
Verdict: Maybe not the Top Tier, but just under that. No multi-target spells isn't good, and Chainmagic eats up MP pretty quick.
Game Breakers Channelers:
Holy shit amazing. These guys are in a class of their own where magic is concerned. They are basically the opposite of Sages. No single target spells and no, absolutely no, MP. They can cast super strong spells, including the only spell in the entire game that does physical damage, for no cost. Add in great speed, insane damage, and the fact that all their spells also cause status effects, and you have the best mages.
Verdict: Totally worth an Elfstone.
Da Fighters
Black Knights:
According to Kentona, these guys belong in the lowest tier. I disagree. They may not have attack through the roof, but their defense is unholy. Super high defense and HP ensures that Black Knights do not die easily, if ever. They also have a good mix of offensive spells, which saves them from being useless against spectral enemies.
Verdict: Solid and dependable. A high speed would make them near game breakers, but they're great where they are.
Paladins:
Fuck these guys. Fuck them. I hate Paladins. They have mediocre stats, some healing spells, and are generally useless. They're basically Druids with some bonuses and poor spell selection. In fact, I don't think they even belong in the Fighter group. I'm pretty sure that every other Fighter class has higher attacks, even the Ronin. Oh, and their growth rates blow.
Verdict: No. Just no. Not as worthless as Mesmers, but close.
Shapeshifters:
Second favorite fighter class right here. Only the Champion is better, I think. Awesome speed, solid attack, and the ability to go werewolf? Yes please. Shapeshifters are not great for the start game, but they will make your enemies weep with pain in Chapter Five. Insane speed has my shapeshifters often getting two moves before anybody else has had one. Give them the Blade of Aborlon and dominate.
Verdict: Fantastic. Well balanced and just cool in general. Bring one along.
Ronin:
I have never used a Ronin in two playthroughs. They sound great and all, but Kentona says they're underpowered.
Verdict: Underpowered, I guess.
Champion:
Aw yeah. Champions are like little mini Holdanas. They lack the magic; in fact, they can't cast spells, but make up for it with Pummel. Pummel is supremely useful; its like Chainmagic for Fighters. They kick butt with solid speed, ungodly attack and defense. The best fighter class, in my opinion.
Verdict: Bring one. A lack of spells is compensated for by insane attack and Pummel.
Templars:
Bear with me here. From what I understand, these guys are obscenely overpowered. However, I've noticed that's not always the case. My last Templar had terrible speed and poor defense, despite having over 1000 HP. Templars have boatloads oh MP and HP, and Pummel, AND Chainmagic, but they're so slow, the fight's usually over before they can strike.
Verdict: Slow as molasses, so don't expect to see much of those astounding abilities.
Da Rogues
Bandits:
Oh god why. Bandits are just, well, awful. They have a middling selection of abilities and can steal. That...that's about it. They really aren't so much terrible as they are just worthless. Incredible speed is nice, but everything else is very unimpressive.
Verdict: Not worth it. Not even for stealing.
Harlequins:
Meh. Harlequins have some cool stuff going for them, like Tarot cards and some nice spells like Heroic Ballad, but they don't have much going for them besides that. They're outclassed by most other classes. In fact, I'd put them just above the worst classes.
Verdict: Eh, they're nice, I guess. But Tarot cards are too chancy and they don't have much else going for them.
Engineers:
Ah, my favorite rogue class. Engineers have really good defense and surprisingly solid attack. Tools are really useful, especially the Flintlock Pistol. In fact, I'm surprised these guys didn't get tossed in with the fighters instead.
Verdict: Useful. Very useful. Maybe worth taking over a fighter. Certainly better than a Paladin.
Rangers:
The other class I've never used. Kentona says they're pretty good. You should listen to him.
Verdict: Nice, I suppose.
Jokers:
Not really useful or anything. The only nice part about Jokers is they automatically become Daredevils. Not worth it, in my opinion.
Verdict: No. And you'll see why.
Daredevils:
In my opinion, this is the worst Elfstone class. They have access to nice spells and abilities, but I'm not too sure about that massive damage Kentona is talking about on his gamepage. My Daredevil had about ten levels on his, and the same equipment, but just didn't measure up to the hype.
Verdict: Cool abilities, but middling HP and average damage.
Da Heroes
Hunter(Holdana):
Best hero. Straight up. Awesome damage, good HP, Pummel, Thordain; best hero class. Holdana is up there with Chanelers and Champions. Holdana is the only hero I would ever consider a solo run with. The rest are good, but Holdana's better.
Magus(Zefiryn):
I never really fell in love with Zefiryn. She's got a solid mix of spells, but her Chainmagic is kind of broken and werewolf is useless for a spellcaster. She's certainly good, but not that good.
Ninja(Akira):
Yes. Akira has solid speed, useful abilities, and ninja gear. He's the most balanced of the heroes, which means a lot of people short-change him. I think he's better than Zefiryn and nearly as good as Raj Ahtan. Also, he's a damn ninja. Why wouldn't you like him?
Monk(Raj Ahtan):
Hello there. Raj has awesome versatility. He has healing spells, buffs, solid attack, duel wielding, unique monk abilities... He's great. While Holdana holds the title of best hero, Raj is right on her heels. He's not fantastic until the end of his chapter, but Chapter Five makes him awesome. He can buff himself for free, and then lay the smackdown on the enemy. His speed is wonderful, by the way.
The thing with Paladins and Akira is, they have amazing anti-undead magic/throws, which can be a total game-breaker in like 50% of the fights in Chapter 5.

But anywho, I think you should also post this on the gameprofile (maybe on the Tiers page?) for posterity.

EDIT:
http://rpgmaker.net/games/82/tiers/

Yeah, I put the Mesmer, Paladin and Harlequin way down. I was actually a little disappointed with how the Paladin turned out end-game. Oh well. Also, I didn't think the Engineer was particularly useful, but I am glad you did!

Also, I should find that post one guy did on his opinion of the the tiers. He basically said magic was worthless - physical attacks all the way.
Is the world saved yet?
I forgot about this actually. >:

Now I want to know how Weiner is holding up against dem monsters.
Scourge
I used to make games. I still do, but I used to too.
1605
Update tomorrow, hopefully! Sorry about the wait, but family takes precedence.
Did you end up posting this playthrough elsewhere (like SomethingAwful) like you mentioned?
Scourge
I used to make games. I still do, but I used to too.
1605
author=kentona
Did you end up posting this playthrough elsewhere (like SomethingAwful) like you mentioned?

I did not, actually, because I learned that Something Awful charges for memberships, which I highly disagree with. I'm looking for other places to spread the news, so let me know if you can think of any. Also, no update today. Far too much homework to be doing and a funeral to get ready for on Saturday. This WILL be updated on Sunday no matter what happens.
Scourge
I used to make games. I still do, but I used to too.
1605
author=Scourge
This WILL be updated on Sunday no matter what happens.
Bahahaha... I blame unreasonable homework loads. Anyway, without further ado:
Let's Play Hero's Realm
Update Two: Don't You Forget About Me!

Look upon our heroes, ye mighty, and despair! Madame Ma'am was just slightly too long for the name box, so I went with this instead.
First order of business, equip out stalwart heroes. This will take grinding, trooping long distances over harsh terrain, solving dastardly puzzles, and-

Oh. Well then. There's some misc first level junk upstairs. It'll do. For now.

After cleaning that out, let's get ready for some proper adventuring. Holdana gets that knife we picked up earlier-

Or not.

I should have seen this coming. Wiener and our resident Warlocks can't equip clubs. Welp. The most basic, inexpensive, and accessible weapon in the game can't be equipped by three quarters of my starting party. Great. Wiener gets the knife since he'll be doing most of the hitting.

One of the guards offers some useful advice, but I'm more concerned with the bookshelf behind him, which yields a Tarot Card. Woot! Tarot Cards teach abilities to Harlequins and Jokers. More abilities means a more useful character. Speaking of abilities:

Besides the obvious one, it's been so long that I can't remember what half of these actually do. Welp.
Holdana doesn't have any abilities yet, but out Warlocks both have the same one.

This would be a lot more useful if it didn't take a turn to cast. Saves me money though. And oh crap. I just realized that no one has healing magic. No one. Shoot. Looks like I'll be doing more grinding than I intended.
Anyhoo, less talking, more looting.

Will do.








I clean this town OUT, coming back at night to snag a Tiny Medal from the Inn and search underfoot behind the barracks for that herb. I'll explain Tickets a bit later when we hit up the Funhouse.
But first, let's grind.


Repeat this twenty times for a level up. Also, let's get a quick explanation of Holdana's Pummel ability in here.

Pummel basically allows Holdana to chain attacks together. It does nothing the first turn you use it, but allows up to five attacks per turn after that. It's pretty useless right now, with most random battles ending in a single round. However, it kicks nine kinds of ass later, especially against bosses.
Lather, rinse, repeat, and we eventually get this.

Whoo... I get to level four by the end of this update, which will make things VERY easy in the future. Now that we've got some cash, it's time to do some upgrading.

The weapon and armor shoppe are in the same building. Handy! I get some new armor and another knife. By the end of the update, everyone is packing some really darn good equipment, which I forgot to screenshot...
Here's an inventory screenshot, minus what I have equipped.

This is just after picking up the Tiny Medal in the Inn. I'd turned the others in by now.
Oh, speaking of turning in Tiny Medals:
This crazy old man tells us just where to go do that.

A short drop down the well later and...


I turn in what I've got to our eccentric well-dweller and...


YOU WILL BE MINE. Seriously though, finding all 100 of these suckers will be a pain. I hope I can pull it off.



I bum around town for a while before heading into the underground to hunt rats.

There's some really nice treasure down here, and some very easy enemies. Sadly, not much in the way of exp, but I was about level three at this point, so...


Ohshit. Good thing I had that Fireball scroll from earlier. This fight throws a LOT of mooks at you.
Totally worth it though.

This ring buffs strength by five points or so. Holdana got it.
Now, let's actually do something interesting, eh?


Short story even shorter, the Merchant's Pass is in trouble and we're just the band of intrepid heroes to get the job done. This has absolutely no bearing on the Main Quest, but it doles out a pretty solid amount of gold and exp, so it's worth it.

After some world map wandering, we arrive.

Dun dun DUN!!
NEXT TIME!
~Demonic Imps!
~World Maps!
~Teleports!
~Heel Face Turns!
~Gangsters!
~Funhouses!
Awesome! (Did you find the hidden item in the garden behind the Stromholm castle?)

For healing, buy some Tonic recipes for your warlocks/witches!
Man, this reminds that me I should be putting up more videos of my LP. >.<;

Just posting to let you know I also look forward to this topic. I like reading other people's thoughts on games I enjoyed playing and seeing how they go about things.
(I tend to do my initial grinding in the basement, then head to the northern village and leave the southern pass sidequest until I have to come back to Stromholm. I also always look for a certain 'character' that isn't in this chapter, no matter how many times I play HR. For some reason I keep thinking 'she' is in the first chapter. XP )
Scourge
I used to make games. I still do, but I used to too.
1605
@ kentona: I'd buy Tonics, but no one's selling the recipe yet! And, yes, I did track down the item in the garden. Just didn't want to put up more screenshots than I had to.
@ Liberty I've never tried leaving the sidequest until later. It gives a really solid amount of gold and experience, so I usually do it as early as possible so I don't have to grind so much. I'm glad you're looking forward to the LP!
Well, to tell the truth, the reason I usually leave it until later was because I played the earlier versions of the game where you had to go up cliffs. I dunno, but I found that part a bit harder. Maybe the enemies were tweaked in the full version? I know the dungeon itself was changed quite a bit. It just stuck with me as something to do after some levelling. ^.^
Know what would help with the loading of this topic? Some Hide tags.
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