Chrono Trigger community playthrough

[Kuja9001]

Guys I'll be caught up soon(moving and taking care of school stuff).

 

[Joker]

Well, Flint, consider this: 13,000 years later, Zeal isn't around (and neither is magic!) - something must have happened to it

 

[Flintlock]

Well, Flint, consider this: 13,000 years later, Zeal isn't around (and neither is magic!) - something must have happened to it

I have to admit to being completely clueless about the geography of the Chrono Trigger world. Since travel on the world map is very limited, I don't even know whether or not it's a spherical world. If it is, how can I be sure that Zeal didn't survive to the present day on the other side of the planet from Guardia?

 

[Joker]

It's not so much the geography - you'd think someone would have mentioned a floating kingdom at some point, even if only in passing. That, and the fact that everyone is shocked, SHOCKED by magic in the Middle Ages, lead me to believe something was going down in Zeal at some point. (It also fits common cliche of advanced civilization being destroyed by their own technology)


My favorite Zeal character is Alfador, Janus' cat. Janus himself is probably my second favorite, or perhaps Belthazar, who is clearly the coolest of the gurus.

But seriously, if I had a cat, I'd name it Alfador. Or Pip, because lol.

But then again, idk if Pip was feline or canine or an animal Elvis cosplayer or just a Pokemon that got lost and ended up in the wrong game

 

[Roger]

Well, Flint, consider this: 13,000 years later, Zeal isn't around (and neither is magic!) - something must have happened to it

 

[Flintlock]

That's easy for you to say, Frog, but as a first-time player, I have no idea what's actually going to happen! That's the thing with time travel games - nothing is certain. What if Crono's party's actions end up saving Zeal? We already changed the past in numerous ways, so I wouldn't be completely surprised if we did it again.

 

[Joker]

DID they change the past, though?

(see the debate between ryu and kuja for more)

Incidentally, we're coming up on the end of the game soon (maybe another 2-3 chapters). However, there are several sidequests that the game itself tells you about - souks we have an optional chapter for those or just head right to the ending? (some are quite impactful for character development, and some just give you sweet loot)

 

[The G'randiest' Daddy]

Sweet loot! Woot woot! No seriously, I like the idea of a side quest chapter.

 

[Fangu]

Chapter 6

Did you enjoy your jaunt through the castle?

I found it to be a bit too grindy to be honest, but then again I had Crono/Frog/Marle and pretty much one shotted all of the enemies with Ice Water. I decided to take Marle as she was two levels behind. I'm glad I did! (Also glad I went back to the end of time to teach Frog (Omega ;D) magic.

Flea, Slash, and Ozzie - thoughts?

Pretty straightforward. Ozzie is pretty funny

What do you think of the Laruba/Ioka cultural differences? Do they seem reasonable given the time period and circumstances?

I have no opinion But whether or not they look realistic, haha, blonde women in tiger bikinis - hell no! But, I do enjoy the style of English they chose. There's something very honest about it - kind of 'before we fucked up the world'.

Do you have a favorite boss encounter at this point? (Flint, this does not include what was in the bucket )

I did enjoy Slash because it was slightly longer and took a bit of tactics (I was lucky to get a lot of Lightning and Crono just learned Lightning 2), Masa + Mune always look cool, and of course there's Magus - hello Dark Matter : D

 

[Ryushikaze]

Only if we have to get all 44 characters.

show me someone who doesn't do this and I'll show you a blood sacrifice to kali

KALI MA SHAKTI DE

/reference

also, I feel bad for anyone who takes pierre in their first playthrough

Quoting to try and figure out how I became Airling through the quote system.

DID they change the past, though?

(see the debate between ryu and kuja for more)

Oh, you definitely do change the past. I just am not convinced that it's changed in the exact same way the "Lavos Timeline" hypothesis claims you do.
That said, there IS something to be asked over whether you are 'destined' to change the past or not.

Incidentally, we're coming up on the end of the game soon (maybe another 2-3 chapters). However, there are several sidequests that the game itself tells you about - souks we have an optional chapter for those or just head right to the ending? (some are quite impactful for character development, and some just give you sweet loot)

I vote sidequest chapters. They're very important to the overall story.

 

[Airling]

Quoting to try and figure out how I became Airling through the quote system.

 

[Flintlock]

DID they change the past, though?

You're the one who said it was Crono's actions in the middle ages that led to the justice system which ended up putting him on trial in the present... I guess I shouldn't take everything you say as fact. :p

We usually have a chapter for sidequests in our playthroughs, so I'd be up for having one again. Is a new chapter going up today?

 

[Joker]

Chapter 8 - The Wings of Time
2nd Feb - 5th Feb 2015

Our tale continues as our heroes search for a way to return to Antiquity to stop Queen Zeal. However, the way is shut - Schala has sealed the Time Gate! The search begins for a way to return to stop what is possibly the worst idea in history!

Our target for this chapter is the Skyway, after events unfold at Mt. Woe and Terra Cave that make our situation a bit more desperate.

(the image is very tiny for some reason, but it says "Skyway")


Questions:

• At the outset of the chapter, what sort of feelings do you harbor for the major players in the events in Zeal (the Queen, Schala, Janus, Dalton, etc)?
• Do you like the newest addition to the crew? How much were you wanting such a member of the gang throughout the game?
• The Guru of Life's identity revealed! What was your reaction?
• How did you do in this chapter's boss fights? Have you had any wipes yet (game over)?
• Have you been keeping up with Spekkio?

 

[Joker]

You're the one who said it was Crono's actions in the middle ages that led to the justice system which ended up putting him on trial in the present... I guess I shouldn't take everything you say as fact. :p

We usually have a chapter for sidequests in our playthroughs, so I'd be up for having one again. Is a new chapter going up today?

That's one of the fun things about this game - it takes the way changing time works very seriously. Consider this:

In the Middle Ages, Queen Leene was kidnapped. Someone saved her, long before Crono and Co. even existed. Who was it? Obviously the culprit had to have abducted the chancellor as well, because he was already gone when we got there. In fact, the only reason we even saved Leene was the sudden disappearance of Marle, who was her descendant, and who would never have existed otherwise. But the only reason she became lost to time was BECAUSE we were there - the search was called off because they thought the queen had been found. Originally, whatever happened with the Chancellor was supposed to happen, because that's how things played out. Chrono would've been tried for kidnapping Marle either way, because they arrived back in the present shortly after she was taken into the Time Gate. The guards had to have already been looking for her at the time, you'd think, right?

If anything, the actions we took in the Middle Ages only made sure the present as we knew it still happened - like how the inhabitants of Medina worship Magus and wonder where he disappeared to and what happened to him 400 years prior. The answer is simple - WE happened to him. But he had already vanished before we arrived. You could certainly argue that it means he still got Lavos'd, but if he had successfully summoned him in the first place, then our original present would never have existed...which means that in our own timeline, we had already stopped him, which caused his disappearance.

What makes this even MORE confusing is that it IS possible to change the way a certain person in the game behaves based on your actions in a certain time period - which seems to not match up with the "our actions in the past caused the present as we know it" thing.

But then, if we stopped the threat in the past, then our reason for going into the past would never have come about, which means we never would have gone back in time to stop it. And even if we can stop Lavos, that means traveling to 2300 would result in NOT a post-apocalyptic hellhole, which would never have inspired us to save time/history/the world, either

 

[Flintlock]

In a nutshell, time travel is full of paradoxes and this game is no exception. Which is why I try not to second guess it too much.

 

[Ryushikaze]

What makes this even MORE confusing is that it IS possible to change the way a certain person in the game behaves based on your actions in a certain time period - which seems to not match up with the "our actions in the past caused the present as we know it" thing.

Multiple people as it happens. And more

 

[Kuja9001]

Catching up

Chap 6

How do you feel about the way things come to a head in the Tyrano Lair (especially regarding Azala)?

I would've preferred that she just didn't give up on life and accept death. At least the reptite's weren't completely destroyed.

What do you think will happen to Zeal?

Good things never happen when it comes to an advanced civilization.

Speaking of Zeal, do you have any thoughts on its rather large cast of characters, particularly the Prophet?

The prophet is my fav character and I'll explain why later.

Now that we've visited them all, do you have a favorite time period? Why?

65,000,000,000 BC mainly because it gave us Ayla(She's OP) and this theme

 

[Flintlock]

Chapter 8 - The Wings of Time
At the outset of the chapter, what sort of feelings do you harbor for the major players in the events in Zeal (the Queen, Schala, Janus, Dalton, etc)?

I don't really harbour any strong feelings for any of them yet. Dalton seems a bit evil, I guess, but I basically feel like an outsider to all of Zeal's events and I'm just waiting to see what happens.

Do you like the newest addition to the crew? How much were you wanting such a member of the gang throughout the game?

Ayla, right? I barely used her in this chapter. She was overpowered when I first visited the prehistoric era but she doesn't seem quite as strong now. I guess not being able to equip weapons has something to do with that.

The Guru of Life's identity revealed! What was your reaction?

I was pleasantly surprised! Didn't see it coming.

How did you do in this chapter's boss fights? Have you had any wipes yet (game over)?

Yes, I wiped out against Giga Gaia two or three times. I think I was a bit under-levelled, particularly for a beginner - Crono was level 30, I think, and everyone else was 28-29 - but even so, the spike in difficulty from all the previous boss fights was ridiculous. After I had beaten it, I looked it up online, and apparently the only real strategy is to fight the piles of rubble on the Mountain of Woe before fighting it. Me being me, however, I didn't fight a single one, because I felt like the game already forced too many encounters on me and because I had found every boss fight up to that point to be a nice challenge. Also, it never occurred to me to equip armour that protected against fire or shadow damage because I'm an idiot.

I tried once with Lucca and Robo in my party since I've been neglecting them a little, but I couldn't survive without having an ability that healed everyone, since the boss usually used both Doublehand Blaster and Dark Plasma before I even got my first turn, leaving all three characters in critical health. So it was back to the tried and tested combo of Crono, Frog and Marle, which has been my go-to party for the last few chapters. On my second try I killed both arms but didn't realise they could regenerate. Eventually I switched to the strategy of Crono taking down the defence arm while Frog and Marle healed everyone, and then a brief all-out attack on the body. A few cycles later and the fight was won.

Have you been keeping up with Spekkio?

I honestly don't remember whether or not I took Ayla to him to learn magic. If you mean fighting him, though, then the answer is a definite no. Every time I happen to pass through the end of time, one of my characters' levels has reached a new multiple of 10, meaning Spekkio has just levelled up, making it too difficult for me to win. And I can't be bothered to go there at a more convenient time just to fight him. If I'm missing out on some cool rewards, I'll just do it in my next playthrough.

 

[Joker]

Kuja: omg I LOVE THAT SONG AS WELL AAAAAAAAA

Ayla, right? I barely used her in this chapter. She was overpowered when I first visited the prehistoric era but she doesn't seem quite as strong now. I guess not being able to equip weapons has something to do with that.

I was trying not to spoil it for people that haven't played it yet, but no, the new addition in this chapter,

Spoiler

The Epoch, which the chapter was named for

.

 

[Joker]

Chapter 9 - I've waited for this...
6th - 8th Feb 2015

The tale continues as Crono and crew try to stop the Queen and her Mammon Machine! Will they succeed, or will the Queen summon Lavos to attain immortality?!

The first two in-game segments are a bit short, so a third one has been added here, which will feature our stopping point - the outside of North Cape, after its shocking events.

Questions:

• How do you feel about magic as it is depicted in Chrono Trigger? In particular, what are your thoughts on the "haves vs. have-nots" in Antiquity?
• The Prophet revealed! Did you have any idea of who the mysterious figure might be?
• Did the Ruby Knife's fate come as a shock to you? What thoughts do you have on the way they tied every time period together with it (save 2300 AD)?
• How did you react to how things played out in Zeal? How do you feel about it now that you're done with the chapter?
• How did your end of chapter play out at North Cape? Why?
• Where do we go from here, as the saying goes?

 

[Cthulhu]

I'm still playing this gaise but I'm way behind, I should see which chapters I've finished and do a thing,

 

[Flintlock]

Chapter 9 - I've waited for this...
How do you feel about magic as it is depicted in Chrono Trigger? In particular, what are your thoughts on the "haves vs. have-nots" in Antiquity?

I don't think I really have any feelings about it. Sorry.

The Prophet revealed! Did you have any idea of who the mysterious figure might be?

I had an inkling. What took me by surprise, though, was that

Spoiler

Magus is Janus. Usually time travel stories set off hundreds of warning sirens when someone meets a past or future version of themselves, but this slipped under the radar. I suppose the hair colour was a giveaway...

Did the Ruby Knife's fate come as a shock to you? What thoughts do you have on the way they tied every time period together with it (save 2300 AD)?

It's been too long since I played the previous chapters (this was my first progress in about two weeks) and I can't remember anything about the Ruby Knife. Sorry, again.

How did you react to how things played out in Zeal? How do you feel about it now that you're done with the chapter?

Well, I saw the destruction coming... partly thanks to this thread, but to be honest, the clues were pretty obvious. Once people start talking about immortality, they're usually headed for a fall. I wasn't expecting

Spoiler

Crono's death (if that's what it was), and I was a little surprised to get emotional about it, since he's "just" a silent protagonist. It was mostly Marle's reaction that did it, I think. She feels like the natural party leader without Crono.

How did your end of chapter play out at North Cape? Why?

I don't know where I got it from, but I already knew that Magus would join my party at some point in the game (I think I probably read about it before I even started playing), so I figured there was no point fighting him. I also understood the reasons he gave for his actions, though they were pretty stupid.

Where do we go from here, as the saying goes?

Sidequests? That's what usually happens - in Final Fantasy games, at least - once the party has free use of an airship. I'm guessing the Black Omen is the final level before facing Lavos. It has that feel to it, a bit like the Sky Fortress Bahamut, the Lunatic Pandora, or Memoria.

 

[AvecAloes]

I've been obsessed with FFXIV lately, sorry....will catch up!

 

[Joker]

It's been too long since I played the previous chapters (this was my first progress in about two weeks) and I can't remember anything about the Ruby Knife. Sorry, again.


Well, I saw the destruction coming... partly thanks to this thread, but to be honest, the clues were pretty obvious. Once people start talking about immortality, they're usually headed for a fall. I wasn't expecting

Spoiler

Crono's death (if that's what it was), and I was a little surprised to get emotional about it, since he's "just" a silent protagonist. It was mostly Marle's reaction that did it, I think. She feels like the natural party leader without Crono.

I don't know where I got it from, but I already knew that Magus would join my party at some point in the game (I think I probably read about it before I even started playing), so I figured there was no point fighting him. I also understood the reasons he gave for his actions, though they were pretty stupid.


Sidequests? That's what usually happens - in Final Fantasy games, at least - once the party has free use of an airship. I'm guessing the Black Omen is the final level before facing Lavos. It has that feel to it, a bit like the Sky Fortress Bahamut, the Lunatic Pandora, or Memoria.

Spoiler

The Ruby Knife turns into the Masamune.

In this case, I meant Crono's sudden death Which, btw...yeah he's super dead.

There's actually a reward for fighting him, it's just not as good as having him in your party

In this case, I'm referring to the dead party member, which is to say: where do we (the party) go from here, now that one of our number has sacrificed himself? Kind of like Aerith dying in FFVII, the group had to collect themselves and try to find a reason to continue on.

Incidentally, I wasn't home until quite late last night and subsequently forgot to get the next chapter up. I'm leaving in a bit but will do so when I return.

ed: and where do you think Bahamut, Pandoa, and Memoria got the inspiration from?

 

[Joker]

Chapter 10 - The Time Egg
10th Feb - 12th Feb 2015

After the tragic events in Antiquity, the party struggles to find a way to continue on. Fortunately, our friend at the End of Time has some ideas...

This is the end of the game. There are three in-game segments this chapter is comprised of, and they are all extremely short. Therefore, this will be the first of two sidequest chapters - we're basically at the game's point of no return, so all you have to do to reach the target is not start the final battle, which our pal the Old Man tells us about (the bucket, which, as Flint learned earlier, takes you to the final boss). No target picture today!

However, the Old Man has more stuff to say, and will give you the starting points for all of the game's sidequests, save one - opening up the locked chests. To that end, I will list the sidequests to focus on, and give you the starting point for each one - from there, you're on your own!

There are seven sidequests, not counting the chests, so because this chapter has some meat to it already, let's tackle the first two:

• "A fugitive in the Middle Ages, Ozzie, maintains an evil hideout..."
  Your old pal is back! Your target location is in 600 AD, in the area where you'd find Medina in the present.
  
  
• "There's the ghost of a lofty knight, slain by Magus in the Middle Ages, who haunts the present..."
  Your starting point here is Choras (on the western continent) in 1000 AD. Be sure to save your game! (Note: after this sidequests, head to the Denadoro Mountains with Frog in your party!)

Questions:

• How do you like the way the main story has wrapped up so far (and yes, I'm talking about what you did in just this chapter - you'll know what I mean when you do it )
• How are you doing on opening up the sealed chests? Have you figured out the way to get ALL of the items from them (hint: each chest has more than one item it can contain)?
• How'd you do in the Fort, and how do you like the final outcome (hint: it changes the present)?
• Do you feel like there was any closure (either for yourself or the party member it affects) regarding the events of the knight's ghost sidequest?