Top 5 Best Disgaea Classes!

Hey bros, whatsup?



Ah, good ol' Disgaea.  One of my most favorite rpg series of all time, certainly a unique experience.  I won't explain it much since the majority of you already know full well how much I like Disgaea, and thus I'll explain it simply: Demons are sadistic children, humans are gun-happy dorks, and angels are waaaay too perfect.  Yeah, it's a pretty silly series, but that's what makes it so enjoyable!

So, anywho, one of my pals was planning on doing a top 10 game review, and I thought of doing something similar, but different.  So for today, I'm gonna talk about my top 5 favorite Disgaea classes!!!!



Honorable Mention: Prinny 


Ah, the Prinny.  Even if you've never played Disgaea, if you use the internet actively, you've probably seen this at least once somewhere.  Prinnies are the lovable penguin monsters and mascots of the Disgaea franchise.

To sum it up, Prinnes are the souls of selfish humans sowed into a penguin suit.  When a human that has done nothing with their lives or is very evil dies, their soul is put into a penguin suit, and are sent to work either in Celestria for the angels, or to the Netherworld for the demons (a much worse gig).  Once they have worked of their debts, they are reborn.

Now, those of you who are fans of Disgaea might wonder why this is so low on the list.  That is because as cute as they are and how interesting they are, I've never enjoyed playing as one.  Sure, they're fun to look at, but every single Prinny I've used always ends up in the unused character pile in the end.  They have some fun abilities, but nothing stands out about them as a class beyond exploding, which you almost never want anyways.   In short, for me, they're not one of my bigger favorites, but certainly worth mentioning.

5. Scout (Disgaea 1)
 

Enter the annoying class, Scout!   Scouts are demon children who are masters of the art of the Geo Panels (triangles that give the earth around it of a certain circumference a special effect), and hated by all demons and angels alike.  

What I love about the Scout is two simple things:  Guns and Dark Cannon. In Disgaea 1 (the only game it appears in), Scout is the only class that is good with guns until the EDF soldier, and even then chances are you're gonna use the Scout to get it.  Guns are one of the most useful weapons in Disgaea, so all classes that get them are usually pretty decent in the right hands.

                                                 
And Dark Cannon.  You cannot forget Dark Cannon.  Dark Cannon is a signature ability of the Scout where it sets town a small turret to wreck havock on opponents.  Not only is this very useful for helping with fights, but this thing attracts enemies like media to the next GTA.  I can't say how many times I used this ability just to get enemies off my back for a bit to heal up.  Seriously, enemies will attack this over near-dead teamates or priests, it's hilarious.   And heck, it looks awesome too.

4. Skull (Disgaea 1)


IT WILL DINE ON YOUR SOUUUUULLLLL

Skulls are the mages of the Disgaea series, and very strong ones at that.  Weak as a feather, yet stronger than an atom bomb.  Seriously, have you seen some of those Omega spells?  Yeesh...

You're always going to have a Skull in your party.  Having a Mage is almost a necessity in Disgaea, as their damage range and damage potential become massive over time.  Yeah, you could have the female mage, but why?  The Skulls are just so much cooler!   The strange cloak, the strange voice, and the overall charm of the character WAY outweighs the female version.

                                               
Of course, I'm talking the Disgaea 1 version specifically.  The later versions have the face of the person inside the suit revealed, and it's just not as cool as the original.  Plus the spells from Disgaea 1 look way cooler as well, so that's a bonus.  

3. Gunner (Disgaea 2)


Now that I'm making this list, I'm realizing that I REALLY like guns in Disgaea.  In an RPG game with magic and awesome swords, my favorite weapon is the gun....huh...

Gunners are the marksman of Disgaea, excellent at attacking opponents from afar with high physical damage.  They might not have the highest defenses, but that high accuracy/damage plus some very fun abilities makes for a very fun class.

                                           

And can we be real for a moment and talk about that absolutely boss outfit?  I've seen some pretty sweet cowboy outfits in gaming, but this one tops my list.  Simple and yet freaking awesome, they're always fun to have around.

2. EDF Soldier (Disgaea 1)


Spaceman Spiff is here!!!!  AHAHAH!!!!!  Old school humor...

The EDF Soldier (yet another gun class of Disgaea) are Earth's defending forces, fighting the good fight against demons, angels, or whatever threat that comes their way.  Just don't ask them about the well-being of their planet...they're a little touchy on that subject.

First off I want to talk about the unique nature of the class in that it's a gun class, yet not a weak class.  Typically games with snipers as classes involve them being pretty frail, but not the EDF Soldier.  In fact, this class has the highest defense of any character class of Disgaea 1!   These things don't just tank physical attacks either, they can take magic attacks just as easily.

                                            

Also, I just like good human representation in games.  A lot of fantasy games tend to really bash humanity, typically making them one of the most bland or useless races there.  Don't get me wrong, there's a LOT of human bashing in Disgaea, but that ends up being ironic since the only human class in the game...is better than about 90% of all the game's classes. Heck, even the main joke character of the game (a human named Gordon), despite all the mockery, is one of the best fighters you can obtain.  I guess science CAN beat magic.

1. Male Priest (Disgaea 1)


And we go to my all-time favorite class, the Male Priest, a NOT gunner class!  See, I can branch out!

First positive of the healers of Disgaea is that they're not so much healers as a jack of all trades.  While they only learn healing and buffs at base, you can remember damage magic from previous classes, so it's not common for Priests to have damage magic as well, making them very versatile in Disgaea, able to wield some physical damage (yes, they can actually deal good damage with bows and decent damage with guns), good magical damage, and great healing.

Second positive beyond healing, which items can do, is status effect removal.  With your priest, YOU WILL ABUSE ESPOIR TO KINGDOM COME.  It's cheap, it's simple, and it immediately remove status effects from one to a group of a people at one time.  Very great asset to have.
                                               

But what I think attracts me to this class most of all is the character design and concept of the priest.  Since healing is considered a sin in the Netherworld (Yes, a legitimate sin, don't ask me why, it's really stupid), priests are looked down upon by all other demons...that is, the male ones.  Female priests are often fallen angels, and are often accepted more either due to history or gender.  Male priests on the other hand have an INCREDIBLY low reputation among demons, in some ways they're probably looked down on worse than Prinnies, despite how necessary they are.  They're almost like the Netherworld's garbageman.

In fact, the pressure against them is so great, that it has been common for Male Priests to wear BARBED CLOTHING as a sign to other demons of their repentance.  That's some serious dedication to your causes there.  Because of that, this class really stands out to me. Even among demon culture, they do their best to fight for what they believe in, protecting and healing those they care about, respecting all people no matter what race (yes, they are demons that actually like Angels), and do what they can to appease their culture at the same time.  Very honorable soldiers, that's for certain.

Well, that's my list!  If you have any questions or opinions of your own you would like to post, please common below!  Thanks for reading! 

MarineCorps Chapter 2: First Recruitment

Now that the foundation for MarineCorps had been laid out by Mirrow, Jaryan, Mythrandir, Fever, and Shyruni, it was time to start the improvements. The entirety of Earth's military was having a hard time keeping crime in check, let alone five unarmed children. There was much to be done.

Mirrow and Jaryan, with the assistance of Fever, began putting themselves through harsh training in the hopes of being strong leaders to follow. Mythrandir seemed to be on his own agenda, occasionally giving incredibly insightful combat advice, yet spending most of his time in what appeared to be meditation. And as for Shyruni, he had taken it upon himself to look for other willing to join the cause. He didn't particularly feel like training and exploring seemed like a fun idea, so he packed a few of his belongings and flew off.

At first, things didn't look so good. With the military so spent, crime had been running wild for a few months now. Half of the cities and towns were completely demolished, and the ones that remained were either barely holding on or completely taken over by gangs.

Shyruni was flying by the outskirts of the Northern Mountains a few days into his search, when he heard what appeared to be a lot of commotion from one of the villages on the mountainside. Curious, he changed course and flew towards the sound.

In the middle of the small town, there was a large crowd gathering around a single building, clearly in an uproar about something. The building was a bit larger than most of the others, clearly belonging to one of a somewhat higher status.

"Hey bros, mind telling me what's going on here?" he asked, landing softly on the ground.

At first, they all turned around looking rather frustrated, but the second the crowd noticed him the commotion immediately stopped. They all faced him, staring rather intently.

"Uh...can I..."

Suddenly, the entire crowd bolted. Some ran into nearby buildings, while others hid behind bushes or other objects. Within a minute, the loud uproar had been turned into complete silence, without another being in sight.

Shyruni sighed. "Yeesh, what was that about? I'm not THAT bad of a sight to look at, am I?" he said, looking down at his pudgy body.

Returning his gaze the the fancy building in front of him, he noticed something was a little off about the place. On the top floor, a candy cane hung from the windowsill. Oh, and there was a chocolate bar on the roof...and multiple gumballs in the fountain...and multiple chocolate bars on the front lawn...and...

Getting incredibly curious, he knocked on the door. He waited a few minutes, no answer. He knocked again. Still no answer.

Deciding being polite wasn't going to get him anywhere, he decided to use some of his Majin talents. He breathed in as deep as he could, his cheeks puffing up. He held it for a few seconds...then let out a loud scream.

HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The whole area shook, tearing off tree branches and possibly causing what sounded like a small avalanche high upon the mountains. Shyruni decided it was best avoid thinking about that.

The door slowly opened, revealing a very small man who appeared to be a butler of some sort.

"Um...excuse me...sir?"

"Oh, hi!" Shyruni said, grinning. "You look very professional! Doesn't wearing that kid of clothing get really uncomfortable?"

The man looked very confused. "I'm a butler, sir..."

"Oh, right, one of those!"

Shyruni bowed.

"So, may I ask who lives here?"

The butler adjusted his glasses. "This here is the mansion of Rosalina Martha, daughter of the great-"

"It's a fancy house with fancy people, I know that!!!! I wanna know who lives here!!!"

"Myself, a young girl, and a Majin boy." he said, sighing.

"Ah, I thought this place seemed very Majinish!" Shyruni said grinning. "So, can I talk to him? He sounds like a pretty neat guy!"

"Wait...you're not here to complain?"

Shyruni laughed. "Of course not, what made you think that...ohhhh..."

He facepalmed.

"No, I'm not part of the mob from earlier...I actually scared them off for some reason. You have any idea why?"

"Majins are not viewed upon very highly around here, sir..."

"ANOTHER Majin-racist city? C'MON, all our ancestor did was nearly destroy the entire planet..." Shyruni pouted.

"Welp, can I talk with the uhh...Master?"

The butler politely bowed.

"Unfortunately, he is not present at the moment. He is currently training at the top of the mountains."

"Training?" Shyruni said, perking up. "He's a martial artist?"

"He trains up there rather frequently, sir."

"Well then, I'm gonna say hi! Thanks, err...butler guy!"

Shyruni happily flew upwards towards the top of the mountain. Sure enough, near the top of the mountain there was a small, pudgy character doing what appeared to be firing energy blasts.

"Hey! You the 'Master' guy the butler talked about?" Shyruni said, landing.

"Yep! I'm guessing you're the loud voice I heard earlier?" the Majin said, chuckling.

"Huh? Oh yeah..." Shyruni said, nervously laughing. "So, what's your name?"

"Kobob. And you?"

"I'm Shyruni Majinbro! What you up to?"

"Eh...just doing some routine training. I should ask you the same question, you're clearly not from around here."

"Majin aren't common around here, huh?"

"Nope." Kobob said, chuckling. "I'm surprised the townsfolk haven't tried to shoot you yet."

"That bad huh?"

"Yep." Kobob said, sighing.

"So, what are you working on?" Shyruni asked, deciding to change the subject.

"Huh?"

"Your training. What are you trying to learn?"

"Ah...it's kind of hard to explain." Kobob said, looking a little nervous.

Shyruni then proceeded to sit down, pull out a drink and a chocolate bar, and signaled to proceed.

Kobob chuckled. "You're a funny one, aren't you? Well anyways, see, I'm not exactly from around here...I actually come from a Majin village in a dessert a long ways from here. I wanted to learn some human fighting techniques, so I packed my bags and came way over here. I made good friends with a young rich girl over here, and I've been staying at her place for a few years now."

"Nice!" Shyruni said, grinning. "So, what have you learned."

"Quite a bit, at least until I kinda...accidentally freaked everyone out."

"Freaked everyone out? So it's not just racist?"

"No..." Kobob said, looking even more nervous. "See, about a year ago, I was playing with Rosy, when a group of boys starting making fun of us. At first we ignored them, but then they started throwing stuff at us, and started chasing after us. I tried to fight back, but it didn't seem to work. And then I saw Rosy about to get hurt, and then..."

"You lost consciousness, and woke up a few minutes later surrounded by destruction?"

Kobob looked up in surprise.

"H-how did you..."

"Keep going, I'll explain myself in a minute. Continue." Shyruni said, smiling.

"Well...ever since then the townsfolk has considered me a threat, or every Majin since then for that matter. But whatever made that crater while I was sleeping...I want to know how I did that."

"And that's why you're training."

"Yes."

They both sat silent for a few minutes, both of them deep in thought. However, after four minutes, Shyruni stood up, and pulled out a small book from his satchel.

"Kobob...I assume you know the story about Majin Buu...when he threatened the entire human race to extinction, right?"

"Yeah, who doesn't know the story?"

"Tell me, what happened during the fight between Majin Buu and the heroes who stopped him?"

"Uh, well...the history doesn't say, all it says is that a long battle took place. Why?"

"Didn't you find that strange?"

"Huh?"

Shyruni opened the book, pointing at various paragraphs. "Before and after the fight, the history is very detailed. About Majin Buu's threats, the involvement of Hercule and his strange companions, and the return of a peaceful Majin Buu later. And yet the entire fight is written without a single detail. Doesn't that seem a little strange to you?"

"Now that you mention it..."

Shyruni then pulled a drawing out of the book. It was a very vague drawing, drawn with some form of charcoal. It looked somewhat like a Majin, but...different.

"A few years back, I had an...interesting experience. I was hanging out with a group of Majins when one of them got really pissed and suddenly a massive explosion occurred. Barely conscious, I looked up and saw a faint outline of something that looked similar to a Majin, and yet...wasn't."

Shyruni put the book and drawing back in his pack.

"There have been rumors...very quiet rumors...about something other than Majin Buu fighting Hercule. No pictures, no evidence, just rumors...while I typically wouldn't believe something so outlandish...I don't know...I just have a...strange feeling."

"Hmm..." Kobob said, lost in thought.

To Kobob's surprise, Shyruni extended his hand.

"I am part of a small organization known as MarineCorps. Our goal is to bring this planet back to the peaceful state it was in merely a few years back. You seem like a powerful ally, and you and I both seem to be looking for something similar. Perhaps we could assist each other. Whadya think?"

"Interesting..." Kobob said, grinning. "Sounds like a lot of fun! I'm sure Rosy wouldn't mind, she'd probably enjoy getting rid of the negative attention the mansion has as of late. I have one request though."

"And that is?"

"I have a human friend in West City...Jackman's his name. He lives in a small dojo on the outskirts. I think he'd be very interested in MarineCorps as well, and if I'm gonna join, he should as well."

Shyruni grinned. "Fair enough!"

They shook hands then flew out towards West City. As expected, Jackman was more than willing to join, and MarineCorps became two members larger. This was the beginning of a powerful trio.

MarineCorps Chapter 1: Humble Beginnings

A long time ago on Planet Vegeta, despite all the chaos that ensued and havoc that was wrought, there was a force that kept the planet from tearing itself apart...and that force was known as MarineCorps. A group of powerful yet kind Saiyans who did their best to protect the planet they called home, even from members of their own race. They were feared by even some of the more elite Saiyans, and were charged by King Vegeta himself to protect the peace...even until it's demise. However, this was not to be the end of it's legacy...

Age 1000

Chaos has begun to descend on Planet Earth, with crime at an all-time high and entire cities being wiped out quite commonly. Things are looking bleak, and people start looking to the skies in hopes of a hero...

In the peaceful plains of the East District, out of nowhere two spaceships crash in a wide open field. After a few seconds of silence, the pods open, revealing two young children that look very similar to humans. After gaining their footing and taking a look around, the older one makes a big grin.

"Earth huh...? What an interesting little dirtball! I sense quite a few unusually strong power levels here. Wasn't this place supposed to be filled with weaklings?"

"Indeed, this is rather unusual...then again we have been sleeping for quite some time, brother."

"That's true!" the older one said, giving a pondering look. "There seems to be a decent sized group of strong power levels in a cluster! Should we check it out?"

"You sure we should be interfering with the ecosystem? We weren't sent to kill this planet..."

"Don't worry bro, I've got a good feeling about this place!"

The older one proceeded to fly in the direction of the powers, with the younger one reluctantly following.

After flying awhile, they arrived at their destination. While it was different than Saiyan customs, it appeared to be some sort of fighting tournament called the Budokai. Never one to back down from a challenge, the older one immediately signed them both up. Much to their disappointment, they were forced to fight in the Kid Budokai.

While on the way to the first match, they ran into a strange cloaked figure, the only thing visible being two pointed ears sticking out of the cloak. While attempting to pass, the figure suddenly stepped into their path.

"You two...you're the grandsons of Potota, aren't you?"

The younger one quickly drew his blade and pointed it at the stranger.

"Who are you!?"

The stranger chuckled. "Hmm...this will be an interesting tournament..."

He then vanished, leaving the two to ponder what the heck just happened. However, the older one got impatient and dashed to the tournament gate before they could discuss it. Despite their excitement, the tournament seemed boring, all the opponents were weak kids...that was until the fourth match.

The younger one, expecting this strange pink being to be just another weakling, drew out his sword and attacked immediately...only for his blow to be dodged at the last second, then the pink thing fell and began crying. Frustrated by the dumb luck, he went for another strike, only to be barely dodged once more. After a few more attempts, it occurred to him that there was something unusual about the fight. The pink thing kept barely dodging his strikes barely without having attacked once.

Deciding to bring things up a notch, he increased his energy level and began attacking faster. Blow after blow was dodged, until he released a surprise energy sword attack. The pink thing, realizing he couldn't escape, released a massive energy blast that nearly knocked the young one off the stage. So this wasn't just another weakling.

The match quickly got more intense. Whatever this pink thing was, it had surprisingly good control of energy, and seemed rather intelligent. However, intelligence isn't everything. Releasing everything he had, the young one dashed towards the creature with a massive flurry of attacks, and despite its greatest efforts, it could not stop the blows and was sent flying off the stage. The swordsman had won.

A bit dazzled, the pink creature slowly sat up, only to look up to the outstretched arm of his opponent.

"That was some surprisingly good fighting there...I'm gonna be honest, I didn't expect it from you."
"Eh, most people don't usually." it said laughing, then stood up. "I'm Shyruni the Majin, who are you?"

"A Majin? What's that?"

Shyruni's jaw dropped. "Bro, you feelin' alright? Who doesn't know what a Majin..."

Stopping in the middle of his sentence, he began eyeing the young one up and down.

"Hmm...as human as you look, there's something different about you...if I may ask again, who are ya?"

"Well, as much as I might regret revealing it, I'm Jaryan, a Saiyan."

"A Saiyan? Never heard of that before...but you seem pretty cool, so I don't really care!" Shyruni said, grinning. "So, what brings an uh...Saiyan to these parts?"

Jaryan looked down. "To be honest...I don't know. We weren't supposed to arrive here, the planet somehow got in the way of our coordinates..."

Then he looked up, suddenly getting an idea. "Hey can I ask you something?"

"Sure! What'sup?"

Jaryan grinned. "My grandfather was once the leader of a great peace-keeping force known as MarineCorps...I don't know much about it, I was just born when I left my planet with my brother...but we were left with a notebook in my pod that told many stories about them, and their many feats. We might not have seen it with our own eyes, but it's our dream to continue that legacy. We want to create a new MarineCorps."

Shyruni nodded. "So you came to this tournament looking for strong fighters to join?"

Jaryan nodded in response. "Essentially yes."

Shyruni grinned. "Well count me in! I don't exactly know what a 'Saiyan' is, but you seem pretty strong, and I like that! I might not be the strongest fighter out there, but I'll do what I can to help your cause, it sounds pretty neat! I'm in!"

And so with his first recruit, Jaryan and Shyruni went to meet with his brother, Mirrow, who's opponent, a Namekian named Fever, also showed interest in the guild. On the way out, they also ran into the strange figure from before, who asked to join the guild without explanation. Jaryan was about to object and ask questions, but Mirrow went ahead and accepted him on the team.

They then flew out to where the pods landed, and using a few trees, some paper, and whatever training equipment they could borrow from nearby houses, created a small training camp. They managed to gather a few more members before the night came, and had a massive bonfire to celebrate. It was time for the rebirth of MarineCorps.

Sprite Editing!

Hey, how we doing? 

So, I have received some requests to know exactly how I do the banners and sigs I do for the DBOR forums.  Because of this, I have decided to do a small tutorial on sprite editing for those who might want to do this themselves!  Note that this tutorial is specifically for the MMO of DBOR, and while it has uses outside of it, the sprites in use will be directly related to DBOR.  Without further ado, here we go!

1. Find a base sprite.

First off, you're gonna need some basic sprites to work off of!  There are plenty of sprite sheets on the internet available for use, and as long as you edit them decently and don't make profits off of your editing, there's nothing wrong with using them.  Just type in the name of the character you want to work off of as well as sprites, and you should find multiple options for what you're looking for.  What's that, why not just make your own?  The purpose of this guide is for those who CAN'T make your own sprites, and need something a bit easier...otherwise, why are you reading this?

For this tutorial, I will be using sprites of Goku as my base.   I found it under Google Images, as where most sprites will be located.  


2. Open Paint, Turn on Gridlines

This tutorial will also be using Microsoft Paint, as that's what I typically use.  There are better programs out there (supposedly), but Microsoft Paint is a program that everyone has, and it gets the job done.  When you open the file in Paint, go to view and check the box that says "gridlines". This will allow you to see the individual pixels of the drawing once you zoom in.  Feel free to turn it off if you want to see how your work is progressing, but make sure to turn it on again once you go back to work.

3. Zoom In

I recommend going full zoom, as it gives a good view of the individual pixels of the sprite, especially with the addition of the grid.   Doing sprite work can be tedious, and it can be hard to place the pixels where you want them if you're not as zoomed in as can be.  Sometimes you'll need a reference and have to zoom out a little bit to see both, and that's fine.  Just try to keep as zoomed in as possible to avoid uneccessary failure and stress.

4. Tool 1: Paintbucket

The paint bucket is the easiest tool to use in Paint.  It's use to fill in areas of a universal color with a different color.  For example, if his hair is completely blue and you want it red, use the paint pucket tool and you can change all of it with just one simple click.


5. Tool 2: Pencil Left Mouse Button

 This tool is the bread and butter of your editing, as well as the most tedious task.  Left clicking puts a pixel of the color selected at the end of the pencil cursor, so this is what you use to place individual pixels.  You can increase the size of the pencil tool to place 4x4 pixel squares, but I wouldn't ever go higher than that.  This is what you'll use for adding in weapons, accessories, clothing, effects, and pretty much everything the paint bucket can't do.


6. Tool 3: Pencil Right Mouse Button

This tool is the exact opposite of the left click, it removes singular (or 4x4) pixels from the design.  It's pretty much Paint's small equivalent of the eraser. 

And that's about it!  There are other finer details, but these are the basics to editing sprites.  Make sure to save often, as mistakes are quite common, and make sure to pace yourself well.  Making sprites can be incredibly tedious over extended periods of time, so don't work yourself too hard.  Also, if you barely edited the sprite at all, make sure to credit the original designer of the sprite in your image, as making sprites is no easy task.  That's all for now, hope this helps!

                                                                               

Banners

Hey guys!  Just wanted to upload some banners I've been making for DBOR.

                                                                                 

The Last Kaiser - Part 1/????

Note: Hey guys!  This was a random story idea I came up with a few days back, and I felt like giving it a spin!  Let me know what you think in the comments below!

The Last Kaiser - Part 1 - Time to Get a Watch

To begin, we must start at the beginning, not of our age but of theirs.  Far outside of the Milky Way, in a realm never explored by man before, there exists a galaxy known as "Xlonjr".   It is a much smaller galaxy than most, with only a single planets outside of a sun and moon.

Now, on the planet simply known as "Kaol", there existed a race of living beings, people like us.  I say "was" because that was indeed the truth of the statement at the time.  The planet was filled with vicious creatures, and the race did not survive for long.  It lasted for a total of 100 years in our time, before the entire race became extinct due to how superior the other inhabitants were.  It was truly a case of what we call "survival of the fittest".

With that in mind, you may be wondering about this out-of-universe tale I spoke of, or if I even have a tale to tell.  Well, at one time that would have been the case, but time itself is in fact the reason that I have a tale to tell.  For in another dimension there is another race known only as the "Mardoxx".

The Mardoxx are hard to describe, for even though I have learnt much about them I still know so very little.  They are like no race I could have ever dreamed of.   These unique being do not live in the dimension we know as "time", but somehow exist outside of it. 

These beings are deeply in-tune with some strange force that in our world we would call "magic", some strange mythical power through which they were great beings.

With the ability to remain outside of time and look at it from an outward perspective, they felt great pity for the people of Koal.  While the people showed intelligence and dexterity, they simply could not stand against the greater forces that their home contained.  The race didn't have the time it needed to develop, and great potential was lost.  And so the Mardoxx came up with a way to save them.

Using their mythical powers, they sent of the first of many saviors, Sariah. She was one of the strongest Mardoxx, and agreed to assist with the growth of the people.  Sent back to the beginning ages of the race, she came as their leader, and the people welcomed the leadership with open arms.  The race then existed for another 200 years, until the death of Sariah, whom now affected by the dimension of time aged unto death.  Then the race of people, still not fully developed, once again fell to destruction.

Pleased by the success of Sariah, the Mardoxx began sending more of their people, each one extending the planet's existence by about 200 years.  The people continually accepted their new leaders, and their saviors became known as Kaisers.  The Kaisers led the people with great courage and wisdom, and the people revered them for it.  

However, after over 5000 years of the race's existence, the Mardoxx began to grow impatient.  While the people grew in intelligence, so did other life on the planet.  Like a never-ending cycle, once the Kaisers stopped coming, the people disappeared in a mere few years.  Around 7500 years the other creatures actually began to develop faster than the people the Kaiser , they began to believe the race was truly hopeless.  After 10,000 years even the Kaisers could not save the people any longer.  They felt like the race had a good existence, and sent the last of the Kaisers, and left the race to it's demise, deciding to move onto other matters.

But even that isn't the end of the story.  I could tell you the history of the Kaisers, of the 10,000 years of the planet's existence, but there is a great tale to tell.  For when the Mardoxx though their connection with Kaol was over, they couldn't have been further from the truth.  The real tale I have to tell starts at the end, with the Last Kaiser, Shiron.

_________________________________________________________________________

Talia sighed as she opened the curtains, revealing once again the twilight in the sky.  How long had it been there?  Months?  Years?  She didn't know, they lost track of the days a while ago, and she didn't even know when.  The ruinous landscape hadn't changed much either, though there did appear to be a few more dead bodies lying around.  What had they done to deserve this?

She decided not to dwell on it and instead focus on the job at hand.  A maid's work was never done, after all.  She showered, combed her blue hair, then put on the traditional blue and black dress custom among servants of her rank.  After a bit of thought, she decided the first task of the day would be to find where the draft was coming from in the throne room. Talia sighed again as she began the incredibly interesting task of staring at walls for an hour trying to find out where the cold air was coming from.

"Talia, why on Kaol are you staring at that wall?"

Talia almost jumped.  Recognizing the voice, she immediately spun around and quickly curtsied, feeling rather embarrassed.

"K-Kaiser!  G-good morning, my lord, you're up unusually early!"

The young man sitting on the throne laughed.  

"Geez, I would've thought after knowing me for so long you wouldn't completely ignore me like that!  Honestly, you passed right in front of me about four times!"

"M-my apologies sire, I meant no disrespect."

He laughed again.  "What's with all the respectful words, Talia?  It's a bit unusual for you to be THIS much of a suck-up.   I mean, yeah I'm Kaiser, but you've been my best maid for what, nineteen er...actually, how many years has it been?"

"As long as you've been here, I believe."

"Yeah, good enough," he said, yawning and stretching out over his throne.  Talia couldn't help but giggle seeing the "Great and Powerful Shiron" sprawled out in such an undignified manner.  While it was true that he was still in his younger days as a Kaiser, having only been around for about 20 years, he was still a bit unusual.  Very stubborn, very cocky, and always ready to start a fight.  He looked the part too: long yet spiked white hair, royal yet stained purple, strange markings all over his body that looked more like tattoos than runic symbols, he was truly one-of a kind.

"So, what do we have for breakfast?" Shiron said, playing around with his massive sword.

Talia sighed.  "Unfortunately, we have very little right now, the suppliers haven't been able to give us anything for awhile due to the recent monster infestation outside the castle."

Shiron stood up. "Well then, why don't we go hunting?  Kill some of those freaks, clear out the front of the castle, and have a delicious feast with their meat afterwards!"

"I really would advise otherwise Kaiser...they've been increasingly resistant to the Kaisers for the last few centuries, I'm not sure even you could handle a whole army of them."

"Nonsense, I can take em' all on!  Other Kaisers may have had trouble, but I'm the greatest Kaiser ever!  Ain't nobody that can stop the 'Great and Poweful Shiron!"

Talia grew desperate.  "Please, don't go!  At least for my sake if for not your own..."

His excitement quickly turned to that of disappointment, and he sat down.  As Talia gave a sigh of relief, she noticed that once again something seemed off about Shiron.  Even though he was rather unusual, he'd been increasingly impatient lately, sometimes even depressed.  Perhaps now was the time to talk about it.

"You alright, sire?"  She said, walking over to him.

"Eh?  Yeah, I'm fine..." he said, now looking even more frustrated than before.

She put her hand on his and smiled.  "You can tell me what's on your mind, Kaiser, I'll do everything I can to hel-"

"STOP CALLING ME KAISER!!!!"  He said, banging his hands on the armrests, Talia pulling her hand out of the way just in time, and the whole castle shook.  

They both stared at the ground in silence for a what seemed like hours.  Then, much to her surprise, Shiron stood up with a very serious look on his face.

"...Shiron?" 

"I...am no Kaiser.  The Kaisers were great and powerful leader, respected and loved by all.  They had millions of admirers, massive kingdoms, and stood in the frontlines of many glorious battles.  Every single one of them is in the history books, filled with stories, legends, songs, some even receiving worship."

His fists began to tremble.

"And yet here I am, living in a crumbling castle, watching the world fall apart around me while I can do nothing but sit and watch.  There won't be stories about me, there won't be songs, there won't be legends; no one will be alive to write them.  I have no admirers, all of them are dead."

Through rage and to the great surprise of Talia, he tore the throne right out of the floor, and threw it through the closed window, shattering it and falling down the mountain.

"I DESERVED NO LESS THAN THEM!!!!  I AM SHIRON, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL KAISER!!!   WHY MUST I BE CURSED TO LIVE THIS PATHETIC EXISTENCE!!!  I AM JUST AS STRONG AS THE REST!!!  I DESERVE TO BE ADORED!!!  I DESERVE TO BE FEARED!!!  I DESERVE TO BE HONORED!!!  I DESERVE A REAL KINGDOM!!!  I DESERVE TO BE A REAL KAISER!!!"

Talia stood in absolute shock as she watched her friend in so much rage that his sweat was like drops of blood.  She'd never seen him like this before.  Depressed, sure, mad, sure, but never to this degree.  What should she say?  She tried, but no words would come.  All she could do was stare in sorrow.

"I...I'm sorry, Talia."  Shiron said, looking down.  "I didn't want to put this impossible burden on you."

Talia tried her best to give a smile, despite feeling everything but happy.  "I...I'm sorry you had to be sent to this cursed time, Shiron.  You're right, you didn't deserve this.  But there's nothing we can do about it.  All we can do is just keep moving on, and hope for the best..."

She looked towards him fearing she had said the wrong thing.  Her fear turned to immediate shock.  His previously distressed face now had an incredibly large smile.  In fact, it almost looked like he was laughing.  Then she began to hear it.  The laughter grew and grew in volume, and suddenly the whole castle began to shake once again.  It became so loud that Talia closed her eyes and put as much pressure on her ears as possible to protect them from becoming damaged.  

As everything began to calm down, Talia looked up once again, and the man that was nearly crumbling apart in rage was now smiling with determination, looking brighter than she had ever remember him being before.

"Shiron...you okay?"

Shiron laughed.  "Okay!?  I have never been this happy in my whole life!!!  I've finally found it, the answer to both of our problems, I'VE THOUGHT OF A WAY WHERE WE CAN LIVE THE LIFE BOTH OF US HAVE BEEN DESTINED TO LIVE OUR WHOLE LIVES!!!!"

"What are you saying!?" Talia said, trying to comprehend exactly what he was talking about.

"Time!!!  Just as my people manipulated time to fulfill their desires, so shall we!!!  We will travel back in time and take what is rightfully ours!!!"

"Are you suggesting we go back to a happier time?"

"Not merely just returning to the glory days, we'll defeat one of the Kaisers and rule the time that we were destined to have!!!"

Talia's head was swirling with various emotions, both positive and negative.  "Are you suggesting we take out one of the previous Kaisers!?"

Shiron laughed.  "Exactly!!!  If I defeat one of the previous Kaisers, it will prove once and for all that I am the superior Kaiser and deserve to rule in their place!!!"

"You sure you can do this?  I mean, can you really travel back in time?"
"We Kaisers have had the power to do so for as long as I can remember, though none of them had the guts to use it."

Talia giggled.  It might be because messing with time is known to typically not be a good idea...and yet maybe it was.  She had to admit, as crazy as the idea sounded, it also felt so...right.  To live in a time where there was peace and prosperity, where there were other people she could talk to and have fun with, where everything was once right in the world...the idea had a lot of promise.  It's not like she could stop him anyways, he WAS Kaiser after all.

"If you truly think this is for the best, sire, then you have my full support." She said, giving a curtsy of respect.  

Shiron laughed once more as he lifted up his great sword in victory.  His future awaited within the past.

Rune Factory Series Review

Runefactory, one of the most unique "live a life" series out there.  It all began when they decided to take the original Harvest Moon series in a bit of a different direction, and what resulted were 4 games of complete awesomeness.  What was originally merely living the life of a farmer became an epic tale of legendary monsters, tons of colorful characters, and the constant search to prevent the seemingly unavoidable case of amnesia.  

To sum up Runefactory quickly so I can move on, essentially imagine the Harvest Moon series mixed with monsters, swords, magic, and adventure.  If for some reason you don't know what Harvest Moon is, then look up Runefactory on google or something, because it will take WAY too long to explain otherwise.

This is the first of my "series" reviews, in which I review an entire series of games, comparing them to one another and presenting their faults and weaknesses.  Now, I will mostly be covering MAIN games in the series, meaning unusual games or spinoffs will typically not be covered.  For example, I am not covering either of the Wii games of the series, as they work quite a bit differently and have almost nothing to do with the main plot of these 4 games.  What I am covering is each of the 4 Runefactory games, 3 on DS and 1 on 3DS.  Without further ado, here we go!

Terrable (RF1)



No, this game is NOT actually terrible, it's name of the first elder dragon just...gah, why do they have to make this difficult for me? T.T

Being the first game of the series and based off of Harvest Moon, this one is definitely the most similar to the original series.  Your main goals are to make money by farming, make friends with the townsfolk, and get married with the added goal of adventuring.  As such, this game has all the positives of the pre-3DS Harvest Moon games as well as most of the negatives.



The characters have more rural and traditional characters and appearances, which can be a positive or a negative, depending on how you look at it.  Raguna, the protagonist of RF1, like all the other RF protagonsits, have amnesia and have very similar personalities.  He doesn't exactly have any particularly interesting traits, but since he's you it kind of makes sense why that is.  There are a few weird characters here, but most of them are traditional Harvest Moon types.

This game suffers horribly compared to one major thing that every other game has: the request board.  The Request Board is essentially RF's version of quests, where you can do things for other characters, get rewards, learn more about them, and become better friends. It's an excellent tool for character development, which is why it hurts this game so bad compared to the others.  While they all have their own personalities, they don't change what they say that often and can be much more bland than in other games.   Also, the controls can be an issue occasionally, and the weapons are all over the place in terms of usability.

That being said, this game isn't bad.  In fact, it possesses some unique traits compared to other games, possibly due to it's old roots.  For one, this is the only game where every girl requires different paths to marry, some of them requiring items that will prevent you from marrying other females.  Even though it might seem like more of a hassle, it feels more realistic, and is one of the ways in which character development IS shown within this game.

Another positive this game has compared to others is length and difficulty level.  This is the second hardest RF game and has the most dungeons.  One particular similarity to Harvest Moon that helps is that this is the simplest RF to play, and the easiest to pick up and put down at any time.  

Is it the best RF?  Heck no, it might be the worst, but it's actually a pretty good game.  It mainly looks bad comparing it to later titles, but for what it is, it still holds up as a fun game.  

Fiersome (RF2)



Runefactory 2, the strange game of the series.  In the middle of a transition from Harvest Moon to becoming something completely new, RF2 is a game that makes a lot of changes, most of which never make it onto future games but are still pretty neat changes.  But first, onto the characters.



One thing to mention immediately that sets this game apart from every other game is that this game goes through 2 generations: Kyle, the main protagonist, and his son or daughter, making this also the first game where you can choose the gender of a character.  The characters are certainly more interesting this time around, especially with the addition of the Request Board.  The characters aren't quite the level of interest as 3, but certainly a step up from 1.  

What is possibly the biggest and weirdest change to the series is how you play through the game.  The entire first generation plays almost IDENTICALLY to Harvest Moon.  No plot, no major enemy or goal, just living the life of a adventuring farmer.  However, once you get married and have a child, the entire game changes.  Not only does crafting of weapons and armor return from the first game during the second generation, but this is also where plot actually starts happening and you have to figure out where your father disappeared to and what the Sech Empire has to do with all of this.  This change work surprisingly well, as it allows you to just relax and have fun for the first half of the game, and then dive into the story during the second half.  

The change in combat is also welcome.  The only difference between the combat of this game and others is that this is only game to feature a "dodge" move, but it still has quite a few combat improvements compared to RF1.   

This game is certainly a step up from RF1, and even though the next two are amazing games, RF2 has a charm to it and I can easily see it being someone's favorite.  


Aquaticus (RF3)



Runefactory 3, what might be in my opinion and the opinion of my friends the BEST Runefactory there is.  RF3 was the game where the developers finally figured out what the series was supposed to be, and created what is in my opinion one of the best rpgs of all time PERIOD.




What make this game so awesome is completely due to the characters.  This picture might get that across to you immediately, and that's just the marriage options of the game.  Every character is unique and interesting: a mermaid with a hatred for squid and childish personality, a witch who loves being a doctor so much that she'll give people disaeses just so she can cure them, a brother and sister that love each other so much that it's almost a legitimate ship, a family in which opposite day is EVERY day, it just doesn't end!   Every character has a place and purpose, is developed well through conversation and requests, and truly makes this game awesome.

The plot formula returns to normal where it goes throughout the whole game, and they also hit the mark on combat, finally making every weapon different yet balanced, making combat enjoyable and challenging.  This game also had awesome mutliplayer, which RF2 had as well, but was polished in RF3 along with everything else I could rave about this game for awhile if I had the time to do so.

The only thing I can say would be even close to a flaw would be that this is probably the easiest game of the franchise, especially with the way multiplayer works.  However, this a very minor gripe, and might not even be worth calling a flaw.  

This game is awesome, and if you see it in the gamestop used section, I HIGHLY recommend purchasing it if you have the means.  

Ventuswill (RF4)



Rune Factory 4, what is possibly the last game of the series isn't too different from the previous game, but why should it be?  Beyond having a change of characters, plot, and location, the game plays near identically to RF3, which isn't only reasonable but makes this game just as awesome if not moreso than RF3.  

There are only two big differences between RF4 and RF3 gameplay-wise.  For an unknown reason, multiplayer was completely removed, which is hard to avoid calling a flaw even if done to keep it from being easy.  It's just like Phantasy Star Universe not having character creation: it's such a bad change from the previous games that it feels like a major flaw.

However, this game makes up for such a big flaw with a massive gain as well.  This is not only the longest Rune Factory game with the most plot, but also the most difficult of the series.  It's the only game where you almost need party members to beat it, and the challenge is certainly welcome.



So yeah, this series is awesome, you should totally play it.  I will end this review by posting some random RF comics I found.