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Beyond the Beyond: Update 68: A Deluge of Friends (Marion Kingdom pt. 3)
Several days have passed and Bandore has miraculously not blown itself up or spiraled into civil disorder. The kids are getting antsy and they've got a ship moored just out of town that beckons.
Staring at the still gate-less exit from Bandore the team convenes to decide if today is the day they'll be rolling out.
So what's the verdict?
Sir Galahad wants us to deliver a report to Marion.
After that we can finally be pirates! 
The pirates who don't attack anyone or do anything piratey.
Just let me live the fantasy.
As long as it remains a fantasy then sure you can live it.
The ship is still safe and sound out in the bay.
Well there it is. How long does it take to sail to Marion?
A day or two I think.
Marion's just to the north by sea.
The bay north of Bandore seems like a water filled chasm between rolling plains and peaks that rise up in unclimble spires. I wonder if landslides are a regular problem. I would assume so given that geography.
So did anyone bother to ask Domino how he managed to hide his ship while the Bandore navy was crawling all over the bay? Dang it! I knew I was forgetting something!
Mere moments later a golem, a spirit, and a flame-happy dog climbed on board to attack the team. Would you expect anything less?
Also here are the team's stats courtesy of me checking each character's needed XP for their next level. First up is Finn who has somehow managed to survive to level 23. For having 113 attack power he doesn't seem to do a whole lot of damage to enemies. He has become a lucky son of a gun though. I guess we can attribute his survival partially to that.
I don't know how those things got on board, Steiner. Why are you asking me?
Next up is Annie and the first thing that jumps out at me is that Finn's XP per level curve is generously small by comparison. In a game where the stat differences between characters are minor these differences strike me as unneeded. Annie has managed to reach 100 attack power and is the speediest character in the group.
We already know where the question's going, Finn. It's headed straight to a joke about you.
Nowhere is the difference in experience curves more evident than with Samson. To reach level 24 here's what each member of the team needs in total experience:
Finn: 114,276
Annie: 118,847
Samson: 121,132
Tont: 107,419
Edward: 107,419
I am at a loss to understand why Samson needs so much more experience. His stat growth certainly doesn't justify it. I've said it before and I'll probably keep saying it long after it's a dead horse but Samson should be a brick wall of VP and LP and he simply isn't. The only reason he isn't as frail as the rest of the team is because he can gain a decent amount of base Defense and his gear affords him rather respectable defense on its own.
Hrmph! I don't know why I ever thought the water might be safer than land.
Tont comes up as team member 4 and his lagging Speed is becoming a worry. The Wind Cloak + Tempest Ring combo are keeping him useful but he desperately needs to start gaining Speed with his level ups. He's already started falling behind.
I don't know what you guys are all so worked up about. The answer is clearly magic.
Edward has managed to tie Annie in attack power and is a speedy little prince but has fallen seriously behind Tont in maximum MP. The spells he's using on a regular basis are cheaper though so he and Tont tend to stay around the same remaining percent of MP on dungeon crawls.
The entire sea can't be enchanted, Tont. How would that even work? I don't think the sea is enchanted.
Then what are you suggesting?
Someone's teleporting them onto our ship.
WHAT?!
And now Finn won't sleep for the next week. 
Praar! Then we should give Tont a medal.
Just to illustrate how close Marion and Bandore really are in geographic terms just to the north is the bridge that marks the land border between the two kingdoms. It gets easier to accept the lightning invasion at the beginning of the game given this proximity.
Just remember though that in order to reach Bandore by land the team was forced to walk the longest route possible because that way they had to fight as many monsters as possible. Old school overworld map design at it's finest. Or most annoying. That that those two are mutually exclusive.
The team has business in Marion at the moment so they park the boat by the bridge and disembark.
So how long is it going to take you to deliver news to the king?
We'll get there when we get there.
So sometime next month?
You know maybe I should train some air spirits to be messengers for me. It would save me a lot of walking.
What do you do when someone needs to get a message to you?
Hey I said it would save me a lot of walking. Everyone else is on their own.
If your immediate guess wasn't that the team was stopping by Isla first then I have no idea how you've managed to miss the painfully obvious with this bunch.
Home sweet home? More like home sweet awkward.
Inside the village things are about the same as they ever were. Well, except that time the villagers were having meetings out in the grass. Then the village was a bit creepy.
Hello kids. Visiting Sonya today?
Might as well.
I'm sure Sonya is proud of Annie. I wonder, whatever happened to Percy?
He was captured by Bandore!
But hasn't Bandore surrendered to Marion?
Wow news travels fast!
Sir Galahad probably send word by messenger bird.
And we're carrying this report, because? Because birds can only carry short messages. Oh.
Are you kids heading back to Bandore? Maybe.
I heard that on a neighboring continent there is a kingdom older than Bandore. Supposedly, it's also a hostile kingdom!
So somewhere on Aridia? Barbaros. That's it! Thank you. I couldn't remember the name.
So is Barbaros actually a hostile nation? Whatever that's supposed to mean. From what I heard in Bandore they and Barbaros don't get along too well. I don't think Barbaros has had any contact with Marion in a long time.
Oh hi kids. Stopping by for another visit?
We were in the neighborhood!
The village has been quiet lately. My how things change! Sonya' family members are all busy now. Maybe, if everything gets settled, the family will return to the way it was.
What about all the other families?
Most have already settled back in.
Annie are you sure you want your family to be the way it was?
I never said that. There are some things we can do without. Huh? What are you talking about?
Nothing. Forget I said anything.
Steiner!
Hey, Tad! What's up?
I'm searching for snails. Wanna help?
Sorry but I can't today.
Awww! You're never around anymore! Where do you keep going?
We just got back from Bandore. Sir Galahad convinced them to surrender. Really? Sir Galahad is so amazing, and so strong! [sic]
I notice you're not going into any detail about why Bandore surrendered, Steiner.
Meh.
As the circuit around Isla continues the kids barge into another house. I bet people are used to it by now.
Hey kids. Good to see you again.
Wasn't your wife sick or something the last time we were here?
Yeah but, Arawn be praised, she pulled through. She's not in Isla today though. Had to go to town for new seeds for the garden. Good to hear. Things are getting back to normal around here then?
Yup. The usual stuff these days. Gotta get ready for winter.
So what are we gonna do for winter anyway? Are we just gonna hole up wherever we find ourselves?
Probably.
So you kids are going back on the road then? Yup. It's good to travel around and see things. You know, when I was young, I saw the world.
You did? How much of the world did you see?
Enough to know that my home is here in Isla.
I know we've heard this before but this is actually rather important. The game brings this up because Pity Island isn't an optional area and we will need to go there in order to complete the game. It's something we'll have to keep in mind though because as I'll show later we can't actually reach the island with the resources we have right now.
The travelers are back again. Have you kids taken my advice about Pity Island?
Advice?
I think he wants us to go there.
We have a ship now so where is this island old timer?
The island to the south is Pity Island. When I was young I swam to that island. How did you not get eaten by monsters?
I'm rather amazed anyone could swim that channel. It's very dangerous.
What?! You think it's impossible to swim there? What are you talking about?! Gee, young people these days always doubt themselves. You should always listen to your elders!
Am I the only one getting deja vu right now? I could have sworn we've heard this same rant before. We probably have.
If we visit Pity Island we'll be sure to let you know.
To the south is this fellow standing next to the mysterious barrel. What is with that thing? Why is everyone so interested in it?
Hard at work?
I wish I wasn't. Gee, I'm so busy! I was having a comfortable time at home, and now look at me. I have so many things to do. Beats starving though doesn't it, human?
Just a couple more weeks. That's what I keep telling myself. just a couple more weeks of prep and the hard stuff will be done.
Well have fun!
Inside the adjacent house are more villagers hard at work.
Hey Steiner, Finn, what are you guys doing here? We happened to be in the neighborhood. What are you doing?
Cleaning the oven.
Ouch.
Parents are strange! Don't you think?
Maybe? I depends on what you mean by strange.
One instant you think they're nice, and the next second they're moody! [sic] I can't keep up with them!
I think kids should help their parents with the housework. Otherwise, they're just lazy! [sic]
See what I mean?
Well that's stuff that's gotten get done. I mean the oven's not going to clean itself. Right?
But why do I have to do it?
Because some of that dirt in there came from food you ate. That and you've gotta learn how it's done.
In other old sights the door to Sonya and Galahad's house continues to be stuck in paradox land unable to figure out whether it's open or shut. Maybe it's actually both at the same time. If only Marion could figure out how to harness the power of this one door it would never have to worry about being invaded ever again.
Inside Sonya continues to stand around.
Mom!
Annie you're safe! Did you find Percy?
No.
Actually he kind of got away from us.
What?
It's complicated. We're still working on it though.
Your father is trying his best for Marion. You too will do your best, right?
That's what I've been doing. Don't worry, Mom. Things are working out.
Yeah. Sir Galahad will be back in Marion soon.
Back in Marion doesn't mean back in Isla. Well he'll be at the castle. You can still go see him there. I take it the plans to rescue Lord Kevins didn't work out.
So that's where this was going. *pause* No we couldn't save Lord Kevins.
As I feared. But Bandore's at peace now. I'm sure the king will find someone to head the knights, right Edward?
I guess it depends on how he fills vacancies throughout the court. Uh, well... it's complicated. I'll leave it at that.
Annie... stay safe out there. I will, Mom. Don't worry.
At least we have access to the storage chest without having to make a long walk with a dozen or more random encounters along the way. I stuff the Angel's Ocarina, the Critical Orb, the Gold Key, and the Power Gauntlet into storage.
To continue...
