Growlanser II - Chapter 5: Crossroads

Making it back to the Burnstein Capital just in time, Charlone will depart to take the Unicorn Knights exam, but Wein will pass out from the poison and need medical attention immediately. Some time later, King Eliotte will summon for Wein and his group and ask them to investigate the people behind the imposter Maximillian and their motivates. Charlone, now a Unicorn Knight, if you made the decision to press onward to Comsprings earlier on, will also be allowed to rejoin Wein. Even though Charlone's new title is "Unicorn Knight", this is just for show, and has no bearing on her abilities or statistics, but will eventually allow Wein to achieve her ending once you've maxed out her affection. Which, believe it or not, after all Wein sacrificed for her, STILL isn't maxed yet, but will be soon.

 

Out on the world map again, this chapter is littered with almost nothing but events, scenes, and items, and as such, it is important that you follow along closely. Your decisions will decide which character will later join your party, as well as what storyline path Wein will choose for his destiny. To get started, talk to the Senior Officer in Burnstein who is offering a reward to anyone who finds the true culprit that started this war. If you didn't talk to the NPC very early in the game who was frantically searching for the missing King Eliotte, and the subsequent finding of him, the Senior Officer will not be here and you will miss out on obtaining an item.

The shops in the Capital have been upgraded, as well. You've got new armor, plus the addition of some really nice gems. Lv5 Technique will grant a character two additional tech uses, and I recommend switching this with Xenos and Han's Lv3 Critical gem, but Wein having the Lv8 Hyper-Attack gem, if he has a ring to accommodate it. Lv5 Skill Effect should replace Han's Lv3 Knock Out. Once Hans has learned Paralysis, he will cause havoc with this gem equipped. Lv5 Magic Shield can be useful for a minor reduction in damage, while Lv5 Soul Thunderclap will make a difference in a number of later battles, but hardly necessary. Lv5 Art of Evasion seems like it would be an excellent gem, but even with this gem equipped, the Doppelganger skill still doesn't activate enough to warrant a gem slot; you'll find a better gem for evasion a little later, anyway. However, for those not on NG+, you now have access to stat-increasing Growth gems and can begin to develop your character's statistics to your own liking. A few notes on using these: Once you set one in a slot, keep it there, and only trade it out for another stat gem. If you do this, it negates having to level up twice to start receiving the gem's effects. If you change to any other gem, then equip it again, you'll have to gain two more levels to begin growing your stats like before. For reference, here is what each stat effects:

 

Strength: Adds additional HP, ATK, and DEF
Int: Adds additional MP and magic damage
Dex: Adds increase to Move and Hit stats, and increases evasion rate

As you move over West Burnstein, Riviera's "sister" will just so happen to be in the area and want to talk to her, in private. After viewing this, return to the Burnstein Capital and an option to talk to Riviera will have appeared, further increasing her and Wein's relationship.

 

Back over at West Burnstein, choose for Wein to "Walk to Outlook" and as he plays his Ocarina, he'll recall a conversation he had in the past with Maximillian. I don't think any of the choices here effect anything, but I always choose "I don't see it as a black and white", since it seems to be best possible choice. Afterward, Wein will notice that Arieta has been listening to him play. She'll briefly talk about Wein "having remembered" and run off. This scene is vital for obtaining Arieta as a playable character, or even if not, obtaining an extra item for your inventory. Before we explore the rest of the world, note that you're actually on a bit of a time limit, that decreases each time you move, but the amount of moves you have is extremely generous for all that you have to do, but because of this, I recommend not moving anywhere you don't need to be right now.

Next, over to Starkberg. No new items are for sale here, yet, but make sure to read the Sign under "Gather Information" as this will eventually lead to you being able to purchase the best armor in the game, along with a great selection of gems. Choose to visit the Claudius Mansion for an event where her father puts down your party as "expendables" and orders Charlone to stay behind. Select the second option "Charlone can do as she pleases", for an increase in relationship, but either way, Charlone will disregard her father's wishes and leave with the group.

 

Once seen, there is a new option to talk to Charlone in Starkberg, of which Wein should reply "I'm more concerned with you". With this answer, Charlone has finally reached maximum relationship value. From here, return the way you came and down to Clain Village.

There's a new gem shop open in Clain Village that sells gems that were formerly sold at the Capital, and later, Starkberg, so their inventories are not missable. Speak to Xenos here for a scene where he talks about some past events, then, stay at the inn. That night, Wein and Hans will visit the former chief's graveside, just as Xenos is departing. There will be more on this later...

 

However, with Xenos in your party, it is absolutely vital that you NEVER talk to the "Young Man" here. Doing so will drop Xenos' relationship EVERY time he is spoken to. In fact, after doing it several times, it will drop all the way down to one red bar. Don't mistakenly do this! While here, you do need to talk to the Clain Village Chief to learn about a strange masked man living in a mansion outside the village.

 

Continue west, to Northern Rottenbaum Village, and examine the area to get prompted to camp for the night. That night, you'll have a choice to either help Xenos or Riviera with their task; choose whichever you like, as both character's relationship value should be maxed at this point.

South to Rottenbaum now, talk to the Starving Boy, and if you've read the sign in Starkberg, you'll get the option to tell him about the opportunity for work there. With this, going forward in the story, Starkberg will get an increase in wears to their armory, eventually ending in being able to buy the best armor in the game.

 

Having seen the event between Wein and Arieta at the West Burnstein Lookout, visit the Grasslands to encounter Arieta, yet again. She'll flee, with Sereb standing in Wein's way. Choose the option "Don't worry, I won't hurt her." for increased relationship with Arieta if you choose her to join your party.

Up to Schwarzfals Village, talk to the Student and he'll have found another piece of the manuscript, Story #8, he hands over to Wein. There's a new gem shop open, as well, with mostly older gems for sale, like Clain.

 

Speak with the Boy NPC to learn that there is a wounded man recovering at the Schwarzfals inn. When Wein stays the night, he'll visit the recuperating man only to learn that his father, William Cruz, has died. These scenes at the Schwarzfals inn are important to view for an alternate ending, depending on which path Wein decides to take a little bit later on in the game.

Still at Schwarzfals, select the option to speak with Hans for a scene. Casing the village, Hans will be confronted by a farmer that, during his years at the orphanage, he use to steal potatoes from. Thankfully, hearing how much Hans loved his potatoes, and that he is now in the service of the King, he'll forgive Hans on the promise to tell everyone about how good his potatoes are. He even hands over a "Sweet Potatoes" item for the party. After this, an option will appear in Starkberg to talk with Hans. For true completionists, do not view this scene! If you do, the Sweet Potatoes item will be removed from your inventory. If a, basically, useless item doesn't mean anything to you, by all means feel free to watch the scene. I choose to keep it in my inventory since Hans' friendship has long since been maxed out, and the option in Starkberg will eventually be removed, but you decide for yourself.

Move north from Starkberg to the Ruins where you fought with Arieta earlier. Talk to the NPC here to learn about Zauerberg to the east, that now becomes available to visit. Talk with all of the townsfolk, in particular the Suspicious Man that, for some Elm, will tell Wein the location of the Secret Arena. The Affluent Girl will increase the inventory of gems in Starkberg throughout the game if you tell her about the expansion going on there, then lastly, the Former Maid who will spark conversation between the party about the Zauerberg and Cruz family connections that is related to the guy at the Schwarzfals inn.

 

Enter the shops and select to "Search" to talk to a Magic Academy student who will sell Wein Story #10 for 20 Elm. The armor shop has the excellent Breastplate for Xenos to purchase, while the gem shop has a number of new gems. Lv4 Magic Range is a nice addition to Riviera until she learns the MP Range Up skill. Range is mainly important to extend the effect of the Thunder spell that a large number of enemies are weak against. I would recommend switching Riviera's Vampire gem for this. The new Light's gems are decent, but eventually you'll be able to acquire a gem that has all three effects on it, so I would pass on these. As for the Secret Arena, we will be tackling this much later on in the game, but will, eventually, be a vital source for rare rings and gems you won't be able to find elsewhere in the game.

West to Comsprings, the shops are still the same, but you can talk to the Inn Guest to hear of a sighting of the catgirl, then she'll give Wein Story #9. Afterward, make sure to talk to the "Woman in White" once again to influence a soon-joining character's relationship and learn she is caring for Max' mother.

 

Still in Comsprings, stay at the inn to view a scene with Riviera and Charlone taking a dip in the hot springs. It's too bad you don't have any Soap around somewhere, or you might be able to watch.

Leave west, to the Central Checkpoint, and tell the Guard here that your destination is the Magic Academy to unlock the road to it. The shops are still the same at the Academy, but you can talk to the Student who, if you got Story #10 from Zauerberg, will give you Story #11. Note: You will not get the option to travel to the Academy unless you have seen the event with Arieta at the Grasslands.

 

While at the Academy, check in on the analysis of the armor and sand you brought earlier on in the game, which reveals the option to visit Ariost's Lab. Here, he'll reveal his findings to Wein, but to be certain of his theory regarding the workings of the armor and sand, he'll need 5000 Elm. Whether you are going to get Arieta to join your party or not; you want to pay the Elm that will result in a unique item later on that you can keep even if you choose not to have Arieta join. However, if you are taking the alternate storyline, and don't wish to recruit Arieta, decline the payment. With the alternate story branch, there is no viable way to not recruit Arieta and keep the item you receive for the Elm.

If you've taken my path around the world, as you make your way to the Valmie Mine Town northeast of Comsprings, you'll see one of the timed event scenes in Grandshill where the Burnstein and Rolandian armies are battling it out, with Max, apparently, leading the army on the frontlines.

 

In Valmie, there are actually two scenes here with Xenos, but you need to speak to him before you talk to the little girl at the inn for the first. Then, you can view the second afterward.

Speak with the Mine Worker to learn of a man named Patrick, who, apparently, was the spitting image of Minister Schneider. Talk to Charlone who suggest that this is probably our culprit and we should seek him out. The armor shop in Valmie is the same as in Comsprings, but the gem shop has some new selections. HP Recovery Seal can be useful for a few bosses, so buy at least one of these. Empower is an excellent gem to equip when finishing off bosses as it provides a +1 bonus to each of the dropped ring's gem slots. Lastly, Epiphany is also good, but you need to counteract this with a skill like HP Absorption or, at least, an HP Recovery gem to keep your HP from dropping dangerously low from the blow-back of your attacks.

 

Make your way back south to Starkberg; there will be a "New Guard" NPC to talk to. He will let the party know that something strange is going on in the Western Ruins. Before we go investigate, equip Hans with the Lv6 Quickness gem that you got from the Arieta Ruins battle to make the upcoming one a lot easier.

In the Ruins, the group finds monsters have infested them, once again. As they go to exterminate, the catgirl will rush in with some more of her friends and the next battle commences. As you'll recall, you have to deal with the encroaching spiked wall here and the death of just one character is a game over. If we can make it over to the switch the Bone Golem flipped, we can activate it once again, stopping the advancement of the wall. Hans is crucial with the Lv6 Quickness gem equipped. As soon as the battle begins have him use the Dash tech, then rush toward the upper-left-hand corner switch. With some luck, he should zoom straight past the Bone Golem, but if he gets caught, he can easily deal with the Golem himself; just make absolutely sure he gets near the lever and deactivates it. From there, he should cast Cycle Up on Charlone and Riviera. Hans is going to be cornered, but the two girls will be backing him up with magic.

 

The other problem with this battle is Charlone and Riviera start out in an extreme amount of danger; those Lizardmen are not to be trifled with. Have Wein and Xenos Dash toward the group while moving Riviera and Charlone backward, forcing the Lizardmen to confront Wein and Xenos. Immediately target the Werecat with Wein, preferably with Thievery, to initiate a scene. This MUST be done before defeating her and can only be done with Wein. Afterward, have Wein and Xenos use System Shock techs on the Lizardmen, while Charlone holds her highest Cure spell, and Riviera chants Ice Barrage. The Lizardmen hit really hard, and can possibly stun a character, so having Charlone on healing is a necessity. Storm #3 will be throwing Cure on the Lizards like crazy, but be persistent with techs to take them out. Meanwhile, the enemies approaching Hans are all weak against ice, so Ice Barrage will heavily damage them all. If Hans is taking too much damage, have him defend to reduce it. Once all the enemies are defeated, Wein will get the above choice, but only if he talked to the catgirl before the battle ended. It's vital you select "Ask her to be friends" to continue with this subplot.

Finished at the Western Ruins, make your way back to the Burnstein Capital and talk to the Senior Officer to pick up Story #12; your reward for finding out who was really behind the destruction of the dam.

 

To arrest the culprit, head south to Clain Village, and if you talked to the Mine Worker in Valmie and the Chief here at the village, an option will appear for a "Mysterious Mansion". There you'll meet the Maximillian imposter, Patrick, and take him into custody for conspiring with the nameless "Messenger".

Attempt to return to the Capital and you'll be swept over to the Rolandian side of the continent where Wolfgang, at the Time & Space Tower, will declare war on Burnstein and Rolandia; attempting to create an independent nation for mercenaries. This scene unlocks a myriad of important decisions we need to make, so absolutely do NOT return to the Burnstein Capital yet.

 

There's a battle going on in Schwarzfals at the moment, but if you are going to be recruiting Sereb instead of Arieta for the main story branch, but NOT the alternate one, I highly advise you, instead, make your way to the Southern Checkpoint for the battle there first. This is because once you complete the battle in Schwarzfals, the final event to recruit Arieta will happen at the Grasslands and you cannot make it to the Southern Checkpoint without moving through there. Doing the Southern Checkpoint battle first will allow you to obtain the special item from Ariost after the Schwarzfals Village battle, then you can skip the event at the Grasslands causing you to have Sereb join your party AND keeping the special item in your inventory. Yes, I know, this is only for some insane completionists, like myself, that love items. So, which character is better, Sereb or Arieta? Well, it comes down to a personal choice, really. There are very few differences in the characters, unlike the other two characters you have to choose between. Obviously, saving Arieta is the more canon path, but I prefer Sereb, actually. Keep in mind you'll have to recruit them both eventually to obtain all the endings, and if this is your first time playing, you have to see Charlone, Arieta, and Riviera's endings before you can get any of the guy ones; so Arieta is the best choice for a new player.

If you're taking the alternate story path and wish to recruit Sereb instead of Arieta, you will want to do the Schwarzfals Village battle before going to the Checkpoint. Since you cannot recruit Arieta without having payed the Elm for the necessary item at the Academy, the aforementioned need to avoid the Grasslands scene when going to the Checkpoint is moot. Unfortunately, there is no way you can have Sereb join your party and keep Ariost's item on the alternate story branch. With all of this being said, if you are keeping on the main story path, head west to the Southern Checkpoint. If taking the alternate, go to Schwarzfals first.

Wolfgang and his army have already taken over southern Rolandia and are now occupying the Southern Checkpoint. Wolfgang has been waiting here for Wein, apparently. If Wein has achieved a high enough number of Mission Completes, Wolfgang will present the option for Wein to join him in his crusade for independence. What you decide here will drastically alter the storyline, party members that join you, battles you face, and severely limit the items you can obtain. Because of this, I highly recommend that if this is your first time playing, to refuse Wolfgang and continue on with the main story. It is impossible to achieve any sort of completion in Wolfgang's route without having first gathered items from the main story. For more information on the items that become missable from joining Wolfgang, plus a detailed guide, move onward to Chapter: ??? (Future Update).

 

Refusing Wolfgang throws you into one of the hardest battles in the game. The premise is you're suppose to flee to the south, but if you want to achieve Mission Complete, you must defeat all of the enemies. The problem here is two-fold: you're going to have two spearmen going straight for Riviera and Charlone, and there are two magicians on the ramparts that can only be targeted with magic. When the battle begins, have Charlone flee to the center of the area, behind Xenos, Wein, and Hans, but leave Riviera in place and have her begin to chant a Lv3 Blast with Charlone a Lv3 Fire Arrow. Have Hans target the spearman coming toward Riviera with System Shock. You won't be able to defeat him before he gets a shot on Riviera first, but once he's defeated, she should be safe unless something goes wrong. Have Wein charge the Commander, first with Thievery, then System Shock, and the fencer to the right of him will double team Wein along with the Commander. The Commander, and all like him going forward, have an extremely high chance to stun characters when they attack, so be mindful of this possibility. Xenos should Dash toward the left-most fencer, not the one to his upper-left, this will cause both fencers to double team him, and when he's done attempting to cast Cure on his allies, the spearmen will come after Xenos, as well.

Once they've finished their chant, casting the Lv3 Blast and Fire Arrow at the magicians should finish them off and the two girls can focus on restoration. When enough enemies have been defeated, two archer reinforcements will run in from the south by the gate. Have Hans target them, along with Charlone using System Shock, and Riviera continuing to heal. With the mercenaries to the north defeated, Wein and Xenos can Dash south toward the archers to help finish them for a Mission Complete. Don't be hard on yourself if you have difficulty with this battle; it is a hard one even when playing NG+. If need be, you can flee the battle for a Mission Clear and still have Wein become an Imperial Knight, assuming the vast majority of your previous battles have been Mission Completes. As you return back toward Burnstein territory, Wein and Xenos will have a scene that gives you a bit of a glimpse into the mindset of Wolfgang's scenario when played. Afterward, make sure to visit Rottenbaum to rest. I also recommend equipping Charlone with a Quickness gem, and then enter Schwarzfals Village. Note: this coming battle and the subsequent events involving Arieta can be done in the next chapter with some backup of an additional character, but I recommend doing them now.

Arieta and a pack of Yungs are attempting to break into Schwarzfals' shed of Magic Academy treasures. Because what better place to store valuable artifacts than a backwoods village? Anyway, we've got to stop her from breaking the magic lock on the building as well as preventing any of the townspeople from being killed to achieve a Mission Complete. Start the battle with Wein, Hans, and Xenos all using Dash and proceeding to the foot of the eastern slope. Hopefully, you equipped Charlone with the Lv6 Quickness gem and have her follow the guys to the slope as her bow will be invaluable from there. Riviera should stay in place and start her highest level Stone Shot for casting.

 

Wein and Xenos need to maneuver up the slope carefully to the Yungs, while not blocking the girl NPC that is fleeing. It is VERY easy to block her in with your characters and have her get killed and lose your Mission Complete. Have Hans follow behind the guys, again, not getting in the way of the NPC, while Charlone brings up Hans' rear. Wein and Xenos should use techs that damage the grouped Yungs like Penetration Attack and Perimeter Pulse, while Hans uses Thievery on Arieta, and Charlone uses her arrows to attack Arieta and the Yungs near her. Use Riviera to heal and drain the Arieta group's HP little by little with magic. Arieta, herself, won't harm the townsfolk, and it will take her several rounds to open the magic lock on the building, so put your focus on her two Yungs first and everything should work out fine.

 

Arieta has the chance to drop a great ring, like the one received above, but don't push yourself to try to get one. Like previously stated, drops and steals are determined at the beginning of battle, so saving mid-battle will not change the drops; you have to completely restart the battle for that.

Arieta, having been captured by the group, will use Wein's feelings against him to lower his guard and escape along with the help of Sereb. Have Wein respond to her "I'm positive you're not Arieta!" for increased relationship points if you decide to have Arieta join your party.

 

Still in Schwarzfals, stay at the inn for another scene with the recuperating man. Having heard Wolfgang's voice from the Time & Space Tower announcement, he will recognize Wolfgang as the man that killed Wein's father. To note: this is NOT required viewing to obtain the alternate ending in Wolfgang's path. Once Schwarzfals is available in Wolfgang's scenario, you will view this scene when visiting the inn for the first time there. Speaking of Wolfgang's scenario, if you are recruiting Sereb instead of Arieta for it, proceed now to the Southern Checkpoint and accept his request to join.

We're almost finished with this chapter. Move all the way back to the Magic Academy after the Schwarzfals battle with Arieta and Ariost's Lab will be available to visit. He'll hand over the Neural Device item he created through your funding. There is only one last scene to view before Arieta is cemented in joining your party. At this point, if you're on the main story path and wish to recruit Sereb instead of Arieta, skip the next scene and proceed straight to the Burnstein Capital and enter the castle.

 

The final Arieta scene is at the Grasslands. Sereb will approach Wein and ask if he's caught on yet that everything with Arieta is not as it seems. Choose "So it's as I suspected?" for the most points towards Arieta's beginning relationship values. Sereb will explain that she is being controlled by a being known as "Gevas", the creator of Gevel from the original Growlanser. The only way to stop him is to kill Arieta before Gevas is awakened, but surely there is something else we can do to save her? After seeing this scene, return to the Burnstein Capital and select to go to the castle for the main story, or the Southern Checkpoint to join Wolfgang, both with Arieta recruited in a future event.