Growlanser II - Chapter 7: Axe Lords

With Gevas' revival plans having been foiled by Wein's group, the Time & Space Tower has floated gently, and conveniently, to the south of the Grasslands in Burnstein. As soon as you are back on the world map, search the Tower for a small scene with either Brett or Lyell for increased relationship. This scene is very missable, so do it as soon as possible. Brett's value is very easy to raise, while Ernest's can be a bit suspect. Once we get to the Capital, and new gems are available, I will cover our new characters.

As you walk over the Grasslands, with either Sereb or Arieta in your group, you will get a scene. The Sereb one is basic; with Wein lamenting his inability to save Arieta while Sereb tells him he did the right thing. If Arieta survived, however, she and Wein will have a touching scene. He should respond "I wanted to help you" to greatly increase her relationship with Wein and she will then ask to continue to accompany him. Note: Sereb is the only character with no relationship values, so no choices effect him in anyway. He does, however, still have an ending, but Arieta's must be gotten first.

 

Move north to the South Ruins for another small scene with Arieta or Sereb. This is the location where Arieta stayed in her perpetual slumber while Gevas was in her body. They never bother to explain how Sereb came to be connected with Arieta, though, which was a wasted opportunity.

Continuing north, this time to Schwarzfals Village, Brett has another scene with Wein here. After this, Brett's relationship value should be maxed.

 

In Starkberg, you have another opportunity to visit the Claudius Mansion. Charlone's father continues to degrade Wein and will only accept him if he becomes an Imperial Knight. He's also a tad misogynistic, suggesting that women don't belong on the battlefield, of which Wein should reply "But...that's prejudiced!" to boost his relationship with Charlone further. Before we return to the Capital, it's important to note that the shops at the Magic Academy are about to change and you will be unable to purchase the Apron armor any longer after this. It is the only item that goes missable, for now. There's nothing further to do in the world, at this moment, so proceed back to the Burnstein Capital to continue with the story.

Upon returning to the castle and hearing of the events in Rolandia and the vanquishing of Gevas, King Eliotte will officially promote Wein to the rank of "Imperial Knight". That is, assuming you have amassed enough Mission Completes to warrant it. If you get a lower rank, it's no big deal, as stated before: they are only cosmetic. However, while you can still get Charlone's ending, you won't be able to see the final scene at the Claudius Mansion if Wein isn't an Imperial Knight. Also to note, Hans has been promoted to "Adjutant" along with Wein. Now in his role as a high-ranking Knight, King Eliotte will send the party to investigate a disturbance ongoing in Comsprings that is creating some internal problems between Burnstein and Rolandia and will subsequently hand over some Elm to prepare.

 

Before we get to the shops in Burnstein and Starkberg, let me talk a little about our new characters: Sereb/Arieta and Brett. Brett is a tank-like character, able to wear heavy armor like Xenos, but in order to do so, he's going to need many levels with a Strength-increasing gem equipped. He's got the longest direct-range of all the characters in the game, and superb self-HP restoration with HP Absorption and HP Recovery, and learns the Invisibility spell, that is specific to he and Wein, without a gem equipped. Statistically, in order to learn Invisibility, Brett needs to reach 200 Intelligence, which will require quite a few Int boost from gems, but otherwise, pump Brett with almost all Strength increases, with some Dexterity thrown in.

For Sereb and Arieta, they are, obviously, pure mages, but unlike Riviera, they have no recovery skills and cannot cast magic such as Shield, making them almost entirely attack mages. They are a lot more fragile in battle than Riviera, as well, and absolutely need to be protected from physical damage. Obviously, Intellegence is the most important statistics they have, but don't sleep on providing extra Strength to them for increased max HP and Dexterity for quicker Aria chants. For more information on these three characters, and paths through their abilities, see the final chapter on Character Setups.

 

Now, out on the world map, there's new armor at the Burnstein Capital in the form of Shield Mantle for Hans and Sereb, and Dark Armor for Xenos and Brett. The gem shop is loaded down with a number of new gems, as well. Lv6 Parry and Arms Might are worthwhile, but I personally pass on them for other things. Lv6 Blood Magic should be purchased for Sereb and Arieta to help them stay alive easier, while Blood Blade should be gotten for Wein (If he doesn't have HP Absorption learned), Xenos, and Lyell. Lv6 Counter Swing and Thrust Away are interesting gems; the former having a chance to use the Perimeter Pulse skill when two or more enemies are around, with Thrust Away randomly using the Knock Back technique, which I think is excellent combined with Lyell and Brett's extended attack range. Lastly, Magic Barrier is okay, but the All Attrib Def gems are better, in my opinion.

Move westward to Starkberg to check out their new selection of gems. Lv6 Magic Might is a must for your mages, including Carmaine, if you're like me and he is your primary healer. Don't get excited seeing Mage's Aria, however, as its effect is minimal and not worth a gem slot, again, just my opinion, so you should decide for yourself. If you don't like the fact Arieta and Sereb can't heal, Lv6 Healing Secret is perfect for eliminating that flaw. I, personally, stick to a character's default skillset, but using them in a role of a healer cannot be underestimated. Lv7 All Attrib Def should replace Xenos' Dispel Magic gem, if he happened to be using it. Lv7 Technique adds an additional 3 uses to your techs, so this is an absolute must for Hans, and can be useful for all other characters, as well. You may be tempted to replace Lv5 Skill Effect with Lv7 Skill Lv, but try comparing the two: the Skill Effect % increase is always better than the Lv gems. Finally, Lv7 Bellow Collection is excellent! Raising a character's attack power each turn, until it maximizes at 100. 

 

Note: A number of items for sale here are only available for a limited amount of time, then will become missable (By way of purchase) when you return to Starkberg later on in the chapter. These include: Metal Jacket, Lv6 Warrior's Skill, and Healing Secret, so completionists should add these to their inventory now if you haven't already. Phew, okay, since we've had such a huge increase in gems, these are the setups I recommend for your characters.

Wein: Lv8 Hyper-Attack, Lv6 Deft Wind/Blood Blade, Lv6 Sun Flame

Hans: Lv9 Transport Wings, Lv5 Skill Effect, Lv7 Technique
Charlone: Lv6 Magic Might, Lv6 Deft Wind, Lv3 MP Conservation

Xenos: Lv7 All Attrib Def, Lv6 Blood Blade, Lv6 Destroy Balance

Riviera: Lv6 Magic Might, Lv6 Magic Range, Lv3 MP Conservation

Carmaine: Lv6 Magic Might, Lv6 Sun Flame, Lv6 Deft Wind

Brett: Lv7 Bellow Collection, Lv5 Skill Effect, Lv6 Quickness

Lyell: Lv6 Hyper-Attack, Lv6 Blood Blade, Lv6 Thrust Away

Sereb/Arieta: Lv6 Magic Might, Lv6 Blood Magic, Lv6 Magic Range/Healing Secret

Still in Starkberg, if Wein achieved the rank of Imperial Knight, there is one last scene at the Claudius Mansion. Wein will go to confront Charlone's father, he will, unfortunately, not be there and she will want to know why it's so important to Wein. Select "Because he's your father" for a large boost in her relationship; assuming it's not already maxed out. Note: All of your characters should be, at a minimum, level 20. With eight characters now in your party, the random encounters have had their levels increased and the monsters are in greater number, so make the most of this to level up.

 

Back to the Western Ruins, Arieta/Sereb will reveal that the mask that was enclosed here was, in fact, the Power Mask, a relic that allows a person to control through language.

South to Schwarzfals Village, visit the wounded man at the inn for his final scene. Wolfgang is the half-brother of Wein and the one that killed their father. This will have more significance in Wolfgang's scenario as it will potentially effect your ending. Afterward, the man recovers and returns home.

 

If you move over to Northwest Rottenbaum Village, you'll find Wolfgang has already encroached his way this far into Burnstein and there will be a small scene with Wein and Carmaine.

East to Clain Village, sleep at the inn to see another scene involving Hans and Xenos. Hans finds out that Xenos was the one that killed his grandpa, and asks advice from Wein and Carmaine. Explaining that nobody can really blame Xenos for what he did, Hans will forgive him. Also, make sure to keep avoiding the "Young Man" at Clain. You don't want to have come this far into the game to lose Xenos' relationship.

 

All the way northeast to Zauerberg, after viewing all of the scenes with the man at the inn in Schwarzfals, you can talk to Riviera about Wolfgang being your brother. You should reply "Ego" to Riviera's advise to increase the two's relationship.

Select to talk to the "Gentle Uncle" in Zauerberg to begin to wrap up the catgirl side-quest. He'll notice Wein has the Lv9 Transport Wings gem and ask him how he got it. Reply "I got it from a cat girl" to be taken to the inn to meet with Luca, the catgirl's mother. Wein will explain the situation and you'll learn some backstory of how this all came to be. Roy, the catgirls father, will leave to search for her.

 

The party can find Lucia, the catgirl, at South Starkberg. Wein will tell her about her family waiting for her at the inn in Zauerberg and she will hurry off, thanking him.

Finally, the family is reunited back in Zauerberg. Roy will give Wein the "Sandra's Story" mini-game you can play under "Extra" at the title screen. You don't get anything tangible from this, but it does provide a lot of background on the life of Sandra, Carmaine's adopted mother. There are also many cameos from other Growlanser characters, including Brett. Our next battle lies west at Comsprings. For this, I highly recommend Lv6 Magic Range equipped to Riviera and Arieta/Sereb, and if you want a greater attack boost, considering equipping the Lv5 Soul Thunderclap gem to your fighters.

 

The party finds Logan and a small regiment of Burnstein troops fighting off what appear to be more armored marauders. Arieta/Sereb will notice that these are neural armor that were used in the wars from their time. For whatever reason, this boosts Arieta relationship value, which should now be at maximum (She'll be smiling). For a Mission Complete, none of the townspeople or Logan's group can be defeated and you need to defeat a majority of the enemies. Begin the battle with Wein casting his highest level Shield spell onto Logan's party; with Logan and the spearman in the front getting priority. Riviera and Arieta/Sereb, hopefully with Lv6 Magic Range equipped, should bombard the armored soldiers with the Thunder spell, that they are weak against, with the soldiers furthest away from other characters being targeted first. Hans should throw Thievery around to all the marauders and then pick away at their HP with normal attacks. Again, targeting the enemies furthest away from the fight as once a number of soldiers have been defeated, they will start to flee, and you want to collect as much EXP as you can. Charlone should be on healing duty for Logan's group, using System Shock in between. If your mages don't have Magic Range equipped, use Fireball and Blizzard spells. Also, be mindful of the HP of the soldiers Logan and his group are targeting. If they get close to death, don't let one of the NPCs get the kill; make sure you kill them first so you don't lose the EXP.

Once Shield has been cast, have Wein and Xenos Dash down the stairs and toward Logan's party. Brett/Lyell and Carmaine should Dash toward the left-side of the screen, where the townspeople are fleeing from, getting between them and a band of soon-appearing marauders. When one of the characters reaches the bottom of the stairs, three armored soldiers will appear near Carmaine's location and one at the bottom of the stairs. If you gave any of your characters the Lv5 Soul Thunderclap gem, they will do increased damage against the soldiers. Xenos should fight one-on-one with the stairs soldier, with Wein Dashing toward the group near Logan to defend them. The three that appeared near the edge of town, have Hans turn his attacks toward the one in the back with Brett/Lyell going after the front one; these soldiers are also almost perfectly inline for a Thunder spell to hit all three. Once the soldiers begin to flee, you may need to use Dash to chase them down, but hopefully you've whittled down the ones closest to the edge of the screen where they can be taken out before they escape and you lose the chance at the additional EXP.

 

When the battle is concluded, the party will agree to seek out Ariost at the Magic Academy about how we might track where the armored marauders are coming from. There are no new items for sale in Comsprings, but you can talk to Logan here and agree to take a walk with him to learn more about his devotion to Maximillian and his mother. This will come into play later on.

Still at Comsprings, stay the night at the inn and Carmaine will tease Wein with the opportunity to uncover a peephole in the hot springs. Choose "I don't think so" to impress Carmaine a bit with your self-control. There's no Soap available to us, so the point would be moot anyway.

 

Head up to North Comsprings for a small scene with Brett, if he's joined your party. Both of the first two choices increase your relationship with him, but I always choose "Do you know how to farm?".

At the Magic Academy, talk to the Student and tell him that Ariost's mother is named "Nina" and he will give you Story #15. Unless you recruited Lyell, this will be the final manuscript you obtain. Lyell is required to be in your party to obtain Story #14 and #16.

 

The inventory has changed at the Magic Academy, as well. There are several new pieces of armor, and some really nice gems to go along with them. Lv7 Mental Fortitude will give you an additional 1 master point per level, and you can stack these all the way up to 3. Lv7 Skill Effect, one of the best gems in the entire game, is for sale here and should be bought for Hans, Brett, and Wein (Replacing Sun Flame). Arms Might and Magic Shield are the best gems for their particular purposes, but I don't use them, myself. You way weigh the Magic Shield vs. Blood Magic gems for Arieta/Sereb, however. Lv7 Vampire is the best HP Absorption gem in the game. It converts both physical and magical damage to HP, so you may consider it over Blood Blade/Magic, if you can afford it. Lv7 Light Miracle is great! Basically, on that character's turn, you have a 10% chance of all the statistical-boosting spells being cast on the bearer. I recommend this for Wein and Carmaine, but especially for Carmaine (Over his Sun Flame). Combined with a Deft Wind gem, this greatly increase the chances of activating. Lv7 Teriaka will make a difficult battle a lot easier if you purchase, at least two, for now; you will find one for free later on. Dark Curse seems like a good gem, but I think it only provides you with the Lv1 skill, cause the effects almost never seemed to manifest when I use it. Lastly, Lv7 Epiphany can be nice, but you need to be vigilant on keeping an eye on that character's HP. Before you leave, if you have the Elm for it, buy as many Lv7 All Attrib Def gems as you can for your characters. If you have any access Lv4s, that will work, too. One last note: If you picked up Tippi's Diary during your trip to Fort Rargin, you can read it here. If you're interested, it needs to done soon as we will be losing access to the Magic Academy in the not-too-distant future.

Visit Ariost's Lab and he'll have the design for just the thing the group needs in his head; you only have to seek out the parts for him to build it. Unfortunately, the floors are rotting in the Growsian ruins where the Antenna is found, so it won't be easy to obtain.

 

From the Magic Academy, visit North Grandshill and you can talk with Max and Carmaine. Carmaine will introduce Wein to Wallace, then an option to talk to Louis will appear. Tell her to "Listen to your brother" to max out Carmaine's affection; which if you didn't recruit Lyell, this is the soonest you can. The Control Facility Ruins is the destination for the next battle, but we need some serious preparation first. Each character should have a Lv4-6 All Attribute Def gem equipped; Xenos can use his old Dispel Magic gem, if need be. Carmaine and Xenos should also be equipped with a Lv6 Quickness gem. If you REALLY want to be step-ahead, buy a Lv7 Mage Slaughter gem for Hans.

Just like Ariost said, the Control Ruins have poison water underneath their rotting floor and if any character falls in, it's a game over. Thankfully, the position the party starts is made of stone and won't fall through. This battle looks really intimidating, but if you followed my suggestions, plus Hans having Transport Wings, the battle is incredibly easy. The only characters we will be moving are Xenos and Carmaine; the rest will be providing magic support. Begin the battle with Xenos and Carmaine using the Dash tech, then, sending Carmaine toward the Gargoyle on the left-side of the room, with Xenos to the one on the right-side. Hans should begin throwing Thievery at all of the Spectres, plus the Misery Golem, and if you equipped him with a Mage Slaughter gem, it should take a large chunk out of their HP. Have Charlone cast Resistance over the entire party, Wein with Cycle Up on Xenos and Carmaine, with the rest of the group chanting Fire Arrow.

 

The Spooks will be pummeling the party with Fear magic, but with Resistance acting as a bit of a buffer, and Attribute gems equipped, you should be well-protected from enemy magic. Charlone should be able to take out the middle Spectre with System Shock, then devote herself to recovery. All the enemies, besides the Misery Golem, are weak against fire, so Fire Arrows will effect them greatly; even cast by someone like Brett. In the meantime, once Carmaine and Xenos have killed the Gargoyles, have them rush toward the Spectre on the other side of their nearby walls, then, from there, proceed straight for the Misery Golem. With Dash activated and a Quickness gem, they should have no problem being well ahead of the collapsing floor. Once the Golem is defeated, you'll pick up the Antenna item and need to return to Ariost at his Lab.

Ariost will take the Antenna item from Wein and create the Neural Wave Radar item for the group. With this, when used on the world map, you can identify traces of high-level magic and pinpoint its location. Now we just have to sniff out Wolfgang's marauders.

 

As you pass over Comsprings, you'll see a new event with Riviera in the shopping area of the town. Unlike with Charlone, Wein won't take part in this one, and Riviera will frustrate herself with wanting to do something special for Wein, but needing to keep a distance emotionally because of her occupation. Our next battle awaits at the Ruins to the east. This one will be almost a carbon-copy of the one in Comsprings, but more difficult. That said, make sure to equip Riviera and Arieta/Sereb with Lv6 Magic Range and any fighters with Lv5 Soul Thunderclap. Move over the Ruins and use the Neural Radar when prepared.

At the Ruins, the party encounters a collection of marauders among the mist. The group will surround the area and when discovered, the mercenaries will attempt to pick up their pods and flee; with one being purposely let go. When Hans asked why respond with "To test the neural radar's tracking". With Magic Range lv6 and the Thunder spell, this is another fairly easy battle, but to get a Mission Complete, none of the pods can escape. Although optional, but recommended due to the extra EXP, you will want to kill the axe-wielding marauders before the ones carrying the pods. Once you defeat a pod mercenary, one of the axe ones will automatically be destroyed, losing the EXP. To best do this, we need to approach the battle like the one in Comsprings. Use Hans, Riviera, and Arieta/Sereb to chip away at the pod-carrying enemies attempting to escape, but leaving enough HP to be killed off with one more attack.

 

Send Wein straight for the Commander to the south, preferably with Thievery, and follow up with System Shock until he is defeated. If Wein gets stunned, be prepared to cast Refine or he'll be in some serious trouble. Charlone should cast Attack Up on all the characters to help with defeating the axe-wielders quicker, but stick with Fire Arrows, Soul Force, and healing afterwards since she is in a really bad position to fire her bow. Send Xenos to confront the spearman to his left, then face-off with the two marauders that will come his way. Make use of Penetration Attack and Perimeter Pulse to target multiple enemies. Carmaine should Dash toward the spearman to his left, also, and be prepared to engage another approaching enemy. Brett/Lyell have the right-side path with an archer and axe guy in the way, then another archer just beyond him. Once Wein defeats the Commander, either have him Dash north and help Xenos, or support with Cure if your party is taking serious damage. If you're having any difficulty against such large numbers, just shift your focus toward the enemies carrying the pods and don't concern yourself with the extra EXP from the axe-wielders. With your mages consistently casting long-ranged Thunder, you shouldn't have too much trouble defeating all of the armored enemies quickly, though.

Continuing your search, when you move over Starkberg, you'll see a scene with Wein and Charlone scoping out the town. They're approached by a couple of Charlone's former socialites who tease her about how nice of a catch Wein is. Respond "Don't worry about." to keep her relationship values steady.

 

Shops are been upgraded in Starkberg, as well. The armory has added the stock from the Magic Academy plus the Wind Mantle for Hans and Sereb, Aurora Armor for Xenos and Brett, and Dragon Gauntlet for Wein, Lyell, and Carmaine. Over at the gem shop, they've got some really nice stuff. Lv8 Expert Trial is the big brother of Warrior's Skill, and has the potential to be the best attack-increasing gem in the game; behind the time-based Bellow Collection. I trade this out for Wein's Lv8 Hyper-Attack gem and give it to Lyell. You can even stack three of these on a character, gathering 100 kills each time, to increase a character's attack by a huge 300! Which is higher than the maximum boost of a Lv9 Bellow Store.

 

I don't quite understand the Lv8 Petrification gem. Dark Curse already gives you the Petrify skill, plus others, and Petrification, in my experience, doesn't activate any more commonly than the other, so just pass on this one. Lv8 MP Recovery would be excellent for replacing Charlone and Riviera's MP Conservation, if not for the fact Lv8 Magic Awakening is for sale now, too. Magic Awakening should replace MP Conservation and you may consider it for Arieta/Sereb, as well, but they generally have a much higher MP pool than the other two.

Finally, you can buy the best stat-increasing gems for those that aren't on a NG+. In my opinion, since we're getting near the end of the game, I would just purchase these for use in future plays and not concern yourself with them at this point. You should buy Lv8 Deft Wind, the highest in the game, to upgrade Charlone and Carmaine's. The same with Xenos and a Lv8 Destroy Balance gem. Lv8 Interceptor is fantastic and I almost always give it to Xenos, replacing his Blood Blade, and works well for Lyell, too. Lastly, Return Blade isn't worth a gem slot, in my opinion.

Just to note, after the Ruins battle with the marauders, the Evil Mage is beginning to show up in random encounters. Most of these contain monsters that aren't noteworthy, but the Evil Mage is different. When encountered, these need to be targeted immediately. They can cast spells such as Thunder Storm and Quake that will devastate your party and potentially wipe them out if multiple Mages manage to cast them.

 

Use the Neural Radar in the south at West Clain Village for a scene. A fleeing marauder will drop a Lv9 Mage's Aria gem for the party to conventionally pick up. If you're on NG+ and already have 9 of these, you'll get a whole bunch of Elm instead. This increases your spell-casting time, but like stated with the Lv6 one you can buy, I don't think it makes enough of a difference to justify a gem slot, but you decide for yourself.

Lastly, we're at a bit of a point of no return for completionists. Once you enter Northwest Rottenbaum Village, all of the areas west of Zauerberg will be inaccessible for the remainder of the game. That includes the inventories at the Magic Academy, Comsprings, and Valmie. Also, the items for sale in Burnstein Capital will have changed. Because of this, a number of armor and gems can no longer be purchased, however, some may still be won/stolen in random encounters and at the Zauerberg arena. Below I will list the items that you should purchase now, if you haven't already.

• Buff Coat (Comsprings)
• Studded Leather, Mystic Robe, Protector Jacket (Valmie)
• Holy Robe, Vitt's Robe, Shield Mantle (Burnstein Capital)
  
• Lv3 Technique, Angel's Hand, Sandman, MP Recovery, HP Recovery (Comsprings)
• Lv3 Magic Might, Quickness, Dispel Magic, MP Conservation, Vampire (Comsprings)
• Lv3 Soul Smasher, Critical Hit, Lv4 All Attrib Def, Parry, Arms Might (Comsprings)
  
• Lv4 Flame's Fire, Wind, Thunder, Water, Ground, Holiness, Darkness, Spirit (Comsprings)
• Lv4 Magic Lv, Skill Lv, Faint Guard, Venom, Dispel, HP Recovery Seal (Valmie)
• Lv4 Quickness, Lv5 Empower, Epiphany, Art of Thievery (Valmie)
• Lv6 Mage's Aria, Magic Might  (Magic Academy)
• Lv6 Hyper-Attack, Magic Range, Angel's Secret, Paralysis Attack, Wind Shield (Burnstein)
• Lv6 New Horizons, Deft Wind, Destroy Balance, Arms Might, Parry, Blood Blade (Burnstein)
• Lv6 Blood Magic, Counter Swing, Thrust Away, Soul Focus, Sun Flame, Quickness (Burnstein)
  
• Lv7 Bellow Collection, Skill Effect (Magic Academy)
• Lv7 Arms Might, Magic Shield, Vampire, Light Miracle, Teriaka, Dark Curse, Epiphany (MA)

As you can tell, this is a huge amount of gems; some even the best you can obtain, so buy all that you want of these now before you head for NW Rottenbaum Village to continue to the next chapter.