You killed sunbro?! You know, I've stared down the gaping maw of a dragon made almost entirely out of teeth, but I am no longer sure who the real monster is.
@RockmanBionics: I did make a melee run at one of them, but I got shot in the back before I could really get stuck in. I really don't have anything with both range and power, so I suppose getting up close and personal is the only real choice I have. I'll get'em. I will only take me a few tries. :)
Went sightseeing around Anor Londo, which seems like a breath of fresh air after the horrors that were Depths and Blighttown.
Killed some Garlgoyles and some other flying things, fairly easily, so I mistakenly thought Anor Londo would be a cake walk, three seconds before I got super-harpooned to death by what looked like two Dark Knights in the distance. After failing to take the fight to them, I decided I'd have to go all the way back to Firelink Shrine to get some supplies.
So I did. Trekked back through Sen's Fortress (those fucking swinging blades, man!) and Undead Parish and Burg, and arrived back at Firelink. Bought up some arrows, and went down to invest in some Iron Flesh, or whatever that thing was called, but the pyromancy merchant was gone. Guess I shouldn't have told him about the pyromancy stuff I found down in Blighttown.
So now I have to decide whether I should go back to Anor Londo to take on the harpoon-archers, or head into the forest to get my ass handed to me by a giant wolf with a sword in its mouth. Decisions, decisions.
There are a few roles in the game that seem to be underappreciated. Laserpainting targets for example, either with the SOFLAM or with a helicopter sees all the points for any kills go to the man with the javelin.
EDIT: @Swoxx: I don't appreciate you reading my reply and then travelling back in time to make the point before me. That is not responsible use of that technology.
@MysteriousFawx: Wait, wait, wait. Is that what "Need Humanity" means? Ha! I always thought it was to clue you into that you should be in human form for the enemies ahead. Seemed like a bit of rubbish advice to me. It makes more sense now. :P
What is with all the love for 12 in this thread? Do you guys remember how half of your party literally had no reason to take part in the story? That the combat required next to no interaction on the part of the player with the exception of boss fights that could be won almost entirely by exploiting the quickening system? That there were random invisible traps strewn about the world that could literally kill your entire party if you didnt happen to remember to reup a specific spell/equip a specific accessory? I understand that the voice acting was good (if you have a tolerance for ridiculous accents exclusive to one character) but other than that and advances in technology FF12 makes few leaps in how it portrays its characters since ff7 and that came nearly 10 years before. I mean just look at Fran, she has no connection to the main plot of the story, and only sticks around because she is friends with Balthier. They never explain why they are friends, how they met, or why she's with him. They never even bothered to give her a personality, she just makes a wry comment every half hour so that we don't forget they included some bunny lady in black leather fetish gear. She is about the laziest character the series has ever seen her looks are all about sex appeal, and her place in the story is only to deliver exposition or act as a convenient plot device. Say what you will about how earlier entries in the series had these heavy handed tragic personalities, or how annoying you thought their character designs were, because flaws or not, at least they were trying.
I disagree with most of what you say, but I don't have time to start an argument right now. Just give me a couple of hours. :) Let me just throw this at you for now: Fran is Chewbacca.
Goosefair - China Drum (1996) The seminal album of my youth. I discovered them as a total accident when a music show on TV (remember those?) aired one of their music videos as a companion to their credits, and my interest was piqued. I had to dig deep in the weirdest, creepiest alternative music shops to find the CD, and the result was mindblowing to the 16-year old me. Perfect blend of angry, defiant punk rock, and melodic alternative rock punctuated by a brilliant cover of Kate Bush's Wuthering Heights as a hidden track/closing number. I cannot count the times I've listened and still listen to it, start to finish.
Ompa til du dør - Kaizers Orchestra (2001) Always stylishly attired, but banging on oil drums with crowbars while wearing gas masks from WW1, a Kaizers Orchestra live show must be seen to be believed. For me, no band I've seen before or since can come close to the energy and showmanship they exhibit on stage. Ompa til du dør (Ompa until you die) is the one that started it all, and kicked off my love affair with the band, which has now lasted a decade and countless concerts. Essential, even for english speakers, who'll not understand a word.
Bloond Money - Tom Waits (2002) I love Tom Waits. I love smokey dive bar ballad Tom Waits. I love straight rock Tom Waits. I love beat poetry Tom Waits. But most of all, I love poignant, angry junkyard Tom Waits. And that's what Blood Money delivers. In spades.
Madrugada - Madrugada (2008) Madrugada's last album, recorded before and after the death of guitarist Robert Burås, is one of the most completely riveting albums I've ever listened to. From start to finish, it sinks its hooks into me, and doesn't release me until I've sat through the entire thing. Lacks a bit of the gloom which has given their previous outings its distinctive sound, but every track on here is a triumph, and never does it give any downtime or a chance to breathe. A must.
Rage Against the Machine - Rage Against the Machine (1992) For an angry young teenager growing up in the 90's, there was nothing more epic than Rage. "Yeah man! These guys get me!" I may have gotten older, and maybe find their politics a bit offputting, but I still turn on this album to be transported back to a time where this furious mish-mash of pure anger spoke directly to me, and was my ally in a hostile world.
I've probably forgotten a dozen albums that deserve to be on this list, but I feel I can get behind it. Some good lists out there.
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