[Dracorion]

Episode Four: Magus versus the Legacy of ZealEpisode Four: Magus versus the Legacy of Zeal



Welp, now that we've beat the boss, no use staying here. Let's get going.

Yeah, no, I'm just yanking your chain. Let's see what's in that treasure chest.


Nice. The Silver Stud halves the MP cost of all techs. This is extremely useful when we've got Magus flying solo, since it means he only needs 1 MP to cast any of his spells. We throw it on and head out.


After stopping by Sargon's house for a quick fix, we head north and find this newly opened dungeon waiting for us.



Music: Confusing Melody

There's actually an encounter waiting down there against two Lashers and a Jinn Bottle.

Lashers come in pairs, and like to counteract with X-Strike whenever Magus hits one of them, so it's a good idea to take out at least one of them first. But you should probably kill both of them before moving on because they're annoying.

Jinn Bottles are right bastards and attack by draining Magus' HP or MP because they're assholes. They also take more than two hits to kill, so they're going take long to kill and screw you over regardless of whether or not you concentrate on them from the start.

Omnishield mitigates the damage from the Lashers, and with it costing 1 MP thanks to the Silver Stud we really have no excuse not to kick off battles with it.


In the same room we find a note that clues us in to the gimmick of this dungeon.


Knife - Left
Bo - Down
Sword - Right

Riddles! We need to pick the right exit to progress here. A wrong choice results in either...


A pitfall dropping us into a room below with a save point, or...



An unwinnable fight with a Golem!

Fortunately, the Golem doesn't really kill you. After wrecking your shit, you get dropped down to the room with the save point with 1 HP to your name.

So, reader input time! Which way do we go, guys? Left, right or down? Keep in mind there's several riddles here, so we're going to have some fun back and forth before we get through 'em all.

Fun!



























































Cardinal - Left
Silvard - Right
Blackbird - Up

Yeah, no, I'm not that evil. I'll just present the riddles and bold the solutions as I rant about something else. But fear not, there will be actual reader input soon enough.

(Incidentally, you can see me running from some chasing Lashers there. They're kind of annoying like that.)


White - Left
Gold - Up
Blue - Right

(This riddle is kind of a dick move, since it requires you remember some mundane detail from halfway through the previous game. It's far from the biggest dick move this dungeon pulls, though.)

Let's talk about Dalton and my hatred of him. I don't really hate him all that much. Rather, I hate what Squeenix did with him in the expanded content from CTDS.


Fire - Left
Lighting - Up
Shadow - Right

(Here's another one of those dick moves. It hasn't been said in this game at all which from of magic is stronger, and unless I'm forgetting something it never came up in CT either.)

See, CTDS has you encountering Dalton as a boss in a bonus dungeon. When defeated he says something to the effect of "I'm going to raise a big army in Porre and conquer you guys!"



That isn't even, like, crazy talk on his part. They established it as canon that Dalton somehow makes it to the present age and overthrows Guardia, all to expand on that retcon from Chrono Cross.


The Moon - Left
The Sun - Up
The Star - Right

What gets me is that this is literally the stupidest goddamn thing. Having a minor villain from another era in time be responsible for killing the heroes and their kingdom is basically just another example of Squeenix giving Chrono Trigger fans the finger.


It also doesn't help that Dalton is annoying is fuck.

Anyway, the trick for this last riddle is that none of the exits are correct. We want to talk to the statue and it'll transport you to the last room of the dungeon.



We're on chapter five, right?
Yes, sir!
Okay! Get ready to write: And then it came to pass that venerable Dalton - yes, he who subjugated the Golems - located the Silver Streak of Zeal, and taking it upon his mantle, declared the new kingdom an immortal one, with Dalton as eternal regent over...

See? Tell me you don't hate him too.

Also, this Silver Streak thing reeks of plot McGuffin.

Hm?



And as always, Magus doesn't need to say a word to get someone's attention.

These games are over.




Magus, you DONKEY! Bill had a family! Little Annie and little Jack and his wife Carrie! Who's going to bring food to the table now? Who's going to pay the mortages? Carrie's going to have to whore herself out just to stay afloat! How could you do that to them?

Hey!! Those guys are getting hard to find these days!
Wait... I detected magic! Shadow, no less! Just who are you?

Uh, dude... he was the Prophet back in Zeal, remember? Why should you be so surprised he can cast magic? It's not like the Queen would let some Earthbound chump claiming to see the future become her trusted advisor.

Also, this is the only time the game gives you an indication that Shadow magic is somehow more special than the other elements. Shortly after you complete the riddle that requires that knowledge.

Crimson Echoes!

Humph! Doesn't matter anyway. Your aura has weakened a lot since those events five years ago.
With your death, I will be the only heir of Zeal once more!!
Time to put you in your place!


And then Bill's wife Carrie, along with Annie and Jack got between them, demanding they shouldn't fight because her children are here.


Except not, fortunately.

Music: Boss Battle 1


Unfortunately, this is another unwinnable battle.




You know, I can't help but think Dalton would be a lot more bearable if he didn't keep kicking your ass, even though he's a second-rate villain.

Honest to God, maybe the CT developers had this idea of him as a legit threatening, if silly villain, but to me he never could hold a candle to Queen Zeal or Magus himself.


Pathetic! You were much more tenacious last time! Hah, I'm gonna throw you in a statis tube.

Oh God no, he's a freak, too! Magus is still a virgin, goddammit!

Even though you're a wimp, you're an innate magic user... And I could need your energy to complete my device...
After that, you'll make a nice snack for my Golems! Or if you're lucky, you might even become my new jester!


And so, Magus has been captured by Dalton and doomed to have some freakish things done to his pure body.


Treasure cheeeeessstttt!!!


Yellow means flashback.

Music: At the Bottom of Night

But is it worth...? I mean, he objected to it... The very idea of getting power from...

This is probably referring to the Mammon Machine. I wonder who "he" is? One of the Gurus, maybe?

Don't be silly! That was before any of us knew the power of the great Lavos! Immortality is beckoning! And your mother demands you come!
But...
*Turns to the entrance* ...Janus? What are you doing here?


Look, I've taught myself to-

Janus' presence causes the other guy to take off, but not before he finishes establishing himself as an asshat.


Way to be a douche, random guy. He's only the prince of your entire kingdom.

Next on the flashback reel...


More of kid Janus' escapades, from a time before he walked around with a purple cat, predicting people's deaths via symbolic dark hued gales.

... No choice! I must use magic...

Oh shit guys, I just realized.


What's the difference between innocent young Magus now and death-predicting Magus when we first meet him in Chrono Trigger?


The cat!

Your magic energy! That's remarkable! I never knew!

Shit, guys, Alfador is the real evil mastermind behind everything! It all makes sense!

This is a fan made game, glorified fanfiction! So of course that's it!

Stupid fucking cat!


Oh Jesus Christ it's these guys again. Actually, I don't mind them as much as Dalton. I actually kind like them. My main problem, though is...

Why does Ozzie have manboobs?

He's getting stronger... and fast, too!
To be that powerful, physically and magically, for a human his age...

Plus, humans aren't even supposed to be able to use magic in your era!

Yes, he is exactly the symbol we need!

The screen fades here, to signify another flashback, even though it's the exact same people in the exact same room.





Bad. Ass.

Magus is yet another of the retcon casualties of CTDS. Their half-assed attempt to tie him in with Guile from Chrono Cross (or, if that's not the case, then explain why Magus isn't in CC) is to have Magus get self-induced amnesia for no reason.

... Yeah, I'm kind of restraining myself from launching into a full-blown haterant about Square-Enix, and I suggest you do too.

Moving on!


Oh Christ, we're seeing flashbacks to scenes from the original game now?

We all know how it goes. Schala releases the heroes, in this case Crono, Marle and Lucca. Seriously, who even used Marle and Lucca? Sure, Antipode 2 was pretty strong, but honestly I never cared for that. I'd rather have cooler characters than Marle or Lucca in my party. Which is any character that isn't Marle or Lucca.

Are you all right? Quickly, escape from the palace!
I'm afraid I can't allow that...

A tall fellow, hooded and cloaked walks in. Man, I don't know who this guy could be, but he sure looks dashing.


You mustn't!
......!
Stop!

The mysterious figure whose identity I could never guess pauses for a minute, before...


So ends the flashback reel.

And they rejoiced.


Treasure chest!

And that's the end of this update, guys. You'll have to forgive me for the unoriginal episode name. It's because, my complaints aside, this flashback sequence serves as a nice reminder of Magus' journey, specifically how close he came to becoming just like his mother.

After ending up in the Middle Ages, he trained hard and became Lord of the Mystics. But he did this solely to get a shot at Lavos. He used the Mystics solely to fulfill his ambition, much like Queen Zeal did with her kingdom. They both only used others to further their own goals, and maintained their own indepence, all for Lavos.

In the end, the only thing that stopped Magus from becoming his mother is that he ended up getting sent back to the era where it all began, where he had to be constantly reminded of the real reason he did what he did: Schala. Dalton being Dalton now is just another reminder for him of what he almost became.

Where Schala was ultimately unable to escape the doom brought upon her by her mother, Magus suceeded, but not by himself. You'll find a lot of Chrono Trigger's themes are about people working together for their dreams. But that's not surprising, is it?

The actually surprising thing is that CT managed to be a genuinely great game while having all these cliches, and the reason is they were handled masterfully.

As for Crimson Echoes, well, it tries. It's a very well done game and sequel, but it's not quite as good as Chrono Trigger.


I'm afraid so, Magus. For now.


Treasure cheeeessssttttttttt!!!!!

Next time: Old friends! Old men! Reused bosses!