Legend of Lemuria - The Second Human-Demon War - (Free RPG) Introduction, Impressions, and Strategy Notes

This is an introduction to "Legend of Lemuria - The Second Human-Demon War," a medium-length RPG created using WOLF RPG Editor.
At first glance, the graphics are unremarkable, and there's nothing particularly distinctive about them.
However, after playing it, I realized it was a very carefully crafted game.
It's difficult to explain what makes it stand out, but for some reason, it's an enjoyable game that makes you want to keep playing.
The main story took about 5 hours to complete.

Game Overview

From what I can see, it's a typical RPG.
The character graphics are cute and stylized, giving them a gentle feel.
However, the story is a serious, classic tale, and despite being a novella, it is depicted thoroughly and carefully.

What makes this game unique are the party members of the main characters and the battle system.
The protagonist is Alfredo, one of the heroes who sealed the gate to the demon world 50 years ago.
When you start the game, you begin by controlling Alfredo and his party, a group of heroes from 50 years prior.
The opening event concludes with repeated encounters with enemies, during which the rules of combat are explained.
The scene then shifts to the present, where strange events once again engulf the world, and Alfredo takes action.

In many games, the character controlled by the player is often a young person,Most of the party members in this game are elderly.
The story progresses with the protagonist in the position of a hero who saved the world in the past, so the pacing was fast and it felt fresh.

And one more thing, the combat also has some unique aspects.
The combat system is such that characters with higher agility get more turns.
The turn order for a certain period of time is displayed in the upper right corner of the battle screen.
It is important to fight while paying attention to this order.
Defeating an enemy within the predetermined number of turns results in a Fast Break (FB), which grants bonuses to experience points and other rewards.
By the way, your HP and other stats will be fully restored after battle, so fight with all your might.
Characters who are incapacitated in battle still gain experience points.

The commands you can use in battle are limited to the skills you have equipped.
Even items cannot be used during battle unless you equip them with an "item bag."
Equipment other than weapons and armor, namely skills and accessories, occupy the same slot, so it's important to choose whether to focus on improving skills or boosting defense with accessories.

During battles, SP accumulates over time.
Use this SP to use skills.

In this game, only your HP increases when you level up.
To increase parameters, you can use status-enhancing items,You will grow in real time by performing various actions during battle.
If you use an offensive skill, your attack power will increase, and if you use a defensive action, your defense power will increase.
Therefore, regular battles are the best opportunity to improve your parameters, which increases your motivation to fight.

In addition, this game features an extra mode separate from the main story.
This is a hack-and-slash mode where you freely assemble and develop your party while conquering dungeons.
You can choose from the beginning, but more characters become available as the main story progresses.
Therefore, I think it's better to either progress through the main story to a certain extent or attempt it after clearing the game.
Compared to the main story, the number of skills that appear is significantly greater.

thoughts

It's a well-put-together game, and I ended up playing it all in one go.
There were no unnatural elements in the story's progression or the characters' conversations, so I was able to enjoy it without any worries.
While it doesn't have any outstanding features, it felt like the kind of work that is flawless in every aspect.
The story unfolds in a somewhat conventional way, and you can predict what will happen, but the scenes designed to make you cry are well-crafted, and it's been a long time since a game made me shed tears.
The banter and witty exchanges, which you can only get at a party with only elderly people, were really enjoyable.

The combat balance was relatively unforgiving, perhaps due to the system that fully restores health after each battle.
You can't win easily if you only focus on offense; you also need to properly prepare for healing and status ailments.
I think you can clear it relatively easily if you use healing items effectively.
In the main game, there aren't that many types of techniques, so choosing which ones to use wasn't much of a challenge. However, the extra mode features a considerably larger number of skills.

To be honest, I didn't feel that the system of growing in real time based on actions during combat had a particularly dramatic impact.
In the very early boss battles, I felt that if I focused on defense and endured the fight, I would gradually grow stronger and the battles would become easier.
However, as the story progressed, I began to feel that the characters would grow stronger without even thinking about it, as long as they performed well in combat, so it didn't feel that different from other works.
However, I think that this system was what helped maintain a certain level of motivation for regular combat.
The encounter rate in this game is relatively high, so without this system, the stress of combat might have been even greater.(And even in regular battles, the enemies are fairly strong.)

As a side note, I frequently noticed influences from Final Fantasy Tactics in the character names and techniques.
I felt there were many names related to Final Fantasy Tactics, such as Garnet "Lugria," the vice-commander of the Knights, "Lionel," the commander, and Harley's skill "Holy Light Burst" Slash.
It might just be a coincidence, but it was a work I really loved, so it brought back nostalgic feelings.

Strategy Notes

Battle points

The combat difficulty in this game is a bit high.
However, if you understand the key points, it won't be too difficult.

- In normal battles, focus on offense rather than healing.
Your health will be fully restored after each battle, so focus on defeating as many enemies as possible.
It's also important to defeat enemies whose turn order is close to yours.

- Countermeasures against status ailments
There are various abnormalities such as poison, darkness, confusion, and curses, but darkness is particularly troublesome.
Even if you're just playing as an attacker, make sure you have a plan to deal with darkness.
Characters who equip skills that require accumulating SP will also be easier to deal with if you have countermeasures in place.

- Rely on items during boss battles
Celia's healing skills alone are often not enough.
The healing items are very effective, so make sure to use them actively.
Even status ailment recovery items will restore some HP.

Boss Strategy

Chapter 1
・？？？
Make sure to buy an item bag and healing items from the shop beforehand.
You should be able to defeat it by alternating between using your shield and normal attacks.
If you find it too difficult, return to the forest, level up a bit, and then you should be able to defeat it.

Chapter 2
Balrog
Alfredo should focus on being the shield and healer, while Brass should just keep using Cooldown.
I will use any healing items I find in the cave without hesitation during the battle.
It'll be a very close call, but we should be able to defeat it.

Stark
Stark will use Attack Guard to increase his physical defense.
Therefore, it's best to keep letting Brass use Cool.
Alfredo should continuously use his large shield to increase his defense.

Chapter 3
Shelob
Luminous is her weakness, but Celia has many other things to do, such as Heal Wind and Cure, so unless you have a lot of time to spare, leave the attacking to Brass.
Alfredo will provide support with his large shield and items.

Stark
Since there are three of us here, it should be much easier than it was at the beginning.
If we divide the roles and fight accordingly, we should be able to defeat them without any problems.

Chapter 4
Stark
We have four players, but the opponent is also highly agile and attacks frequently, so we are facing a tough battle.
If you are put in darkness, quickly heal yourself with Heal Wind, and don't let up on your attacks; it's best to defeat them in one go.
Trying to protect them might mean that recovery won't be fast enough.
Take advantage of Dolores's energy blast followed by her supersonic punch combo to deal damage aggressively.

Chapter 5
Since you'll be in a two-person party with Harley, combat will be somewhat challenging.
Since Harley's attacks often exploit weaknesses, let's have Alfredo play a supporting role.
It's easier if you equip Harley with a Blind Guard.

Alshiel
Since the curse is troublesome, carry plenty of Bind Bottles or equip Bind Guard.
Since it's troublesome for them to recover through regeneration, let's save up SP so we can use powerful moves like Harley's Holy Light Burst Slash.
If you take proper measures to counteract the curse, things will become much easier.

Chapter 6
Stark
The attacks are quite fierce, so I think you'll need to use Cure Bottles to heal as well.
I think it would be best to use Alfredo and Celia as healers, and Brass and Dolores as attackers.
Dolores can deal significant damage with her Ki Blast ⇒ Supersonic Sword ⇒ Tiger's Mouth Fist combo, so try to accumulate as much SP as possible before unleashing the combo.

Final Chapter
・Urug
Its area-of-effect attacks are tough, and it also inflicts confusion and poison.
Poison aside, confusion is troublesome, so make sure to equip the key members of your party with Confuse Guard.
If you buy plenty of Cure Sprays, area-of-effect attacks won't be so scary anymore.
Gather some healing items before you go.