Afterimage
Jun. 4th, 2023 11:01 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
schneefinkI have been playing more Afterimage and I enjoy it a lot. After the start the pacing slowed down quite a bit for a while, but thankfully it picked up again.
A little over 27 hours in: Level 60, and I have both groundbreaking and swim now :) And so many places I can go. I tried some backtracking now that I have the new abilities, which was nice but less fruitful than I'd hoped, and now think I'll check out the Holy Grounds. In addition to the whip (Torment Whip rn) I switched to using dual blades instead of the sword because I got very cool ones (The Guardian's Blades) but I think I might switch back, idk, I found the scroll for the final dual blade weapon ability and that might be worth checking out. I have three potions for skill re-distribution now so I can try it out.
Almost 35 hours: Level 67, using the Thunderfall dual blades (most of the time) and the Rage of Geo whip. I found the Thunderfall blades just as I decided that maybe I should go back to the Moonlight sword after all… The final dual blade ability is not that useful most of the time but Raging Wyvern (being able to attack below me from the air) really is, I can attack many enemies from somewhere they can't touch me. I can also heal six times and can equip four afterimages, but having more than I can equip is still so new that I keep forgetting to switch them out.
The Holy Grounds and especially the Grand Archive are soo pretty. I found Owl, who literally bound himself to the Archive to survive the Razing i.e. the apocalypse, now that's a cool tragedy. Valo is a hard fight (especially because I know from spoilers that they have a second phase, uh-oh), so eventually I took a break from practicing to do some more exploring. I could finally open the gate in the Field of Geo, the new area I found there I'm still clearly underpowered for but I did find some cool loot. I also found Albedo Tower, it's beautiful. Have I mentioned the map is freaking huge? I also found Aros' research facility and defeated the mad Ode member in the basement, and I started exploring the Ashen Canyon and got some cool armor pieces out of it. …yeah I'm procrastinating on fighting Valo, that fight is hard. Doable but requires quite a bit of practice to get the patterns down and the timings right. (What probably doesn't help is that I have no idea what about a third of the magic staffs/scrolls I found even do, I might have something helpful and I wouldn't know.)
A little over 37 hours: it only took me three more tries to beat Valo! Much faster than expected, that was a very nice surprise, I only used three refined potions too. I met the big cat among the other meowlings, aww. I also found and explored the Sunken Sanctum – I can heal eight times now, yay! But I only tried to fight Guider twice before deciding to do other things first. I fought the flamebird on top of the Rainbow Plains, which was almost easy this time, and I explored the Ashen Canyon further and defeated the Lava Horns (first try.) Level 69, using the Thunderfall dual blades, and as a second weapon the Spore scythe because I finally found the scroll for the final scythe ability (and got the required talent points to unlock it) and it's very cool.
39 hours: Level 70, I tried fighting Guider two more times and then gave up for now. I did defeat the Colossus in the Ashen Canyon (but turned away from the Field of Pyro), and then the Frozen Knight. I did some more backtracking looking for corners I missed and then checked out the area above the Rainbow Plains again, the enemies there are only a little above my level according to the beastiary (very convenient to have that info) but I find them much more difficult to fight than pretty much any others I've faced. Maybe I'll try that one battle chamber in that area again, or try beating Guider again, or maybe I'll go back to Albedo Tower. There has to be a way to unlock the Sky Palace above it, I'm just not sure if it's a puzzle or if I need to wait until I unlock something else.
Almost 42 hours: Some more backtracking and some level grinding (to 72.) I tried fighting Gongor again but gave up very quickly. Instead I went back to Albedo Tower and this time I figured out how to activate the portals and other mechanisms. I defeated Darkfeather, got new dual blades again (Gale) and got an outline map for the Sky Palace – another area that looks huuge.
Over 44 hours: I made it up to the top of the tower, defeated Alvess the Everstorm, and reached the Sky Palace. Ngl my first impression was disappointing – I'd expected something grand, after the tower, and the sky palace looked more like an ancient Chinese palace garden than a palace at first glance, with a lot of spikes. So many spikes! A particularly tricky bit of parkour got me the Celestial Remains dual blades, nice. I did find some good-looking areas later, thankfully, especially the kind-of-aquarium-looking long drop. After some exploration I found Netherfeather, and that boss fight took me quite a few attempts until I finally managed it. Got me to level 74. (I could make things easier for myself and eat food, especially all the dishes I've never eaten yet that would give me a permanent bonus in addition to the temporary one, but I'm saving them for when I really get stuck during a boss fight.) I got a key, so to the upper Sky Palace I go.
47 hours: I found Atmous the goliath, but instead of the expected boss fight she's trapped in nightmares. Hmm. I made a detour and explored some of the Field of Pyro, good for XP. Then I did some more exploration of the Sky Palace (I left out one particularly tricky parkour – I got so close!), and then discovered the Heart of Veins area. Floating through the sky, wheee! Loss the Broken Wings is hard though, even at level 76.
Almost 50 hours: Defeating Loss took me a while, especially because I didn't want to use many potions. But I managed in the end! I finally got Triple Jump, very nice. The afterimage I got from Ethan right afterwards that lets me heal quicker will also be very convenient during battles.
I did some backtracking, including back to the Rubiwood Desert where I finally made it to the major confluence, and got some nice new armor pieces and other things. I finally found all the secret weapon arts, now I just need a few more talent points to learn them.
Next: either Gongor, or Guider, or the area above Rainbow Falls. Hmm.
54.5 hours: I beat Gongor! Only took about half a dozen tries: after his first portal attack I somehow managed to corner him and just shredded him with dual blades + scythes up + down combo. That got me the Eye of Gongor which means I can de-petrify people, which sounds very cool, but sadly I haven't found a single place to use it yet.
I went back to the Field of Hydro and on the right side, after a very beautiful underwater path, I found the Golden Crow, which took me to the Solar Birthplace, where I got super jump. Nice! I explored the place a bit but then used a Resting Potion to get out. I did some more backtracking, including in the Rubiwood Desert, where I defeated the Flaming Wolf, also thanks to my new weapon upgrades (Frostbite scythe and the Ravager Dual Blades – their ability is cool too though I will miss the Celestial Remains Blinking Wyvern ability.) Then I finally dared to go to the area above Rainbow Plains, which I found out was Goliathfall. The glittery bones look cool. I found and defeated the Occult Prime of Anemo and Geo and now I can finally use three accessory slots, and I got two cool new staffs. I also found Nicole again, apparently the Occult Prime was her master but hurt her and Nicole still refuses to believe she would do that, poor girl.
Also, it's meant to be super obvious that Ifree is the goliath of Pyro, right? I was pretty sure since he ignited the boat to Misty Waters. I feel like it would be more impactful if we knew anything at all about how Renee and Ifree met and how long they've been together.
I found the Reaping Scythe, the Crimson Hollow, and beat it, mostly using the staff of the Occult Prime and the Kurasame blade. Shortly before I finally got enough talent points to unlock the Thousand Crosses ability for blades and that is indeed a very useful distance attack. I think I'll stick with the dual blades and scythe combo because they work so well together, but I might switch to the blade occasionally.
Finally, invincibility frames, and I can dash through the red barriers now! More backtracking, and I beat the Kingworm, the Occult Prime of Pyro and Hydro, and Jade the Mechanical Assassin on the way. The first two I could have faced and beaten sooner, especially the occult, I could have used that grimoire… ah well. I have three stream crystals now, only one more and I'm pretty sure I can get the sword from the Heart of Veins.
Then I explored the Goliath Falls further. When I exited it to the west I ran into Brandr, the Blazing Blade, and decided to stop there for the night. I'm at level 79 now, and I can heal ten times which is nice.
I also recently finally started to become more interested in the worldbuilding, among other things because of Brandr. What is he, what other sentient beings lived before the Razing apart from humans and the goliaths?, I can't remember hearing much about other spirits, much less as an actual society? And "new goliaths"? Hmm.
56 hours: Beating Brandr only took a few tries, thankfully. I explored the new area, which I found out is called Scorchwhere, and found the major confluence there. Before that I found the Spellbreaker scythe, and I beat Chroma, the Prismatic Flame, a stag made of fire with burning rainbow antlers that looked so cool it was almost a shame that I beat it on my first try. That gave me the last thing I needed for Owl's quest, so I returned to the Grand Archives and finished it, freeing Owl. Stanley finally restocked his shop and I bought it out again.
At some point – probably after beating Brandr – I got the "Defeated all powerful existences" achievement. I have all core afterimages now, neat. I'm pretty sure I could beat Guider at this point, but I'm having more fun exploring. I found Agus the new Pyro Goliath in Scorchwhere, I'll tackle that fight next time.
Over 59 hours: After a break of two days I beat Agus on my first try this time, nice. We finally get some more actual backstory! Wow that is late. So apparently there is/was a spirit society of some kind. Ifree, former goliath of Pyro, says that the war is over and God intended for the goliaths to keep the peace, but many other spirits remember that the humans were the aggressor who attacked them because they wanted the power of the goliaths, and they think that humans will start the war again and need to be eradicated before they do. I really look forward to finding out more about what happened to Ifree now and how the soul link between him and Renee came about.
I explored Scorchwhere some more and found the Boatman, cool that I can buy balms for weapon improvements now. I had him drive me to the Raging Veins, which is still closed but I got the fourth Stream Crystal and went back to get the sword from the Stone. I fought the sword spirit and got the Nameless sword, pretty cool, I'm currently using that. (I also got a permanent afterimage but I don't think it does anything.) Then I went to the lower half of the Rubiwood Desert via boat and explored there, and then to the left side of the Field of Pyro and explored that. Next I explored the right side of the Field of Pyro, and I finally figured out that I have to destroy the fancy fire lamps to get rid of the light barriers. Better late than never, but there's one barrier I didn't find the lamp for and now I might have to walk through the entire area again because I might have just walked past it, ugh.
Instead I did two tricky parkours to get to chests I'd previously failed at that were easier with triple jump (satisfying but the items weren't worth it), and then I went to the Frozen Veins where I did find some good items but still didn't figure out how to make it to the left side of the area, and not from the Holy Grounds side either. I still haven't figured out how to make it to several chests in the Holy Grounds; the barrier seems to be somehow connected to a timer? (I'm almost tempted to look it up.) Meeting Loss again in the Holy Grounds was a cool surprise, at least. Then I decided to try fighting Guider again, I did pretty good and probably could have won if I'd used potions or if I just tried a few more times. I'm at level 87 by now and I can heal 11 times.
61 hours: I found that last lamp to get to the lower area of the Field of Pyro, and I fought Aqil the Pyro Goliath and beat them on my first try. I enjoyed the conversation between Aqil and Ifree afterwards, and then Ifree telling Renee who he is and how their soul link came to be. (I still want to know more about how Ignis knew Aros and why Renee in particular, apart from her rebirth ability. Shame that Aros doesn't get any new dialogue.) I found the Egg and entered the soul field out of curiosity, but then decided not to destroy it just yet. Instead I went back to Atmous and entered her dream, where I fought and defeated the many guards. Twelfth glyph, very nice, and the top of the sky palace looks a lot nicer now without the dark clouds.
I also found the last Word of Shenlong. Se gave me her key, I'm not sure what it opens yet… I walked around some places with her treasurescope afterimage but as often as it's helpful it's also frustrating when it pings and I just can't find anything.
I looked up how to get past the timer barriers in the archives – one of them needs another item and the other two I just had to literally wait – and how to unlock the passage between Holy Grounds and the Frozen Veins, which was just a hidden drop.
Next: definitely Guider, finally. I'm level 91 now, the Field of Pyro drops a lot of xp. There are barely any unexplored areas left that I can see.
Almost 62 hours: All that training really has paid off! I beat Guider, first try this time, with the Ravager dual blades + Spellbreaker scythe combo, and got the first ending (and also her sword which I really look forward to trying out.) Then I immediately put in one memory shard and tried again, again beating her on my first try – this time I was strong enough for her not to kill me with the curse right after, instead I was instantly killed by Renee in a red outfit that in the following cut scene seemed to be trying to absorb Ifree's powers? Okay! Same result with two memory shards. Then I put in three memory shards and this time, after beating Guider, I faced Red Renee. I beat her on my first try too, go me! That got me a cut scene with Renee, Red Renee, and Avisia, another version of Renee, all about which of them would "win." Admittedly I'm not entirely sure what's going on, but it sure looked dramatic! I hope there'll be a lore write-up somewhere. After that came the credits, and I also got the last glyph, and Red Renee's outfit. Cool! All the boss fight xp also got me to level 95.
I'm not done with the game yet though. I haven't even de-petrified one person!, and I want to know what happens with the pyro goliaths, and do a little more exploring. Still, it's a good stopping point for now to finally post these notes.
A little over 27 hours in: Level 60, and I have both groundbreaking and swim now :) And so many places I can go. I tried some backtracking now that I have the new abilities, which was nice but less fruitful than I'd hoped, and now think I'll check out the Holy Grounds. In addition to the whip (Torment Whip rn) I switched to using dual blades instead of the sword because I got very cool ones (The Guardian's Blades) but I think I might switch back, idk, I found the scroll for the final dual blade weapon ability and that might be worth checking out. I have three potions for skill re-distribution now so I can try it out.
Almost 35 hours: Level 67, using the Thunderfall dual blades (most of the time) and the Rage of Geo whip. I found the Thunderfall blades just as I decided that maybe I should go back to the Moonlight sword after all… The final dual blade ability is not that useful most of the time but Raging Wyvern (being able to attack below me from the air) really is, I can attack many enemies from somewhere they can't touch me. I can also heal six times and can equip four afterimages, but having more than I can equip is still so new that I keep forgetting to switch them out.
The Holy Grounds and especially the Grand Archive are soo pretty. I found Owl, who literally bound himself to the Archive to survive the Razing i.e. the apocalypse, now that's a cool tragedy. Valo is a hard fight (especially because I know from spoilers that they have a second phase, uh-oh), so eventually I took a break from practicing to do some more exploring. I could finally open the gate in the Field of Geo, the new area I found there I'm still clearly underpowered for but I did find some cool loot. I also found Albedo Tower, it's beautiful. Have I mentioned the map is freaking huge? I also found Aros' research facility and defeated the mad Ode member in the basement, and I started exploring the Ashen Canyon and got some cool armor pieces out of it. …yeah I'm procrastinating on fighting Valo, that fight is hard. Doable but requires quite a bit of practice to get the patterns down and the timings right. (What probably doesn't help is that I have no idea what about a third of the magic staffs/scrolls I found even do, I might have something helpful and I wouldn't know.)
A little over 37 hours: it only took me three more tries to beat Valo! Much faster than expected, that was a very nice surprise, I only used three refined potions too. I met the big cat among the other meowlings, aww. I also found and explored the Sunken Sanctum – I can heal eight times now, yay! But I only tried to fight Guider twice before deciding to do other things first. I fought the flamebird on top of the Rainbow Plains, which was almost easy this time, and I explored the Ashen Canyon further and defeated the Lava Horns (first try.) Level 69, using the Thunderfall dual blades, and as a second weapon the Spore scythe because I finally found the scroll for the final scythe ability (and got the required talent points to unlock it) and it's very cool.
39 hours: Level 70, I tried fighting Guider two more times and then gave up for now. I did defeat the Colossus in the Ashen Canyon (but turned away from the Field of Pyro), and then the Frozen Knight. I did some more backtracking looking for corners I missed and then checked out the area above the Rainbow Plains again, the enemies there are only a little above my level according to the beastiary (very convenient to have that info) but I find them much more difficult to fight than pretty much any others I've faced. Maybe I'll try that one battle chamber in that area again, or try beating Guider again, or maybe I'll go back to Albedo Tower. There has to be a way to unlock the Sky Palace above it, I'm just not sure if it's a puzzle or if I need to wait until I unlock something else.
Almost 42 hours: Some more backtracking and some level grinding (to 72.) I tried fighting Gongor again but gave up very quickly. Instead I went back to Albedo Tower and this time I figured out how to activate the portals and other mechanisms. I defeated Darkfeather, got new dual blades again (Gale) and got an outline map for the Sky Palace – another area that looks huuge.
Over 44 hours: I made it up to the top of the tower, defeated Alvess the Everstorm, and reached the Sky Palace. Ngl my first impression was disappointing – I'd expected something grand, after the tower, and the sky palace looked more like an ancient Chinese palace garden than a palace at first glance, with a lot of spikes. So many spikes! A particularly tricky bit of parkour got me the Celestial Remains dual blades, nice. I did find some good-looking areas later, thankfully, especially the kind-of-aquarium-looking long drop. After some exploration I found Netherfeather, and that boss fight took me quite a few attempts until I finally managed it. Got me to level 74. (I could make things easier for myself and eat food, especially all the dishes I've never eaten yet that would give me a permanent bonus in addition to the temporary one, but I'm saving them for when I really get stuck during a boss fight.) I got a key, so to the upper Sky Palace I go.
47 hours: I found Atmous the goliath, but instead of the expected boss fight she's trapped in nightmares. Hmm. I made a detour and explored some of the Field of Pyro, good for XP. Then I did some more exploration of the Sky Palace (I left out one particularly tricky parkour – I got so close!), and then discovered the Heart of Veins area. Floating through the sky, wheee! Loss the Broken Wings is hard though, even at level 76.
Almost 50 hours: Defeating Loss took me a while, especially because I didn't want to use many potions. But I managed in the end! I finally got Triple Jump, very nice. The afterimage I got from Ethan right afterwards that lets me heal quicker will also be very convenient during battles.
I did some backtracking, including back to the Rubiwood Desert where I finally made it to the major confluence, and got some nice new armor pieces and other things. I finally found all the secret weapon arts, now I just need a few more talent points to learn them.
Next: either Gongor, or Guider, or the area above Rainbow Falls. Hmm.
54.5 hours: I beat Gongor! Only took about half a dozen tries: after his first portal attack I somehow managed to corner him and just shredded him with dual blades + scythes up + down combo. That got me the Eye of Gongor which means I can de-petrify people, which sounds very cool, but sadly I haven't found a single place to use it yet.
I went back to the Field of Hydro and on the right side, after a very beautiful underwater path, I found the Golden Crow, which took me to the Solar Birthplace, where I got super jump. Nice! I explored the place a bit but then used a Resting Potion to get out. I did some more backtracking, including in the Rubiwood Desert, where I defeated the Flaming Wolf, also thanks to my new weapon upgrades (Frostbite scythe and the Ravager Dual Blades – their ability is cool too though I will miss the Celestial Remains Blinking Wyvern ability.) Then I finally dared to go to the area above Rainbow Plains, which I found out was Goliathfall. The glittery bones look cool. I found and defeated the Occult Prime of Anemo and Geo and now I can finally use three accessory slots, and I got two cool new staffs. I also found Nicole again, apparently the Occult Prime was her master but hurt her and Nicole still refuses to believe she would do that, poor girl.
Also, it's meant to be super obvious that Ifree is the goliath of Pyro, right? I was pretty sure since he ignited the boat to Misty Waters. I feel like it would be more impactful if we knew anything at all about how Renee and Ifree met and how long they've been together.
I found the Reaping Scythe, the Crimson Hollow, and beat it, mostly using the staff of the Occult Prime and the Kurasame blade. Shortly before I finally got enough talent points to unlock the Thousand Crosses ability for blades and that is indeed a very useful distance attack. I think I'll stick with the dual blades and scythe combo because they work so well together, but I might switch to the blade occasionally.
Finally, invincibility frames, and I can dash through the red barriers now! More backtracking, and I beat the Kingworm, the Occult Prime of Pyro and Hydro, and Jade the Mechanical Assassin on the way. The first two I could have faced and beaten sooner, especially the occult, I could have used that grimoire… ah well. I have three stream crystals now, only one more and I'm pretty sure I can get the sword from the Heart of Veins.
Then I explored the Goliath Falls further. When I exited it to the west I ran into Brandr, the Blazing Blade, and decided to stop there for the night. I'm at level 79 now, and I can heal ten times which is nice.
I also recently finally started to become more interested in the worldbuilding, among other things because of Brandr. What is he, what other sentient beings lived before the Razing apart from humans and the goliaths?, I can't remember hearing much about other spirits, much less as an actual society? And "new goliaths"? Hmm.
56 hours: Beating Brandr only took a few tries, thankfully. I explored the new area, which I found out is called Scorchwhere, and found the major confluence there. Before that I found the Spellbreaker scythe, and I beat Chroma, the Prismatic Flame, a stag made of fire with burning rainbow antlers that looked so cool it was almost a shame that I beat it on my first try. That gave me the last thing I needed for Owl's quest, so I returned to the Grand Archives and finished it, freeing Owl. Stanley finally restocked his shop and I bought it out again.
At some point – probably after beating Brandr – I got the "Defeated all powerful existences" achievement. I have all core afterimages now, neat. I'm pretty sure I could beat Guider at this point, but I'm having more fun exploring. I found Agus the new Pyro Goliath in Scorchwhere, I'll tackle that fight next time.
Over 59 hours: After a break of two days I beat Agus on my first try this time, nice. We finally get some more actual backstory! Wow that is late. So apparently there is/was a spirit society of some kind. Ifree, former goliath of Pyro, says that the war is over and God intended for the goliaths to keep the peace, but many other spirits remember that the humans were the aggressor who attacked them because they wanted the power of the goliaths, and they think that humans will start the war again and need to be eradicated before they do. I really look forward to finding out more about what happened to Ifree now and how the soul link between him and Renee came about.
I explored Scorchwhere some more and found the Boatman, cool that I can buy balms for weapon improvements now. I had him drive me to the Raging Veins, which is still closed but I got the fourth Stream Crystal and went back to get the sword from the Stone. I fought the sword spirit and got the Nameless sword, pretty cool, I'm currently using that. (I also got a permanent afterimage but I don't think it does anything.) Then I went to the lower half of the Rubiwood Desert via boat and explored there, and then to the left side of the Field of Pyro and explored that. Next I explored the right side of the Field of Pyro, and I finally figured out that I have to destroy the fancy fire lamps to get rid of the light barriers. Better late than never, but there's one barrier I didn't find the lamp for and now I might have to walk through the entire area again because I might have just walked past it, ugh.
Instead I did two tricky parkours to get to chests I'd previously failed at that were easier with triple jump (satisfying but the items weren't worth it), and then I went to the Frozen Veins where I did find some good items but still didn't figure out how to make it to the left side of the area, and not from the Holy Grounds side either. I still haven't figured out how to make it to several chests in the Holy Grounds; the barrier seems to be somehow connected to a timer? (I'm almost tempted to look it up.) Meeting Loss again in the Holy Grounds was a cool surprise, at least. Then I decided to try fighting Guider again, I did pretty good and probably could have won if I'd used potions or if I just tried a few more times. I'm at level 87 by now and I can heal 11 times.
61 hours: I found that last lamp to get to the lower area of the Field of Pyro, and I fought Aqil the Pyro Goliath and beat them on my first try. I enjoyed the conversation between Aqil and Ifree afterwards, and then Ifree telling Renee who he is and how their soul link came to be. (I still want to know more about how Ignis knew Aros and why Renee in particular, apart from her rebirth ability. Shame that Aros doesn't get any new dialogue.) I found the Egg and entered the soul field out of curiosity, but then decided not to destroy it just yet. Instead I went back to Atmous and entered her dream, where I fought and defeated the many guards. Twelfth glyph, very nice, and the top of the sky palace looks a lot nicer now without the dark clouds.
I also found the last Word of Shenlong. Se gave me her key, I'm not sure what it opens yet… I walked around some places with her treasurescope afterimage but as often as it's helpful it's also frustrating when it pings and I just can't find anything.
I looked up how to get past the timer barriers in the archives – one of them needs another item and the other two I just had to literally wait – and how to unlock the passage between Holy Grounds and the Frozen Veins, which was just a hidden drop.
Next: definitely Guider, finally. I'm level 91 now, the Field of Pyro drops a lot of xp. There are barely any unexplored areas left that I can see.
Almost 62 hours: All that training really has paid off! I beat Guider, first try this time, with the Ravager dual blades + Spellbreaker scythe combo, and got the first ending (and also her sword which I really look forward to trying out.) Then I immediately put in one memory shard and tried again, again beating her on my first try – this time I was strong enough for her not to kill me with the curse right after, instead I was instantly killed by Renee in a red outfit that in the following cut scene seemed to be trying to absorb Ifree's powers? Okay! Same result with two memory shards. Then I put in three memory shards and this time, after beating Guider, I faced Red Renee. I beat her on my first try too, go me! That got me a cut scene with Renee, Red Renee, and Avisia, another version of Renee, all about which of them would "win." Admittedly I'm not entirely sure what's going on, but it sure looked dramatic! I hope there'll be a lore write-up somewhere. After that came the credits, and I also got the last glyph, and Red Renee's outfit. Cool! All the boss fight xp also got me to level 95.
I'm not done with the game yet though. I haven't even de-petrified one person!, and I want to know what happens with the pyro goliaths, and do a little more exploring. Still, it's a good stopping point for now to finally post these notes.
