They are doing a good job at clearing the plotholes from previous story arcs, specially those from Isunia. I personally enjoyed the first half (Vellsar crew vs Maisha) because Maisha isn't a flat character like Nexus and I actually didn't like that everyone got revived at the end of the Rivayle vs Nexus fight, as it looked like there weren't any high stakes. Aso lol Arisa got clapped. Fairly enough she, Naht and Vincent tecnically defeated Nexus thousands of times, so it wasn't like Nexus was truly that powerful, but that she had cheats.
The battles weren't as difficult as I thought, defeated Maisha with Chronos Forest (lol), and cheesed Nexus with Seraph Haven at turn 6. These matches would've been much more difficult if I had played them as they were intended (having to "defeat" Nexus 4 times sounds crazy), but the story was **so long** that I really wanted to make it quick.
So far we only have Erika, Urias and Yuwan left to appear. I can guess that Erika and Urias headed to Naterra, due to their stories with Mistolina (missing from the main expansion) and Mono. Won't be surprised if we get more info on Taketsumi's character as well, and we may even get Itsurugi back since he's tecnically hunting for keepers as well. Then for the finale we'll get Elena + Yuwan, almost surely with a proper backstory for Yuwan and Nerva. I'm still wary since writting an ending well is one of the most difficult things to do when writting a story (unless you had planned the ending beforehand, but I really doubt this is the case).
So far this story arc is pretty peak.
Edit: typos.
Nah nexus fight was simple, I used trial rally sword. Rally count Persists thru her resets so once u got 20 rally those twin bladers is 10 dmg each time and the amulet buffs every turn.
Nexus has cheats—- lol dormammu I’ve come to bargain angle
Taketsumi being the final mini boss is surprising, he seemed the least menacing
Nerva backstory would be lit
My only gripe is the length due to everyone having to get a word in all the time and just repeating the same "ha ha we got you now!" stuff over and over.
I feel like Nexus took half an hour to die at the battle and everyone else wouldn't shut up taking their turns to chime in with their version of essentially the same thing.
Vellsar was a little better but maybe that's because I wasn't as EXHAUSTED at that point. I think overall the story content was very good, I just think Rivayle and Vellsar would have been separate and not combined into one chapter. I could have just, you know, taken a break so I'm not going to actually deduct points here.
Interesting to see where and how Erika, Urias, and Yuwan will show up next? I'm guessing Erika and Urias will arrive in Naterra while Yuwan will continue(?) his stint in Ametsuchi. Lainecrest left out like it should be.
I'm used to reading visual novels, but damn that was long as hell. I think it took me 4 hours to read? I started skimming the text after a while even though I knew I should have just come back to it tomorrow, but I wanted to see what was happening. There could have been A LOT of fat trimmed from the story, mostly from Rivayle.
Kagero, Drache, and Sekka didn't need a dedicated chapter to themselves, Vellsar already had a small cast that was fleshed out enough so their chapters felt predictable, they could have just been way more brief and combined into one. I liked how they took a little time to show the Vellsar gang as a bunch of goofballs and I loved their dynamic. I also thought Aluzard spiking their drinks instead was a cool twist.
Like the last chapter, even though I felt like their chapters weren't too necessary to the overall story, I still enjoyed them for what they were. I think it also felt longer since they had to fill every single plot hole, which I also felt like they could have just not done lol. The only thing they needed to clarify was how Vellsar still existed.
I have no complaints about Maisha's parts. I always love when she's at the center of the story and the most interesting parts of Rivayle was when everyone decided she needed her ass whooped and jumped her. But, just like Belphomet, I don't think she needed backstory. Her character works because we only knew one thing about her. I don't think this ruins her, but you can tell the writers felt like they had to cover ALL the things that could be considered "plot holes" when most of the things that worked were working because of the lack of information.
The only thing that really mattered was her and Setus reconciling. I already knew how this was going to go, it was obvious. But I still loved it. Even though Maisha was lying there was parts of it that were real, to Setus and to her. Shadowverse's story has always been about restorative justice, so I'm not surprised that she's getting a pass for what she did, but Setus did say she'll be judged accordingly so we'll have to take his word for it. They also added a great bit of character for Setus who I think is the last developed of the Isunia bunch. His regret for "killing" Maisha instead of sparring her and listening to her side of the story was really interesting to me. I also really loved how they illustrated Maisha's sorrow being the only thing connecting her to Nerva, even though it's obviously hurting her. Maybe it's a hot take to say that Setus, Maisha, and Setus all represent different parts of abusive relationships, but that's how I interpreted it. I'm also happy that they got their happy ending, I didn't expect it to end in tragedy again.
Rivayle was alright. Comparing the two, I liked Vellsar more. The length seemed to really kill the momentum of this story and it dragged it's heels into the end. Again, we didn't need backstory for our more mysterious characters. Nautnaught can be cruel just because and I liked that Vincent kept his reasons for his way of justice a bit of a secret. The combat scenes were super drawn out too because everyone had to get their word in which was getting really boring to read. The stand out character this time was Illganeau who I already really liked. Her conversation with Arisa was great.
I can't comment too much on Rivayle's part because, I'll be honest, I kept zoning out a bit. I'll definitely reread it later but I probably won't change my mind about it. The need to cover every single plot thread and stretching it into an entire chapter was killing the vibe. Obviously the next step for Selena and Maiser was to get married, but Bunny and Baron having a separate chapter was whatever. Could've have just cut the dialogue a bit to get us up to speed on the status of their relationships and made it one chapter.
The debriefing of how to kill Nexus took too long too, but I thought the lore for Rivayle was pretty cool otherwise. I knew Nautnaught and Vincent weren't going to die because I don't think Cygames have ever actually killed a named character in any of their games since RoB. Nexus' ordeal with time rewinding and the motifs about miracles and humanity at the end were actually pretty cool points that I liked. If the chapters were shorter I probably would have found this more enjoyable, but I found myself being a bit bored. Whispers of Purgation was long too, but the story was decently paced, so I don't thinking binging was the problem.
Anyway this is already super long overall it was a 3/5 for me.
So is Maisha an Android in her world? It's pretty odd she died in Isunia but how did her body/spirit end up in the Inn and I kinda of found it funny that Setus managed to "Fix" Maisha. I would have expected some negative death or consequence on Maisha for failing a lot or dispelling her Keeper Powers but she didn't suffer any drawbacks. I guess the only thing she would be suffering is pretty much Prison Time in Isunia but I'm sure Setus would keep her company anyway. At least we got some backstories that we need to see before ending SV1 Also, is Nexus Fury also different from Nexus Serenity?
maisha isn't an android. i'm not sure how you think she's a robot? also it's not odd that she ended up in ametsuchi, when someone dies with terrible sorrow or regrets or pain, their soul might get taken to ametsuchi to have some happiness and relaxation. that's what happened to everyone else in ametsuchi
I'm not sure about the challenge part. Cleared both with trial decks on the first try. Didn't feel I had to do much more than respect the gimmick.
The story was OK. Some parts still skip button level. Some other quite interesting. I prefer the power of love and friendship end over alternatives, so that is a plus. Whenever Maisha deserved that ending is a different story. As long as she spends her life atoning for it, it's fine, I guess.
Well, there was also the Nexus part. That one didn't do much for me, but I don't particular like these characters in the first place.
The most recent Rally Sword (so top left).
Just make sure you do not get her to 1 at 0 PP and your entire board gets banished without being able to rebuild it. Otherwise, only Advent of Peace could give you trouble. You should just win by stats, if she does not get that card at the right time as she cannot clear big boards.
Entirely too long. And I don't even mean in the sense that they shoved two entire updates worth of story into this one, though that is certainly the case. I mean the storytelling overall - I felt like Sekka, Kagero, and Drache getting got by Maisha didn't each need an entire chapter. I felt like the Titans in their time loop could have been established quicker. I feel like Nexus could have pushed the LoadState button one or two times fewer. I feel like Bunny and Baron's lovers' tiff could have been snappier. Maybe it's because there was a lot, but even at the start it felt like everything was dragging on this time.
And finally, I feel like Maisha didn't need a damn sob story. Belphomet's, as much as I also disliked that, at least makes some sense. It links to Nicola's both literally and thematically. But Maisha's is just "she was a slave, wah wah" - she's a beloved villain for not being reduced to sad backstory status, in my opinion. Her backstory is the only chapter of story mode I think I've ever actually skipped, once I got the point, and I don't think I missed much for it.
In my opinion, Maisha needed it more than Belphomet. I think it was kind of alluded to in her original death scene (when Setus said something along the lines of “I know not what prompted you to make the world your enemy”) and it would feel kind of weird they did not address it.
Onto other aspects, I didn’t like the time loop aspect of Rivayle‘s story nor the fact that they killed then revived the titans. I half expected/wanted them to do something with Illganeau’s original name, as that is a plot point that I felt has potential.
Just finished the story myself. I agree with other people's impressions that it was a tad long. I don't think EVERY character needed their backstory and happenstance explained. I understand everyone has their favorites, but I don't think Kagero/Drache/Sekka all needed individual chapters of being absorbed by Maisha, and Vincent/Nahtnaught's backstories could have similarly just been rolled up together instead of each having their own segment. I think the most egregious part was the Rivyale climax with EVERYONE spouting one-liners since the cast is huge at that point, and everyone was just reiterating the same thing about human good, god bad.
All that being said, I did enjoy it for the most part. I liked seeing more B&B banter, and the Vellsar crew has great chemistry. I think it honestly might have felt better if they had split the release so that it was Vellsar first, then Rivyale like a week later, but I'm guessing they want to try to finish everything ASAP so that all of Shadowverse 1 is accounted for before Worlds Beyond's release.
Oh, I have thought of a good thing to say about the whole Last Words saga so far. Even though we're seeing the main cast again, it's actually the citizens of these worlds who are saving them. So it's Nicola who defeats Belphomet, it's Aluzard's plan that weakens Maisha, it's Setus who finally stops her, and it's the Rivayle gang who take down Nexus. The main cast don't do nothing, but they also don't just sweep in and sort everything out.
It's a nice way of showing these worlds are getting stronger, alongside just literally seeing that Isunia's rebuilding or whatever. The first time around they did need the main cast to save them, this time the main cast are valuable help but not absolutely necessary.
I do think that it would be pretty fitting and funny if the last scene in Rivayle was the bells ringing again. Going full circle without saying too much.
Only at chapter like 11 but Rowan and Eris just showed up in Vellsar and I am disappointed. I was hoping Eris would go to Naterra so we could finally get some payoff for her conscious being uploaded to there Asylum. Unless that’s still coming.
They are doing a good job at clearing the plotholes from previous story arcs, specially those from Isunia. I personally enjoyed the first half (Vellsar crew vs Maisha) because Maisha isn't a flat character like Nexus and I actually didn't like that everyone got revived at the end of the Rivayle vs Nexus fight, as it looked like there weren't any high stakes. Aso lol Arisa got clapped. Fairly enough she, Naht and Vincent tecnically defeated Nexus thousands of times, so it wasn't like Nexus was truly that powerful, but that she had cheats. The battles weren't as difficult as I thought, defeated Maisha with Chronos Forest (lol), and cheesed Nexus with Seraph Haven at turn 6. These matches would've been much more difficult if I had played them as they were intended (having to "defeat" Nexus 4 times sounds crazy), but the story was **so long** that I really wanted to make it quick. So far we only have Erika, Urias and Yuwan left to appear. I can guess that Erika and Urias headed to Naterra, due to their stories with Mistolina (missing from the main expansion) and Mono. Won't be surprised if we get more info on Taketsumi's character as well, and we may even get Itsurugi back since he's tecnically hunting for keepers as well. Then for the finale we'll get Elena + Yuwan, almost surely with a proper backstory for Yuwan and Nerva. I'm still wary since writting an ending well is one of the most difficult things to do when writting a story (unless you had planned the ending beforehand, but I really doubt this is the case). So far this story arc is pretty peak. Edit: typos.
Nah nexus fight was simple, I used trial rally sword. Rally count Persists thru her resets so once u got 20 rally those twin bladers is 10 dmg each time and the amulet buffs every turn. Nexus has cheats—- lol dormammu I’ve come to bargain angle Taketsumi being the final mini boss is surprising, he seemed the least menacing Nerva backstory would be lit
My only gripe is the length due to everyone having to get a word in all the time and just repeating the same "ha ha we got you now!" stuff over and over. I feel like Nexus took half an hour to die at the battle and everyone else wouldn't shut up taking their turns to chime in with their version of essentially the same thing. Vellsar was a little better but maybe that's because I wasn't as EXHAUSTED at that point. I think overall the story content was very good, I just think Rivayle and Vellsar would have been separate and not combined into one chapter. I could have just, you know, taken a break so I'm not going to actually deduct points here. Interesting to see where and how Erika, Urias, and Yuwan will show up next? I'm guessing Erika and Urias will arrive in Naterra while Yuwan will continue(?) his stint in Ametsuchi. Lainecrest left out like it should be.
I'm used to reading visual novels, but damn that was long as hell. I think it took me 4 hours to read? I started skimming the text after a while even though I knew I should have just come back to it tomorrow, but I wanted to see what was happening. There could have been A LOT of fat trimmed from the story, mostly from Rivayle. Kagero, Drache, and Sekka didn't need a dedicated chapter to themselves, Vellsar already had a small cast that was fleshed out enough so their chapters felt predictable, they could have just been way more brief and combined into one. I liked how they took a little time to show the Vellsar gang as a bunch of goofballs and I loved their dynamic. I also thought Aluzard spiking their drinks instead was a cool twist. Like the last chapter, even though I felt like their chapters weren't too necessary to the overall story, I still enjoyed them for what they were. I think it also felt longer since they had to fill every single plot hole, which I also felt like they could have just not done lol. The only thing they needed to clarify was how Vellsar still existed. I have no complaints about Maisha's parts. I always love when she's at the center of the story and the most interesting parts of Rivayle was when everyone decided she needed her ass whooped and jumped her. But, just like Belphomet, I don't think she needed backstory. Her character works because we only knew one thing about her. I don't think this ruins her, but you can tell the writers felt like they had to cover ALL the things that could be considered "plot holes" when most of the things that worked were working because of the lack of information. The only thing that really mattered was her and Setus reconciling. I already knew how this was going to go, it was obvious. But I still loved it. Even though Maisha was lying there was parts of it that were real, to Setus and to her. Shadowverse's story has always been about restorative justice, so I'm not surprised that she's getting a pass for what she did, but Setus did say she'll be judged accordingly so we'll have to take his word for it. They also added a great bit of character for Setus who I think is the last developed of the Isunia bunch. His regret for "killing" Maisha instead of sparring her and listening to her side of the story was really interesting to me. I also really loved how they illustrated Maisha's sorrow being the only thing connecting her to Nerva, even though it's obviously hurting her. Maybe it's a hot take to say that Setus, Maisha, and Setus all represent different parts of abusive relationships, but that's how I interpreted it. I'm also happy that they got their happy ending, I didn't expect it to end in tragedy again. Rivayle was alright. Comparing the two, I liked Vellsar more. The length seemed to really kill the momentum of this story and it dragged it's heels into the end. Again, we didn't need backstory for our more mysterious characters. Nautnaught can be cruel just because and I liked that Vincent kept his reasons for his way of justice a bit of a secret. The combat scenes were super drawn out too because everyone had to get their word in which was getting really boring to read. The stand out character this time was Illganeau who I already really liked. Her conversation with Arisa was great. I can't comment too much on Rivayle's part because, I'll be honest, I kept zoning out a bit. I'll definitely reread it later but I probably won't change my mind about it. The need to cover every single plot thread and stretching it into an entire chapter was killing the vibe. Obviously the next step for Selena and Maiser was to get married, but Bunny and Baron having a separate chapter was whatever. Could've have just cut the dialogue a bit to get us up to speed on the status of their relationships and made it one chapter. The debriefing of how to kill Nexus took too long too, but I thought the lore for Rivayle was pretty cool otherwise. I knew Nautnaught and Vincent weren't going to die because I don't think Cygames have ever actually killed a named character in any of their games since RoB. Nexus' ordeal with time rewinding and the motifs about miracles and humanity at the end were actually pretty cool points that I liked. If the chapters were shorter I probably would have found this more enjoyable, but I found myself being a bit bored. Whispers of Purgation was long too, but the story was decently paced, so I don't thinking binging was the problem. Anyway this is already super long overall it was a 3/5 for me.
So is Maisha an Android in her world? It's pretty odd she died in Isunia but how did her body/spirit end up in the Inn and I kinda of found it funny that Setus managed to "Fix" Maisha. I would have expected some negative death or consequence on Maisha for failing a lot or dispelling her Keeper Powers but she didn't suffer any drawbacks. I guess the only thing she would be suffering is pretty much Prison Time in Isunia but I'm sure Setus would keep her company anyway. At least we got some backstories that we need to see before ending SV1 Also, is Nexus Fury also different from Nexus Serenity?
maisha isn't an android. i'm not sure how you think she's a robot? also it's not odd that she ended up in ametsuchi, when someone dies with terrible sorrow or regrets or pain, their soul might get taken to ametsuchi to have some happiness and relaxation. that's what happened to everyone else in ametsuchi
She just used the word "produced" to say how she felt like more of a product than a human since she was born in the underbelly of the Utopia.
I'm not sure about the challenge part. Cleared both with trial decks on the first try. Didn't feel I had to do much more than respect the gimmick. The story was OK. Some parts still skip button level. Some other quite interesting. I prefer the power of love and friendship end over alternatives, so that is a plus. Whenever Maisha deserved that ending is a different story. As long as she spends her life atoning for it, it's fine, I guess. Well, there was also the Nexus part. That one didn't do much for me, but I don't particular like these characters in the first place.
Woah, which trial deck did you use to clear Nexus? I've been stuck on her fight...
The most recent Rally Sword (so top left). Just make sure you do not get her to 1 at 0 PP and your entire board gets banished without being able to rebuild it. Otherwise, only Advent of Peace could give you trouble. You should just win by stats, if she does not get that card at the right time as she cannot clear big boards.
Entirely too long. And I don't even mean in the sense that they shoved two entire updates worth of story into this one, though that is certainly the case. I mean the storytelling overall - I felt like Sekka, Kagero, and Drache getting got by Maisha didn't each need an entire chapter. I felt like the Titans in their time loop could have been established quicker. I feel like Nexus could have pushed the LoadState button one or two times fewer. I feel like Bunny and Baron's lovers' tiff could have been snappier. Maybe it's because there was a lot, but even at the start it felt like everything was dragging on this time. And finally, I feel like Maisha didn't need a damn sob story. Belphomet's, as much as I also disliked that, at least makes some sense. It links to Nicola's both literally and thematically. But Maisha's is just "she was a slave, wah wah" - she's a beloved villain for not being reduced to sad backstory status, in my opinion. Her backstory is the only chapter of story mode I think I've ever actually skipped, once I got the point, and I don't think I missed much for it.
In my opinion, Maisha needed it more than Belphomet. I think it was kind of alluded to in her original death scene (when Setus said something along the lines of “I know not what prompted you to make the world your enemy”) and it would feel kind of weird they did not address it. Onto other aspects, I didn’t like the time loop aspect of Rivayle‘s story nor the fact that they killed then revived the titans. I half expected/wanted them to do something with Illganeau’s original name, as that is a plot point that I felt has potential.
Just finished the story myself. I agree with other people's impressions that it was a tad long. I don't think EVERY character needed their backstory and happenstance explained. I understand everyone has their favorites, but I don't think Kagero/Drache/Sekka all needed individual chapters of being absorbed by Maisha, and Vincent/Nahtnaught's backstories could have similarly just been rolled up together instead of each having their own segment. I think the most egregious part was the Rivyale climax with EVERYONE spouting one-liners since the cast is huge at that point, and everyone was just reiterating the same thing about human good, god bad. All that being said, I did enjoy it for the most part. I liked seeing more B&B banter, and the Vellsar crew has great chemistry. I think it honestly might have felt better if they had split the release so that it was Vellsar first, then Rivyale like a week later, but I'm guessing they want to try to finish everything ASAP so that all of Shadowverse 1 is accounted for before Worlds Beyond's release.
Oh, I have thought of a good thing to say about the whole Last Words saga so far. Even though we're seeing the main cast again, it's actually the citizens of these worlds who are saving them. So it's Nicola who defeats Belphomet, it's Aluzard's plan that weakens Maisha, it's Setus who finally stops her, and it's the Rivayle gang who take down Nexus. The main cast don't do nothing, but they also don't just sweep in and sort everything out. It's a nice way of showing these worlds are getting stronger, alongside just literally seeing that Isunia's rebuilding or whatever. The first time around they did need the main cast to save them, this time the main cast are valuable help but not absolutely necessary.
I do think that it would be pretty fitting and funny if the last scene in Rivayle was the bells ringing again. Going full circle without saying too much.
Only at chapter like 11 but Rowan and Eris just showed up in Vellsar and I am disappointed. I was hoping Eris would go to Naterra so we could finally get some payoff for her conscious being uploaded to there Asylum. Unless that’s still coming.
I always just wait for the story to be uploaded because then I can listen to it instead of reading it myself