Arcana: Difference between revisions

The island of Elemen is home to six kingdoms, which have frequently engaged in war and bloodshed. But these wars were not the greatest threat the land faced, as the evil goddess Rimsalia attempted to destroy the entire island and claim it as her own. She was thwarted by the Card Masters, an order of wizards who wielded tremendous magical power in the form of the playing cards they carried. Rimsalia was sealed by the Card Masters, and peace returned to Elemen for a time. Ten years ago, however, the darkness returned in the form of Galneon, the court magician of the kingdom of Lexford, who murdered King Wagnall and seized power for himself. When the Card Masters opposed him, Galneon murdered as many of them as he could find, until a young man named Rooks was the only Card Master remaining. At the same time, Galneon prepared to undo the seal that bound Rimsalia, and return her to the world. Now, Rooks sets out on a desperate quest to stop Galneon before he can fulfill his goals and bring ruin to the world.

 

 

 

* [[Adam Smith Hates Your Guts]]: Surprisingly averted. The quality of equipment and the prices at the inns increase with every chapter, but that's due in part to the fact that you go from the small village of Galia to the larger town of Doraf to the [[Hidden Elf Village]] and finally to the royal capital of Lexford over the course of the game.

* [[Duel Boss]]: At least one of them in every chapter after the first. Chapter 2 ends with Rooks fighting Zerel one on one, Chapter 3 ends with Rooks fighting Sauza, Rooks insists on fighting Ariel by himself in Chapter 4 and the final battle of the game consists of Rooks fighting Rimsala. In every case, Rooks only has the spirits to back him up.

* [[Elemental Powers]]: Rooks and the spirits he can summon can cast spells to bury enemies alive, blow them away with deadly winds, or burn them with intense flames.

* [[Evil Chancellor|Evil Court Magician]]: Galneon murdered King Wagnall and seized the throne for himself.

* [[Faux First Person 3D]]

** [[The Hero]]: Rooks, who can use the cards for a variety of effects. He can also cast powerful healing magic, and is the strongest physical fighter in the game.

** [[The Lancer]]: Darwin, an elven swordsman who also knows a lot of magic, most of which helps to weaken his enemies' attacks. At first he joins Rooks only because they're headed in the same direction, but later on it turns out that he's searching for {{spoiler|Teefa}}, who he was given to protect after King Wagnall was murdered ten years ago.

* [[Hypnotic Eyes]]: Teefa's eyes glow with a reddish tint in the first chapter. This goes away after {{spoiler|Rooks and Darwin free her from Galneon's mind control}}.

* [[Heroes Prefer Swords]]: This applies to both Rooks and Darwin.

* [[Mr. Exposition]]: Reinoll the Elder explains to Rooks that he needs the Three Treasures and the four elemental spirits if he hopes to defeat Rimsalia, and alludes to the heroic Fanas, the ancient Card Master who first sealed the Evil Empress away.

* [[Nintendo Hard]]: A high encounter rate and the fact that you get a [[Game Over]] if ''one'' party member dies both contribute to this trope. The game's difficulty is still overrated compared to other first person RPGs though, such as the Wizardry and Megami Tensei series; enemies lack any sort of insta-death spells and there's plenty of opportunity to train your characters before each boss, meaning any deaths are generally caused by carelessness.

* [[Our Dwarves Are All the Same]]: Axs wields large battleaxes and hammers in combat, can take a lot of physical punishment, and knows very little magic.

* [[Our Elves Are Better]]: Darwin is perhaps a borderline example, as he's probably the strongest fighter in the game after Rooks and also knows a fair amount of magic. He also joins you in three chapters, as opposed to the other party members who only appear in two each.

* [[Quirky Miniboss Squad]]: Ariel has a number of apprentices, who Rooks and the party fight throughout the game, including the [[Bishonen]] swordsman Zerel, the [[Wolverine Claws|claw-wearing]] Sauza, and the [[Martyr Without a Cause]] Karul. Subverted by Teefa, who's the first apprentice introduced and who actually joins your party.

* [[The Rest Shall Pass]]: On approach to the final level, your companions do this, leaving Rooks to fight the [[Big Bad]] alone.

* [[Rival Turned Evil]]: Ariel used to be Rooks' closest friend in childhood. Now, he works with Galneon to bring about Rimsalia's reign of evil.

* [[She's a Man In Japan]]: Although his gender doesn't change, Ariel has the more masculine name of "Alan" in the Japanese version.

* [[Shock and Awe]]: Sylph, the Wind Spirit, attacks with lightning bolts to destroy her enemies. She can also [[Blow You Away|control the winds to blow her enemies away]].

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[[Category:Eastern RPG]]

[[Category:Arcana]]