Oresrush, Pioneer Town
Alright, enough drawing things out. It's time to actually form our octopath, starting with Partitio.
Whoa now, you've got a special look about you.
Lady Luck must be shinin' down on me, 'cause it ain't every day you meet someone like you!
Y'see, I've got big plans and big ideas--too big to handle alone. I was hopin' I'd find a dependable sort like you to accompany me on my travels.
Funnily enough, Partitio's the only one whose dialogue changes depending on who the main character is, and even then it's just calling out that person's job.
Naturally, we accept.
Partitio is a Merchant, and is a very interesting spin in that he wants to use the powers of capitalism to enrich the world.
Unlike OT1, where you'd see the first half of a Chapter 1 in a flashback and then do the rest with your main party, all of OT2's Chapter 1's are stand-alone. This lets the devs get more creative with the opening chapters, plus it avoids situations like a loner thief being cool with inviting total strangers to a heist.
And of course, I'll be showing all of them.
Oresrush, Dried Up
That's exactly why I'm askin', little chickadee. It's a blank slate--it can be whatever we make of it. Long as we got the skill and gumption, anyhow.
I know, son. Swipe that line if ya want.
Naw, I wouldn't do that. Thievin' ain't right.
That's my boy, fine words! You do me proud! Oo, oooh! I had an idea! If it was up to me...
That way we could all settle it together!
Yeah! Smart, huh?Even at a young age, Partitio was an idealist and had the morals of a great merchant. He just lacks the experience.
This land is an asset. We bought the deed to it fair and square from its former owner. If we want to divvy it up, Partitio, we can't just give it away for free. Aw, c'mon now, Mister Roque. No need to be stingy.
Roque 'n' I pooled our money and bought the rights to these lands. ...That we did. Heh, rumor was you couldn't take a step without trippin' over silver ore. Oooh...!
Then take these leaves and go buy us some silver. G-gosh, I don't know if I'm ready for that...
Yessir, Mister Roque! I'll go buy some silver then, lickety-split!
Thus an eight-year-old Partitio begins a lucrative career as a merchant.
We're at the very beginning of what we can see has become a booming silver town. But all grand things start small.
Heh heh heh... Time to show off my...whatchacallit...? My business acumen!
And so we get to Partitio's Day Path Action, Purchase. This lets him buy items from NPCs. You can get a lot of rare and exclusive items and equipment this way, but be prepared to pay well for the good stuff!
...No, that's way too stiff.
That said, most of these people have nothing of note to buy. A few minor consumables, random knick knacks that aren't worth as much as they cost, so on. We need to have a more discerning eye.
Sadly, nothing or note so far. But...
A true merchant has an eye for value, and can see the worth in things others may not truly appreciate.
How 'bout sellin' it to me? I can pay fair and square!
Gah, ease off! I'll trade you, just don't tell anyone about this. Deal? Deal! Thankee kindly!We found what we were after, it seems. Let's check back in with Papp and Roque.
Video: A Silver Town
Sure did! Here! This is it, right? Give it here.
Whoa now... This is some fine quality ore! You didn't even use all the leaves I gave you, neither! Your boy has a fine eye, Papp. He must've inherited his business acumen from you. Heh, thanks! I bet we can earn a bundle off this. Good work, son!
We sold off all but a roof over our head to start this business. It's a gamble, that's for sure. But one well worth it, Papp.
We're entering the Age of Silver. Mark my words. We're well-positioned to earn a fortune.
Woo-hoo! I can't wait to get started, Pops!
And so we fast forward a bit...
Construction comes rapidly as the town comes to formation.
Soon the town is thriving, and even Papp and Partitio have their own home overlooking the town.
Oresrush, Pioneer Town
Today's haul, freshly plucked from the soil! One hundred percent pure, high-quality ore!
...but what real guarantee can a youngling like you offer me on its value? Heh. Looks can be deceivin', my fine friend. I've been doin' this for eight years now, and I know my stuff.
Take a look at the sheen on this rock. See the luster? That sparkle? Why, this is the finest you'll find in the land. It's even used in ol' King Dudley's crown! Impressive...
Four hundred thousand leaves!
Eight hundred thousand!
One million six hundred thousand!
We've got one-point-eight! Any other bidders? Anyone?
I hear these merchants built this silver operation themselves. In just eight years, they turned this town into one of the continent's most plentiful sources of silver. That youngling's got potential. He possesses a discerning eye...
He's only sixteen, too. Soon he'll be a force to be reckoned with.
Partitio has been trained well.
Time to head on home and give Pops the good news.
Before we come home with today's hard work, let's explore what the town has grown into.
For a cool 400 leaves I get a nice bow upgrade for Partitio.
The town is prospering, and everyone is doing well.
Of course, a lot of it comes down to the hard work everyone put into creating this town, including Papp and Partitio.
But out here, hard work pays off. Time to retire for the evening.
Carefree Days
That's my boy! Good work.
We're only gonna keep on growin', Pops! You bet. This town's gonna be somethin'. Just gotta keep on diggin' up more silver and makin' a killin'!
You betcha, Pops! We'll do it together!
...They're back, huh?
Protectin' our mine's vital, but keep the violencee to a minimum. Y'hear me?
I'm gonna go rouse the town, gather a posse. Whoever's willin' to come.
...Dang boy, he's already gone.Partitio may be a mercantile prodigy, but he's still a hotheaded teenager rarin' for a fight.
Oresrush, Pioneer Town (Night)
I'll need to hire someone tough as nails if I wanna win this quarrel.
This leads us to Partitio's night action, Hire. This lets him pay a NPC money to recruit them. Otherwise, Partitio's partners act identically to Temenos's partners in battle.
There's a few men we can choose from, but honestly we don't really need any of them.
Partitio's talent has each person he can hire provide a bonus upon transactions. You can get discounts (both in shops and from other NPCs), get free inn stays (worthless since inns are so cheap to begin with), earn more money when selling items in shops, and also get buffs/discounts in battle involving Partitio's money-based skills. They're all rather small effects (though they can be pretty nice later on), but still handy to have.
Righty then, time to head to the mine!
It's just a quick jaunt to the mine, but hey, might as well check out how Partitio functions in battle!
Normal Battle I
Partitio is able to use two weapon types, polearms and bows. And like all jobs, he starts with two starting skills.
Arrow of Fortune - Powerful single-target bow attack. In addition to damage, also gives bonus JP. Seems reasonably strong, and the JP is a small bonus if anything. I believe the JP goes only to the person using the ability.
Here's a new enemy type, which is also an excuse to show off Partitio's other move.
Rest - Restores HP and SP to self, plus cure status ailments. Very handy for long fights, though while the HP recovery scales, the SP is always a static 25SP (+25 per BP spent). The self-target is annoying, but otherwise a very solid ability.
A frolicing egg, huh.
While we're at it, let's do a quick rundown of the other abilities Partitio can learn:
Collect - Collect money from a single foe. Only works once per foe, and some foes can't be Collected from. Accuracy depends on foe's HP remaining, and boosting boosts accuracy. Nice way to get extra cash, naturally, but you'll get the best bang for your buck using it on bosses.
Ember - Deal fire damage to a single foe. Not very powerful on Partitio, but a shield break option. Better on high-E.Atk characters like Osvald and Temenos.
Donate BP - Give 1-4 BP to a single ally, depending on how much BP is spent. If the Merchant can generate BP quickly (and as we'll see, Partitio is good in this role), this can really fuel your damage dealers and let them go further all-out. Situational but great.
Sidestep - Evade 1-4 physical attacks, goes up with BP spent. Only targets self. That latter part is a bit of a pain, but while Sidestep isn't as broken as it was in OT1, it's still a really solid tool to have for specific fights and can still trivialize certain encounters easily. Great tool to have.
Hired Help - Pay money to summon certain groups to assist in battle that turn. These allies can use specific attacks and also do various effects. For instance, the cheapest option, Mercenary, uses sword attacks on all foes (one hit per BP spent!) and also gives a party-wide P.Def buff for a round (or more if you spend BP), and the effects and attacks get more powerful from there. It can be expensive, but like any investment it's worth as much as you put in, and if you put in a lot, you'll be well-rewarded in battle.
Divine Skill: Bifelgan's Bounty - Unleash a non-elemental attack on a foe and receive money equivalent to the damage dealt. This isn't as powerful as other Divine Skills, and usually the money isn't really worth the effort of using this. One of the few downsides of the Merchant, sadly.
As you can see, the Merchant is all about versatility while looking after oneself. As for Support Skills...
Grows on Trees - Gain 10% more money after battle. Multiple characters with this add nothing. Small, but alright as filler.
Boost-Start - Character starts battle with 1 more BP. This is great for random encounters, letting you blow through them more easily, or allowing you to set up whatever grinding strategy you may want to do.
Hang Tough - Survive otherwise-lethal attacks at 1HP if the character is not at near death. I forget what the threshhold for this is, but regardless it may be useful if you're fighting a powerful foe above your punching weight. Of course, if you're doing that you may opt for more reliable and powerful abilities.
Full Power - Completely fills the character's latent bar at the start of battle. Mainly useful for random encounters, but on certain characters, it is fantastic and can melt encounters instantly. Temenos could shred shields with the right command, Partitio can immediately start with max BP and hit foes hard, Agnea could immediately buff the entire party... With the versatility of Latents, this is one of the best passives in the game as far as random encounters go.
The Wildlands (Night)
Well, that was fun. Let's get back to the story, shall we?
You look just as rarin' as any of us, Boss! You bet I am! That lousy gang's really got my hackles up!
They're here to take what we worked hard to make, so no holdin' back!
Yeah! They're good-for-nothing thieves! Let's get 'em good, Boss!
Take this. Think of it as a down payment.
You'd really give coin to a stranger you just met, Partitio? 'Course I would! Folk gotta help each other out if they wanna make it in this world.
Barterin' or bruisin', no one can beat Partitio the Wild Stallion! Too quick by half to let go of his leaves, though...
Feh. Hand over yer coin. You're makin' a tidy profit, aren't ya? We do honest work in our town, and we get honest pay for it.
Why not try some honest work for a change? It feels good!
Yeah! Give up being rascals and work like the rest of us!
Tempest on the Battlefield
That rat! He needs someone to cool 'im down.
Double pay for anyone who distinguishes themselves! Let's get to work! That's our boss! Generous as always!
In a nice touch, your posse is fighting the thugs in the background, while Partitio takes on a couple of thugs himself.
He may be a merchant, but Partitio is also not a half-bad fighter.
Overall, an easy victory.
Damn! Don't think you'll get away with this! Right, right. None of that cliché hogwash, now! Tch. Retreat! We're getting outta here!
We did it, Boss! Yeah! What a victory! Y'all did good, fellas!Carefree Days
I say...let's make it a big one!
Woo! That's our boss! Generous as always!
C'mon, Boss! Hurry it up!
You know, Partitio might be a bit too nice sometimes...
SILENCE
I think my ears are deceivin' me. Say that again, Roque. ......
That joke ain't funny, partner.
Right when we're about to grow it even bigger, you hightail it out of here? Why?
Fortune has favored us, and a high tide has graced our town. However... The tides are always changing, Papp. ...What about our people? The ones who followed us here?
You do recall the contract we signed when we bought this land eight years ago?
What's that? ...I'm sure you'll find out soon enough.
Video: Your Gaze is on the Horizon
...This town's gonna get even bigger. All of us're workin' hard to make it so.
Headin' home early today, huh?
...Partitio. May I have a word with you?Soliloquy
Huh...?
Silver is being mined worldwide now, and it is the commodity's destiny to slowly devalue. I'm washing my hands of the precious metals trade and traveling to the eastern continent.
The east is rich and prosperous, a land abundant with promising wares.
It is a revolutionary device that uses energy derived from steam to provide unprecedented power.
......
You have the spirit of a true capitalist. A golden opportunity like this has your blood pumping. Heh, thanks for the compliment.
I want your talent, your drive, your charisma... You possess a rare talent. I've traveled the world over and met few your equal.
Together we can amass a fortune that would be the envy of the world.
I admire you, more than any other merchant. But...I can't go with you.
Roque is a brilliant mind in the realm of commerce, and Partitio has the potential to be as well. The main difference between these two men is the value they place on others, particularly those who helped them achieve such wealth.
Your gaze is on the horizon, your spirit dancing at the thought of the potential business opportunities out there for you. ......That said, Roque has a point in that Partitio will only truly achieve greatness if he were to venture into the world and learn from others. It's that loyalty to those who work with him that helps Partitio stand out among other merchants, but it may also be stopping him from reaching his true potential.
It saddens me to think of your talents withering along with this town. Goodbye, Partitio.
And soon after Roque leaves...
...the town's luster fades, just as Roque predicted.
Next time, we'll see what happened to the town, and how Partitio finds a way to save it from the fate it seemed destined to meet.
