The 'Shroom:Issue 162/Strategy Wing
Director Notes
Written by: Hooded Pitohui (talk)
Hello, all you readers of The 'Shroom! I have very exciting news for you this month. Please, give a warm welcome to two new members of the Strategy Wing team! Baby Luigi (talk), with assistance from Bazooka Mario (talk) brings us a brand new section which teaches the basics you'll need to know if you have an interest in 3D modeling work. Baby Luigi has plenty of experience with it, so the advice in the section is top-notch, and I think you'll find it interesting regardless of whether or not you want to try your hand at modeling on the computer. This is a good chance to remind you, too, that sections in Strategy Wing need not be exclusively about videogames! If you have something to teach us, any kind of instructional section will do! Historical analysis also has a home in this team, as Mach Speed Mayhem shows month after month.
On a housekeeping note, you might notice that Koops, Your Emblem is on Fire isn't in it's usual place this month. Worry not! The section is still present, just lower on the page. Generally, you'll find the sections in this team are organized by category first, and then by alphabetical order within those categories. Due to the unique nature of Koops' section, with a video being a major component of it, we've moved the section to the bottom of the page to make your reading experience flow better. You can read through all the written sections first, and you'll be able to tab over to YouTube and finish the experience off with a video!
As always, make sure to vote for the racer you want to see covered in next month's Mach Speed Mayhem. We have some big plans for the last third of the year, so, if you have any interest in joining in The 'Shroom, take a look at our Sign-up page! We'd be happy to have you join us as a member of the Strategy Wing Team!
Alright, that's enough from me. Please, go and enjoy reading what our writers have for you this month!
Section of the Month
Yoshi876 (talk) took first again this month, with his look at Mario Kart 8's staff kart for Water Park. Is it because everyone longs to get back out to water parks? It's difficult to say, but thank you for voting! Please continue to vote to show support for our writers!
| STRATEGY WING SECTION OF THE MONTH | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place | Section | Votes | % | Writer |
| 1st | Racing Like the Staff | 10 | 50.00% | Yoshi876 |
| 2nd | Pokédex Power | 7 | 35.00% | Yoshi876 |
| 3rd | Mach Speed Mayhem | 2 | 10.00% | Superchao |
How does royalty race? Find out by examining Royal Raceway's MK8 staff kart!
[read more]
Friendship ended with the Year of AX. Now Speed and Wolf is our new best friend.
[read more]
Yoshi876 becomes Gligarman! But do Gligar's Pokédex entries have a super quality?
[read more]
Parallax
Written by: Ray Trace (talk) and Bazooka Mario (talk)
Welcome to Parallax. This is a new section in Strategy Wing where you will be taught by a Literal Baby In Armor everything you need to know 3D modeling-related (oh and it's co-hosted by a sockpuppet of mine but we don't talk about her...for now). From how to create cubes, to how to create many cubes, and how to make ice cubes out of your cubes, anything dealing with the magical third dimension and how to build and improve your craft regarding it, this is the section you may want to give a go.
Getting Started: Understanding Your Program
As this is the first article I have written for this section, everyone has to get acquainted with the proper software before they can even begin. For beginners, there is a lot of software out there that caters to a lot of different aspects of 3D modeling from UV unwrapping, to model conversion, to rendering, but before we can cover almost everything related to it, first thing first is to understand what types of software are available before we head in. By the way, there are two types of 3D programs: general purpose and sculpting. General purpose programs generally use extruding from cubes, rigging, and animation, while sculpting programs are more broad, flexible, and are similar to modeling clay.
By the way, this list is not comprehensive. There is a ton of programs out there that manipulate 3D models, but the below are the common ones you will hear about if you decide to foray into 3D modeling.
General 3D modeling
| Programs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Software | Image | Free or Paid? | Description |
 Autodesk 3ds Max |
|
Paid | 3ds Max has coincidentally a similar name to the Nintendo 3DS except it has been around longer, initially released in 1996. The program has seen use in many facets of the industry, including game developers, television commercials and architectural visualization. The program is extremely powerful and has the ability to do anything modeling related you can throw at it, whether rendering water, metals, hair, etc. It also has plug-in support, meaning smaller-scale developers can write programs for it that can import even niche formats such as Nintendo models and Source models. Because of how powerful and versatile the program is, it comes with a hefty price, though students can get a limited free version that can do most things you want. This program is the one I first started using and therefore the most knowledgeable and familiar with and I can assist you with practically you need in there, save for the most advanced stuff and animation. |
 Autodesk Maya |
|
Paid | Another program developed by Autodesk, Maya is an alternative to 3DS Max and has seen increased usage over the years. I was also taught this program in community college; in fact, this is the program I gravitate to whenever I make a new 3D model, so I know much of the hotkeys and techniques there, including how to turn a cube into a character, how to make ropes, how to bevel edges, etc. It has a different UI and different layout than 3ds Max and I have yet to learn how to rig there, but, as with all 3D modeling programs, all terminology applies there as well, but there might be different names. For example, accessing textures and materials falls under "hypershade" while in 3ds Max, it's called a material editor. Maya also has different UI navigation controls and hotkeys than Max, though you can customize your settings of how to navigate it. Like Max, Maya is also a paid program but also comes with its own student license that lasts for years. |
 Blender |
|
Free | This is the most accessible program of the bunch, as it is free for anyone to download. While the UI has been notorious for not being user-friendly, recent attempts have been made to make it a bit friendlier. I also heard it comes with a pretty good sculpting tool. Unfortunately, this program is the one I have the least experience in; other users in the community probably know how to navigate it much more than I can, being confused on how rigging works and how to access UVs and all. However, all terminology I write also applies to Blender; the major hurdle is that Blender likely handles it differently and may have a different name for it. This program also sees common use in the modding community thanks to its accessibility. If you don't have access to the other programs, why not give this Blender a whirl? |
Sculpting
| Programs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Software | Image | Free or Paid? | Description |
 ZBrush |
|
Paid | This is the industry standard of 3D sculpting programs, developed by Pixologic. A sculpting program I had some use in, creating a skull with dripping candlewax around it. My sister had used this much more than I had, creating classic Super Mario World Yoshi that's available for use in Garry's Mod. Check out her art thread for her works that involve ZBrush. Unfortunately, due to my low experience with ZBrush, I cannot offer much guidance nor tips on its use but it's certainly something my sister can talk about in a future issue. A thing to note: wacom tablets are highly recommended for use in all sculpting programs, as they are all pressure sensitive based and function best with one of those. |
 Autodesk Mudbox |
|
Paid | A sculpting program developed by Autodesk that has seen common use in the industry. Out of the sculpting programs listed, neither my sister nor I have used it, but it is a powerful application for your sculpting needs, in case you want to make detailed, precise work. However, my sister did recommend against using it, as its pressure sensitivity is all over the place and is generally inferior to ZBrush. |
 Sculptris |
|
Free | A free program developed by Pixologic, also behind ZBrush, this can be your first foray into sculpting a 3D model. It is feature-light due to its intended nature as a demo to start out, but it's not a bad one! You can pull, pinch, tweak, and mold the ball into whatever you please. |
Blender |
|
Free | I've earlier mentioned that Blender comes with its own sculpting tool as well, and it's actually pretty decent, especially for a free program. It's worth giving a shot. Sorry if I couldn't go into much more detail surrounding it, as I said earlier, my experience with Blender is highly limited. I use Blender only if there are programs and game mods specifically designed for its use; otherwise, I have 3ds Max and Maya that cater to most of my general modeling needs. |
Many of these programs may seem daunting to get into at first, like any professional program you had first experience with. Many of you here probably has heard the likes of Photoshop or Illustrator or even GIMP, and we all know how it feels like to first encounter a gigantic assortment of options and abilities your program can do. However, as being familiar with any program occurs, it takes time and general usage to get used to how to navigate its UI and what each functionality does. Even I'm still learning new techniques from the program to serve as a testament to just how powerful 3ds Max really is, despite having used the program since first starting out modding Super Smash Bros. Brawl in 2011.
Anyway, this is all I have for the first section. Next issue, I will cover the creation of primitives with Autodesk Maya. What is a primitive, you ask? Well, stay tuned for next issue!
Racing Like the Staff
Hello readers and welcome to Racing like the Staff, a section where I do 150cc on different Mario Kart games, but the twist is, I take on the Grand Prix by using the combination that a staff and expert staff member used in that Cup. If you're still a little confused, by this I mean if the track is in the Mushroom Cup, then that's the Cup that I race in. Unfortunately, I don't have copies of the Mario Kart games before Mario Kart 7, so it's only that, 8 and Deluxe that will be getting this treatment.
What a difference a month makes, in this crazy world we live in. Last month, I was writing about how hot I was, and this time although it's still hot, my personal life has become a lot more tumultuous. However, I'm not really here to rant about my personal circumstances, and I know no one comes to a Mario Kart section to read about them. So, instead let's try and burn some rubber, or in this case wood, as we celebrate some 35th anniversary in our style, with the princess racing instead of getting kidnapped, as we take on the Royal Raceway.
The combination for the staff for Royal Raceway is Princess Peach with the Prancer, Wooden tyres and the Peach Parasol, and the stats are as follows:
- Speed – Just under four bars
- Acceleration – Three bars
- Weight – Just under three bars
- Handling – Four bars
- Grip – Just over two bars
Dry Dry Desert
The Prancer combination was incredibly quick off the line, and I rocketed past almost everyone and up into second place by the time we hit the first Item Boxes, and I slightly suspect I might've been ahead in general if the first place hadn't been occupied by Baby Rosalina, who has a lot of acceleration. A Mushroom from the Item Box allowed me to take an early sandy shortcut past her, but my drifting put me onto the sandy banks and she was quite level with me, until another Mushroom shot me past. Then it was Donkey Kong who gave me troubles, oftentimes being right up beside me, but eventually some Shell must've taken him out, as he shrunk away. I pulled out a lead that looked like I was a Spiny Shell ahead, but thankfully I crossed the line before having to find out, although I was still victim to a Boo taking my Banana.
Donut Plains 3
Baby Rosalina shot off the line like she'd been ejected, but her Mr. Scooty was no match for the speed of the Prancer, and she soon fell behind me. However, a Red Shell put her ahead for about a quarter of the lap until my speed took me past her again. Perhaps I should’ve lain low for a little bit though, as a Spiny Shell came and knocked me back down to second, and then a Red Shell from Toad put me down to third – I thought he was meant to be protecting the Princess. I got past Baby Rosalina while under Blooper ink, and after being shrunk by Lightning, I passed Toad just before he regrew. I was able to keep the lead for the rest of the lap, but had the race been longer, it would've been a different story as someone launched a Spiny Shell my way, and I know I wasn't that far ahead of Baby Rosalina.
Royal Raceway
I was expecting to fend off another challenge from Baby Rosalina, but this time it was Toad who shot me past at the beginning. Thankfully, an unexpected purple mini-turbo rocketed me past him, and the fungus was in my wing mirrors. However, although he stayed behind me for the rest of the first lap, I went off the track after Blooper hit us, and he ran past, and a Red Shell from Baby Rosalina also hampered my abilities. Thankfully, Baby Rosalina was taken out by a different Red Shell, and my Red Shell took out Toad, but this I really should've waited a few more seconds as I was hit by a Spiny Shell, allowing him back past. I started gaining on him, and slid into him with my Triple Bananas to keep him behind. I thought I was going to lose my lead on the final lap at the beginning when another Spiny Shell came a-knocking, but a Lightning strike must've neutralised Toad, and I was able to keep this lead, while he got overtaken by Baby Rosalina after the gliding section.
DK Jungle
Despite hitting into two Frogoons on the final lap, there's no denying this was a simple point A to point B race, with nothing to report on.
I didn't like how I drove on Dry Dry Desert, and it was ridiculously easy to get the combination to go off-road and into the sand where inevitably it slowed down. I also feel like many times in this section, I've comfortably been a Spiny Shell ahead, and other than DK Jungle, and maybe the ending of Dry Dry Desert, I really don't think that was the case here. This certainly isn't a bad combination, but it's not one that I'll be readily returning to otherwise.
The Expert Staff combination for Royal Raceway is Baby Peach with the Circuit Special, Cyber Slick tyres and Parafoil. The stats are as follows:
- Speed – Three bars
- Acceleration – Just under three bars
- Weight – Two and a half bars
- Handling – Just over four bars
- Grip – Just over two bars
Dry Dry Desert
When I think of what I'll be driving with as the Baby characters, I generally think of Mr. Scooty, the Biddybuggy and the Teddy Buggy, but here we are with a Circuit Special. I wouldn't say my start was spectacular, but it got me into second and behind Baby Mario, and I quickly dispatched with him with a Green Shell. And after that, I cruised to the finish line, Wario didn't put in any challenges, and I was probably a Spiny Shell ahead.
Donut Plains 3
I thought if anyone it'd be Baby Daisy or Baby Mario shooting off the line in front of me, but in all actuality, it was Wario. And the yellow-overall wearing racer was tricky to get around, but eventually a slipstream got me past. However, on the second lap, a Red Shell and Banana dropped me to second behind Wario. As he drove off, I thought I'd be in even more trouble because of the Mushroom he was holding, but he lost it from a Lightning strike, and then decided to drive through the grass verge anyway. When he re-entered the track, I was just ahead of him, but a Red Shell put me down to fifth. Somehow, I passed the other drivers to get to second, it was behind Blooper ink so I don't have a full picture, and I also got past Wario. He was closely challenging me at the final stretch, but even if he'd passed me, my Red Shell would've taken him out.
Royal Raceway
Wario tried getting me at the start, and failed, and other than that I was a Shiny Shell ahead for most of the race, scientifically proven on the second lap.
DK Jungle
It wasn't Wario who tried getting past me at the start, this time I had to fend off Dry Bowser, which was unexpected to say the least. The skeletal turtle kept a good gap behind me, meaning that when I was hit by a Lightning bolt and fell off the flower, he was able to skate on by. Thankfully, as I approached him, I was gifted with Triple Bananas, and he drove right into them. A lot of Mushrooms on track helped seal my victory.
Circuit Special wasn't was I was expecting to drive with Baby Peach, but on the whole it worked. I'm not absolutely crazy about it, but there's no reason to avoid it. It's easy to keep on the track, and easy to drive, you just might have some difficulties getting past people on track, and those starts aren't going to be keeping you in first.
I hope you enjoyed this section, and I'll see you next month.
Mach Speed Mayhem
Hello, 'Shroom readers! Welcome to the latest issue of Mach Speed Mayhem. The Year of AX isn't happening after all, the will of the voters dictated otherwise. And since I just roll with what you give me, I'm happy to put #19: Leon in the spotlight for the current issue! An anthropomorphic wolf from the planet Zou, Leon's here to give hope and inspiration to the people of his war-torn world!
Main Series
First appearing as one of F-Zero X's many new racers, one thing that's obvious about Leon on the Nintendo 64 is that he was much more lion-like rather than the wolf he would become in later installments of the series. It explains his name, at least - Leon the Lion sounds a lot more fitting than Leon the Wolf, huh? He was one of the characters to get very little in his initial bio, though. In fact, it dunked on him by saying he wasn't bright compared to humans, though at least it gives him credit for having some of the sharpest reflexes on the track and some solid cornering ability. Like always, in addition to his "modern" redesign - in this case the drastic change to a wolfman - F-Zero GX was happy to give quite a bit more to his biography. First, it introduced his birthplace, the planet of Zou, which had been subjected to plenty of war and strife that had only ended a recent twelve years ago. Second, it told us that both of Leon's parents perished in said war.
Most of all, though, we finally learned Leon's motivation! As part of Zou's recovery, the planet decided that they needed a symbol of hope for everyone to unite behind. That symbol is none other than Leon and his F-Zero machine, sent to the Grand Prix to claim victory for the healing world. He's putting all of his abilities to use to save the children from poverty and to ensure that he can give his planet something to believe in! In fact, most of his interview questions with Mr. Zero focus on his status as a hero to children. He's the head of an orphanage when not racing, and he coaches kids in soccer as well. The money he's won off the race? That's going to a new soccer field as well as plenty of high-quality meals for the kids. His gloves were a gift from the kids, he became a racer to see smiles on kids, he credits his victory to racing for others, and he even wants Mr. Zero to give his autograph to kids.
In short, it's blatantly clear that Leon's experiences as an orphan have inspired him to care for others, to ensure they have parental figures of some sort. He's a good dude! Outside of his focus on the kids, there's a couple other notable bits - he's surprisingly happy to play up the wild beast image, saying the power of the wild beast is what he displayed. As the most "huh, interesting" note, though... he's apparently a fan of wrestling, as that's what he plans to go into now that he's claimed F-Zero victory. While his interviews gave him something to work with, Leon is not anything special in the GX Story Mode, only appearing for the big 30-car race that is Chapter 7. Oddly, while Leon's GX AI is notably bad, when he's in Chapter 7 he's surprisingly good! He'll never win, but you'll often see him showing up in the top 6. It's a uniquely good performance.
Leon's machine, the Space Angler, was actually created by someone who started as his enemy! The designer, Fable, was once part of the enemy forces attacking Zou in the planet's great war. Fable became furious over what his people were doing, and betrayed them to join Zou, taking to the other world to the point where he was Zou's hero that led the planet's army to victory. Once the war was over, Fable refused to simply ignore the world's troubles, and when the plan to send an F-Zero racer to represent them took shape, he built the Space Angler and was the one to pick Leon as its pilot. The listed stats for the machine are C Body, C Boost, and A Grip, and back in F-Zero X it was an okay-rounder. The general view of the Space Angler in X is as a good beginner's vehicle... with the problem that normally it doesn't unlock until you're pretty deep into X. Not a bad vehicle if you're borrowing a complete save file to try out, though.
F-Zero GX produces an odd result. The Space Angler's stats naturally differ from what's claimed, with solid top speed and handling but weak body and acceleration, making it one of the weaker vehicles in the game. It's not the worst, though - you can squeeze some good results out of the machine with some effort. When it comes to the AI, though? The AI has no idea how to drive. The Space Angler AI version will never finish higher than 25th place or so, out of 30, unless there were a lot of eliminations or things went strangely. Why does the AI have no idea how to drive? I dunno! It's one of the mysteries of GX.
GP Legend series
In the F-Zero: GP Legend anime, Leon gets to be a character of the day... squashed together with a second character of the day. His one and only episode is a doubleup with Beastman... and boy, does it do some odd things! You see, the wolfman was apparently not a good character in the minds of the anime writers. So instead, he is now a werewolf, who spends most of the episode in an anime-original human form, and only transforms into a wolfman under certain conditions. But I'm getting ahead of myself!
Like all good characters of the day, we meet Leon abruptly, when he's already been working at the Falcon House Cafe the main characters hang out at. For a week, even! He's quickly established as awkward but endearing, with a crush on Lucy Liberty and a part-time F-Zero racer... until Beastman shows up. The Beast Hunter establishes that he's here to hunt beasts, and when he meets Leon he can tell the guy's a strange newcomer. Leon gets pressured until Beastman gets pulled away, allowing him to continue thinking about Lucy and his hopes of a confession.
That night, as Rick Wheeler and Beastman watch an alleyway, they come face-to-muzzle with a mysterious wolfman! Beastman attempts to capture him, only for the wolfman to escape, leaving behind only a little evidence. From this, Beastman deduces the truth - the wolfman is a descendant of the wild beast that killed Beastman's family when the latter was young, and he's vowed to wipe them all out. Driving off, Beastman chases the beast, leaving Rick behind to be confronted by Leon. The young man explains that yes, his ancestors were cruel beasts, but as the generations passed they grew into peaceful creatures, evolving into the people they are now. He transformed because of the light of the moon, but he has no desire to cause trouble, so he'll just be on his way - that is until Rick calls him out on the idea of leaving without at least saying goodbye. (Side note, I don't know how they crammed generations of Zouians into Beastman's normal human lifespan. F-Zero Anime LogicTM strikes again!)
At the big race of the day, Leon, Beastman, and Lucy Liberty have all joined, as well as Beastman's current target - Bio Rex. While Lucy and Leon stay together near the back of the pack, Leon resists the urge to go Beast Mode and boost ahead, trying to support Lucy... but that's when Bio Rex strikes! To get Beastman off his tail, he crashes Lucy's car. While normally this isn't much of a problem, this one time the car lands in such a way that not only is she pinned over, but nobody can get her out of it! Thus, Leon has to go wolfman and flips it with ease, only for Beastman to confront him. Rick and Beastman have a staredown, until Beastman backs down and allows Leon a pass. To avoid problems, Leon leaves, and we never see him agaaain.
Leon appears - only as a full wolfman, no trace of his human side - in both the F-Zero: GP Legend and F-Zero Climax spinoff games. The latter elaborates a little on both Leon and his car. According to his Climax bio, everyone on Zou is a werewolf, changing into their beast form only under pressure; and his car was originally a wheeled vehicle! Lines up with what a war-torn planet would be able to provide. It was converted into an F-Zero machine, but the inherent design differences resulted in a low to the ground machine that focuses primarily on usability. If you're a beast man with strong power, that's just fine by you!
Other Information
So, Leon's redesign. Weird, huh? They took this lion man and made him a wolf man because... because? Well, that's not quite true. See, the GX redesign didn't just make Leon into a wolf... it also made him into a design reference! His jumpsuit remains his own, considering it wasn't redesigned at all, but his face now strongly resembles that of Star Fox's Wolf O'Donnell. We already know F-Zero is happy to reference other series (see: literally everything ever about James McCloud) so it's certainly not out of their wheelhouse, and he matches up with Wolf in both the color aspect and the missing eye - that closed eye remains permanently closed for Leon. While it's only a design shoutout rather than throwing it into interviews or lore, it's definitely something worth noting.
That covers everything we've got to say on Leon, so give me next month's pick. As this month's demolition of the Year of AX shows, anything can happen in the WWE, so come back for October to see what I've had thrown at me this time!
Pokédex Power
Hello everyone, it's me, Yoshi876 again with a new edition of Pokédex Power, the section written by the person who recently and finally got Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and given that the game has some small Splatoon and The Legend of Zelda content with the likes of Marie and Epona, imagine if it got some Pokémon content. I know that Game Freak is notoriously stingy with how it allows its content to be used, see the stripped-down appearance in Super Mario Maker, but just imagine a yellow mouse villager with red cheeks walking around. Perhaps they could introduce turtles and lizards as normal villagers as you can get Squirtle and Charmander. I can't imagine Blathers would be happy with the bugs like Beedrill or Galvantula, or perhaps what we're looking at this month: Gligar.
Gligar is an interesting Pokémon, but not one that I think I have too much experience with. The main reason would be down to the fact that I do like evolving my Pokémon, and as I'm not usually in the position to trade with people, plus the fact that you have to do it with a specific item makes it even worse. However, I do have some vague experience in watching Gligar, Sinnoh was when I switched off, but I do remember watching the episode where Ash caught his Gligar, and although it's not a Pokémon I would've seen him with, they were a pretty good match.
However, Ash catching it doesn't guarantee good Pokédex entries, so does Gligar have what it takes to impress me? Let's find out…
Generation II
| Pokémon Gold | It flies straight at its target's face then clamps down on the startled victim to inject poison. |
| Pokémon Silver | It usually clings to cliffs. When it spots its prey, it spreads its wings and glides down to attack. |
| Pokémon Crystal | It builds its nest on a steep cliff. When it is done gliding, it hops along the ground back to its nest. |
| Pokémon Stadium 2 | It flies straight at its target's face then clamps down on the startled victim to inject poison. |
Gligar glides, Gligar jabs and Gligar lives in the cliffs. That is essentially the main summary of Gligar's entries, and boy are they dull. I can absolutely forgive them for focusing on the gliding, given that is the main aspect about Gligar, but just about every entry mentions it and Gold and Silver may as well be the same entry instead of pretending that they're slightly different. I do have to wonder what kind of prey Gligar goes after, I'm imagining bug Pokémon like Caterpie or perhaps Ledyba, but given that it clings to its prey's face, perhaps it's something larger. Now, I'm not thinking that this thing is taking on Pokémon like Stantler or Girafarig, but maybe it's attacking things like Rattata or Hoothoot. I do, however, like the little fact at the end of Crystal about Gligar hopping back to its nest, I wonder if it bounces on its tail, or hops with its legs.
Generation III
| Pokémon Ruby | Gligar glides through the air without a sound as if it were sliding. This Pokémon hangs on to the face of its foe using its clawed hind legs and the large pincers on its forelegs, then injects the prey with its poison barb. |
| Pokémon Sapphire | Gligar glides through the air without a sound as if it were sliding. This Pokémon hangs on to the face of its foe using its clawed hind legs and the large pincers on its forelegs, then injects the prey with its poison barb. |
| Pokémon Emerald | It glides without making a single sound. It grasps the face of its foe using its hind and large front claws, then stabs with its poison barb. |
| Pokémon FireRed | It usually clings to cliffs. When it spots its prey, it spreads its wings and glides down to attack. |
| Pokémon LeafGreen | It flies straight at its target's face then clamps down on the startled victim to inject poison. |
And suddenly, we're barely learning anything about Gligar. In fact, we learn nothing about the Pokémon except that it uses its pincers, which are then just randomly referred to as claws for Emerald, to attack as well. But given its pincers, I would've loved more detail there, perhaps about if its prey fights back, and the Gligar has to use its pincers to defend itself. What ends up being more powerful, its pincers or the poison tail? Speaking about the poison tail, various Poison-entries tell us about the potency of their poison, and I'd also like to know about the potency of Gligar's. Can it kill a man with just one jab? How effective are antidotes?
Generation IV
| Pokémon Diamond | It sails on the winds with its limbs extended to strike from the sky. It aims for the prey's face. |
| Pokémon Pearl | It sails on the winds with its limbs extended to strike from the sky. It aims for the prey's face. |
| Pokémon Platinum | It glides as if sliding. It startles foes by clamping on their faces, then jabs with its poison stinger. |
| Pokémon HeartGold | It flies straight at its target's face then clamps down on the startled victim to inject poison. |
| Pokémon SoulSilver | It usually clings to cliffs. When it spots its prey, it spreads its wings and glides down to attack. |
Although these are technically new entries, they're pretty much just rehashes of Gligar attacks its prey and aims for the face, which we've gotten for two generations straight.
Generation V
| Pokémon Black | It glides as if sliding. It startles foes by clamping on their faces, then jabs with its poison stinger. |
| Pokémon White | It glides as if sliding. It startles foes by clamping on their faces, then jabs with its poison stinger. |
| Pokémon Black 2 | It clamps onto its chosen prey then jabs the stinger on its tail into the prey while it's stunned with surprise. |
| Pokémon White 2 | It clamps onto its chosen prey then jabs the stinger on its tail into the prey while it's stunned with surprise. |
Given that Generation V usually reuses entries, Gligar's entries aren't getting interesting anytime soon.
Generation VI
| Pokémon X | It usually clings to cliffs. When it spots its prey, it spreads its wings and glides down to attack. |
| Pokémon Y | It flies straight at its target's face then clamps down on the startled victim to inject poison. |
| Pokémon Omega Ruby | Gligar glides through the air without a sound as if it were sliding. This Pokémon hangs on to the face of its foe using its clawed hind legs and the large pincers on its forelegs, then injects the prey with its poison barb. |
| Pokémon Alpha Sapphire | Gligar glides through the air without a sound as if it were sliding. This Pokémon hangs on to the face of its foe using its clawed hind legs and the large pincers on its forelegs, then injects the prey with its poison barb. |
I am actually kinda tired while writing this, so I'm not going to bother writing much here, it's not like the Pokédex people put much effort into this generation.
Conclusion I could honestly use the first sentence I wrote when describing Gligar in Generation II to sum up the entirety of Gligar's entries. Every single generation focuses on the fact that it attacks its prey's face and lives in the cliffs. Apparently, there's nothing else interesting about this flying scorpion, it doesn't have to worry about other Pokémon attacking its nest, or when its on the ground; whether it has any actual flying ability or if its solely a gliding Pokémon; is it adept at changing direction when gliding or once it decides a direction is that what it has to do? I think these might be the dullest entries we've looked at in this section's history, and given that Gligar is a kind of neat Pokémon, that's a shame. Maybe the real reason it didn't appear in Generation VII was so the writers didn't have to tell us about it aiming for the face again.
Koops, Your Emblem is on Fire
Part 12: Going to Hell, Man.
Ey peops! Today is another wonderful day as we go visit marquess Santaruz, lord Helman, a trusted friend of Eliwood's dad! What could possibly go wrong?
Everything
Anyway, let's just dive in. Warning tho, I accidentally turned the game volume a bit higher than it should be so my voice ends up drowning in the recording. Sorry about that. Not much I can do to fix it.
We got a new sword... uh, I mean, unit! Yeah. Let's check him out.
Guy
A youth from Sacae. Yearns to be a swordmaster.
Level 3 Myrmidon.
HP: 21 ~ 25 (75%)
Str: 6 ~ 8 (30%)
Skl: 11 ~ 13 (50%)
Spd: 11 ~ 13 (70%)
Luck: 5 ~ 5 (45%)
Def: 5 ~ 6 (15%)
Res: 0 ~ 1 (25%)
Con: 5 (+1 Upon promotion)
Move: 5 (+1 Upon promotion)
Note: You may notice that I've listed two sets of base stats for Guy, each set separated by a "~". The higher of these stats are Guy's hard mode bonuses. Before we analyze Guy. I'd like to talk about these bonuses.
Hard Mode Bonuses are what enemies use on hard mode. It's obvious that hard mode is harder than normal mode, and most of what makes that difference in difficulty is the enemies' higher stats. Those higher stats are calculated ingame by a number of hidden level-ups that don't affect the enemy's displayed level, and each enemy class has specific growth rates. Those hidden levels function just like your own level-ups, except that they're only there in hard mode.
However, since most enemies are affected by those hard mode bonuses, then so are recruitable enemies, including our newest friend Guy here. And since playable units usually have better growths than enemy units, the hard mode bonuses on recruitable enemies tend to stand out more, and as such these units are very much better than they are in normal mode. This doesn't apply to every recruitable enemy, however, as the mechanic itself is actually an oversight on the dev team's part (A very welcome oversight, in fact), so only recruitable units that aren't initially on the map get those bonuses. And you may have noticed that Guy left his fort after the initial bunch of enemies appeared, thus meaning that he was able to get those bonuses... I know that's how it works in Fe6, The Binding Blade, but I'm not sure it's the same here. Regardless, it holds true for Guy, who we're gonna talk about now. Hard Mode bonuses are only present in Hector Hard Mode.
I personally like hard mode bonuses, because they feel like rewards for playing on a higher difficulty, unfortunately they have yet to appear in any game outside of FE6-7.
Guy
Guy is our first myrmidon, and our last unpromoted one too. He joins which low-ish strength on normal mode, decent in hard mode, and his speed and skill stats are particularly high in both difficulties. He is, however, pretty fragile, with his low 21 HP and 5 defense, slightly alleviated in hard mode by his +4 HP and +1 defense bonuses.
Normal mode Guy suffers quite a bit from many things. First off, while his base speed is good, his Con is very, very low, which may in fact be his biggest statistical weakness. He can only use iron swords and slim swords without being weighed down, and even his killing edge, that he comes with, costs him 2 speed to use, bringing him down to 9, which is nothing too notable at the moment, really. He has a much better time on hard mode, where his stats have grown at a slightly higher rate than the other enemies, meaning that he has an easier time doubling with the killing edge there. In fact, Guy may be useful for a few chapters in hard mode, due to the increased difficulty and the occasional need to double, as many other people have a harder time doubling than himself.
However, the one main issue with Guy that destroys him as a unit is his class. While myrmidons in on themselves aren't inherently bad, this is perhaps one of the worst games to be stuck in as a myrmidon. FE7, while the earlygame of Hector Hard Mode may be challenging, gets easier as it goes on, and eventually, everyone starts doubling, since the threshold isn't very high, so myrmidons will lose that distinction very quickly. Not only that, but Guy is sword-locked, in a game full of lances and 1-2 range enemies. Further accentuating this flaw is his lack of a mount, so Guy suffers of the same problems as Eliwood. Sad, but that's how it is. Yeah, really, the best thing about him is that he has a Killing edge in his inventory, and that can be given to anyone with C rank in swords.
Either way, Swordmasters are this fun to use, flashy class, so if you really want that on your team, you're gonna have to accommodate to be able to train Guy. And there's quite a few axe users around his join time, so perhaps it's possible to get him somewhere using those. Keep in mind that as the game goes on, it will be very hard for Guy to keep up, so the earlygame is the best place for him to keep kills. If you want to use him, you better make the most out of it while you still comfortably can.
And that concludes this month's issue! Next time, we will see what that sidequest's about, and then continue on to Laus. See ya then!
| The 'Shroom: Issue 162 | |
|---|---|
| Staff sections | Staff Notes • The 'Shroom Spotlight • 'Shroomfest |
| Features | Fake News • Fun Stuff • Palette Swap • Pipe Plaza • Critic Corner • Strategy Wing |
| Specials | Awards Analysis |
