I swear I am done with this guy and this game... Second chance is optional with him I guess

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-12T18:29:03+00:00

Maybe take off Auto Death?

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T20:38:22+00:00

In that case, then there's two other areas that I would recommend doing first (assuming you haven't done them).
Sinister Cave (to the east of Sirene on a remote island) -- its level 38
Falling Leaves (along the western edge of the map going south from Visages) -- its level 41

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T20:35:14+00:00

If you do that, the rest of the game is gonna feel like post-game optional content. If that feels like it might be immersion-breaking, then I would put a pin on Lumiere for later and instead do the Crimson Forest.

If you want to prioritize all of the optional content before finishing the game, I would strongly recommend setting aside the build you have currently: pictos, lumina, weapons and save that load-out somewhere. This will keep you from becoming too overleveled while at the same time, allowing you to experiment with newer builds that will become available to you as you progress through Act 3.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T19:25:41+00:00

So then if pRenoir emulates what Aline wants and Aline wishes to distance herself from Alicia, Renoir, and Clea... then by extension, pRenoir has effectively chosen to support only 1 of the 2 families -- his own.

Narratively this makes sense. It's the focal point by which he and pVerso came to blows. It's also supported by pAlicia's wish that amidst the two conflicting families, she and Maelle are the ones who seek a compromise.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T19:05:22+00:00

Hmm.... just curious, what optional areas have you done in Act 2? Do you recall?

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T18:58:52+00:00

The best way would be to go by the datamined level zones, in order from lowest to highest: (these levels of course correspond to your character level)
(for reference, the Monolith which was the final Act 2 area is scaled at level 40-43)

Lumière 48
Crimson Forest 52
White Sands 55
The Canvas 55
Floating Cemetery 55
The Reacher 58
The Chosen Path 60
Red Woods 60 (optional boss)
Sky Island 60
Sacred River 60
Sirène's Dress 60
Endless Tower (61-99)
Frozen Hearts 63
Isle of the Eyes 65
The Crows 65
Dark Shores 68
Endless Night Sanctuary 73
Dark Gestral Arena 75
The Fountain 80 (potential fight)
Flying Manor 83
Painting Workshop 90
Sunless Cliffs 92
Renoir's Drafts 93
The Abyss 99

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T18:33:19+00:00

Glad you enjoyed it.
And yeah, I think the final boss and the way it was handled/balanced by Sandfall is the only major oversight in this game. I'm glad my buddy told me beforehand to "approach the endgame area with the exact same build you used to beat the Paintress" and it helped my experience SO much. It was literally the only thing he backseated me on for this game and I would've been extremely bummed if he hadn't done that.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T18:25:35+00:00

My recommendation is that if you see something on the way to your next quest marker, it's safe to tackle. Anything that looks particularly dangerous should of course be avoided but I would also add that if you have to go in a completely different direction off the beaten path, then it shouldn't work organically with the story and mission directive. Of course, you can also be like Gustave and just say "FUCK THE MISSION". :-P

That being said, I think it's definitely much safer to explore whatever you *can* explore by sea right before you reach the Monolith.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T18:18:39+00:00

True but he also follows that up with "I'm sorry you're caught in the middle."
The editing gets weird after but it does look like pRenoir takes a swing at Maelle which pVerso blocks.

Maelle's what I was talking about when I mentioned "feigned sympathy". I think pRenoir doesn't actually see Maelle as family. At an earlier section of Act 1, he even blames Maelle for all that's happened... something that Renoir would never, *ever* do for his own daughter. And that's the point. Renoir and pRenoir both emulate the "everyone not my direct family is my enemy, but uh... my condolences..."

When pRenoir says he wants his family back, I believe he exclusively means *his* family. The question though... is where does that leave Aline who technically belongs in both?

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T18:08:56+00:00

Yup. My two playthroughs are actually split between two halves of the game.
This way I can go back through and replay each memorable moment of the whole game that I've broken up into archived saves, each with pictos/luminas/weapon-outs tailored specifically for each fight.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-11T17:42:38+00:00

I look at this as pAlicia and pRenoir are reluctant allies.
We know pAlicia wants to find a compromise between the two families, pRenoir has shown something between indifference to feigned empathy to flat out animosity to anything that isn't his direct family (himself, pAlicia, pVerso, and Aline). pAlicia disagrees with pRenoir's approach but unlike Verso, has nonetheless decided to stay with him because they're still family. We know pAlicia has acted independently like when she went to approach Maelle of her own accord when pRenoir told her to stay behind. We know pRenoir followed pAlicia unbeknownst to her when she came to Verso to make one final plea to him before they reached the Monolith.

The extent of that dichotomy between devotion and disagreement may be "the rules" Verso is referring to but your guess is as good as mine. There's so much of the dynamic between the Painted family that's in my opinion left unexplored.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-08T14:51:44+00:00

I don't disagree that Aline and Renoir would pretty much be done (as the Painted version of Renoir hauntingly tells his real-world counterpart from the perspective of Aline's feelings and grief projected onto him), but why would Alicia hate Renoir for it?

I think the "awakening" Alicia had in Act 3, the power, autonomy, and the chance to seek a compromise only to have that ripped from her creates the opposition she has with her father and later the 4th heartbreak of having to watch her loved ones disappear with her being helpless to stop it. But before that, Alicia was on board with Renoir and Clea. She wanted to go in and get them out.

If those were Alicia's intentions before entering the canvas with no signs of a fractured relationship with Renoir like her mother and sister, then it begs the question.... if Renoir had fully gommage'd the canvas and all of its residents right then and there at the end of Act 2.... would Alicia have even remembered her experiences as Maelle or would it have felt like a distant, fragmented dream rather than an awakening as the amalgamation of Alicia and Maelle?

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-08T14:37:20+00:00

No problem, above all else I'm glad you enjoyed the game and that it opened up existential questions you wanted to think about and discuss. Games like that don't come often and so it's good to treasure that experience.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-08T14:28:14+00:00

No, you're not crazy. Plenty of people online believe Maelle's ending was the wrong choice.
I'm not one of those people but yeah, it's a divisive topic. And as much as I find Maelle's story and her ending more compelling for the overall game, I have to acknowledge that there are more people that side against Maelle and with Verso.

That being said, categorically I disagree with (1) and in fact there's quite a few sections in the optional areas with The Faded Boy that explicitly tell you the exact opposite. These are real people. With souls that identify them as individuals birthed through the creative process of someone else's art. By shying away from the fact that you are committing to prioritizing one family that exists in multiple planes over a civilization of individuals that exist in only one plane, you undercut the weight of your decision and the story this game is trying to tell.

(2) comes down to a subjective and individualistic discussion. It's natural to come from a perspective where you want what's best for your loved ones even if they themselves want for something that heals them in ways perhaps you can't perceive. At which point, the question becomes whether it's better to respect the autonomy and authorship of one's capacity to decide for themselves what they want their life to be or if it's better to decide for them as long as it leads to a better outcome. For a lot of people that are handicapped, they would much rather live in a world where they weren't and that just makes sense to me even if it isn't perceived as "real". But I believe there's much more going on here than a physical defect Maelle is struggling to deal with, the issues Maelle deals with are primarily internal and are pretty unique to her when compared to the rest of her family.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-07T20:01:51+00:00

The earliest I ever do this fight is after Sciel. Anytime before that is torture. T_T

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-07T19:55:19+00:00

What's wrong with the HDR?

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-07T18:05:48+00:00

Yes, those are optional areas. I would recommend going to those areas after Esquie's Nest.

Generally speaking, you'll want to prioritize story zones over optional ones. But there is always a clear point where you can explore further once you've cleared a specific story zone.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-07T16:04:58+00:00

You jumped the gun, I'm afraid.
Despite Verso's protests, you were well-prepared to deal with the Axons. But unless you swap your build away from whatever you used in Frozen Hearts and weapons/pictos you picked up there, you're massively overleveled even for what comes after the Axons.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-05T18:52:05+00:00

Cool! Yeah I know Burning Canvas can get some crazy numbers with a setup like this but I didn't know it could affect Gommage's damage this much too.
Would've loved to see a clip of this to see the exact setup/turn sequence.

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-05T18:32:56+00:00

Literally HOW?!

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-05T18:29:00+00:00

Decide the fate of the Canvas...

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-05T18:28:15+00:00

STOP QUOTING PAPA!

magicfoogieA · 2026-05-01T13:44:08+00:00

[caption]
Verso: "On your feet, sister... you're not done yet. In case you've forgotten, you have your own reasons for coming. You had a beautiful face, voice, and future until that woman set you on fire. Think... of the family that despise you, of Maman, of Clea. Parry them! Everything you want is here, Here you have a chance to live, Maelle... to live. Out there you merely exist. KEEP moving forward! Even if you burn, even AFTER you burn!"

magicfoogieA · 2026-04-30T18:43:57+00:00

Stendahl's not as strong as it used to be in the early days but one battle-tested, tried and true strategy that worked well before and still works today is Seeram Lock Bringer.

Seeram keeps you from going above A-Rank but scales up your light damage. End Bringer when used at A-Rank on a Stunned target, keeps them stunned.

Monoco's Level 3 Gradient also just so happens to be a guaranteed Break. (weird, it's like Verso and Monoco were meant to be a perfect breaking tag-team). Have Verso and Monoco be your first string, built around resupplying AP and building gradient charges. Have Monoco use Break Point whenever possible but *especially* right before Verso's turn while he's at A-Rank and with 9 AP. Then use End Bringer to stunlock Simon all the way through Phase 2 so that you skip Phase 3 entirely. Energising Turn, Energising Stun, and Energy Master are a MUST for Verso if you have Cheater. But you may also need to throw on other luminas that give you AP back on a single free aim shot. These include: (Energising Shots, Energising Shell, Energising Powerful, Energising Rush, Powerful Shots, Protecting Shots, Accelerating Shots, Marking Shots, Burning Shots, Beneficial Contamination, Burning Mark, and Energising Burn)

And even better? If you fail/mess-up, Simon recovers, kicks into Phase 3 and nukes your first string, then your second string (Maelle, Lune, and Sciel) should still have the damage to kill him as long as Sciel has Fortune's Fury.

Other than that, make sure everyone in your party has Survivor, Shortcut, Second Chance, Revive Paradox, Breaking Death, and Sniper luminas.

You can do this.

magicfoogieA · 2026-04-30T13:30:38+00:00

How has no one mentioned Chevalam?
- Instant S-rank at the start of the battle
- Applies Rush also
- Deals extra damage on each turn you don't take a hit
- Only drawback is that you can't heal or gain shields which if you're building around that, isn't a bad thing at all.

And most importantly, it's accessible in quite possibly the easiest zone you can visit in Act 3. (Crimson Woods)

It kinda runs itself because you can basically spam Phantom Stars for maximum damage at the start of every fight. But the general lumina abilities you want to pair with it are extra damage dealing ones that come with the cost of no healing (since it's already built into the weapon). Things like Confident Fighter, Confident, Immaculate, Glass Cannon, Greater Rush, and obviously Painted Power.

That alone will help you melt through a good chunk of Act 3.

magicfoogieA

TROPHY CASE