Monday 28 March 2016

Guild Wars 2

Gamespot Score: 9.0 (Editor's Choice)

My Score: 9.0


(+) Pros: - Amazing world and lore, - Superb in-game mechanics and does many things very differently from other MMORPGs, - Rewards exploration and makes questing a lot less tedious, which is a godsend, - Very good story telling and story for an MMORPG, - Incredibly versatile approach to combat, - Active community, even after all these years and after going F2P, - Plenty of community events and post game content.

(-) Cons: - Free players tend to suffer a LITTLE bit and the combat gets slightly repetitive as you approach the end game.


Gameplay time: -






MMORPGs are fun and can be a good way to whittle time away if you aren't playing your single player games. Ranging from spending minutes to hours on character creation or simply just grinding away raids or dungeons trying to get your ideal equipment, it can seriously be a legit, time gobbling addiction. However, having played SO many MMORPGs and even used to think that "Cabal Online" was the best MMORPG for quite some time, my naive mind slowly blanked out. Most MMORPGs rarely last over level 30 for me now, because I've grown so tired of them...of course, until "Guild Wars 2" happened. This baby just became free quite some time back, and when I started it, I didn't believe I would hit level f**king 80. I never thought that "Guild Wars 2" would be my salvation to reignite the love for MMORPGs. If every MMORPG from now on just follows "Guild Wars 2", they would all be f**king amazing, I assure you. From that day onward, "Guild Wars 2" became the MMORPG that I would compare every other MMORPG to, and while its an extremely tough benchmark to follow, that just shows how great this game is.


Like most MMORPGs in recent years, "Guild Wars 2" does have a story. And I know all of you will stop right here and say this, "MMORPG stories do not matter and pretty much suck anyway". That might be true elsewhere, but definitely not here. "Guild Wars 2" simply has one of the most in-depth stories in an MMORPG, exploring the lore of multiple races and providing stories will BRANCHING PATHS AND DIFFERING OUTCOMES. As well as FULLY VOICED CUTSCENES! Say what?! You play as a character in one of 5 races, and the story weighs as you being one of the many hundreds of thousands of adventurers banding together to stop the awakening of the elder dragons that will bring ruin to the world. I won't spoil too much, but its a story that has A LOT OF ANGLES to it, and its amazing how much effort is put into this story for an MMORPG.



Introducing the races and classes.

First off, the world and lore of "Guild Wars 2" is simply just amazing. Sure, while the game tells its story nicely, a lot of the deep, rich and interesting lore is buried into items and dialogue from NPCs. If you haven't played the first "Guild Wars" (like me), a lot of what happened can be found in the game through dialogue, but its incredibly hard to find as they are usually missing from the cutscenes which you will be investing yourself in. I went to the wiki personally to discover a lot of what I cannot find in the game, but there really is an interesting world and lore here. And as much as it is interesting, its also incredibly fun to explore the world of Tyria, more on that later.


"Guild Wars 2" does many things differently from other MMORPGs. Many, MANY things. Questing is a lot easier, you are actually rewarded for exploration, combat is a lot more accessible, you are more rewarded being more skillful, and the game doesn't become such a f**king chore as you play. Right off the bat after your tutorial, you'll realize that you are pretty much free to go where you want and you can do what you want to do. Combat in this game is pretty much similar to all other action based MMORPGs out there at the moment, but its a lot more versatile. You can also quick travel instantly without any item or limitation, making the game a lot less tedious. Also, with plenty (trust me when I do say, PLENTY) of events that encourage working with other players, its a lot more of a community based game than ever.



Lights and lasers.

For one, "Guild Wars 2" is probably the very first MMORPG I've played that rewards the players for explorations. Instead of just grinding out quests in order like in other games, "Guild Wars 2" gives you PLENTY of ways to level up to reach that hefty, level 80 level cap. In the various maps of the game, there are plenty of way points, vistas, and points of interests. Way points are markers for you to quick travel to, every map has PLENTY, giving you the opportunity to get to where you want with the most convenience. Vistas are usually high points in the map which give you a nice view of the surrounding area, and points of interests are usually a place within the map which are worth taking note of. Upon simply discovering one of these, you get experience, and you will fill up the map's completion rate. That's right, by simply WALKING around and seeing new places, you get EXP. and by clearing quests in that map, you fill up the completion for that map as well, with 100% map completion, you are rewarded with a butt load of experience.


There are a CRAP TON of maps in Tyria, and exploring to get 100% completion in each map is usually a thrill. Each map has something new to offer, and you can go on exploration sprees like some sort of wandering traveler, ignoring your main story line quests most of the game, because you're having so much fun. Also, while I did mention completing quests part of filling up a map's completion, there's really no need to worry, as questing is made a lot easier in this game. While the conditions to clear a quest are similar to other MMORPGs, "Guild Wars 2" makes the general term, "questing", a lot less tedious. For one, entering a certain area around the quest giving NPC automatically has you "initiate" the quest. Be it killing monsters of gathering items, you will progress through the quest as you complete the requirements around this certain area (which is usually large enough). When you finish the quest, it automatically completes itself and you are sent the reward, automatically. No more talking to the god damned NPC with an exclamation mark above his/her head, taking the quest, FINISHING it, then walking BACK to the NPC to complete it. NO, MORE.



Rats aren't the kindest of creatures.

With the simplicity of questing, and with so many other ways to obtain exp though exploration and events, there's almost no way to NOT level up in this game. There's always SO MUCH TO DO, and for once, you're not stuck with no way left to level up other than killing normal mobs or doing dungeons, in "Guild Wars 2", you always have something to do. There are even these "map completion" gauges in cities, and even jumping quests that give you exp and/or great prizes (though these are ridiculously difficult and I would not recommend them). Of course, another great way to get exp, would be to do your story line quests, which come once every 10 levels. Speaking of that though, the story telling in this game far surpasses that of any other MMORPG to date, adding fully voiced cut scenes, branching story paths and even multiple outcomes to each chapter. Even if you don't particularly care for stories in MMORPG, you gotta agree that this is some good quality right here.


Next up we'll talk about the combat. For an MMORPG at this age, it follows the formula of having action based combat. For one, approach to combat in this game is insanely versatile. Basically, for whatever class you pick, you get access to a variety of weapons per class (especially Warrior, they get to use A LOT of weapons), and if you equip that weapon, you get access to all the skills that your class can use for that weapon, right off the bat. You have 4 free hands, you can equip up to 4 single handed weapons, 2 double handed ones or a combination of both. Since you CAN switch weapons on the fly while waiting for cooldowns, the possible combinations are downright insane. While this means you don't actually learn new moves, as you will be playing around with plenty of skill combinations throughout your journey through the game. You also have access to skill trees based on your class and specializations to make your class different from that of other players.



World versus world folks.

Other things I can commend about the game doing a good job on: maintaining its community. Throughout the years, even after it went F2P, the community has a massive player base, for a game like "Guild Wars 2", its pretty much a requirement. As events pop up in the world, players come from far and wide to participate. Even then, after you DO eventually hit 80 and finish all the story line quests, there's plenty more to do, ranging from guild raids, dungeons , world bosses and even an all out PVP brawl in world versus world. The sheer amount of content is absolutely ridiculous, and even if you just want to finish the entire world map of Tyria and get the completion rate to 100%, its going to take you a...pretty long time to do that.



Bosses are massive damage sponges.

As an MMORPG, the game is almost perfect. Not much complaints to go around here. For one, free players suffer a little bit, such as being restricted to the "Heart Of Thorns" content, or being able to trade with others, carry more items, etc etc. However, these are pretty much small prices to play for enjoying "Guild Wars 2" for free...I mean, they HAVE to make some restrictions to actually want to make free players BUY the game. The other one is combat being a little bit stale as you plow through the game, since you don't really learn new abilities, you're pretty much gifted all of them from the start. Still, that's only a minor complaint, as I only felt the drag towards the VERY END of my play time with this game.


"Guild Wars 2" is the epitome of all F2P MMORPGs right now, I doubt there would be any other MMORPG that could stand up to it at the moment. It deviates from the regular formula so much that it becomes an almost different genre, and I do hope that some other upcoming MMOs do try to be different.







Happy gaming!








Opening Songs
OP 1 - Cry For The Truth (Mich)
OP 2 - Black Swallowtail (UROBOROS)


Ending Songs
ED 1 - Secret Sky (Mich)

Genre: Action, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery

Episodes: 12



Another sleeper hit of the year, nobody really saw this one coming. "Rokka No Yuusha" was a show that kinda appeared out of nowhere and took the anime community by storm. Sure, it may not be the most well known thing ever, but during the season where it aired, it sure caused a lot of commotion. It was one of the few LN adaptations that actually wasn't shitty or just straight out generic, "Rokka No Yuusha" was actually something that most people DID enjoy. Although  I only watch COMPLETED shows, "Rokka No Yuusha" was just one of those shows that I could watch in a single sitting, because the ending of every episode just left me on the edge of my seat, and I wanted to know what the flying f**k was going to happen next. I can say that without a doubt, not many shows can still manage to do that so a seasoned otaku like myself, its been awhile since I felt like that. The show itself is no slouch, it accomplishes most of what it needs to do with flying colors. "Rokka No Yuusha" is great, there's no doubt about it.



Flemmie is best girl. I mean, what were you expecting?


The opening theme is "Cry For The Truth" by Mich, and it was good, though we only got it for the first 4 episodes. It gave off a sense of adventure of tension, like most good action anime openings. However, the second opening theme, "Black Swallowtail" by UROBOROS, was a cut above. Due to the shifting tones in the show, this one fit better as the opening theme to an "Action/DramaMystery" show, instead of one that's about plain ol' adventuring. The ending theme is "Secret Sky" by Mich. Unfortunately, its nothing much but a simple, mediocre, slow, ending theme.


Rating: 8.0/10



Being a semi-action/adventure drama hybrid, "Rokka No Yuusha" actually spends a lot of time into solving the mystery that is presented on hand. Surprisingly, for an action oriented marketed show, it works, very, very well. The overall premise of the anime is very, very interesting, and its very easy to get absorbed into its intricate story telling as early as the "mystery" is introduced. Even though characters are just introduced, they are quickly made relevant and you'll start to like most of them as they begin contributing their 2 cents into the mystery. In a sense, despite these new characters showing up rather quickly (and honestly, kind of out of nowhere), interaction between them is extremely well done, and even the non-action scenes are a pleasure to watch. There can be entire episodes spent on talking and discussion, but it doesn't detract from the tension, not one bit. Speaking of the action, while it IS well done, its not the selling point of the show, its the story telling and mystery, as mentioned above. It's honestly been awhile since a show kept me in so much suspense, despite watching through it in a single sitting. 



Fight! Fight! Fight!

Adlett Mayer is just some delusional guy that claims himself to be the strongest man in the world. In a world where every few hundred years, 6 heroes are chosen to battle against the demon lord who will keep coming back to life, your chances of being chosen as one of the 6 are slim to none unless you are ridiculously strong. Having his childhood ruined by fiends, Adlett's dream is to become strong enough to be chosen as one of the 6 heroes to fight against the demon lord. He storms a kingdom's tournament and beats their 2 strongest warriors...while also being arrested for intruding on a sacred ceremony. However, he caught the attention of Nachetanya, the 18 year old princess of the kingdom, and also the current sage of the blades, one of the strongest in the world. After training in his prison cell for god knows how long, the selection of the 6 heroes began, and Adlett was chosen as one of the 6. He is busted out by princess Nachetanya, who also happened to be one of the 6 heroes, and the 2 left for the demon lord, trying to meet with the other 4 heroes along the way. Little did they know though, that they were in for an adventure...that they would never expect.



"Rokka No Yuusha" is certainly a show worth your time if you've got the SLIGHTEST bit of interest in action and/or mystery. There's a lot to like here, ranging from the characters to the story telling, its an incredibly polished show with a lot to offer. Definitely awaiting a 2nd season after that ending, don't leave me hanging.



Opening Songs
OP 1 - The Bravest Destiny (Toy Gun Gun)

Ending Songs
ED 1 - Gunjo Survival (Mikako Komatsu)


Genre: Action, Comedy, Drama

Episodes: 12



When we think about anime and air soft or BB guns, the first thing that comes to mind s "Sabagebu", which I swear to Jesus is severely under rated and is mostly shrugged off because its a show with an all-female cast. While that was a show that was funny, "Aoharu X Machinegun" over here...is actually pretty f**king hardcore. Sure, you'll just ignore me with the same, exact thing that most people will say: "It's about air soft!". Yeah, if "Shokugeki No Soma" can make cooking so f**king epic, then "Aoharu X Kikanjuu" can definitely make air soft badass, and it surely did. Sporting one of my favorite art and visual styles of the year, "Aoharu X Kikanjuu" is pretty f**king good to look at while also being quite intense to watch. I might be in the minority here, but I really, REALLY enjoyed "Aoharu X Machinegun", and hoped that it would go a bit more than 12 episodes. But alas, here we are.



Tachibana is actually decently cute as a girl.

The opening and ending themes all have Mikako Komatsu in it, who is the seiyuu for Tachibana. The opening is "Bravest Destiny" by Toy Gun Gun, which is Mikako Komatsu along with Tomoaki Maeno and Yoshitsugu Matsuoka. Its an alright shonen-esque opening theme that packs some intensity and heart, but its decent at best. The ending theme, "Gunjo Survival", is actually better, with some fast beats and Komatsu singing with a really pumped up masculine voice (meant to imitate Tachibana, I assume). I like it.



Rating: 8.0/10



I'll be the only one here that gives this a high rating, because personally, this show does many things right. While it MIGHT look and feel a little bit yaoi at times, its...really not, though it does have a fair amount of fan service for the girls when the guys tough it out with one another. The story picks up fast and never drags, before you know it, you're into the meat of the show: the intense air soft battles at a high, competitive level. Much of the show is spent building up the main character, for her to be a better air soft player, while also introducing many of the show's quite entertaining characters, though I'll be honest, nobody is more entertaining than our protagonist. She is INSANE, being both a pesky shonen goody-two shoes justice hero and a monster with an irresistible hunger for battle. At its best, the air soft action scenes are great, and the story behind many of the show's characters are also done extremely well, though not EVERY character is well represented, what's here is pretty damn good. The one thing that I thought was sub par, was probably the comedy, everything else felt spot on. The pacing was good, between the intense battle scenes were a ton of character building and room for drama...it's great, really.




The lust for blood is intense...even though its just air soft.

Tachibana Hotaru is just your everyday regular high school GIRL who decides that she wants to dress like a guy. Why? Because she's got a strong sense of justice and she pretty much lacks ANY chest what-so-ever. It's be weird if she dressed like a girl...to her anyway. She and her best friend Kanade were just talking and goofing off as usual until she mentions that she had been defiled by a certain man known as Matsuoka in a night club. Refusing to let this slide, Tachibana attacks this club, and the bell boy Matsuoka just refuses to play rough, so he suggests that they settle the score with air soft. Being a complete newbie and Matsuoka being a hardcore pro, Tachibana was floored even though she had an entire magazine and Matsuoka only had a single bullet. Seeing her talents, Matsuoka invites Tachibana to join his air soft team, mistaking her for being a "him". Things get out of whack when  Tachibana actually finds herself enjoying air soft, but refuses to reveal her sex when she finds out that Toy Gun Gun does not recruit girls.


"Aoharu X Machinegun" is great in my book, though of course, its not a show that everybody can enjoy. Its one for action lovers, that's for sure, though I can't really say much else because its a "one of a kind" anime. Watch it if you're willing to try something new, you may find something awesome in there for you.

....You can't wear THAT to a fight! 


Name: Bishamonten
From: Noragami


This bloodthirsty babe is out for Yato's blood for the entirety of 1 and a half seasons, if anything, she's over possessive. Being a girl who's pretty much used to seeing her entire clan die before her, she she adopts for a lighter wardrobe and arsenal in present age, pretty much looking like the sexiest booth babe ever in an electronics show. With her well endowed stature, its not a stretch to say that her "armor" makes her look like an exhibitionist, a really, really, sexy one. But I'm not complaining, I was actually really disappointed that she didn't take this armor into the underworld in season 2 to get all bondaged up by Izanami.



The "shirt only" approach. Classic.

Name: Ange
From: Cross Ange


It's no mistake that Ange is like, the perfect character from her show. Not only is she an awesome character that grows throughout the show, she's f**king sexy to boot. This smoking hot 16 year old is most definitely cheating on every accounting in terms of her looks, she's got great curves, a nice rack, and is almost amazing in every other aspect. To make things even worse, she's put in plenty of "almost rape-worthy" situations that you'll be fantasizing about the "what-if" scenarios in no-time. Did I also mention that she's voiced by Nana Mizuki, which makes this character's sexy-ness factor rise 3 fold?



Underneath the psychopath is actually a really, sexy, sword wielding girl.


Name; Kisara Tendou
From: Black Bullet


I'm a massive sucker for big boobs, and Kisara is the probably the only sexy thing that's in "Black Bullet" in the ocean of lolis that exist within it. Sure there are other girls that AREN'T lolis in the show, but Kisara's pretty much the hottest one with the best figure. Plus, she's got one hell of a school uniform, what the f**k is that skirt?! Still, the ending made her look like a complete, blood drenched psychopath, and I must say, she still looks attractive with all that blood on her face. Kisara is just one of those girls that ends up being sexy without trying too hard. 




The sexiest and classiest dragon-slayer in the world.


Name: Zero
From: Drakengard 3


Here we go. In a world where these forbidden Utatai sisters are forced to murder one another with their male slaves and indestructible dragons, Zero is not only the protagonist, but also the sexiest among her sisters. I mean, look at the girl! She's got a killer body and she's wearing what looks to be a glorified sleeping gown to battle! I mean, her sisters are already pretty high in terms of standard to begin with, but they don't really come close to Zero in terms of her style and outfit, this girl is just fabulous from head to toe. Fabulously sexy, of course, if you want to make your lead in a JRPG a female, this is....a nice example.




We wouldn't be talking about death and destruction without her in the topic!


Name; Beatrice
From: Umineko


All right, we all know about this one. Beatrice is one hell of a killer witch. This sadistic wretch just wants to see everyone die in bloody fashion, over and over and over and over. That by itself makes her quite screwed up, but god damn is she hot. I would be lying if I were to say that I wouldn't want to dive head first into those fun bags. While she usually dons her ball dress, there are glimpses of her in other, more seductive outfits, those are simply the best. There isn't really much fanservice regarding her in the shows, but if you search elsewhere, you'll see that the rest of the world loves our sadistic witch, and they can show you...a lot more. End of the story, she's still f**king hot.




Opening Songs
OP 1 - Insight (White Ash)

Ending Songs 
ED 1 - 6 Billion Wings (Angry Frog Rebirth)

Genre: Action, Science Fiction

Episodes: 13



"Gatchaman Crowds" is something that I never did expect to enjoy, even back then when I watched it a long time ago. Now, with the sequel, "Gatchaman Crowds Insight", you'd expect that they wouldn't deviate from the formula, and would do more of the same. If that was what you thought, you'd be....so extremely wrong. Despite being a sequel, "Gatchaman Crowds Insight" is mostly different from the original, introducing a plot and setting that's pretty much completely new territory for both newcomers and those who watched the original. This changes a lot of things, it now becomes slightly more difficult to give everyone that "Must Watch If You Are A Fan" recommendation that I would mostly slap on sequels, because "Insight" is pretty much nothing like the original. While there are many who like it, some don't and I'm a bit on the fence here. Here's my 2 cents on "Gatchaman Crowds Insight"...which is, admittedly, a nice name for a sequel.




Hajime and crew are back with new faces!

I always did enjoy "Crowds", which was the opening in season 1, and I was delighted to discover that White Ash returned to sing the opening for season 2, which is "Insight". Obviously, "Insight" is a great song that's incredibly catchy, intense, and rock-inducing, its an amazing opening theme for a show like "Gatchaman Crowds Insight". The ending theme is "6 Billion Wings" by Angry Frog Rebirth, which is also a pretty good song, good enough IMO to be an opening theme, even though it IS outshined by "Insight". Sounds like something that would go well as a "Naruto"/"Bleach" opening theme.



Rating: 7.5/10



"Insight" is very different from the original "Gatchaman Crowds" in a way that's quite unexpected. There's no villain, its as simple as that. Without something, a common enemy, to take down that lasts throughout the show, the focus shifts heavily away from the cool "Kamen Rider Hipsters That Kill Aliens". There IS some sort a minor villain that's present throughout the early episodes, but as the anime progresses, it's really not much of an action anime, and the show's tone shifts into a lot more of a..."intelligent one". Instead of a show about good guys versus bad guys, it quickly ramps up into questions about morality and the fragility of human nature, which is honestly some pretty deep shit. However, with so much dumped onto that one single theme, the entire show is pretty focused on it, and there isn't much left for out heroes to actually "fight". In terms of the action, "Insight" is solely lacking, but it provides a lot more food for thought, which is also good. New characters are very well interpreted, with the old characters playing more of a supportive role this time around, giving more room for these new characters to grow, which works pretty well. 



Ge-rururururu~~

With the Gatchamen basically becoming saviors after dealing with the threat known as Berge Katze, they become a fully recognized hero unit within Japan and are living their lives as celebrities. Sugune is even more popular with the girls, O.D is a regular guest that appears on one of the most popular reality shows in Japan, Pai-Man gets all the kids, and Hajime has more fans. The story focuses on newcomer Tsubasa, who was the next one to be forseen to become a Gatchaman by JJ. Tsubasa is a regular country bumpkin living with her parents and grandfather, who is a genius firework maker. One day, an unknown alien known as Gel-Sadra appears in Tsubasa's homeland, who appears to be friendly. With the press and Gatchamen appearing, Tsubasa awakens to her notebook, and transform into a brand new Gatchaman. She moves into Tokyo and into the Gatchaman base along with Gel-Sadra, where her new life begins.


"Gatchaman Crowds Insight" is a brand new swing when it comes to comparing it to its predecessor. Still, its a good show on its own, though admittedly, its not as fun as when it was simply just "Gatchaman Crowds". One can only wonder where the series will go from here, because at the moment, its so hard to say.





Opening Songs
OP 1 - D.O.B (Iori Nomizu)

Ending Songs
ED 1 - Hallelujah (La La Larks)

Genre: Action, Magic

Episodes: 12



There were so many freaking LN harem adaptations in 2015, so much so that its pretty sickening. You know me though, I'd watch all of them, but even now I'm getting a little bit sick of them. All these magic/fighting high school settings are enjoyable, but its getting a little bit old with all of these adaptations and at the rate the industry is pumping them out....I don't know. I think they DO need to slow down with these kinds of shows. As for "Sky Wizards Acacdemy", I can say this right off the bat: its nothing special. If you didn't enjoy stuff like "Absolute Duo", "Infinite Stratos" or "Trinity Seven", then there's nothing that'll get you into liking the genre as a whole right here. Its incredibly average with nothing much to offer to those who already watched similar, but superior shows. If you do like your magical high school harems, this is a decent watch, but its nothing too spectacular. Otherwise, if you don't enjoy the genre in the first place, stay away.



Ah...Megami posters are simply the best, aren't they?

The opening theme is "D.O.B" by Iori Nomizu. Since I DO enjoy miss Nomizu as both a seiyuu and a singer, I'd say that "D.O.B" is a decently good song. Its certainly not one of her better entries as an anime opening, but its still nice enough to portray that "magical high school" feel, with moments of intensity and light hearted jumps in between the song. The ending theme is "Hallelujah" by La La Larks, which is your typical cute-sy anime ending theme to almost every low key magical high school harem. Nothing special here, moving on.



Rating: 7.0/10



"Sky Wizards Academy" manages to hit almost every cliche in the harem/high school/super powered kids genre, which is pretty predictable at times. There's your young girls being barged in upon while changing, your bunny girl/maid costume cosplay, girls waking up in front of the protagonist naked...you name it, the show has it. It doesn't really do or try anything new that deserves some sort of compliment. Along with a rather moody and simplistic protagonist, the character cast is full of staples and stereotypes that you've probably seen or known from other similar harems. Still, if you enjoy such characters, then there's no reason to refuse the characters in "Sky Wizards Academy", because other than the rather borish setting and story, character interaction and building can be quite entertaining. Fan service is rather mild, and the "cute girls trying to fight their hardest" thing is pretty heavily emphasized in this one. Action is pretty decent, though somewhat non-existent towards its final, more lazily executed episodes. The show does everything decently, but nothing too well...



Every harem protagonist, right here.


Kanata Age is one of the many students in the floating academy city of "Mistlogen", one of the many floating fortresses in the world that serves as one of the pillars of hope against the bane of humanity...the dreaded....(wait for it)...devil beetles. Yes, devil, f**king, beetles. Anyway, humans are split between the regular people and the wizards, individuals who can manipulate magic and energy in the air to wield powerful weapons, fly, and of course, fight devil beetles. Age is one of them, and because of a certain incident in the past, he is known as the traitor. He is despised by many and has a bad name in school, despite once belonging to one of the best teams in the school. He hasn't gotten any weaker, but they still try to get on his bad size, which he ignores easily. He is charged with being the instructor of the infamous, weakest middle school team in "Mistlogen", which consists of 3, young female wizard misfits. After running into all 3 of these girls in an indecent situation in the morning, they now recognize him as a traitor AND a pervert. Not a great way to start a new job...


"Sky Wizards Academy" isn't horrendous, so it'll probably still have its own following. However, I'm highly positive that we won't be getting much more of "Sky Wizards Academy" unless it does extremely well, which I'm sure is going to be hard, with how tough the competition is in a rather saturated genre. 





Darklurker
HP: 5770
Skills: Homing Fireballs*, Homing Dark Ball*, Laser, Light Blade, Dark Soul Spear, Explosion*, Clone*
Souls: 35000


Difficulty: 3/5
Deaths: 2



All of the bosses in these post should be attempted post game and are COMPLETELY optional, mind you. First off we have the Darklurker, which is probably the biggest pain in the ass to get to out of the 3 optional post game bosses, but also probably the one who you'll need the least effort to kill in an actual fight (doesn't mean he's the easiest). You have to join the Pilgrims Of Dark Covenant and finish the Dark Chasm dungeons, lighting up the flames inside them to get access to him. Its already a massive pain to join Pilgrims Of Dark, so...yeah, I didn't bother fighting this guy with my other characters.



How does that even f**king work?


In terms of looks, Darklurker might be one of the most intimidating bosses in the game. This dude is pretty much a hooded angel of death that's fully cloaked in white in probably the darkest area in the game, he spells death from head to toe. Anyway, as intimidating as he seems, he's not THAT hard. Sure, he's tougher than about half the bosses in this game, but not by much. Despite his incredibly diverse move set, he's very easy to take down at this point of the game with his low health pool. Still, its a damned good battle, and one of the best designed fights in the game.


Homing Fireballs* - He summons a huge fireball above his head, and 3 fireballs come out of that. These 3 balls have a homing effect and each does considerable damage.

Homing Dark Ball* - He spawns a dark ball and has it go into a portal, then that ball appears in another portal that he spawns somewhere in the room. The ball then homes in on you.

Laser - A straightforward beam attack on you. Easily rolled away on instinct.

Light Blade - His means of attacking you up front. He usually dashes forward towards you in a short distance. Can be blocked, but has piercing magic damage. Usually comes in a combo of 3-4 hits.

Dark Soul Spear - A straightforward projectile attack, easy to dodge.

Explosion* - Only used if you stay in melee range for too long. Undodgeable and unblockable, this attack does tons of damage. I suggest you alternate back and forth when fighting him.

Clone* - Used at 60% HP. He clones himself and the clone can do EVERY attack that he has in his arsenal. The clone takes damage to his main HP bar as well.



Don't be fooled, there's really not THAT much to look out for when you're fighting against this guy. At this stage of the game in the regular NG, with about 40 Vit and decent armor, you'll be able to tank more than 3 hits from this guy, which is a lot more than you can against the other bosses in the post game. The Darklurker is more of a mage than anything else, using attacks like his Homing Fireballs or Dark Ball to destroy you. Thankfully, he stands perfectly still while casting these powerful attacks, so you can get a few hits in on his fairly low health pool. Since he likes to keep things at a distance, expect to not be able to melee him at times as he teleports ridiculously far away before he attacks or stays floating in the air. Because of this, always come prepared with some formed of ranged attack.



You cloning bastard!


His homing spells are generally the most dangerous, as well, they home, and you'll need precise dodges to roll through or over them. The fire balls especially, can be tricky, since there are 3 of them in a rather small time frame for you to dodge in succession. These are easier to see coming though when in compared to the dark ball, since they come in straight from the Darklurker, while the Dark Ball comes in from a random direction in which his dark portal spawns, probably behind you. Other than that he can fire straight forward projectiles like Laser or Dark Soul Spear, which are easy to dodge compared to his homing shenanigans. Then again, these don't do TOO much damage, ironically enough, his most powerful attacks come from close range.


Up close, he attacks with Light Blade, which is his form of a melee attack. He can dash up to you for a strike at mid-range, or attack in a multiple hit combo at close range. Dodge away when he starts swinging, because unless you have a strong hex shield, the piercing damage usually doesn't make blocking worth it. Finally, if you force him into melee combat for too long, he uses Explosion for some massive AOE damage, so try to back off after every combo. At 60% HP or so, he'll clone himself in an attempt to make the battle harder, though this actually gives you the advantage for awhile.


While cloning, he stands still, giving you TONS of free damage on him. Also, while cloned, the clone takes damage to the main health bar as well, meaning that you have MORE opportunities to do damage to him. At this point, I'd forgo defense and go all out to try killing him, because he'll literally be almost close to dead AND has more ways to die with his clone on the board. Of course, if you decide to drag this out, the clone and his main body combined can do some nasty shenanigans to ensure you quick demise, so make the battle quick. He gives 35000 souls on death, which is pretty pathetic.