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Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Buddy Rush: Raid Mode, YA 86

A section on the changes in Update 1.3 has been added further below.
Update 13 July 2011: Note that this article is less likely to be updated now that I have completed all sets associated with YA 86.

The second Raid Mode is against YA (Yelling Allosaurus? Yesterday's Antique? Yodeling Armor?) 86. It is available once level 68 is reached.

Update 6 December 2012:
The mini-wave update 1.7.2 on 30 October reduced YA-86's HP to 0.35M and made the raid available to characters of level 35. The old existing Titanium set has been renamed with an 'Antique' prefix.
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1.5 Million HP is a lot.
YA 86 is similar to Betty, the hidden boss of Chapter 4, and Betty Jr. Like Betty and unlike Betty Jr, YA 86 gives a fair bit of warning before using special skills. This gives enough time to run or pray for a stun.

Its 'Superhard Stonehead' does considerable damage to buddies around it, so consider running.

Its 'Nobody can stop me' charge attack is particularly dangerous. It can potentially hit twice (if unlucky) and knock out a buddy. Even if the buddy survives, he/she/it will be stunned and vulnerable to subsequent attacks.

Update 20 May 2011:
I find that running away from 'Nobody can stop me' increases the chance of getting hit twice. And since the buddies will be together, it is more likely that more of them will be hit. If you are not certain that you make a clean getaway, it may just be best to stand and take the hit to minimize damage.

Also, if running, run at an angle. YA 86 will adjust its aim at the start of the charge. Once it starts charging, if you are running at an angle, you may just lead the buddies off YA 86's path of ouch-giving.
That metallic Mark2 in the middle with the Worrier, that's not on our side.
However, the most dangerous of YA 86's attacks is its version of 'Burping Fire'. Unlike both Betty and Betty Jr, YA 86's version of the skill stuns. A buddy grazed by it will likely suffer the subsequent full force of the blast as he/she/it is unable to run. Unless the buddy is a tank, he/she/it is unlikely to survive (Hint: Use a consumable to heal during the blast). When YA 86 prepares for this attack, either run or pray for a stun, fervently.

No, I am not going to attempt to get a screenshot of that. I do not want to be anywhere near when YA 86 breathes fusion fire.
Fusion Reactor Overload! (Yeah, I should be so lucky...)
Hey, Wolfgan, this is no time to lie around.
The raid location is similar to the one with Genzir, although with a snowy theme like that of Loocos (Chapter 3). Even the pattern on the ground is the same (compare screenshots here with those in the Genzir raid). Gems and pillars appear, although 'Wake up!! Buddy!' does not seem to spawn as often. Then again, it may seem that way since I need that gem more often. And YA 86 can activate pillars.

Also, nice Mark2s will appear once in a while to deliver healing potions and treasure chests. So, save some inventory space for the latter.

New to this map are rocks falling out of the sky. They do not seem to do much damage - if any, negligible compared to the regular attacks of YA 86.
Losing buddies...
So far, I find that the best character to control against YA 86 would be a support character. I need to be ready to run, always. A support character can hang back and grab loot, healing potions, gems and pillars. With low Atk and damage skills, a support character is less likely to attract YA 86's attention.

I tried using a damage-dealer character as the main character. It requires some skill to use against YA 86. This is because I have to concentrate on actually doing damage and being prepared to run, in addition to grabbing stuff. And a damage-dealer character is more likely to attract YA 86's attention. If the main-character damage-dealer goes down, the raid is over!

As long as the main character survives, buddies can be brought back with the 'Wake up!! Buddy!' gem. That is why it is important to keep the main character out of danger.

I have not tried a tank as the main character. A tank is likely to survive YA 86's special skills. However, a tank's place is next to YA 86 and therefore, more likely to be hit by YA 86's special skills. Also, a tank would have to walk two extra steps from its position next to YA 86 to grab goodies.

As always, Botherella's Curse helps reduce the damage taken for a brief moment, though YA 86 recovers from its effects sooner. Aikilu's Roar helps boost the buddies' Atk for a while.

Instead of a Vivich, I brought coconuts (from Chapter 8, Mission 1, 'Gather the yummy coconuts') so I could bring an extra damage-dealing buddy.

Whether or not to have tanks is up to the player. They are not there to soak damage since YA 86 will usually go for buddies who do lots of damage. Instead, they provide a reliable drain to YA 86's HP without adding worry to the player. They can be left on their own since they are durable enough to survive. And if they come with lots of HP Regen, they can recover on their own so the player can concentrate on keeping the damage-dealers in the party alive.

Update 20 May 2011:
Negative effects on YA 86 helps a lot since most of the damage comes from the big guy.

Stuns like Aikilu's Shooting Dumpling, Nagne's Kiss of Death and Betty Jr's 'Nobody can stop me' as well as stun effects from equips can cancel YA 86's special attacks. Or at the very least keep YA 86 dormant for a few seconds.

Interrupts like Vivich's Lotus Slap, Nagne's Leaf Slash and Wolfgan's (Botherella's Summon) bite and delay YA 86's attack for a second, after which, YA 86 may give up and try something else.

Wizz's Freezemail slows down YA 86's attacks and movement speed. The latter effect helps a lot when running from YA 86's 'Nobody can stop me' special. Presumably Skully's 'Don't Move!' has similar effects, though I have not tried it out yet.

As mentioned above, Botherella's Curse reduces YA 86's Atk for a few seconds, reducing damage taken.

Update 26 May 2011:
I took Nagne as the main character against YA 86 expecting to have a hard time. Surprisingly, I find that he is good.

Being up close to YA 86, I can easily see its actions clearly. And if I see something I do not like (like its preparation for Burping Fire), I can give it the Kiss of Death. Alternatively, I can use the Leaf Slash to buy a few seconds for another buddy to stun him (bring buddies with Stun like Aikilu, Nagne or Betty Jr). Or for YA 86 to be distracted by a pillar.

In addition to that, Nagne's higher attack (compared to a support character) means that the pillars he activates will do more damage.

Update 1.3
Update 23 June 2011:
The effects of the pillars and the drops of the extras have been changed, as reported in the article on Genzir's Raid. The 'Wake up!! Buddy!' gem is still available, though it rarely appears, usually when the player does not need it.

YA 86's 'Superhard Stonehead' is now extra painful, potentially KOing weak buddies who receive both hits. Having a decent Def reduces the danger by a lot. Having high HP is not enough - it may save the character from an attack, but it will take longer to recover the lost HP.

YA 86's 'Nobody can stop me' seems to do less damage, though it still Stuns. This skill can be avoided by being very close to YA 86, like, right-under-it close. It is a bit difficult to squeeze all the buddies under there.

A Worrier with lots of skill in Blunt Aura (the last skill) will give buddies bonuses to Stun (10% at level 20 at the time of writing). This, combined with buddies with high attack speeds can keep YA 86 from mischief. Now if the auras stack, consider two Worriers. :)
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And for all of you who are just here for the loot (and those of you who are not):
Eh? Disappointing.
Some of the loot I have received (the number after is the number of tries):
Titanium Leaf (purple!) - 7, 7, 6
Wings of Guardian (purple!) - 6, 7, 7
Hyper Size Composite Potion - 8 (It's YA 86 and I still get this purple!?)
Stura of Nirvana (blue) - 7, 8
Titanium Teeth (purple!) - 8, 7
Boots of Black Knight (red) - 6
Ancestor's Tales (red) - 7 (Gah!!!)
Luxury Folding Fan (red) - 6
(Gah!!! x2)
Damascus Knife (red) - 6
Silver Staff (red) - 5 (That does it. Going to go play with Farjegnon for a while.)

Prove of Courage (purple!) - 9
Titanium Scales (purple!) - 8

Jade Frog of Liu (blue) - 7
Boots of Black Knight (blue) - 6
Stura of Nirvana (red) - 6
Spell Book of Wizz the Great (red) - 6
 

(Updated 16 June 2011)

The following is the loot I received after Update 1.3:
Titanium Leaf (purple!) - 9, 5 (At this rate, I'll have all of YA 86's.)
Ancestor's Tales (blue) - 7

Wings of Guardian (purple!) - 8, 6
Titanium Scales (purple!) - 7, 5, 6
Luxury Folding Fan (red) - 7
Spell Book of Wizz the Great (red) - 7

Titanium Teeth (purple!) - 6
Stura of Nirvana (red) - 7
Spell Book of Wizz the Great (blue) - 6

Boots of Black Knight (blue) - 6, 6
Stura of Nirvana (blue) - 6
Prove of Wisdom (purple!) - 5 (Completed the Prove set on 7 July 2011, after 35 tries!)

Hyper Size Composite Potion - 5
Cloak of Master (blue) - 6
Jade Frog of Liu (red) - 6
Silver Staff (red) - 5
Titanium Eye (purple!) - 5 (Completed the Titanium set on 13 July 2011, after 44 tries!)
Boots of Black Knight (red) - 6

(Updated 13 July 2011)

The following is the loot I have received after the Daily Quest mini-wave of the Eighth Wave:
Mace (red) - 1

All About Oblins (blue) - 1 (It's a book)
Mace (blue) - 1
(Updated 14 January 2012)

The following is the loot I have received after the Ninth Wave:
Titanium Teeth (purple!) - 1
Mace (blue) - 1
All About Oblins (blue) - 1

(Updated 5 March 2012)

The following is the loot I have received after the Challenge Mode mini-wave of the Ninth Wave:
Witch's Necklace (red) - 1
Titanium Scales (purple!) - 1

(Updated 14 April 2013)

This article is dedicated to Wolfgang for the many times back in Update 1.2 he stayed behind to distract YA 86 so that the buddies could run away from major ouchie. We've visited you in the hospital, dude.
... ... ... can you come back later?

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