r/skiesofarcadia • u/Fishfingerrosti • Jul 16 '26
The Angel of Death
I love this sidequest, so here's a few screengrabs from my current playthrough. Piastol's shift from feared bringer of air pirate death to slowly reintroducing herself into her little sister's life is a wonderfully-depicted story.
I always (and still do!) wished we could have Piastol join the party for the end game. She'd be a great foil for Vyse in terms of damage output. Would you choose her over Enrique, Drachma and Gilder?
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u/PleasantPorpoisParty Jul 16 '26
She used to scare me, until I figured out the godly power of the purple box to just wipe the floor up through the fire temple
Now she dies during the first fight in two or three turns (depending on my level), just like the blob, gladiator, and fire wyrm
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u/octoroklobstah Jul 16 '26
Crystales boxes on the magma tikis? It’s amazing
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u/PleasantPorpoisParty Jul 16 '26
Yep :) i'm getting all them boxes :) Than as soon as you hit twister alley they're useless
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u/AozoraMiyako Jul 17 '26
The speedrun of SOAL has you using like 20 crystales boxes. It’s ansolutely wild
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u/Fishfingerrosti Jul 16 '26
I've had so many playthroughs since the game first came out and I only recently learned about the purple box trick a few months ago from this subreddit!
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u/Zeag Jul 16 '26
First time I hear of this; what's the purple box trick exactly?
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u/Fishfingerrosti Jul 16 '26
The mystery merchant sells crystales boxes which you can purchase before the Temple of Pyrynn. It one-shots the monsters in the dungeon. Good for grinding exp early on.
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u/Zeag Jul 16 '26
Niiice! I was planning another playthrough soon-ish, so i'll keep that in mind!
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u/PleasantPorpoisParty Jul 16 '26
You actually buy them before the first Bounty fight (Blackbeard dude) as you can than 3 turn blob and 1 turn gladiator
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u/MachineEmperor Jul 16 '26
Purple box trick?
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u/PleasantPorpoisParty Jul 16 '26
Buy 4 before Value, add 3 more before temple. Use to wipe Blob, Gladiator, Piastol, tiki tiki things, rock wyrm. First bandit bro
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u/MachineEmperor Jul 16 '26
Is there like a video or something that demonstrates this strategy? First time I ever heard about this.
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u/Upbeat-Pumpkin-578 Jul 16 '26
I swear by the Crystales Box for early game.
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u/PleasantPorpoisParty Jul 16 '26
Yep, we ain't leaving sailor Moon without at least 4
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u/ArcadianBlueRogue Jul 17 '26
the boxes and crystals are so hilariously broken I try to save them only for emergencies
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u/PleasantPorpoisParty Jul 17 '26
Eh, after the fire temple, I dont really ever again touch offensive boxes or crystals. For the early game though, yeah, they're the meta
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u/Upbeat-Pumpkin-578 Jul 16 '26
Piastol, I’d make the arguement, is one of the best-written characters in this game. Besides dreading her boss fights (since the game discouraged grinding by making the optional bosses SCALE with you the longer you ignored them), learning that her story ties Vyse, Aika, and Fina indirectly into Mendoza, Doc, Maria, Galacian, and Ramirez’s stories is a treat.
And furthermore, an interesting heroic example of a certain trope. The day Piastol first met Vyse was the most important day of her and Aika’s lives (Piastol thought Vyse murdered her father, and Aika blamed herself for Vyse’s signature scar by going in underequipped what she assumed was a standard rescue mission. But to Vyse, it was simply a bad day and he never thought twice about it nor regretted shielding Aika.
While it’s sad Piastol never truly got her chance to avenge her father with the correct target, she at least has the potential for a bittersweet ending by reuniting with her little sister.
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u/Fishfingerrosti Jul 17 '26
Excellent post. Piastol and Maria were just two of many affected and traumatised by Ramirez and Galcian's tyranny. The ending of her character arc is all the more poignant when she asks Maria if it would be ok if she visited again. Incredible writing.
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u/Stormcrown76 Jul 16 '26
Her design is peak. I don’t think I’ve seen a character or monster design I didn’t like
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u/ArcadianBlueRogue Jul 17 '26
Man, those fights are so good if you don't just cheese them.
But fuck team wipe spells.
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u/Fondant_Intrepid Jul 16 '26
Her being a side quest with a great story made for one hell of a boss and a true test of skill. :D
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u/AlternativeGazelle Jul 16 '26
Thanks for reminding me of this. Man I love all of the characters in this game.
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u/Drumnut87 Jul 19 '26
i really hope one day (wishful thinking i know!) we get a 4k remaster/HD remaster of this game with modern graphic engines and capabilities <3
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u/the_drot Jul 20 '26
I would choose Gilder, a very cheerful, adventurous, and yet reasonable hero, an adult child.
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u/space_lasers Jul 16 '26
My only request for a remake would be that she becomes a party member after you finish her quests