F/GO Watch!

That rule is put in place to try and nerf double Waver and Merlin setups yeah, but I don't think Delight Works realized that Waver/Merlin is just as good as Double Waver or Double Merlin.

Funny, I thought that was only a thing for the Exhibition matches. If it's going to be applied to everything though, prepare to see Crit Buster meta teams take a hit. That aside, Waver/Merlin is a really strong combo, especially if both of them have their skills at max rank and are paired with a Herc or a Jalter.

They'll probably put that in the NA version in a future update, so I won't be able to rely on Jeanne/Vlad/Vlad if they do. Ah well. Can still run Jeanne/Vlad/Waver for a killer comp.

One thing I am almost amazed to see is that I can one-turn the Germania chimera with just Saber Alter, her own skills, and the Master skills. I'm sure that's nothing in the long-run, but that's a personal best for me right now- being lucky enough to get a double-Buster round and chaining that with Excalibur Morgan, plus the Charisma, Mana Burst, and Intuition skills; with Instant Enhancement on top of that.

Also, she really gets tsuntsun over hamburgers. :3

Salter is a slut for hamburgers.

Minor NA version news. From September 14th through the 21st, all Free Quests from the Fuyuki Prologue to Septem will cost half the AP they normally do. In addition, there's also going to be a rate up on all Servants who were featured in the Fuyuki Prologue. That means Vanilla Artoria Saber, Emiya, Heracles, F/SN Lancer Cu, Medusa, and Medea (essentially all the servants from Fate/Stay Night that are 3 star or higher, contrary to what the official announcement says, since Medea and Vanilla Artoria weren't in the Fuyuki Prologue for F/GO). So it's a good opportunity to try for Emiya and Heracles if you don't already have them (or even Vanilla Saber, if you're so inclined).

Seeing how the campaign ends on the 21st, it's likely that after this we'll get Okeanos, and the 1/2 AP part of this campaign makes me think that's likely to be the case. I was hoping it'd be out by now, but I guess my estimates were off. *shrugs* The good thing is that due to Free Quests being half AP now, we'll be able to grind for Dragon Fangs, Chaos Claws, and Spirit Lanterns for cheaper costs than we normally would have. I need more Dragon Fangs for Salter, so I'll be grinding in France.

Well, I guess it's time for me to get to work in Germania. Damn rare drop Chaos Talons. Then after that, I guess the best option would be Dragon Fangs for Martha.

I've heard Edward Teach's interlude has an extremely high drop rate on Forbidden Pages, and that should come in the next singularity. Anyone worth saving them for, or should they go straight to Hans Christian Andersen?

Got the dragon fangs I needed for Salter, so she's got her second ascension now.  I need two Reverse Dragon Scales for her third ascension, plus some Saber monuments.  So I'll be doing tomorrow's daily a bunch.  Thank goodness for those apples.  >.o

After that....probably either focus some more on dragon fangs and work on Chaos Claws in Germania if the 1/2 AP Free Quest thing is still going by the time I get to that.

Had some decent luck today. After a day of no Chaos Talons, one dropped on my first run today. And that was what I needed to ascend Cu Chulainn. And I already had the stuff for his third ascension too, so he's back in the blue jumpsuit.

Ten Dragon Fangs after that. One more is all I need, but then I gotta get Rider pieces, so I'll have to go after Shadow Boudica, then I can get Martha ascended her second time. I guess after that it's EXP farming,

JPN News:

10 Million Downloads campaign is right around the corner. For reaching the Twitter goal, everyone is getting 30 quartz. On top of that....you know how there was the free 4 star campaign that happened early on in all versions? There's a repeat of that.

https://www.reddit.com/r/grandorder/comments/70m3ce/free_sr_servant_roster_for_the_10m_dl_campaign/

Except you get to pick one from 42 different 4 stars, including the story locked ones. I'm aiming for Gorgon. :3

There's going to be more news about the 10 Million Download campaign as it nears, including what else is being offered. Aside from that, there's also info on the next chapter of EoR.

https://www.reddit.com/r/grandorder/comments/70m7rm/title_of_the_third_epic_of_remnant_chapter/

There'll be more when the live talk on the chapter comes around, and they'll give out 10 quartz to all JPN players. Sadly, I won't be able to jump in immediately on this new chapter (reroll account is halfway through Okeanos right now). Thankfully, the exp and materials I'm getting from NeroFest 2017 are helping out with ascensions. I'm going to save my apples for the last two days and get a burst going to get as much as I can out of the Event Shop. Hopefully I'll be able to get into the pieces and monuments before it's over.

We're also nearing the end of the month, and the 1 Million Downloads campaign and Fuyuki Rate up campaign are coming to a close within the next week. Chances are that we'll hear about a release date for Okeanos in NA next week. So keep abreast of that. After that, depending on what DelightWorks and Aniplex have in mind, we're may get Scathach released in between Okeanos's release and the first Halloween event. I'm hoping that's the case.

And sadly, there's still no news about the GudaGuda event. Chances are that if it does come around this year, it'll be in November. Otherwise, we might not see it until next year, and DelightWorks is likely to drop a campaign and maybe either Londonium or the Christmas event early (second half of November). Of course, Scath may be held off until November. There's no way to tell as of yet.

HOOWEE, that's a list! Good to know I'll have a backup in case I never summon Sexy Alter regularly. And if it's not needed, I think I would also go for Avenger Gorgon. Curiously, isn't that just a corrupt Medusa, or is there more to it than that?

EDIT: Oh yeah, would definitely want Gorgon. Avengers already have passives for self NP gain and increased NP gain when hit, but Gorgon's NP actually increases the party's NP gauge too? That sounds like something I'd want in the group, and equipped with Prisma Cosmos.

Gorgon is actually supposed to be Medusa when she's fully given in to her monstrous nature.  She's the version of Medusa that Perseus would've fought.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip-aErTdo2M

Above is a video on the Fate lore regarding Medusa, which explains how Gorgon (and Medea Lily for that matter) are possible.  The video uses a mix of the actual legend of Medusa from the tale of Perseus, as well as lore about Medusa pulled from the Nasuverse.  Much like the case with Artoria Lily, Rider Kintoki, and some other Servants in F/GO, a version of a Servant can be summoned from different periods of their life/legend.  Standard stuff with compatibility with their Master, catalyst used, etc., factor into this.

I am also tempted to go for Nitocris, Salter, Lalter, and Suzuka Gozen.  The latter, however, is not story-locked at all, so I would eventually get her either through a random pull or during one of her rate ups.  But like you mentioned, Avenger class servants have passive NP gauge gain and increased NP gain when hit.  Only downside is that everyone in the party except her has their debuff resistance decreased by 8% (but I think that's true for all Avengers).  Gorgon especially has a passive skill that increases her crit strength by 6% (making her slightly more useful in a crit buster team comp, which I'll admit I'd like to try putting together.  Her second skill also gives her Guts and another crit strength buff, so that reinforces that notion).  Only problem is that I'm going to be lacking in mats for her for a while: her first ascension requires eight bones and eight snake jewels, and further ascensions require mats from later chapters, so she'll be sitting at level 40 and 50 for a while as I go through Season 1.  Still, AoE Buster NP that restores party NP after use is pretty helpful, so if I pair her with Hans and a tank/cockroach servant (maybe Nero or Cu, perhaps another servant that I might get later, or even Leonaidas), it should be a solid team comp to have her as my DPS.

It is one hell of a list though, so you've got a lot of options to choose from.  Also, the official release for EoR Chapter 3 is sometime in the first half of October, so look forward to that.

Yeah, I pretty much took a look at all the Avengers when I looked up Gorgon. They all have the exact same passives, in different ranks of course. Meaning the same stuff applies to Avenger Jeanne Alter at a higher value, though her NP doesn't have the party NP gain effect that would lure me to Gorgon (that said, her Dragon Attack Buff skill is great for people that run with some sort of Artoria in their team, and guess who my most-looked-forward-to Servant is, as well as my current best servant).

Shadow Boudica isn't nearly so cooperative in farming. I regret not being able to get the entire stock of Rider Pieces in Moon Goddess, though that was the last thing I was aiming for. Still one piece off from second ascension for Martha... and then I go straight back to Germania, I didn't pay much attention to her third ascension stuff, but apparently, it's stuff I can still farm, so I can go right to it while there's still half-AP questing.

I'm a bit confused. What is this Shadow Boudica you keep referring to? I can't find any details on the internet.

@Horn  DoubleEdged is referring to a Shadow Servant version of Boudica that's in one of the Free Quests.  She has a small chance of dropping pieces associated with her class, which is why Edged is grinding that particular Free Quest.  There's nothing really special: Shadow Servants just have the same skills and attacks, but instead of performing an NP when their gauge is full, they perform that servant's Extra Attack. Oh, and their sprite is darkened and has this shadowy effect on it to denote being a Shadow Servant. That's about it.

Sorry, but what he said. Nothing special in regards to "Shadow Servants." In Boudica's case, she's one of the few Riders with a Shadow Servant on the current maps, and I was in need of Rider Pieces at the time (for Martha). Pretty much their way of turning normal servants into generic enemies.

Not a news update, but it is related to the NA server of F/GO.  There's a thread on the F/GO reddit page that is going over a speculative time table for the next few months.  Now keep in mind that this is purely speculative, and has in no way been confirmed, aside from the safe assumption that Okeanos will likely drop sometime this week or the beginning of next week at the latest.  Also, the date approximation, by my understanding, isn't where and when the event/campaign is being held on and how long it'll be, as much as it's the estimation of when it'll be released (save for the F/SN rate up).  This covers what could drop and on what dates up to November.

14th September ~ 21st September:
   F/SN Banner
21st September ~ 5th October:
   Okeanos Banner [Drake] & 100 Day Anniversary on the 3rd with freebies
5th October ~ 12th October:
   Da Vinci-Chan's Choice Banner [Waver]
12th October ~ 19th October:
   New Dailies
19th October ~ 2nd November:
   Halloween Event

While we're only two days away from the earliest estimate of Okeanos dropping, it's safe to say that estimates of its release are going to be in the coming week.  What's interesting is what follows after that.  We've got the 100 Day Anniversary that should give players free stuff (most likely quartz, tickets, apples, and/or mats), and approximately a week after that we'll have the Da Vinci-Chan's Choice Banner (essentially another chance at getting Waver, though I think this time I'll pass on it to save up towards Scathach/Okita).  After that, brand new dailies (essentially a restructuring of the dailies so that, instead of the class dailies being mixed and focusing either on mats and skill gems or pieces/monuments and class exp, it'll be a single class each day that gives mats/gems/pieces/monuments/class exp all at once).  At least, that's what I'm assuming.  After Okeanos drops, there'll be enough kinds of monsters that it should justify the shift.  Enemy mobs in Okeanos include Amazons, Banshees, Centaurs, and Lamias, and will have the official release of horseshoes as well as more opportunities to get octuplet crystals, snake jewels, spirit lanterns, phoenix feathers, and yggdrasil seeds.  You still won't get Eternal Gears, Forbidden Pages, or Homunculus Babies until Londonium chapter, unfortunately.

It's safe to assume that the Halloween event will take place two to three weeks after Okeanos drops, sometime near the end of October, which will be welcome for the CEs that are really good, as well as the mats and the first free 4 Star servant the NA version will be getting.  Plus, it'll give players the first chance at getting Tamamo no Mae, and I won't lie that I'm tempted to drop a 10 roll or two to try for her.

What's interesting is that there's still the possibility that, instead of the Waver rate up, we could get Scathach's rate up.  However, someone in that thread mentioned that, since the GudaGuda event is likely to drop in November if it comes out this year, there will be a 20-day gap between the Halloween and Honnouji events.  This would be a prime place to put Scathach's rate-up, and would be far more realistic than having it earlier due to the potential to get cash flowing from pockets for both Okita and Scathach being so close to each other.  Someone said that all that DW would need to do is extend the 100 Days Anniversary campaign by a few days, and there'd only be a few days before the Halloween event launched.  Plus, if they don't put Scath's rate up there, they'd have to move an event up in the schedule or have three weeks of nothing happening, which could impact player fatigue and time playing the game (which means lost revenue, since there'll be fewer quartz bought because of those reasons).  So don't expect Scathach to come around until November.  This also means that it's likely we'll have a busy December, with Londonium and the Christmas event occurring within a week or two of each other.

That's about it for now.  Personally, since we haven't heard word about Okeanos yet, I'm thinking we'll finally get a release date in a few days or by the weekend, and it'll be out between Monday and Wednesday of next week.  But we'll see. As for an estimation of everything up to the end of the year, here's a link to the google calendar page that was made with the potential times and dates of each event/campaign.

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=fishtaco101%40gmail.com&ctz=America/Los_Angeles

Circumstance or timing, take your pick.  Regardless, a date for Okeanos's release has finally been given.  It's dropping September 28th, which means a week from this Thursday we'll be playing the next chapter!

......after at least five to seven hours of maintenance, most likely.  And no, DW and Aniplex hasn't released info on maintenance times for the Okeanos release patch, I'm just saying that because it's likely to be the case.  

Funniest thing about this? They waited until "Talk Like a Pirate Day" to announce this.

Like and share for 10 copies of Old Hag Francis' nudes.

Update: I got Martha to 3rd Ascension, so she should be at 70 before the Singularity arrives. So now that we should have an option for Meteoric Horseshoes coming up, I'm kinda torn between focusing on Lu Bu's 2nd vs. Ushiwakamaru's 3rd; the latter has surprised me in how well she works with the group, though I really want to get a good start on my own Berserker, with my only other decent option being Kiyohime.

I'm also almost tempted to throw the summon tickets I have at the Septem pickup, since Zhuge Liang is featured. However, it also features Altera, and I'm not looking for a gold Saber right now.

Well I rolled all my tickets on this Merlin and Saber/Lancer Artoria Alter gacha. Managed to get 2 four stars even!...both of them Saber Alter. I was hoping to get a Lancer so I could use my ticket on Gorgon, but I definitely can't complain that my main damage dealer is now at NP3.

Did a YOLO quartz roll on the JPN version for Okita and Suzuka. Gold flashed, and it popped up as a gold Saber, so I thought I might've gotten Suzuka.

It flips around....and it's Okita. This is the third time I've rolled a 5 star on this account, and it's my third limited roll (rolled Rider Swimsuit Salter twice). It's official: my old JPN main was cursed, and this reroll account is being very kind. XD

Not really interested in Merlin, though I may roll in that gacha to try and get the Artoria Alters when the 30 Quartz and 10 tickets are handed out. We'll see what happens there. Still got two days before we can exchange that ticket for the free 4 star, so right now I'm just working on getting through the story and getting materials from the class dailies.

@DoubleEdged I can vouch for Ushi being extremely helpful. Her third skill is a 1 turn dodge that is pretty helpful, so that gives her some sustainability in a fight. But you don't get that until her second/third interlude or a strengthening quest, I think. Don't quote me on that, though, aside from the fact that you don't get her third skill through ascensions. Lu Bu, however, is a really strong 3 star Berserker. He's like a Budget Hercules, and his NP is single target with a chance of stunning (as well as his skills buffing himself for increased damage and defense), so he's a worthwhile investment if you don't have Herc. Only downside is that I think his stat growth rate is at a reverse S-curve, so you'll get the most growth from him between levels 1-30 and levels 55-70. I'd say it's up to your discretion: both Ushi and Lu Bu are excellent picks, though Ushi will be more helpful in the final boss fight of Okeanos. That's the only hint you're going to get from me in regards to that fight.

Less than a week before Okeanos hits....

I get it, it's either a Caster, or something unique that has Rider-weak traits (like how one of the major bosses of Septem was a Cavalry-weak unique boss). Hence why I'm glad I got Martha upgraded before the release (still gotta level her up though).

At this point, I have to mention that after what seems to be eight or nine 30-quartz summons, I've yet to get a single 5-star servant. And elsewhere, I see a pic of someone getting 4 Merlins in a single summon. I do feel kinda salty right now. Foolishly, I used up the three Summon tickets I had on hand too, nothing special out of them.

Welcome to my experience with the game. I've got a friend who's played the JPN version a little longer than me, and has stupid amounts of luck. He'll occasionally dolphin it up, maybe dropping $150 to $200 during a rate up where he really wants the offered servant, but aside from that he's got some serious luck. Must have upwards of 25 5 star servants, and at least a third of them are limiteds. Not to mention he has most if not all of the limited 4 star servants that have come out. Thankfully, I'm past the point where I was salty about him getting something I wanted or something hard to get.

And unfortunately, that's kind of the nature of the game. I haven't gotten another 5 star servant roll on my NA account since my third Jeanne, and that was almost a month ago. Not going to complain, because my first JPN account I would go for three to five months without any 5 stars, but I'm using that as an example of what to expect: RNG is a bitch. I'm hoping that I'll have enough quartz for at least seven 10 rolls (I did buy some quartz with birthday money, but only about $120 worth, and it's not like I get cash all that often due to being unemployed); after Okeanos, I should be at that goal, even after dropping some 10 rolls with some of the more recent rate ups. I can only hope that it'll be enough to roll Okita when she finally comes around in NA. If she doesn't come out this year, then I'll save up towards Jalter, occasionally dropping a 10 roll for something that catches my eye.

With the power I've gained from having Saber Alter, I finally decided to run Unlimited Blade Works (Interlude). Had Berserker down to 20k (out of 260k?) HP on the second turn after he took a Noble Phantasm Buster Brave Chain from Saber (I know, I know, it's nothing in the long run, but damage output like this feels like a major milestone). Anyways, my Emiya should now have his NP upgraded. It was starting to feel weak as it was, compared to my new Saber. Now I just have to get some goddamn Gears.

JPN News: Halloween 2016 event is getting a rerun. Like the previous reruns, we're likely to get extra challenge quests for those who have cleared Season 1, and it'll be a second chance to get Brave Liz (who's a decent 4 star Saber, it's only that her third skill leaves a lot to be desired). Plus, delicious mats and tickets. The main event story line will be broken up into five parts, each successive part unlocking the next day (though it's also dependent on beating the previous part). If I remember correctly, there are certain servants who get bonuses in your party when you run them, though I can't be sure at this point in time. More info on this will come later.

Cleopatra will get another rate up, and if you want a solid 5 star with an AoE NP, she's pretty handy to have. Does solid damage and has helpful skills. Alongside her, Nitocris, Ibaraki, Robin Hood, and Vlad Extra are also getting rate ups (getting super baited now, I blew my 30 gift quartz towards Merlin and got nothing for it, but a chance to get Nitocris, Ibaraki, or Cleo is something I think I'll drop a few tickets for). You also have the chance to get the infamous "Dangerous Beast" CE (I'll admit, I'm prioritizing getting this CE. It's sexy~). It also looks like there are new CEs for the rerun that increase the chance of certain monsters appearing. Not sure if those are going to be in the event gacha or obtainable from the event shop.

The event will take place from September 27th to October 11th 12:59 JST. So it should be available tomorrow. Word is that after this event is over, EoR chapter 3 will drop (it was said to be getting released in mid-October, so it's probably safe to expect it around October 13th or 14th), and after that we'll be getting the Halloween 2017 event.

Less than three days to Okeanos, folks, get ready...

Thinking things over on Servant priorities- honestly, I probably won't have enough Meteoric Horseshoes to ascend anybody before I clear Okeanos, so I'll probably prioritize Lu Bu over Ushiwakamaru when it comes to that. Though I think Serpent Jewels will come first, because Carmilla. And when the Pumpkin Liz Halloween event comes, I should be able to fully ascend Carmilla all the way (though those God Hearts are in contention with multiple servants: Salter [depending on Reverse Dragon Scales] and Emiya [no gears, no go] in particular).

Also have over 200 summons worth in FP saved up right now. Does Euryale get added in automatically, or is she story-locked?