Welcome to lesson number forty four.

Woo! We have another lesson. :V


Vocabulary:
どうですか。
Dou desu ka.
How is it?

東京の生活（とうぎょうのせいかつ）
toukyo no seikatsu
Life in Tokyo (lit. Tokyo life/Tokyo's life)

日本語の授業（にほんご の じゅぎょう）
nihongo no jugyou
Japanese class

小説（しょうせつ）や 雑誌（ざっし）
Shousetsu ya zasshi
(a)Novel(s) and (a)magazine(s) and so on/among other things

ちょっと 大変（たいへん）
chotto taihen
A little difficult

とても忙しい（いそがしい）
totemo isogashi
Very busy

月曜日（げつようび）から
getsuyoubi kara
From Monday

金曜日（きんようび）まで
kinyoubi made
Until Friday

お昼（おひる）まで
ohiru made
Until noon

セミナーに出ます（でます）
seminaa ni demasu
Attend the seminar

先週（せんしゅう）の 日曜日（にちようび）
senshuu no nichiyoubi
Last Sunday

顔（かお）を 洗います（あらいます）
kao wo araimasu
To wash face

歯（は）を 磨きます（みがきます）
ha wo migakimasu
To brush teeth

シャワーを浴びます（あびます）
shawaa wo abimasu
To take a shower

お風呂（おふろ）に入ります（はいります）
ofuro ni hairimasu
To take a bath (enter in a bath)



Grammar:

and...and...
So now we've learned that と equates to the English word and, and that や also equates to the English word and.

However, the two words don't mean the same thing, and the difference is equal parts cool, and simple.

When you say や, you're speaking generally. や is translated as "and", but it's more accurate to translate it as "and...among other things" or "and...and so on"
For example: 「かばんの中（なか）が何（なに）ですか。」(kaban no naka ga nani desu ka)
"What's in the bag?"

「本（ほん）やノートがですよ。」(hon ya nooto ga desu yo)
"(a) Book(s) and (a) notebook(s), and so on." Or "(a) Book(s) and (a) notebook(s), among other things."

Whereas with と, you have to enumerate through everything.
For example:
「かばんの中（なか）が何（なに）ですか。」(kaban no naka ga nani desu ka)
"What's in the bag?"

「A本（ほん）とノートと刀と銃（じゅう）と…はあ？どうしてを はしる？」(hon to nooto to katana to juu to... haa? doush(i)te wo hashiru?)
"(a)Book(s), and (a) notebook(s), and a katana, and a gun and... Huh? Why are you running?"


Native note:
とても is sometimes pronounced とっても (tottemo) in casual settings. This is a more emphatic way of saying it.
That's very cool, and I mean, VERY cool.
It's okay, you don't have to laugh at that joke — I already have.


DO or DOn't?
Yes, another lame pun! Japanese is awesome!

So did you notice that in Attend the seminar, and Enter the bath, we used the particle に? This is because, unlike English, the words Enter (入(はい)ります) and Attend (出(で)ます) don't take a Direct Object.
For example, in English you would say I enter the store, but not I enter in the store. Whereas in Japanese, you can't say I enter the bath, but rather I enter in the bath.

Long and short of it: you need the particle に in those sentences because you'll sound weird without it.


NOTE:
In regards to the suggestion of using the YT channel Japanese Ammon With Miss: I still recommend her lessons, but I suggest skipping her adjective videos as they complicate things. Her methods are easier until it comes to the past tense negative forms, then it gets confusing. We'll cover those later.
Also, be aware that she teaches informal Japanese, so most of what you learn there will be for casual, informal settings only.



No test this week guys. Sorry about that, but this lesson has waited long enough already. Also my PS4 is experiencing technical difficulties, so no video still. :/


__________________________


EX Palen : Nah, I was actually just finishing up the lesson when I saw your comment. It took me a few more days after because my nephews have been over a lot lately.

Speaking of learning everyday ways of saying things, I plan to include the plain forms of verbs in every lesson from now on as well. It seems easier to learn the way of saying a word than learning why it conjugates the way it does first, though we will still cover the conjugation.
And what do you mean? We'll be using Japanese street lingo all the time, man. *Puts on shades* No? Okay.

MoblinGardens :
Eniitan :

I think it's safe to say that this thread has officially died. lol That said, I do want to thank you two for helping me keep it rolling for as long as we did. It wasn't too amazing of a story, but it was fun to go through with you two all the same. Again, I appreciate you giving it a shot despite the lackluster opening.



That said, I've finally decided to close this. But before I do, I want to put the opening mystery to rest: the person you were so torn up about killing in battle, given your current stats and the path you had been consistently choosing, was your brother, Rauri.
Had you chosen to stay under Asira, he would have opted to serve under Liam (your relationship stat with Rauri was too low to persuade him), who was going to revolt and turn against the king. Asira was staying faithful, and you would have met in battle.


Had you opted to follow Rauri, you would have slain Asira in battle at a later date (assuming you didn't opt to defect upon seeing Liam revolt).

Other roads would have been possible (such as Wynn being the one you'd slain), but the choices made up to this point had made the decision to boost your relationship with either Rauri or Asira cost you relationship points with the other.


Again, thank you for your participation. I had a blast!

EX Palen : Late to the party, but the answer is definitely a yes. Pudding is inspirational. With a well served pudding of any kind, one can do anything.

Though I can't help but wonder if Jigglypuff is actually just sentient pudding now. Hmm... Good thing I'm not in their world.

Welcome to lesson number forty three.
In this lesson we'll cover more vocabulary, as well as that new form of です that I promised would be in last week's lesson. lol So let's get on into things.


Vocabulary:
忙しい（いそがしい）
isógashii
Busy

楽しい（たのしい）
tanóshii
Enjoyable

狭い（せまい）
semái
Narrow

広い（ひろい）
hirói
Spacious

リラックスします
rirakkusushimasu
To relax
Note: I've also seen this spelled without the doubled consonant (リラクスします
rirakusushimasu)


洗います（あらいます）
aráímasu
To wash
Note: I'm not sure if we've covered this before or not, but the accent falling on a and i in this word indicates that the pitch begins to rise on a and peaks on i.

入ります（はいります）
haírimasu
To enter

磨きます（みがきます）
migákimasu
To brush/To polish

話します（はなします）
hanáshimasu
To speak

嫌い（きらい）
kirái
To dislike

僕（ぼく）
bóku
I (masculine first person pronoun)

友達（ともだち）
tomódachi
Friend

法律（ほうりつ）
hóuritsu
Law
Note: with o and u combining forces to form a long vowel, the pitch accent that falls on o is carried throughout the entire long vowel.

弁護士（べんごし）
béñgoshi
Lawyer
Note: the tilde over the n is there because I can't add the usual accent mark. It means the same as any other accent Mark here though. Note that the accent begins on e and carries throughout the e and the n both.

フランス語（フランスご）
furáñsugo
French (language)
Note: the n here is the same as in the previous word. furANsugo.



Grammar:
Now we'll cover how to conjugate です, accounting for tense, formality, and even preference.

Note that Japanese verbs have no future tense, only past and non-past.


Non-past forms of です:
Affirmative:
です (desu)
だ (da) (plain form)

Negative:
ではありません (de ha arimasen)
ではないです (de ha nai desu)
じゃありません (ja arimasen)
じゃないです (ja nai desu)
ではない (de ha nai)
じゃない (ja nai)

Note: じゃ (ja) is the contracted form of では (de ha). Thus, じゃありま/ないです (ja arimasen/nai desu) is more colloquial than ではありま/ないです (de ha arimasen/nai desu).


Past forms of です:
Affirmative:
でした (desh(i)ta)*
だった(datta) (plain form)

Negative:
ではありませんでした (de ha arimasen desh(i)ta)
じゃありませんでした (ja arimasen desh(i)ta)
ではなかったです(de ha nakatta desu)
じゃなかったです(ja nakatta desu)
ではなかった(de ha nakatta)
じゃなかった(ja nakatta)

•Notice that the only difference between some of the negative forms is the inclusion and omission of です.


ありません and ないです, and ありませんでした and なかったです are interchangeable, and are equally acceptable in all situations, however, some people feel that ありません sounds softer. This is purely a matter of preference, though perhaps it would be wise to employ ありません when in a situation where the hearer would appreciate the softest approach possible.


だ is going to be the form of です that you want to employ in an informal setting, such as when speaking with family or close friends. In less informal settings (when speaking with anyone outside of your circle) use です. The same goes for だった/でした.

However, in formal writings, だ is typically used, despite it's informality. Finally, だ is typically followed by the particle ね (ne) or よ (yo), as it feels unnatural and, as my literature puts it, "bookish" otherwise.


*As always, the censor had to be dodged here. However, this is a good chance to point out that the i in でした is devoiced, so, almost completely silent. The result is what sounds like a longer sh sound. ie. deshhta.

You sound funny
You know how, when learning a language, you're told "this is how you say things", then after you finally get it down pat, you're told not to say things that way? Yeah, now is that time.

What we've been learning is proper Japanese, and to be fair, we've already mentioned that a few times along the way. Now it's time for us to learn a few differences between proper Japanese, and the kind of Japanese you'll be using most of the time, unless you enjoy sounding like a robot (and honestly, more than likely offensive).

IMPORTANT: the following applies strictly to informal speech.
It's common to omit particles in everyday conversations, and even だ, though obviously you'll need to employ です some, and when you do, you'll want to default to the plain form (だ). The exceptions to the particle omissions, of course, are the ever popular よ and ね, as you'll use the former with some frequency, and the latter quite a lot. More on using these particles later.

Here's an example of how an informal setting could affect a sentence:
Normally: 「ぺィレンさんは、たべたですか。」(palen-san, tabeta desu ka.)
lit. Palen, have [you] eaten?
「ぺィレン、たべた？」(palen, tabeta?)
lit. Palen, eaten?


As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask.


New challenger recommendation approaches!
As promised, I'm relaying my newest discovery for study help.

Cram.com. I've never used the site itself, but I have used their Android app, and it's not only helped my short term retention (I haven't been using it long enough to know how it works for long term retention yet), but also increased my learning speed.

The site and app are for making your own digital flashcards. Again, I've never used the site, so I can't say what all it has, but the app offers a Memorize mode that lets you go through all of the cards in the set (you can make multiple sets), and mark the ones that you got right and the ones that you got wrong. At the end it shows how many you guessed correctly and how many you guessed incorrectly.

It also has Cram mode that has you guess at every card in the set four times. If you guess one correctly, the card is moved up to the next level, but if you guess one incorrectly, that card is moved all the way back to level one. You finish cram mode once all cards have been "mastered" (advanced to level five).

My personal recommendation is to use Memorize mode until you can guess 100% of them correctly, then move on to cram mode. The total study time should be around a half hour as they say that you begin to lose more of what you study the farther you go past the thirty minute mark.

This method gets repetitive, but it not only helps you to learn each word, but also to shorten the amount of time that it takes you to call them to mind. Additionally, I personally try not to put more than eight or so words in a set (I make sets of seven to ten cards usually, but rarely do I go above eight) so that I don't overload myself, and also to ensure that I repeat each word enough within that half hour to learn them all.
That's just me. Find what works best for you.


If you use this site or app, let me know how it works for you!



Test:
Grammar:
What are all if the forms of the copula です?

Affirmative - non-past:
1.
2.

Negative - non-past:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.


Affirmative - past:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.


Audio will probably return in the next lesson.

__________________________________


EX Palen : Yeah, I'm learning more about English by studying Japanese, and I've spoken it my whole life! lol I think the fact that modern English basically smooshed half a dozen or so languages together is a big part of what makes it have so many rules and odd little quirks.


No need to apologize for using your own sources, man. If anything I'd encourage it. I've learned a lot over the past two years, and the biggest thing I've learned is that I know less even now than I thought I did then. The more reliable and helpful sources each of us can successfully integrate into our personal studies, the better we'll all learn, individually and collectively. We're all students, including myself, so anything we can bring to each other's notice is bound to help.



IgorBird122 : Hey man, if you do decide to try it out, be sure to let us know. I'd love to learn multiple languages so that I can connect with and help as many people as possible. I hope one day to be fluent in Japanese and maybe help some Japanese people to learn English, among other things. Besides all that, it helps you understand others as people better if you can understand their language, I feel.




Summon list:
Mynamescox44 :
m0ssb3rg935 :
deggle :
SacredShadow :
Sanspai :
sevencube3 :
Jygin :
Frodlex :
Zlinqx :
tytytec04 :
lordbelial669 :
A user of this :
PoptartSlayerXD :

EX Palen :
Eniitan :
supernerd117 :


Only now do I realize that Palen was the only one that I summoned last time. Oops.

Alright, well here we go.


Queen uses recover.
Stat changes: Queen +20,000 HP.


jk. Please don't kill me.

___________________________

Queen uses final stand (AOE attack): deals 4,684 damage to Akira, 6,219 damage to Alicia, and 3,125 damage to Bob.

Akira is in danger.

Alicia is critical.

Bob is critical.

Stat changes: Akira -3,187 HP (4,813/8,000). Alicia -6,219 HP (1,781/8,000). Bob -3,125 HP (1,093/9,000).


Akira uses Ki attack: deals 3,135 damage.
Queen is defeated!


____________________

Our heroes stand in place for a few moments after watching the queen fall for her last time, not trusting that the battle could truly be over.
At last accepting their victory to be real, they each sheath their weapon and turn to look at one another.

Sharing the battlefield has a funny way of establishing a certain connection between allies. There seems to be little need for words, as they all somehow know exactly what the other is thinking: The fight is far from over.

This is but a small battle won amidst a world-wide struggle. The enemy forces in the Arei kingdom have been weakened sufficiently for the small resistance movement housed throughout the Royal city and beyond to handle the rest. This victory however, is insufficient. If Arei is to remain secure, and the world itself to be saved, then the battle must be taken to the enemy elsewhere.



Indeed, their fight has only just begun.



_________________________________


Thanks for playing, guys! You are all awesome!

At this point I'm quite busy with Japanese study and caring for my nephews, but when some more time becomes available, would you be interested in starting the full game? Your stats could carry over as a bonus for helping me sort of debug this thing if you will. If not, I certainly understand. You three have been following these games faithfully for several months now, all in the name of helping a friend with a goal of making a functional and enjoyable forum game, so burnout is probably setting in now. lol

Again, I cannot adequately express how appreciative I am of all of the assistance that you guys have offered with these projects. Thank you so much!

NOTE: I made an error while calculating Bob's damage received last round. I have credited him 1,789 HP to account for this. His new HP after last round is now 6,250. I informed supernerd of this, and he changed attack plans. This change will also be reflected in the update.

I also forgot to subtract 400 Ki from Akira. This has been rectified as well.
_______________________________



Queen attacks Alicia: Bob intercepts the attack! Receives 2,018 damage!
Stat changes: Bob -2,018 HP (4,214/9,000).



EX Palen :
To be honest, I had forgotten about gust myself. I had to look back to find what he was talking about. lol Everyone was given a special attack early on. Yours boosted your defense by 10%, and Eniitan's adds fire damage to her attack.

The queen's defense being so high gives her something like a 60% chance to negate half of the damage dealt to her, which is why she's proven so difficult to handle so far. Thankfully between Bob shielding you guys (plus a temporary debuff) and your Ki attacks, I think this one is pretty much won. Bear in mind that I'm typing this before checking the round results. :p


Akira uses Ki attack: deals 2,529 damage!
Stat changes: Queen -2,529 HP (7,091/20,000). Akira -400 Ki (5,200/6,000).


Alicia uses Ki attack: deals 3,484 damage!
Stat changes: Queen -3,484 HP (3,607/20,000). Alicia -200 Ki (6,600/7,000).


Bob attacks the queen: deals 1,407 damage!
Stat changes: Queen -1,407 HP (2,137/20,000).


Queen's attack and defense return to normal.

Team burst gauge is activated.
With a unified effort, the heroes hit the queen with their best shot.
Akira, using the opportunity afforded them by the queen's staggered condition caused by Bob's surprise attack, strikes fast, and in rapid succession, Alicia follows suit, and Bob finishes up the chain, leaving the queen reeling the entire time.

Damage dealt: 3,712 (queen's defense negated half of it).
Stat changes: Queen -3,712 HP (16,288/20,000).


Queen attacks Akira: Bob intercepts the attack, takes 4,539 damage!
Stat changes:
Bob -4,539 HP (4,461/9,000)


EX Palen :
Akira uses Ki attack: deals 2,406 damage!
Stat changes: Queen -2,406 HP (13,689/20,000).


Eniitan :
Alicia uses Ki attack: deals 2,599 damage!
Stat changes: Queen -2,599 HP (11,090/20,000). Alicia -200 Ki (6,800/7,000).


supernerd117 :
You are at half HP. Do you wish to continue intercepting all attacks, only intercept attacks that would otherwise fully deplete your partners' HP, or cease to intercept?
If you continue to intercept, do you wish to intercept even if it depletes all of your remaining HP?


Bob uses gust: deals 1,470 damage, and debuffs Queen!

Stat changes: Queen -1,470 HP (9,620/20,000), attack -15%, defense -15%. Bob -250 Ki (4,750/5,000)


Team burst gauge currently at 4/10

Reminder: the team still has a health potion, and your team burst gauge is still full.


EX Palen :
Very strategic. I like it. :V
In reply to the sort of questions that you posted: yes, your gauge is still full and ready for use.

The abilities do indeed use a turn, so I'll put you down for those two Ki attacks.
____________________________

Akira uses Ki attack on guard: deals 2,678 damage!

Akira uses Ki attack again! Deals 3,450 damage!

Stat changes:
Queen's guard: -6,128 HP (1,872/8,000 wow)

Akira: -800 Ki (5,200/6,000)


Eniitan :
Alicia attacks Queen's guard: deals 2,250 damage!

Queen's guard is defeated (already)!

All players gain 300 exp!
All players reach level seven!
All players gain three stat points, three K stat points, and three skill points!
All players' health and Ki replenished!



Wow. That was... Wow. You guys have gone full beast mode since those wolves. xD


supernerd117 : It's over already! lol Final battle coming up...






Upon defeating the guard, each party member silently stares at the large, now unguarded door before them. This is it: beyond this door lies their target. What kind of power will the queen wield? Will she be strong, or a mere political figure, helpless without her guards?

With a glance from face to face, Tyrus nods, proceeds to the door, and opens it. As he does so, a flash resembling a bolt of lighting bursts through, hitting Tyrus and sending him flying into the wall across the hallway.

Clearly she's more than some fluffy politician, and she means business.

"Tyrus!" calls Bob, seeing his friend lying limply on the stone floor.


"Pathetic humans," the queen calls from the throne room. "You thought that you could conquer the ruler of the Anthrorphanes? Come. Show me your faces, and I shall make you meet the same fate as all of your fellows that came before you."

The three heroes step in, with an angry Bob at the head.

"Oh. I didn't expect you to actually be so foolish as to ent—"
Her taunt is cut short as Bob blasts her with a burst of his own energy.

"Prepare to die," Bob says as he readies himself for battle.
If only his smack talk skills were half as good as his battle skills.



Battle begins.
Turn order:

Queen:
Attack: 16
Defense: 17
Speed: 8

HP: 20,000



Ex Palen —

Akira

Attack: 6 [+3]
Defense: 5 [+2]
Charm: 4
Intelligence: 6
Speed: 5

HP: 5,000/5,000
Ki: 6,000
BP: 50

Active Abilities:
•Infuse — Attack +%10 for the duration of the battle. Cost 500 Ki
•*Diagnostics — +%25 damage dealt. Cost 500 Ki



Eniitan —

Alicia

Attack: 11 [+3]
Defense: 7 [+5]
Charm: 2
Intelligence: 2
Speed: 1 [-2]


HP: 5,000/5,000
Ki: 7,000
BP: 40

Active Abilities:
•Recover — replenish your health. Cost 1.5 Ki per Health Point.



supernerd117 —

Bob

Attack: 8 [+1]
Defense: 11 [+6]
Charm: 3
Intelligence: 4
Speed: 1 [-3]


HP: 6,000/6,000
Ki: 5,000
BP: 20/50 (two badges equipped)

Active Abilities:
•*Heal lv1 — restore %25 of an ally's health. Cost 500 Ki
•*Heal lv2 — restore %50 of an ally's health. Cost 750 Ki
•*Revive — Revive a fallen ally with half HP. Cost 1,250 Ki, and %10 of your remaining HP.



EVERYONE:
Note: you can spend your unused stat points before you take your first turns.

I feel as though I made a mistake somewhere. Please examine your stats and let me know if so.

Also the entire team's charm factored into this choice, since it was a group effort.
_________________________


Bob, feeling compelled by some unknown force, as though his allies are utilizing sheer willpower to control his decision for him (:p), decides to try to reason with Tyrus.


Waxing eloquent, Bob and company remind him of both the humanity of their people, and their former king, as well as the fact that what he now defends as ruler is neither human nor humane. Speaking of humanity and pride, of righteousness and darkness, of moral and honor, they narrowly manage to sway Trevor's opinion of them and their cause, but narrowly is enough.

Tyrus joins the party.



"Traitorous filth!" the remaining guard barks at Trevor as he agrees to aid you in the rebellion. "I knew it was a mistake for the hive projector to trust humans. Would that queen Fleilorn had heeded my advice and slain the whole lot of you when we first arrived. No matter. You're all to be eliminated soon enough anyway, surely she won't care if I have a little of her fun for her in advance. One insignificant speck like you'll make her no nevermind."



Battle begins.
Turn order:

EX Palen :
You may actually twice per turn against the guard.

Akiria

Attack: 6 [+3]
Defense: 5 [+2]
Charm: 4
Intelligence: 6
Speed: 5

HP: 5,000/5,000
Ki: 6,000
BP: 50

Active Abilities:
•Infuse — Attack +%10 for the duration of the battle. Cost 500 Ki
•*Diagnostics — +%25 damage dealt. Cost 500 Ki



Eniitan :

Alicia

Attack: 11 [+3]
Defense: 7 [+5]
Charm: 2
Intelligence: 2
Speed: 1 [-2]


HP: 5,000/5,000
Ki: 7,000
BP: 40

Active Abilities:
•Recover — replenish your health. Cost 1.5 Ki per Health Point.



supernerd117 :
Note that you will have to state beforehand when you wish to intercept an attack.

Bob

Attack: 8 [+1]
Defense: 11 [+6]
Charm: 3
Intelligence: 4
Speed: 1 [-3]


HP: 6,000/6,000
Ki: 5,000
BP: 20/50 (two badges equipped)

Active Abilities:
•*Heal lv1 — restore %25 of an ally's health. Cost 500 Ki
•*Heal lv2 — restore %50 of an ally's health. Cost 750 Ki
•*Revive — Revive a fallen ally with half HP. Cost 1,250 Ki, and %10 of your remaining HP.



Queen's Guard
Attack: 8
Defense: 8
Speed: 1

HP: 8,000



Tyrus
Attack: 7
Defense: 7
Charm: 1
Intelligence: 1
Speed: 1

HP: 7,000


Note: system controlled allies cannot be revived in normal fashion. Only abilities and items may revive them.

NOTE:
I buffed the Cheap Shield, increasing it's defense to +3, as I realized that the Leather Shield that the players had was already providing a +2 boost.


EX Palen :
I noticed you asking for the HP boost, but forgot to note it down. Thanks for pointing that out.

Akira buys and equips Cheap Long Sword (+3 attack), and learns Focus level 1, Scouting level 1, and Battle Sense level 1. 

Stats:
Attack: 6 [+3]
Defense: 5 [+2]
Charm: 4
Intelligence: 6
Speed: 5

HP: 5,000/5,000
Ki: 6,000
BP: 50

Skills:
Focus level 1 (Ki abilities effect +25%)
Scouting level 1 (25% more likely to see enemies on map, and hidden items)
Battle Sense level 1 (+10% damage dealt, -10% damage taken)

Perhaps now would be a good time to clarify why Battle Sense says (+10% damage dealt, -10% damage taken instead of +10% attack, +10% defense.
Attack and defense can be affected by die rolls, but the boosts from Battle Sense are applied after the roll.
This means that your attack gains a guaranteed boost, so that even the worst roll will only result in a 1% reduction of your attack total, instead of a 10% reduction, and that the best roll will boost your attack by 21% instead of the normal 10%.
As for damage reduction, this acts differently from defense in that it's damage absorption is based on the amount of damage the enemy deals, rather than your defense roll, meaning that it scales to fit the need. That is to say, the enemy's attack is dropped to 90% effectiveness prior to your defense being tallied.

Learned new abilities!
•Infuse — Infuse yourself with Ki, increasing your Attack by %10 for the duration of the battle. Cost 500 Ki
•Battle Vision — Invulnerable to surprise attacks. (This ability is passive)
•*Diagnostics — Identify an enemy's weak point, increasing damage dealt by %25. Cost 500 Ki

Inventory:
Novice sword
Stone Sword
Cheap long sword (equipped)
Novice armor (equipped)
Leather shield (equipped)
Wolf pelt x2

50G



supernerd117 :
Lol Oh good catch. Only one P in aptitude.
Indeed you can trade and give items and money to one another. Also, I believe I made a mistake before: you said you wanted to put all of your K stat points on HP, right? Your new HP should be 6,000 then, not 4,000 as I originally stated.
Finally, I set your badges to equipped, but you can unequip them at any time, even during battle. Unequipped badges do not reduce your available BP.


Bob sells his pelts for 200G.
Buys Cheap Shield (+3 Defense, -1 Speed), Cheap Armor (+3 Defense, -2 Speed), Selfless badge (intercept attacks), and Target badge (increase Hate generation).

Attack: 8 [+1]
Defense: 11 [+6]
Charm: 3
Intelligence: 4
Speed: 1 [-3]


HP: 6,000/6,000
Ki: 5,000
BP: 20/50 (two badges equipped)

Skills:
Focus lv2 (Ki abilities effect +50%)

Learned new abilities!
•*Heal lv1 — restore %25 of an ally's health. Cost 500 Ki
•*Heal lv2 — restore %50 of an ally's health. Cost 750 Ki
•*Revive — Revive a fallen ally with half HP. Cost 1,250 Ki, and %10 of your remaining HP.

Inventory:
Novice sword
Stone Sword (equipped)
Novice armor
Leather shield
Cheap shield (equipped)
Cheap armor (equipped)
Selfless badge (equipped)
Target badge (equipped)

0G



Eniitan :
Alicia buys Cheap Armor (+3 Defense, -2 Speed), and Cheap Long Sword (+3 Attack).
Learns Ki Aptitude lv1, Scouting lv1, Battle Sense lv1.

Attack: 11 [+3]
Defense: 7 [+5]
Charm: 2
Intelligence: 2
Speed: 1 [-2]


HP: 5,000/5,000
Ki: 7,000
BP: 40

Skills:
Ki Aptitude level 1 (lower cost of Ki abilities by 25%)
Scouting level 1 (25% more likely to see enemies on map, and hidden items)
Battle Sense level 1 (+10% damage dealt, -10% damage taken)

Learned new abilities!
•Recover — replenish your health. Cost 1.5 Ki per Health Point.
•Battle Vision — Invulnerable to surprise attacks. (This ability is passive)
•*Formation — Increase evasion chance or hit chance by 10%. (This ability is passive, and must be set by the player before battle).


Note: abilities are gained when you gain skills. Abilities marked with an asterisk are unique to the character type (example: Bob has more healing abilities to unlock, being a mage)



The party heads buys their equipment and continues their journey to the north.
Upon reaching the palace, they manage to enter unnoticed, silently taking down guards one at a time, thanks to Bob's intricate knowledge of the building, it's passageways, and it's corridors. Their luck runs dry however as they reach the entry to the throne room.

Before them stand two guards, clad head to toe in stout looking armor, armed with iron swords to boot.

"Halt!" the one of the left shouts. "Who are you, and what do you seek entry to her highness for?"


It would be wise to play this one carefully, Alicia however, is not accustomed to all of this skulking about, sneaking around and slaying enemies from the shadows like some sort of criminal, though in truth that is what they currently are as traitors of the new crown. Nevertheless, her direct, battle driven nature gets the better of her.

"We're here to slay the tyrant who now oppresses the people, and seeks to overthrow all that is good!" she proclaims, perhaps a little too loudly. "Furthermore, we shall fell all who stand in our way to her."

"You? Slay us? Laughable. Come Tyrus, let us eradicate the treacherous dogs."

"Yes sir," the guard on the right answers and raises his weapon.

"Tyrus?" Bob knows the man on the right. They had worked together here under the former king.

Turning to look at him, the man only now notices Bob, as his attention prior to this point had been too focused on Alicia, understandably. "Bob? What are you doing with this lot?"



Do you attack, or attempt to use Bob's connection to this man to persuade him to join you in your cause?

Players vote. The vote will be finalized twenty four hours after the first vote is cast.

Welcome to lesson number forty two. This week we'll be covering vocabulary for the most part, but we'll also tackle some grammar, and look at some good options for helping learn Japanese.

いこう皆（みな）！


Vocabulary

寝室（しんしつ）
shínshi tsu*
Bedroom

台所（だいどころ）
daídokoro
Kitchen

洗面所（せんめんじょ）
senmenjo
An area with a washstand, washroom, bathroom


浴室（よくしつ）
yokúshi tsu*
Bathroom


お手洗い（おてあらい）、トイレ
otéarai, tóire
Toilet


玄関（げんかん）
génkan
Entrance hall


階段（かいだん）
kaídan
Stairs


庭（にわ）
niwá
Garden, Yard


ソファー
sófaa
Sofa


机（つくえ）
tsukué
Desk


ベッド
béddo
Bed (Never would have guessed that one with a translation, now would you?)


たんす
tánsu
Chest of drawers


冷蔵庫（れいぞうこ）
reízouko
Refrigerator


電子レンジ（でんしレンジ）
dénshirenji
Microwave (as in a microwave oven, not the type of wave itself)


洗濯機（せんたくき）
sentákuki
Washing machine


大変（たいへん）
taíhen
Hard



Notes:
1. In 寝室（しんしつ）the ん also receives the pitch accent, so that instead of saying SHÍnshi tsu, you say SHÍNshi tsu. This will most likely come naturally, as the former is more forced and feels a bit awkward.

2. As always, there shouldn't be a space between the shi and tsu in shinshi tsu, but the censor must be dodged. Don't ban me, please.



Grammar

Morae
Allow me to preface this by saying that m0ss introduced me to this concept.
Credit where credit is due, let's get on into this concept a bit.


Language science is confusing, so I dumb it down to make it as digestible as possible for my own sake, bear in mind that I'm relaying that dumbed down version of things to you, so if you want the more detailed, and in all honesty, better version, you should feel free to look it up.

To put the idea of morae simply, there are these things called diphthongs, which are vowels that merge to form one syllable, such as the oi in oink, coin, and poindexter. In these words the vowels aren't pronounced separately (o-eye-nk, or o-ē-nk?), but rather they merge by gliding seamlessly together, starting off as ō and ending as ē to make an "oy" sound.

Japanese has no diphthongs.

I was unaware of this when I began my studies, and as a result I ended up sounding like a Westerner speaking Japanese (go figure) while relaying these words to you. A quick example would be how I said to pronounce はい (hai) : I said it was pronounced the same way as the English word "hi", but it is not. Rather it is pronounced as it is written " ha i". It sounds a lot like hi when you hear it, but if you listen closely you'll notice that it's two syllables, not one, they're just said in such quick succession that they nearly blend together.

This makes sense when you consider the fact that Japanese has syllabaries rather than an alphabet — everything is written (barring Kanji) and spoken in single, separate syllables.


The almost exception
Long vowels. They're made up of only one syllable despite being written as two syllables, but it's written as two to indicate that you hold it's sound longer, kind of like how you might write informally in English to signify that you're stressing a letter: "okaaaay".

This doesn't double the vowel, it makes it two morae instead of one.
Think of it like music: Japanese has a certain rhythm to it. Every syllable is exactly the same length as the next one, including ん (n). Long vowel sounds however, are held twice as long as other syllables. Like if you were to say "Helloo" instead of "Hello".


To sum it up simply: Japanese is read and pronounced one character at a time (み　ず), not as multiple characters combining to make a single sound like in English (wa ter).


Like last time: let me know if that didn't make sense to you.





Resources:
Originally I bought the resources that I did, thinking that they would be nearly everything that I needed, and while they've been very good, and worth every penny I spent on them (and then some), I'm learning more and more everyday just how helpful utilizing multiple external sources is. That isn't to say that these materials are incomplete, nor do I mean to imply that these lessons are poor quality, but rather that it helps to supplement them with additional quality resources.

That said, I've been making it a point for several months now to look into finding the best free content and tools that I can find to aid in the acquisition of the Japanese language, so that I might both utilize them, and pass them on to you. What you are about to see then, is a culmination of those efforts. I hope that you find them useful.

Note that the apps listed include pay options, and one has an outright paywall, but they're solid tools.


Learning Kana
I know I'm late with this one, as I should have introduced you to it thirty lessons ago, but better late than never, right? :p

Here are a few apps that I've found to be good for learning Kana. Some help you read it and others help you write it.

1. Write It! Japanese.
This is by far the best for learning to write Kana. It covers both Hiragana and Katakana, and utilizes a mix of visual and audio recognition. It breaks the Kana down into sets of five and drills you on them in tests that feel as much like games as they do learning. You will spend your time in this app clicking on Kana in multiple choice tests; you will also be asked to write on a blank slate, writing out the kana that you hear spoken (it also gives you Romaji along with the audio prompts).

Write It! Japanese is free, and highly effective. The scoring system also makes it fun to compete against your own times, this encouraging you to learn by making it fun. If only all tests were this entertaining. lol


2. Kana Town.
This is also free, and it's quality. You'll spend your time in Kana Town recognizing both Hiragana and Katakana characters, clicking on them as you hear (and see) the prompts, but you'll have to click quickly, as you're timed, and a slow answer is a wrong answer.

This one is fun and challenging, it also feels slightly more customizable, but since it doesn't allow you to write the Kana as well as read, and it isn't quite as much fun, I've decided to make it second on the list.


3. Infinite Japanese.
Let me start off by just saying that Infinite Japanese is actually loads of fun to play, and rather challenging in it's approach to educational gaming. You'll definitely learn some kana, as well as words, if you use this one. Unfortunately it has a pay wall, so you'll only get so far before you need to pay or uninstall.

I never bothered to pay —because frankly, there are too many viable free options to drop my money on a premium one that doesn't seem to do any more for me than the free alternatives— so I can't vouch for the quality of the paid portion of the app. The free portion is solid though.


4. Japanese Dungeon.
Side scrolling action RPG turned Japanese lesson, Japanese Dungeon is an interesting little app. It's engaging enough, having you battle enemies by clicking on the Kana in tests similar to Kana Town and Write It!, but it adds an RPG element by making each correct click deal damage to your enemy, and each incorrect click cause you to take damage.

This is one of the more challenging of the apps mentioned so far, and though it's an engaging method of learning, it's also very much geared toward making you pay money to progress at a desirable rate, and that's just a bad design choice for an app made to help you learn. If you don't mind the grind, or dropping some real life coins on it, then Japanese Dungeon isn't a bad tool at all.


Note that all of these were tested on Android devices. I'm not sure if they're available on iOS or Windows devices.



Vocabulary and Grammar
The following are all free as well, though they too have paid options.
Also note that, unlike the app section, these are not listed in any certain order, so don't take the numbers as being indicative of the quality.


1. Japanese with Yuta.
https://www.youtube.com/user/YPlusShow
Yuta makes some great videos, and while his channel isn't about learning Japanese, he does offer Japanese video lessons on Vimeo. You can subscribe to his lessons by clicking on the link he provides in all of his videos on YouTube. Check him out, even if you aren't interested in his lessons. His YouTube videos are entertaining regardless.

2. Japanese Ammo With Misa.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBSyd8tXJoEJKIXfrwkPdbA
Miss has tons of videos, and they range from "absolute beginner" level to fairly advanced lessons. If you check her lessons out, I recommend looking at all of them, even the so called absolute beginner lessons, as, despite being on late Intermediate level, I found some useful (and interesting) information in them.

3. JapanesePod101.com (YouTube channel, not site).
https://www.youtube.com/user/japanesepod101
These are as much fun as they are educational. They upload frequently, and they offer a 24/7 podcast...thing..., so there's always something watch. Finally, they have livestreams on occasion, which are always entertaining and highly educational.

4. Tae Kim.
This one I've not checked out much, so unlike the others, this is more of a "try at your own risk" suggestion than a sure deal, but based on what I have found on here, Tae Kim is really good. I remember marvelling at how they taught me in a few short paragraphs what my books took multiple lessons to teach. Needless to say, what I've seen by Tae Kim has been solid and very easy to grasp, so it could be worth a look.

A link to the Japanese lesson section
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/

A link to the Blog section with more Japanese related stuff.
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/blog/



Tools
1. The aptly named website, Jisho (it means dictionary in Japanese). Jisho is, yes, an online Japanese to English dictionary, and it's proven invaluable to me, especially of late. My only regret is not using it sooner.

Do be aware that, as with any dictionary, you'll run into several definitions for most words that you look up, as well as references to multiple forms of it, so try not to get overwhelmed. Note also that from this point on, I'll be using Jisho as well as my literature for definitions of the words we learn so as to ensure that we learn all applicable definitions for the words we cover here (though I won't list all possible definitions, just the ones that apply to the usages we see in these lessons), so you'll only need this tool if you want to look up other words, words we covered previously, or more possible ways of using words in these lessons. Regardless, Jisho definitely deserves a place among your bookmarks.


2. Lexilogos.
https://www.lexilogos.com/keyboard/japanese.php
A must if you have no offline means of typing in Japanese, and you wish to do so. Lexilogos offers an online Keyboard for several languages, of which Japanese is one. It includes options for Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji, so it's all you'll ever need to type in Japanese... Unless you can already do so offline.




That'll do it for the recommendations. If I find any more, I'll be sure to mention them as well.

Special thanks to m0ss for introducing me to Jisho, Momo Aria for introducing me to Japanese Ammo With Misa, and Juliet for introducing me to Lexilogos!





Test:
Vocabulary.

1. 寝室（しんしつ）— shínshi tsu*

2. 台所（だいどころ）— daídokoro

3. 洗面所（せんめんじょ）— senmenjo

4. 浴室（よくしつ）— yokúshi tsu*

5. お手洗い（おてあらい）、トイレ — otéarai, tóire

6. 玄関（げんかん）— génkan

7. 階段（かいだん）— kaídan

8. 庭（にわ）— niwá

9. ソファー — sófaa

10. 机（つくえ）— tsukué

11. ベッド — béddo

12. たんす — tánsu

13. 冷蔵庫（れいぞうこ）— reízouko

14. 電子レンジ（でんしレンジ）— dénshirenji

15. 洗濯機（せんたくき）— sentákuki

16. 大変（たいへん）— taíhen





A. Entrance hall

B. Hard

C. Washing machine

D. Desk

E. Toilet

F. Sofa

G. An area with a washstand, washroom, bathroom

H. Microwave

I. Bathroom

J. Refrigerator

K. Chest of drawers

L. Kitchen

M. Bed

N. Stairs

O. Bedroom

P. Garden, Yard


Note: I broke my microphone, so I won't be able to upload any videos for this lesson or any others until I get another one. I have no idea how long that will be, but in an effort to rectify this problem as best as is possible, I'll include added pronunciation aid in future lessons until I manage to get a replacement microphone.



_______________________

EX Palen : If only I were clever enough to think adding a hidden test like that. lol
It's shoushou. I'll edit that into the post. Thanks for pointing it out. Though I'm honestly more surprised at another mistake that I see that I made: I messed up something in my own native language while describing pitch accent on it. xD I'm not sure if I'm more shocked by my mistake, or by the fact that no one noticed it.


Ah, that reminds me: I made a big error early on with that (h vs w). は is always pronounced as an h (ha), except when used as a particle. I'm not sure if I ever corrected that or not, or if you already knew it, but I wanted to put it out there.

As for the heea/heya thing, it could be anything from a dialect/location based issue (like how people in the northern part of the U.S. and people in the southern part of the U.S. differ on the pronunciation of... Well... Most things. lol). I also noticed while reading that aloud, that heea and heya sound almost exactly the same too, so it would make sense if some pronunciations varied on that.


You know, the varying degrees of formality was intimidating to me as a native English speaker, until I realized how many words we have that are used with varying degrees of formality. For example, I could say "Hey, man! How's it going?" to a friend, but to a stranger I would say something like "Hello. How are you today?" If I'm being extra formal I could throw in a "sir" in place of "man". In fact, I can think of at least six ways to say Hello, and which one I use depends on the level of formality, the occasion, the person I'm speaking to, and more. It's all very complex sounding, but also surprisingly easy to learn and remember.
I tend to find ways to compare Japanese to English as a means of helping with learning it and to keep it from being so intimidating.




KillerLatias : Well then, feel free to join us! Do be aware however, that I made a few mistakes in the early lessons, so if anything feels odd about it, be sure to ask, as it may very well be incorrect. I'm planning on getting those posts edited over the next month though.




Summon List:

Mynamescox44 :
m0ssb3rg935 :
deggle :
SacredShadow :
Sanspai :
sevencube3 :
Jygin :
Frodlex :
Zlinqx :
tytytec04 :
lordbelial669 :
A user of this :
PoptartSlayerXD :

Sorry for my absence.

Eniitan :


EX Palen :

Akira's stats:
Attack: 4 [+1]
Defense: 5 [+2]
Charm: 4
Intelligence: 6
Speed: 5

The skill pallette works a little differently than a typical skill tree in that it isn't divided into separate categories, but it still allows for plenty of control over your skills.

Here's an illustration. A poorly made, low resolution illustration, but an illustration (good luck reading it).


All level one skills cost one point, level two skills cost two points, etc.
Also note that learning any skill enables you to learn any adjacent skill (so long as it isn't a level 2 skill that you haven't unlocked level 1 for yet).
Since this is just a test, I haven't made up the entire pallette yet, or I'd list more.



________________

Party loots the enemy:
Gained 4 Wolf pelts
Gained 1 High Quality wolf pelt
Gained 5 Tainted meat


Party travels north, using extra energy to power through the stream at higher speeds than is likely advisable. :p


With Akira being the faster of the two, Bob suggests that he head to the town beforehand to make the necessary preparations. Agreeing with this counsel, Akira heads toward the town at full speed, but he's stopped at the gate by a guard who looks none too keen on the idea of allowing some guy running at high speeds with blood smeared all over his arms and garments to enter.

Akira's a rather charming individual, and he does his best to sway the guard's opinion of him, despite his current appearance making him look less than trustworthy. He manages to make some headway, but the guard still isn't convinced that he trusts Akira enough to allow passage.


A few moments of this limbo pass before the guard looks up and sees Bob running, carrying a limp, bloody woman in his arms. No doubt this is where the blood on the man before him came from; and to think, he nearly fell for the man's trickery! Seeing the man (Akira) turn around to look at the other man (Bob) rushing toward them, the guard thinks quickly and grabs Akira, restraining him so that can neither run nor fight back.

This doesn't seem to make the man running toward them feel any better, however, as he begins shouting at the guard.


After hearing the matter from Bob and Akira, the man was still concerned, but upon seeing the hide of the wolves, especially the rather large skin of the alpha wolf that the men had spoken of, the guard permits them to enter.

____________
Welcome to Ilosaiph.
You may do the following while here:

•Buy or sell weapons, armor, badges, or items
•Heal (100G)
•Train (convert G to Exp — current exchange ratio: 4:1)

Relevant information to your visit:
Akira:
HP is full
Exp.: 25/100

Inventory:
(Selling price in this town will be indicated in square brackets)
Novice sword [5G]
Stone Sword (currently equipped) [20G]
Novice armor [5G]
Leather shield (currently equipped) [20G]
Wolf pelt x2 [100G each]
Tainted meat x2 [5G each]


Money: 100G



Bob:
HP is full
Exp. 25/100

Inventory:
Novice sword [5G]
Stone Sword (currently equipped) [20G]
Novice armor [5G]
Leather shield (currently equipped) [20G]
Wolf pelt x2 [100G each]
Tainted meat [5G]

Money: 100G



Alicia:
HP is full
Exp. 25/100

Inventory:
Novice sword [5G]
Stone Sword (currently equipped) [20G]
Novice armor [5G]
Leather shield (currently equipped) [20G]
High quality wolf pelt [200G]
Tainted meat [5G]

Money: 100G



Shop
•Cheap short sword: +2 Attack, +1 Speed [50G]
•Cheap long sword: +3 Attack [50G]

•Cheap shield: +2 Defense, -1 Speed [50G]
•Cheap armor: +3 Defense, -2 Speed [50G]

•HP badge: +10% HP (requires 20 BP)
•Underdog badge: prevents it's wearer from falling to an attack that drains more than half of their max HP. (requires 10 BP)
•Steel skin badge: reduces damage received by 10% (requires 20 BP)
•Selfless badge: enables the wearer to intercept an enemy attack that was meant for their ally, essentially jumping between their ally and their ally's attacker. (requires 20 BP)
•Target badge: Increases the likelihood of the wearer being targeted by enemies. This effect increases as ally health drops lower. (Requires 10 BP)

All badges here are selling for 100G.





After shopping, pick a direction to head in.
North is the capital — the final target resides here
To the east is woods
West is a plain
South is the stream




supernerd117 :
Your new stats:
Attack: 8 [+1]
Defense: 7 [+2]
Charm: 3
Intelligence: 4
Speed: 2


HP: 4,000/4,000
Ki: 5,000
BP: 50

Eniitan — Thanks! I don't deserve the kind words, but I do appreciate that you feel that way. It also means a lot that you thought to make this thread for me. I don't see many birthday threads anymore, so I didn't expect this at all. lol


Momo Aria : Thanks! They dropped by super early and tended to the fields while Popuri and I chilled. :V


Barathemos : I didn't have any pudding sadly (not because I chose not to!), but there was at least some cookie dough ice cream. And most of my day was spent sitting at an optometrist's office (not for myself) and working. This is why Sunday birthdays are the best -- no need to work through them.

All in all it was a good day though. Thanks for the pudding cake too! Good to see people still know what's good remember. :V Those are always one of the best parts of seeing my own birthday threads. xD

Turn three. Game on (I hope somebody gets that reference).

EX Palen :
Alicia also has high defense, so she would have survived normally, but that Alpha Wolf attacking her was rough. That thing was level seven (you can tell by their stat values), unlike the others that were only level three.
___________

Akira attacks Wolf 4: deals 1,547 damage.
Wolf 4 has been defeated!

Player party is victorious!
Gained 212 exp.
All members reach level 4, gain 2 Skill Points, 2 stat points, and 2 K stat points.

Will you loot the enemies? This costs 1 energy (you currently have 9). Note that looting does not count against revive timers.


Which way will you go next?
To the north you see a small town. Note that entering the town will require crossing the stream, which will take either two turns, or one energy.

To the east you see a plain with a stream running through it (the same stream at which you now stand).

To the west you see a field with a stream running through it.

To the south you see a plain (where you started).


Revive timer: you now have two full turns to save Alicia.



Reminder:
All players now have unspent points.

EX Palen
Akira has 3 unspent stat points, 3 unspent skill points, and 2 unspent K stat points.

Eniitan :
Alicia has 3 unspent stat points, 3 unspent skill points, and 3 unspent K stat points.
Note: Alicia's points may be distributed even in her current state. They will take effect once she's revived.

supernerd117 :
Bob has 3 unspent stat points, 3 unspent skill points, and 3 unspent K stat points.

Remember: enemy difficulty increases in correlation to player levels, regardless of strength levels. This means that while saving points can be a valid option, it also puts you at a disadvantage as the enemies grow stronger as soon as you level up, unlike you who only grow stronger when you spend the points gained from leveling up.

Sorry to hear that you're having so much trouble with your health, man. Something similar happened with one of my family members recently, and while I can't imagine being the one in the situation, I do know a bit about how rough it can be for someone to hear and experience that.

Hang in there. I'll be praying for you, and if you need to talk or anything you can always hit me up here, on Discord, or on PSN. If you use either of the last two I'll be notified of it right away, but any of the three are fine with me.