Valkyria Chronicles 4 Challenge Run

[fatgamecat]

Hello everyone, long time no play through. I've had to take a break for a couple years because of hand injuries from too much programming and gaming. I'd still like to do some more playthroughs of games including older fire emblems, slitherine games (Panzer Corps), older super robot wars games, and Others. There are a lot of Western tactics games worth checking out these days and I haven't been keeping up.

Anyway, I'm returning with a Valkyria Chronicles 4 Challenge Run.

Run conditions:

1. New Game or New Game-like conditions.
2. No orders.
3. No class leveling, R&D research, or infirmary.
4. No damage taken, excepting normally unavoidable damage (Raz in Interlude 1 and Ch 4c, and the Hafen on ch 17a)
5. All kills, excepting normally unkillable story/plot targets.
6. Low turn counts/A ranks.
7. Reliable strats, or as reliable as possible while meeting low turn count conditions. No reloading for low activation potentials, etc.

8. Skirmishes and squad stories are played immediately after they're unlocked, with appropriate equipment and recruits.

9. Accessories and weapons obtained during the story are allowed.

10. The tanks, APC, Grenadiers, and direct commands (SP) are only allowed to be used in a limited fashion to complete the above objectives. if the objectives can reasonably be completed without using them, I won't use them. if I do have to use them, I'll use them as little as possible.

If there are multiple options available, I'll choose the one that has the least impact on the rest of the mission. For example I would rather use a direct command to bring a sniper and lancer to the front, rather than driving a tank through or nuking everything with Grenadiers.

If a mission requires the tanks or Riley to move out of the way of enemy fire from their initial starting position, I'll try to empty move them without firing, to get them out of harm's way with minimal impact on the mission.

11. DLC content will be reserved until after the on disc content is completed. DLC weapons and recruits are only allowed on DLC maps.

12. No repeating missions to grind units to Corporal.

13. Once I reach the post game after chapter 18b, I will be unlocking any squad stories I missed from the main game.

I will be adding additional restrictions for the DLC content, such as the Valkyria recruits.


Feel free to ask any questions about the run. I've currently completed up to hard skirmish 3. I will be updating this thread with additional videos. thanks for reading and watching.

Squad stories and normal skirmishes:

In order to unlock 1 of the squad stories I had to get Curtis down and rescued. the only other squad story I didn't manage to unlock during the main story was the one with Simon Emmy and Viola because I had other shock troopers I wanted to use.

I finished every normal skirmish and unlocked (non-post game) squad story with a ranks and 0 damage all kills etc. If anyone has any questions or would like details on 1 of them please let me know. I don't plan on doing video for these unless someone asks because it's a large number of skirmishes and squad stories and probably not a lot of interest in them.

video playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2WVt24CiwXQ5gXwEkXvFHCyiRRA--Ih

 

 

Edited December 10, 2018 by fatgamecat

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 2 Hard: 4 turns
https://youtu.be/4lUV6Os-IGk
Tanks used: tank fires twice while moving to cover
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Riley fires once while moving to cover
Direct commands (SP) used: No

[fatgamecat]

Since I deleted my previous YouTube channel, I've re-uploaded all of the videos from the original VC challenge run. There are a total of 43 videos and includes the reports, hard and hard-ex skirmishes, and Valkyria DLC.

Valkyria Chronicles Challenge Run playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc2WVt24CiwVB0yKg4CTkQotZl4JqH_ts

Skirmish 3 Hard: 4 turns
https://youtu.be/AbNC0qMEZk8
Tanks used: No
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Riley is empty moved out of danger from starting position.
Direct commands (SP) used: No

[fatgamecat]

Ch 14 2 turn, no reload, lv 1, 0 dmg taken, no R&D, no orders, new game, ace killed, no grinding

https://youtu.be/ATdVFJGTVGs

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 4 Hard: 6 turns
https://youtu.be/2MknIRd8wXw
Tanks used: The tanks are used to destroy 2 sandbags and provide covering fire for the base
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Riley fires multiple times to destroy a train turret
Direct commands (SP) used: 6 used

In this attempt, the middle train is destroyed reliably using 2 lancers and an engineer, and the North and South trains are diverted. I've already destroyed every single train turret in a separate attempt within 6 turns. It's not any more difficult, it just involves a lot of reloading to land unlikely Grenadier and Lancer shots.

An antitank sniper rifle would be the safest and most reliable option, but I don't have one of those.

Notes for improvement:
should have given Crystal a range accessory.
should have gotten a surprise attack on the sniper with Aladdin on turn 1

There are 2 random factors on the stage. The location of the supply caches is random, although I never saw any that were way out of the way.

The enemy often has more infantry to move towards the players base than it has CP, especially on et1-3. The AI will choose units to move at random until it runs out of CP. This can lead to somewhat different infantry arrangements.

Edited December 17, 2018 by fatgamecat

[fatgamecat]

Valkyria Chronicles 4 Squad Story - Soul of the Navy 4 turn, no reload, lv 1, 0 dmg taken

https://youtu.be/f238qVwKcnM

Previously I did a chapter 14 no reload attempt based on another players lv 1, no reload run. On the same run, the player commented that "Easy Difficulty was used for 'Soul of the Navy' as it is statistically impossible to be able to clear it within the A Rank requirement of 4 turns due to the lack of Mortar lances - Even with access of Mortar lances for Level 1, it is still unlikely that you'd be able to complete it due to lack of HP on characters."

I found this interesting as in my experience, very little is impossible when it comes to strategy games.

Again I thought I would take a stab at it. In order to complete the mission with an A rank I had to dig into R&D, mainly to upgrade the grenades. No damage is taken on this attempt (although for the record, it is normal mode), and no reloading is done. Take a look and thanks for watching.

Note that it's not necessary for Andre to dodge the lance on turn 1. it's completely safe even if he doesn't dodge as the lance projects past him.

If you're willing to take damage, this mission can probably be completed more reliably than this attempt. You can alternately try to go through the middle by breaking the crouched scouts sandbag.

I may have to do some kind of compromise to complete this squad story on my reloading allowed run, as it is trying even when using R&D. Level 1 grenades are not nearly as effective as level 5.

After I finish my reloading allowed run, I would like to do a no reload run as well. I'd like the conditions to be more difficult than simply lv 1, but we'll see.

I've finished skirmish 5 hard on my reloading allowed run, and will be editing and uploading the video soon.

 

Soul of the Navy again: From what I can tell, cutting through the middle is more reliable than heading north and around. It's more tolerant of enemies dodging. However on a mission like this, there's a chance of failure no matter how perfect the strategy and execution.

Here is a proof of concept from turn 2 onward that shows the mission can be completed even with enemy dodges and/or failing to kill an enemy because not enough headshots land. This is not a real run but it should give you an idea.

https://youtu.be/jACz2Syu7H8
 

Edited December 21, 2018 by fatgamecat

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 5 Hard: 5 turns
https://youtu.be/vlEGO9vCyis
Tanks used: tanks are used frequently to deal with the heavy interception fire and move through the flames
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Riley is used frequently to gain surprise attacks and reduce the chance of enemy dodges
Direct commands (SP) used: 3 used

notes for improvement: for some reason I forgot to shoot with the glory on turn one after getting the scout killed. big oops
should safely grenade/attack the scout on the southwest base by standing behind the trooper, instead of using Riley

 

Valkyria Chronicles 4 Squad Story - Soul of the Navy v2 4 turn, no reload, lv 1, 0 dmg taken

https://youtu.be/H9R-TNTRrbc

Last soul of the Navy video, I swear. In this revised video, I cut through the middle which is more reliable than going up and around. You can waste up to 3 CP and still complete the mission, including taking multiple tries to kill the ace. There is no reloading or editing.

notes for improvement: I could have gotten more team attacks and gotten closer to some enemies to increase reliability. As far as the last trooper, I was trying to break the sandbag without hitting him, but failed.

Edited December 22, 2018 by fatgamecat

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 6 Hard: 3 turns
https://youtu.be/RZfpbMh0K5g
Tanks used: No
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Grenadier's are used frequently for surprise attacks and to deal with the low turn count limit
Direct commands (SP) used: 3 used

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 7 Hard: 4 turns
https://youtu.be/BZB2pSy9GjE
Tanks used: Yes
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Grenadier's are used frequently for surprise attacks and to fire onto upper or lower levels
Direct commands (SP) used: 4 Christmas turkeys eaten

notes for improvement: could probably be one more CP efficient with the tank movement, could probably destroy the heavy at on turn 3 in 1CP, maybe less Grenadier and SP use, and some other things. honestly didn't spend a lot of time on this mission.

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 8 Hard: 3 turns
https://youtu.be/kA3llvnZmg4
Tanks used: No
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: No
Direct commands (SP) used: 3 used

I cleared soul of the Navy on my current challenge run, by using Sergio's Lance to headshot some of the scouts. It was more difficult to get kills because I only had level 1 grenades and no brown M7 rifles. This involved some reloading, so it's not appropriate for a no reload attempt.

Soul of the Navy turn 2 shock: The greatest threat on turn 2 is the shock standing above the southmost ladder, who will try to rush the goal. There are 2 ways to keep him from rushing the goal if you can't kill him. You can either stand directly underneath the ladder, so he can't climb down (this works with any ladder in the game). Or you can make a two-person blockade on the bridge, which will make the AI path around instead of through, and likely won't attack anyone.

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 9 Hard: 5 turns
https://youtu.be/Zph8DcZV22I
Tanks used: Yes
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Yes
Direct commands (SP) used: 4 used

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 1 Challenge: 5 turns
https://youtu.be/nOy9b4iuiqc
Tanks used: Yes
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Yes
Direct commands (SP) used: 2 used

notes for improvement: could have killed some enemies in a different order for better reliability, could have given Gertrude accuracy accessory

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 2 Challenge: 7 turns
https://youtu.be/zVS0IzeVUzw
Tanks used: Yes
APC used: No
Grenadiers used: Yes
Direct commands (SP) used: 5 used

Possible to clear in 6 turns by reloading for hits on the radiator, and doing more reloading in general. Also possible to kill the boss tank on turn 2, although you probably won't have any cp left to deal with other enemies, which means taking damage.

If you don't want to kill every enemy on the map, you can clear on turn 3 when the boss tank is parked in front of the base. The Elias ma1 or tank cannons can deal a good amount of damage if they hit the radiator, even though they are non-upgraded weapons.

notes for improvement: Could improve reliability/efficiency in killing infantry on turns 4-6. I'd like to bait the active infantry Northwest instead of East. Also recall LOL.

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 3 Challenge: 4 turns
https://youtu.be/yLGYyfkKfJA
Tanks used: No
APC used: Yes
Grenadiers used: Yes
Direct commands (SP) used: 3 used

I used a tier 4 Royal Grenadier weapon for this attempt. This isn't necessary to complete in 4 turns, but it increases reliability by 3cp since the enemy Grenadiers can be outranged and killed in 1 CP instead of 2.

That's it for the on disc content.

[fatgamecat]

DLC:

squad 7 & edy missions were played with appropriate weapons recruits and accessories for just clearing chapter 2. All cleared under the challenge conditions including 100% kills & 0 damage taken.

Squad 7 mission 1: 3 turns
Squad 7 mission 2: 6 turns
Squad 7 mission 3: 3 turns
Edy: 3 turns
Valkyria 1: 6 turns
Valkyria 2: 5 turns

the Valkyria missions were annoying because they expect you to dump about half of your available command points into killing the boss, which doesn't leave a lot of left for killing every other enemy on the map. not to mention avoiding damage from the boss themselves.

I won't be using the Valkyria recruits for any content on this run.

remaining: beach missions, a captainless squad, and expert skirmishes

the 1st beach mission has an a rank limit of one turn. it's clearly designed to be played multiple times to kill each ace. regardless I'll see what I can do with it.

[fatgamecat]

Valkyria 1: 6 turns
https://youtu.be/kDQ6P2Azn0k

Beach 1: 3 turns (B rank)
Beach 2: 5 turns (B rank)
Captainless 1: 5 turns
Captainless 2: 4 turns
Captainless 3: 6 turns

Beach & Captainless missions were played with appropriate weapons recruits and accessories for just clearing chapter 10.

The beach DLC caused me to get my first 2 B ranks on this playthrough. Unfortunate, but I got a few B ranks on my original VC run as well.

Now working on the expert skirmishes. I can tell you right now more B rank(s) are ahead. After the expert skirmishes, I'll begin planning my no reload run.

As an aside, I recently played through chapter 18b hard. here are some of the differences I noticed:

Enemies are obviously Paragon
the sniper north of the start position is now crouched
there is an additional sniper in the Southwest near Riley's goal point
the Grenadier on the northeast base now advances south every turn, instead of staying put
the boss uses a defensive order, instead of an attack order
there are additional mines placed around
the boss takes a different route, emerging from different points compared to the normal version. It will emerge in the southeast and attempt to destroy the camp near your start position on 4EP instead of 6EP.

I have not seen a full list of differences anywhere, so there you go.

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 1 Expert: 5 turns (B rank)
https://youtu.be/YwE5WLsskiQ

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 2 Expert: 6 turns

https://youtu.be/l8fxMFpg8XE

Edited January 13, 2019 by fatgamecat

[fatgamecat]

Skirmish 3 Expert: 6 turns (B rank)

The tanks were destroyed using the high antiarmor scout weapons that can substantially damage tank radiators.

Skirmish 4 Expert: 9 turns

On the 1st few turns I picked off a few key units and hid, similar to skirmish 2 and 5 hard. After that it's a pretty standard clear. It's hard to get surprise attacks on this mission with short range Grenadier weapons, so expect lots of dodging.

Skirmish 5 Expert: 5 turns (B rank)

I had to burn some command points solely to spot enemies while avoiding the spotlights. Could do 4t with more reloading.

Skirmish 6 Expert: 8 turns (B rank)

The AI is very passive on this mission if your units stay hidden, and there are enough turns to take things gradually. The left side offers a lot better cover from los. Enemies start parachuting in from turn 3 onward - long-range sniper rifle really helps.

That's it for this challenge run. Thanks for reading and watching. I'll be getting started on the no reload challenge run in a bit.