These latter floors were what made palace so damn special it was the closest thing we’ve received to four-man savage content, which is something people have been asking for for years. That’s because this is pretty much what I said about floor 100+ of PotD, which few people made the journey to see. The journey to floor 100 - the final stage - is treacherous indeed.įor those that have read my prior Deep Dungeon sermons, this will probably evoke a sense of deja vu. The decor starts to change, too the Tatami give way to segmented ruins with a weird, almost cyberspace-y aura coming off the walls. Mimics go from being a funny annoyance to a genuine threat, and running around carelessly and tripping traps can end a run. The challenge starts ramping up, and individual enemies bring out mechanics you’d expect to see in boss fights like stack markers. Get past 30, though, and things start to change. One of the coolest of these are wide-open floors with no walls, trapped exits, and patrols from all sides.

And the structure of ten floor blocks with a boss at the end is brought forward essentially unchanged, barring a few twists here and there. Traps, floor effects and mimic chests return, along with the way you level up weapons and armor. Pomanders and the Accursed Hoard are back. Window dressing aside, though, it’s not all that different to palace. I’ve not run into any NPCs who died in the main scenario, for starters. Gone are the miserable caves that occupied most of PotD - the aesthetic, at least early on, ranging from japanese-style manicured gardens and tatami mats. Rather than going deeper and deeper underground, you’re clawing your way closer to the heavens with each floor. In many regards, Heaven-on-High is the antithesis of Palace of the Dead.

Final fantasy tactics deep dungeon