We're finally through with Hong Kong. Time to sail the great sea.
Fun fact: with certain Stands, you can glitch past the cutscene trigger and talk to those NPCs on the dock for some silly dialogue.
Polnareff: Monsieur Joestar... Pardon my interruption, but I have a question to ask you. Joseph: ? ...Ask away. Polnareff: I notice you never take that glove off, even during meals. Now, this may sound odd, but...
Kakyoin:I thought he was going to ask if you had six fingers. Cascada:Same. Abdul:I as well.
Joseph: ...It's an old battle wound. It happened about 50 years ago. Joseph:During...... The War. Jotaro:WE KNOW, Gramps. Cascada:I was half-asleep for most of it, but you definitely told that story like three times. Abdul:...We are all well aware, Mr. Joestar. Joseph:Oh I see, you get to tell your "Dio was SO hot" story as many times as you want, but I can't tell MY "teamed up with fascists to save the world" story anymore? Abdul:Mine is very important for the full context! Cascada:Even the screaming part? Abdul:Yes! Joseph:-sigh- All:EVERY detail. Kakyoin:May I remind everyone we're on a time limit to save Jotaro's incredibly attractive mother? Jotaro:Give me a @#S% break...
Polnareff:...I do not think I will tell this story often, mes potes. Joseph:...My condolences.
Joseph: That definitely sounds like the work of a Stand user... Polnareff: That's why I've sworn to hunt down and kill that man, so that my sister's soul can finally rest in peace! I swore to exact revenge on him with my Stand... To make him suffer like she did! ...And then, one year ago, I met Dio. Abdul:Did you find him attr- -mphfh- Kakyoin:Go on.
Polnareff: I truly believed it was the right thing to do... Abdul: That was the flesh bud's influence, no doubt. Dio has a knack for exploiting people's vulnerabilities. Jotaro: Yes... But after hearing your story, it's clear to me that Dio intends to recruit the man with two right hands for his own purposes. Cascada: He probably didn't send him to kill us right away so he could continue to manipulate Polnareff. Polnareff: That's exactly why I'm following you to Egypt! I know that finding Dio means finding my sister's killer!
Jotaro: Shut up! Go ask someone else!
Jotaro: ............... 💧 Abdul: I... really don't get this guy. 💧 Kakyoin: He really changes moods on a dime... 💧 Joseph: He thinks with the wrong head... 💧
christ
Kakyoin: We're students. Students should look like students. ...That's my reason. Cascada: If not for the uniform, I don't think anyone would be able to tell Jotaro's in high school. Jotaro: Hmph.
I don't know how true this is (and it sounds kind of ridiculous), but I've heard that some schools in Japan mandate that students wear their uniform even while out and about after school.
Kakyoin: The sea breeze is very calming, though... it makes me feel like taking a swim. Polnareff: I bought some swimsuits just in case! Let's swim later.
Polnareff: Heh heh! Now you're talking!
If you pick "Can't swim", you'll have a bit of trouble down the line. But I suppose having the option at all is kind of neat.
Joseph: What's going on!? I specifically requested that no other passengers be on board!
You can only turn me over to the 1980s Hong Kong cops if it's specifically to Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Rothrock from Yes, Madam. Great movie.
The kid wriggles free and fucking bails.
Kakyoin: I think he really intends to swim to shore... Cascada: Good luck with that... Joseph: What should we do? Jotaro: Who cares? If he didn't think he could make it, he wouldn't have jumped in.
Come on, Jotaro. People do stupid shit without thinking about the consequences all the time, like starting overambitious Let's Plays of obscure JoJo fangames on social media platforms with uncertain futures. (Edit from the future: lmao)
Right on cue.
This might be the most unhinged dialogue box in this game so far. I have no idea how they got to that, since the manga and anime just say something like, "and you're a runt, too".
In the manga this thing swims up to them and its dorsal fin is so sharp that it slices the shark clean in half.
Joseph: ...Could this girl... Maybe... Polnareff: Is she a Stand user? Kakyoin: She might have lured Jotaro into the water on purpose... Cascada: She could've been a decoy!
Cascada:Actually, I'm kind of on her side now. Polnareff: (She's clearly playing dumb. What do we do? Throw her back in?) Abdul: (Hold on. We're not 100% sure she's the Stand user. We can't just throw her to the sharks.) Joseph: (But we did a background check on this ship's captain and crew. It has to be her. We've just gotta get her to admit it!) Abdul: So tell me... How is Dio? Abdul:Still as alluring as ever?
Polnareff: Hey! Don't play dumb with us!
Kakyoin: Pfft! Cascada:The 7-11 I went to didn't sell demon blades... what a ripoff...
Abdul:-snrk- Polnareff:Hehehe... Jotaro:Heh.
Cascada: Yeaaah... But... If you were the enemy, wouldn't you want us to think you were just a dumb kid? Joseph: H-hmm... Well...
Joseph: Pardon me, Captain... You did check the backgrounds of all the crewmembers thoroughly, correct?
Get his ass.
Jotaro: Who the hell do you think you are? If you'd just asked nicely, I would've put it out myself... dickhead. Joseph: Jotaro! How dare you speak to the captain that way! Jotaro: Hmph! Why should I do that? After all, he's not the captain. He's our Stand user...
Joseph: That's impossible, Jotaro! Think about what you're saying! Captain Tennille is a trusted friend of the Speedwagon Foundation! Abdul: It's true! There's zero reason to doubt him! Do you have any proof, Jojo!? Cascada:How about because he's the only person we've met today who has a name? Polnareff:...She's got a point.
Polnareff: Y-you're full of shit, Jotaro! Jotaro: That I am. But it looks like we found an idiot...
Gottem.
Joseph: Jotaro... Why did you suspect the captain in the first place? Jotaro: I didn't. I planned on pulling that trick on everyone in the crew eventually. Jotaro:Learned that one from Columbo.
Jotaro consistently has terrible comebacks.
Tennille: I didn't expect this to be a 6-on-1 fight... I'd planned to take you all out individually while in hiding. But nuts to that! It's good this girl snuck aboard... Now I've got a hostage! You wouldn't put an innocent little kid's life in danger, would you!? I'll be taking her into the water with me now... There, even a 6-on-1 is no problem at all. The sea is my Stand's playground! Jotaro: What makes you think I care? Tennille: You don't have to care... Your Star Platinum may be fast, but it's nothing compared to my Stand's swimming speed. My Stand can swim faster than any fish in the world! If you wanna compare speeds, you're dead in the water! Ha ha!! So! Ready to head to a watery grave!?
Oh hell yes.
If we can't win in three turns, the ambush is a failure and we move on with business as usual. However, Cascada's training montage in Hong Kong means she has a new trick or two and we get a chance at double-dipping on the boss EXP.
Cascada:I'm running out of one liners for when I oneshot these assholes. Jotaro, say something. Jotaro:...You're looking, uh, waterlogged...
Jotaro: The only one headed towards a watery grave... is you. Abdul. Say something. Abdul: Trying to predict the future in front of a fortune teller? Polnareff: Talk about getting ahead of yourself! Jotaro:That's the best you two could come up with? Abdul:That should be my line, Jojo. Polnareff:It's a call back to last time! It shows that we're friends now!
Cascada: Looks like the girl's okay... good. Joseph: ? ...Jotaro? What's the hold-up? Hurry and get her on board. Jotaro: N... nngh...! Joseph: What is it, Jotaro!? Jotaro: D-damnit...!! I'm getting pulled under! Cascada: !? E-everyone! Look at Star Platinum's arm!
Polnareff: A-aaaaaah!! What are THOSE!? Abdul: Those are barnacles! They're a kind of sea creature! Kakyoin: How are they sticking to his Stand!? That shouldn't be possible! Joseph: Who cares!? We've got to help him! C'mon, let's get him on board, quickly! Jotaro: Damn it... Looks like he's still able to fight... They must've stuck to me when I punched him... They're multiplying... And they're sapping my energy! At this rate, I'll be pulled in! Joseph: Jotaro! Pull up your Stand! Jotaro: I can't! Nnngh... I'm getting sweaty... My grip... is... Joseph:I said pull up, not pull it out!!
Cascada gets dragged in too! Even though Quicksilver is a Long-range Stand and we fight pretty much exclusively through energy projectiles!
If you elect not to ambush Tennille or don't win the ambush battle, then you don't get pulled in and Jotaro has to handle the next section solo.
Tennille: It's so kind of you to come! This is the world of Dark Blue Moon... The deep blue sea! You really shouldn't have underestimated me... young man! Our Stands can communicate for us... Why don't you talk about how weak I am some more!? Eh? Young maaaannn? Jotaro: What do you want to be? Tennille: Huh? Jotaro: I said... what kind of seafood do you want to be? Sashimi? Fish paste? Ceviche? Tennille: Fool... You may talk big, but I know exactly what you're thinking! It's "how long can this guy hold his breath? My personal record is about 2 minutes..." Am I right? Tennille: Heh heh heh! Well, I'll answer that right now... My breath capacity is roughly 3 times that of a normal human! I've been training... Tennille:I dreamt of something called "blitzball"... The ULTIMATE watersport! And Dio is going to help me make it a reality! Jotaro:Now I DEFINITELY have to make sure you stay down... Tennille: MY record is 6 minutes and 21 seconds! Beat that! Oh right... you can't! Heh heh heh! And that's not all! My Dark Blue Moon's flippers are razor sharp and even faster than the ship's propeller! Now take a look at your Stand...
Tennille: Those barnacles are sapping your strength... and they're multiplying fast! Heh heh... trying to swim to the surface? Sorry, not gonna happen!
I forgot how much this guy keeps fucking talking. I wasn't going to bother clipping out his portrait at first but uploading one image is easier than uploading like 30.
Tennille: This whirlpool is filled with my razor sharp scales! If your friends try to jump in and save you, they'll be mincemeat! Now, I know exactly what you're thinking! "There's the eye of the storm... a spot where the whirlpool is still!" You're so cliche! Tennille: You're thinking, "he's in the center! I can attack him before it sucks me in!" If you think you can still manage a punch, then go ahead! Come at me! Your Stand doesn't even have the strength to swim thanks to those barnacles... Let alone defend against my Stand's water cutters! What do you say to that, young maaan!? Tennille:I said, young man! There's no need to feel down! Jotaro:I heard you the first time!
Jotaro: (! ...Cascada. So you were pulled under too... Too bad. Anyway, help me beat the crap out of this guy if you don't want to become a bloated corpse.)
The game does have a save immediately before this whole underwater segment, but it's entirely possible you're going into this fight with only the same Lv9 Jotaro that we started the Harbor with. If you can't win legitimately in 10 turns, the Brainstorm command will end the battle for free, as usual. If we picked "Can't Swim" ten minutes ago, we're inflicted with Confuse status on top of everything else.
In the manga, Jotaro solved this with the first of the two uses of Star Finger across the whole series (and the second is in the immediate next fight). It's his best move for the battle here in the game too.
Dark Blue Moon has about 300 HP and likes to inflict the CantFind condition. His Barnacles do 2%+1 damage every turn and halve our Power, Durability, and Speed, so all things considered Jojo's still putting out respectable damage here.
Barnacles don't halve Spirit - the magic damage stat - and every child knows Water-type Pokemon are weak to Electric-type attacks.
Jotaro:What do you think of my new special move, Cascada?
Cascada:Sorry, were you saying something? Jotaro:......Nah.
Cascada:Hey Jojo, I think I just learned a new special move!
I guess with a Stand like Dark Blue Moon, Tennille wouldn't give a shit about being dropped into the middle of the ocean. He probably should have just done this to begin with.
Joseph: There's no use wallowing over it. Let's just be glad the other crewmembers weren't hurt. Cascada: But how long are we going to be adrift like this...? Kakyoin: ...We'll just have to pray that help comes soon.
Modern JoJo characters would probably figure out ways to use their Stands to push the lifeboats no problem. I bet Johnny and Gyro could just use the Spin as a propeller or some shit.
