Sword Art Online - Episode 8 Discussion / Poll

[M1sFyr3]

Originally Posted by Eclipze

Considering that there exists something called the "sleep pk" exploit that makes people fearful of simply falling asleep anywhere in a safe zone, I wouldn't be surprised if it were a possibility. What's to say that an opponent couldn't just specialize in armor breaking techs and poke at the opponent with off-hits till they're near 50%, then break/disarm? their armor and just deal the finishing blow on an essentially 0def opponent?

Just a farfetched scenario, but still.

I would expect the game to stop allowing the HP to go down under 50% with the similar effect of trying to attack someone is safezone, should be a pretty straightforward thing for the game creator (who wanted the game to be "fair") to fix.

[Adigard]

Originally Posted by Eclipze

Considering that there exists something called the "sleep pk" exploit that makes people fearful of simply falling asleep anywhere in a safe zone, I wouldn't be surprised if it were a possibility. What's to say that an opponent couldn't just specialize in armor breaking techs and poke at the opponent with off-hits till they're near 50%, then break/disarm? their armor and just deal the finishing blow on an essentially 0def opponent?

Just a farfetched scenario, but still.

An exploit that makes people fear falling asleep outside their rooms... as the anime has already proven multiple times that private rooms are totally safe (part of why the murder arc was such a drastic shift).

And if the SAO duel's are anything like standard MMO-fare duel's there's probably an opt-out button somewhere.

Spoiler:

The LN states you can cancel a duel with a simple vocal command.

[Spectacular_Insanity]

Originally Posted by Eclipze

Considering that there exists something called the "sleep pk" exploit that makes people fearful of simply falling asleep anywhere in a safe zone, I wouldn't be surprised if it were a possibility. What's to say that an opponent couldn't just specialize in armor breaking techs and poke at the opponent with off-hits till they're near 50%, then break/disarm? their armor and just deal the finishing blow on an essentially 0def opponent?

Just a farfetched scenario, but still.

Totally possible.

But from what I've read, even duels that are "50% health victory" duels CAN be dangerous if the last attack is a critical hit.

As Asuna said way back in episode 5, people can still die in normal duels because your health drops, although it is unlikely.

[DragoZERO]

Finally, the main story.

Fricken awesome. Asuna is win on so many levels. Can't wait for the coming episodes, gonna be awesome.

Here's hoping they animate next episode and have no stills.

[Master_Yoma]

2 years in there bodies must of atrophied and wow s-class ingredients

[orpheus2]

Originally Posted by Master_Yoma

2 years in there bodies must of atrophied and wow s-class ingredients

True. I really how much therapy will they go through after finishing the game both physically and mentally.

[NoemiChan]

Originally Posted by orpheus2

True. I really how much therapy will they go through after finishing the game both physically and mentally.

Actually... they could be undergoing physical therapy even while in game... I mean... Like with comatose patient that is... In ICU when do body positioning per 2 hours and passive exercises to prevent muscle atrophy and dystropy..

[Kamui04]

Originally Posted by Iron Maw

Huh? I thought that was specific to Rosalia's group and why they were so successful.

I think you need to watch ep 4 again. When Silica asked about why Rosalia was green, Kirito mentioned the tactic as in it's one commonly used by other PKs, not one specific to Rosalia's guild.

Originally Posted by Adigard

Kirito as an extremely powerful solo'er is probably stupidly wealthy... OTOH, as an avid MMO player (it's a safe assumption) he probably blows his money on silly things like new weapons / equipment pieces / and silly MMO fluff.

From previous episodes you can see that Kirito carries around a lot equipment from different levels, sometimes to blend with lower levels and sometimes to give away to cute girls XD.

[Arya]

Well, great episode. Even if I wasn't bothered by the side stories I have to say that this first episode feels like something else. But I knew it would have happened. I mean, they were able to make me like side stories that I usually consider equally to filler episodes.
The quality really impressed me, btw, it looks like they did a great job here, better than before.
Anyways Asuna is awesome, freakin awesome. I love how strong she is, but keeping her feminine traits!! That's the perfect formula

Something that was a little surprising is the cliffhanger at the end of the episode. Hasn't they been a "bit" reckless getting in the boss room? Even in relation of Asuna previous concern on how unpredictable the monsters have become since lvl. 70.

[.Mero]

Originally Posted by Klashikari

Judging from Liz's Appraisal windows, Dark Repulser is in fact inferior to Elucidator, but by a very tiny margin.
Considering Kirito's habit to be prepared, he probably use Elucidator as his main weapon, and has Dark Repulser as a back up (and since weapons can break during mid battle, it makes sense that Kirito was looking for a similar weapon just in case).

Usually in a mmo you repair regurlarly, when carrying a backup it's just that it doesnt need to be as good as your main or better.

In mmo's there's usually only 2 reasons to get a second weapon, either because of different properties /skillsets/style you are going to use

or spoiler for it might considered speculation on my side

Spoiler:

Biggest reason to get a second weapon with as close as identical stats as your main would be if you are going to dual wield. seeing as in most mmo's dual wielding also gives you a penalty for using the offhand, you'll need a weapon with "matching" stats to minimize that penalty

That was my first thought at least when he was getting that 2nd sword

Just my 2 cents as someone who usually plays a rogue/assassin class :P

[Dengar]

Weren't there three types of duel? One of which was "First hit wins". Maybe one of them is to the death?

[Clarste]

Originally Posted by Arya

Something that was a little surprising is the cliffhanger at the end of the episode. Hasn't they been a "bit" reckless getting in the boss room? Even in relation of Asuna previous concern on how unpredictable the monsters have become since lvl. 70.

I don't think it's that reckless. "The boss can't leave the room" is another one of those absolute rules they've lived with for 74 floors already. It's related to the fairness of the game that Kirito was talking about earlier. You simply don't fight the boss until you're ready, and you can always run away. You can either accept it or give up and die. Given that they no longer have any beta knowledge to tell them even vaguely what to expect from a boss, entering the room to see what it does and then resetting it before it gets dangerous would be the only way to develop any kind of strategy. Of course, it's not perfectly safe, but that's why there's so much tension in the scene. It needs to be done though. Think of them as a scouting party.

[Klashikari]

The only problem I have with Kirito's initiative is that... they would be screwed to no end if the door suddenly close behind them, and it would logically be a "immortal object".
Even more "funny" if the boss room would be a anti crystal room, like the chest trap room in ep3, or the dragon's lair.

Closed room during boss fights are not unheard of, especially in RPG and MMO.

[Clarste]

Originally Posted by Klashikari

The only problem I have with Kirito's initiative is that... they would be screwed to no end if the door suddenly close behind them, and it would logically be a "immortal object".
Even more "funny" if the boss room would be a anti crystal room, like the chest trap room in ep3, or the dragon's lair.

Closed room during boss fights are not unheard of, especially in RPG and MMO.

Closed room fights are not unheard of in other games, but presumably it hasn't happened for 74 floors now. And if they don't scout it out themselves, then someone else will have to later. Does Kirito really seem like the type to let someone else risk their life for him? Of course not.

[Adigard]

Originally Posted by Arya

Something that was a little surprising is the cliffhanger at the end of the episode. Hasn't they been a "bit" reckless getting in the boss room? Even in relation of Asuna previous concern on how unpredictable the monsters have become since lvl. 70.

To be fair Kirito was rather upfront earlier in the episode about not planning on fighting the boss. But someone, somewhere eventually has to gather intel on the boss in order to succesfully fight it.

I'd be amazed if next week's episode started with them closing the door and deciding to duo the boss rather than waiting for the other 498 front line fighters to get there and slowly gather intel on the boss. We've seen a boss strategy meeting for a floor boss, and a field boss. It's safe to assume no one ever decides to just fight the boss for kicks in a death game.

[Kafriel]

But someone, somewhere eventually has to gather intel on the boss in order to succesfully fight it.

From just a look he can tell what gear it carries and what minions it commands. That kind of information would fetch a good price in the top guilds...ah, the joys of being a solo player

[Clarste]

Originally Posted by Kafriel

From just a look he can tell what gear it carries and what minions it commands. That kind of information would fetch a good price in the top guilds...ah, the joys of being a solo player

Hey, he found the door first. Given that a guild simply has more players active at once, the odds of a solo player finding the door are much lower. He deserves at least that much for a first mover advantage.

[orpheus2]

Originally Posted by GenjiChan

Actually... they could be undergoing physical therapy even while in game... I mean... Like with comatose patient that is... In ICU when do body positioning per 2 hours and passive exercises to prevent muscle atrophy and dystropy..

Oh, I see but I doubt that would be enough. I am guessing when they do wake up, they go through even more rehabilitation and counseling.

[FlareKnight]

Originally Posted by Klashikari

The only problem I have with Kirito's initiative is that... they would be screwed to no end if the door suddenly close behind them, and it would logically be a "immortal object".
Even more "funny" if the boss room would be a anti crystal room, like the chest trap room in ep3, or the dragon's lair.

Closed room during boss fights are not unheard of, especially in RPG and MMO.

I don't think its a problem long as they are careful about it. At that point they still seemed to be pretty close to the door. Doors that big are going to cover a wide area when opening and closing. So if they stay close the doors would just naturally push them right back out.

But yeah it could certainly be dangerous if any of those things happen. But they've cleared over 70 floors so they should be sharp enough to realize those risks and remain cautious.

[Adigard]

Originally Posted by orpheus2

Oh, I see but I doubt that would be enough. I am guessing when they do wake up, they go through even more rehabilitation and counseling.

I'd imagine some % of the survivors would go into shock the very first time they meet someone whose face isn't made up of pixels.

Just saying...

VRMMO's may be super advanced, and we may not know it from the anime... but you spend enough time looking at pixelated versions of people, our hostages may have some uncanny valley issues when dealing with 'real people'.