Okey dokey, our objective is to destroy the tower. Secondary objective: Do not destroy everything else. Zeroth objective: Live.
What do we know about the tower already? Ctrl+F.
The Opalescent Tower itself could be seen faintly on the horizon, a shimmering speck of sky-folded stone plunging upwards as if in challenge to the Walls themselves.
Right, not much. It is a tower. It shares the name of the Evening Sky upgrade we never take. Also "sky-folded" Perhaps it shares its weaknesses? Rihaku mentioned at one point that a nuke counted as "slightly magical" not because of sheer power or general myth, but specifically because it disrupts the sky and that conceptual link was important.
So, if we can't grab a Tower-Defeating Stance, we could go with the Sky-Splitting Blade. If we had one of those. Or storm powers! What else do we actually have that has a type advantage over "sky?"
We just bought it. Sky Veil. Thonk about that for a bit, if you please, because my brain went "aha!" and is now refusing to follow through. Extend the veil over the tower and Imprison it? Not that we have that upgrade, buuuut who knows what could happen?
The Evening Sky gives a lot of +Protection, so... what kind of attacks did we face that gave us most trouble? Gisena's Nullity, for sure- Opalescence is even a prereq for the upgrade that resists it, an excellent sign! But Gisenabombing the tower would be way too easy, so while we should certainly try to poke at it I'm not hopeful.
Vanreir thrust right through it, but that's his thing. Rotbeast AoEd it away, but that's also its thing. Can't tell which would be the better option. Ah! Ruin was a large contributer to Hunger's victory over the pirate. Not that that changes any plans, since that's the default strategy. But really do consider buying ADS here.
Also, the Librarian's Soul-based attack seems like a good contender, but again that's the default strategy.
"Sky-folded" means something, but it isn't enough for me to be sure. What can be folded can be unfolded, maybe?
It's compared to the walls, which we have a bit more about. Lots of the below probably applies to the tower as well.
They arrived at last at the Walls of Myth which encircled their destination realm. The Walls seemed a nigh-impassible barrier: semi-translucent battlements reaching limitlessly skywards and spanning to the horizon, their wavering distortion-surface thick with runes of golden azure. Raw magic, sheer conceptual weight seeped from the surface of the walls, a heady denseness of reality that stultified mind and spirit, Pressure more comprehensive than even that of Astral Rank.
A wall to match the Endless Sky? They got the runes for it, I suppose. I'm not actually sure we can Cut Through with our Praxis, since this work might be on a similar or greater level. But that's an excuse, the Forebear would Cut Through anyway! ...but really, it'll be a challenge.
And I had been interpreting the "Walls of Myth" to mean "mythical walls," but it bears consideration in this supermagic awesomeplace that these walls are, in fact, made of myth. How do you destroy a myth? With the Truth, of course. I can't tell if I'm on to anything or just playing word games. The other option would be out-mything the walls, whatever that means.
Rihaku heard that we liked Rank, so he put Rank on this wall's Rank so it can debuff us while it rebuffs us. What is this intense pressure!? I'd say we should just get OaF and bully it right back, but if it's "more comprehensive" even that might not work. What could be more Ranky than Rank? Luck, maybe, as Rihaku even calls it out as useful for tower destruction/getaway. if I'm not just looking for an excuse to splurge here, 'cause the applicability to the latter is more obvious.
The suspect mechanism for this phenomenon (other than the runes lol) is that there's more reality per reality here. Which... would suggest Cutting Through might be more effective rather than less?
Now, all this is based on the assumption of similarity between Walls and the Tower, so I may have wasted brainstorming on demolition plans for the wrong target. Now, to go back to the thing itself, what do we know about it from the blurb?
[ ] The Opalescent Tower - Deep in the fastness of a hidden valley at the furthermost reaches of the Voyaging Realm is a kingdom whose princess was imprisoned in a tower of opalescent sky by a Tyrant of unfathomable malice. The magic of this place is the stuff of foundational myth, its lidless Arcanist's walls piercing earth, cloud, firmament and vastness to sunder its borders clear of the greater Realm. Yet to a voyaging warrior of Hunger's legend, even such obstacles as these may be overcome.
The [ and the O appear to be different shades of pink. Not that color-divination has been more useful rather than a fun diversion most of the time, but if I may. princesses are pretty and pink. Source: toy advertisements. Therefore, twice the pink, twice the princess. The Tyrant is also a princess- well, before she captured her rival and changed class. End colormancy.
Valley, reached, kingdom, yep. We're here. Depending on if the kingdom gives a hoot (/knows) about their princess or not, we may actually have allies in our goal. But we won't know without snooping.
Unfathomable malice? Common hyperbole, sure, but concerning if not. Hunger can fathom quite well, thanks. The only ideas I have are those Lunacy Cursebearer suggestions (that were really interesting!) or some eldritch thing that would make the Shadow EFB real nice about now.
Ah, the walls (whoops, so much for going back to the tower) are made of myth, I'm not super clever for thinking that, it's explicit.
Foundational myth, what determines what qualifies? Google corrects my train of thought: a myth of foundation makes more sense than, like, Gilgamesh (too much Nasu). The magic was here before the people, then, but I'd already been assuming that.
The Arcanist is singular. And lidless. What the fuck does that mean. Any cool wizard could go without sleep or blinking, why note it? Other than Sauron references. Aaand now I'm looking for deeper meaning in Gisena's Galadriel quote, that's too deep, go back.
(eye)Lids stop you from seeing when you blink, but if you don't have lids, your eyes are unprotected. A weakness?
Four things are pierced. Two of them are expected. But as the rune-colors suggest, it can pierce through the Firmament like Hunger's Cut can. Yikes, but comprehensible. "Vastness," I'm assuming has more meaning than "walls big lol." What's the other direction from underreality? Spaaace, I guess, or eldritch gribblies. What do we do about that? Don't poke it with the Shadow, otherwise focus on the other parts.
Can't see any tactical secrets in how it's cut off from the Realm. Except Cut.
Which we want to do. Or do we? Our goal is-
*Huntress' Moon Target: The Tower of Sky. Neither princess nor Tyrant must be slain, but the tower itself destroyed, ground into earth and rendered into ash and dust.
Cutting would likely suffice, at least in sufficient quantity. I'm pretty sure the language here isn't a contract, any destruction should be okay? Even if it isn't, if we can figure out the best way to break it, we can just do more of that until the Affliction is satisfied. But take note of it anyway. How do you grind something into the Earth? From above. To get above the tower, we would have to climb infinitely high. That sounds so badass that I want to do it regardless of tactics. We'd be the Sky above the Sky, too. Thonk about that, fellow questers.
The second part is ash and dust. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust? Implying the tower was once these things. Which, rock, so I guess. Before it was woven with Sky. +1 for the untangling idea.
So, the plan. Step one is to get suuper high, all the best plans start this way. We can fly because Edeldross, in case anyone forgot. I don't know exactly how to get infinitely high... well, we may not have to, if the tower is only "as if" challenging the walls, which are described as limitless. Either way, see what the view's like from up there. Consult the Evening Sky for any funny intuitions throughout.
I have one plan to get infinitely high. Refinement of Quickness can elevate Agi on the ISH, which is not infinite speed. But maybe, in relation to this tower, "fast enough to go higher" will suffice.
Failing this. Cut through space. Refinement of Position if needed, but hopefully we can just tell it to knock that infinity shit off so we can T-pose above the tower finitely.
Step 3: ???
We are now infinitely high. Grind the tower into the earth. With Sword. Wait, fuck. We didn't even evacuate the thing, thank goodness I'm not writing an official plan yet and just brainstorming. No irresponsible destruction, only recon for now.
When we're ready to destroy the thing and not before, cut down from above. Unveil the Evening Sky above the Sky while doing so.
1360 words of wacky tactics, in need of more sane supplements like "talk to potential princess-faction members" and "actually look at the tower from ground level."