My last acceptance for QFG3 Fighter felt a little on the weak side. This run is nearly a minute faster, and the route uses suggestions about stat-allocation by the previous verifiers who accepted the run.

[A NOTE ON DOSBOX SETTINGS]
This run was done on the GOG.com official release (i.e., 10,000 cycles), with two lines changed that do not affect gameplay other than in the positive sense. These were discussed and approved in previous runs already, involving disabling EMS in the DOSBox settings. It QFG1VGA and QFG3 were both have crashing issues that disappear when EMS is disabled.

Also, the video output from "Overlay" to "OpenGL" to allow for FRAPS to make the recording.

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[CREDITS]
Of course, I want to thank SDA for hosting such a great service. It is always my first place to check for speed runs, and the community is always super friendly and helpful. :)

Thanks to Crow! for passing the idea that Throwing can be trained much, much faster than Weapon Skill, which changed this run and cut nearly a minute off of the time.

Also, as a minister, I have to give credit to God for giving me a little extra leisure time to practice the series of games I enjoy.

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[KEYBOARD COMMANDS]
Unlike the other games in the series, pressing the TAB key DOES NOT open the inventory. No other keyboard command seems to either. However, I have attempted to optimize the INSERT key function, which switches from whatever icon you are on to the walking icon. Upon pressing INSERT again, you go back to the icon you were previously using. This is demonstrated to its fullest in the marketplace, as I can switch from running to the money bag as necessary to avoid conversation with the merchants.

Also, the arrow keys are used when fastest to move around. This is often a judgement call.

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[SCENE-BY-SCENE COMMENTARY]

[CHARACTER CREATION AND OPENING REMARKS:]
Everything goes into Weapon Skill. This is a very big change from the first approved run, because the Fighter is required to enter combat and defeat three enemies. Once Weapon Skill is at 200 and above, attacks begin to connect with greater regularity. The fights in my previous approved run were the sore spot, and admittedly painful to watch. Training Throwing from 100 to 150 is the matter of about a minute of gameplay, as throwing rocks in the savannah is very fast. The reason throwing needs to be at 150 is that Uhura only appears at the spear range once you reach 150 points, and the competition with her is the trigger for the Leopard Prisoner to appear.

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[EVERYTHING TARNA:]
I start with my icon on the door, and begin character movement (start time) as soon as possible, changing my movement type to Run. After this, I adjust the Game Settings sliders so moving to the door is already on auto-pilot. After that, I head down to the marketplace, and to the moneychanger area to watch the Thief. Staying at the left side of the screen will auto-transition back to the screen fastest, and the game thinks you have tried to apprehend the Thief (most points/fastest transition).

In the Rajah's room, right-clicking is the fastest way to make sure you skip all the screens. After that, you can speed up this dialog by not saying anything (just looking at myself over and over). When I exit, I reset my movement to run, head back to the moneychanger. We will not need more cash in this game. Here is our shopping list:

- 2 Waterskins
- 5 Zebra Skins
- 1 Fine Spear
- 1 Fine Robe

Where you click is important in the marketplace, as I am avoiding getting too close to the merchants and initiating dialog. Sometime between now to when I am on my way back to the Simbani Village from getting the Dispel Potions, I need to get a Dinosaur Horn. So if I encounter a T-Rex, I will be fighting it.

As it happens, I encounter a Croc-Fighter and run away. I use this time to quickly train my Throwing to over 150. Picking up to the point where the game informs you that you are carrying too much, and then adding one more, makes 150 Throwing a near certainty. I did not encounter a run where it didn't yet, but I do note at the end of the game it is pretty tight.

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[GRAPES AND STONE AND WASTING TIME:]
There are two cutscenes here. One is optional, but I find it to be much faster to watch both rather than the alternative, which does not happen until the Lost City at the end of run, and requires precise timing. Even with the second cutscene skippable, I believe this is actually the faster route.

After freeing the Meerbat, I reenter a third time to get the Venom Grapes and the Fire Opal. Venom Grapes are for the Dispel Potion; Fire Opal for the door at the end of the game.

After that, it is a matter of RNG prayer. It is almost night, when it becomes night, you can sleep on the savannah until morning. There are three possibilities that can happen:

1) You have an RNG encounter, and have to run; once you escape you can sleep until the morning.
2) The Earth Pig can appear, which doesn't require running, but you still have to say goodbye to him and then you sleep until morning. That is what happens here.
3) Everything goes fine and you sleep until morning.

I am running back and forth on the savannah to waste time, as I will automatically return to the inn for the next scene at dusk. I get perfect RNG for the rest of the day.

When you are asked to swear an oath when Rakeesh does, you can say "yes" or "no." The only difference, I believe, is points. So you will not see me aim the mouse here because it does not matter. I again use the "eye" click to avoid all of his answers and having to dialog through the menu.

We travel across the savannah to the Simbani Village.

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[SIMBANI VILLAGE, ERANA'S POOL, GETTING THE FRUIT:]
Attempting to walk away causes the dialog screens to appear faster when you are on the hill, which gets you into the village fastest. Once inside the Laibon's Hut, I use the "eye" clicking skip again to get to the next scene much faster.

In the next scene, you can either click "Say Goodbye" or walk to the door. I find the door faster. After that, you are expected to sleep through the night, which I do. I need to have a spear match with Uhura to trigger the apperance of the prisoner, which only happens in the daytime. I have tried; she will not appear immediately. Resting is the fastest way. Also, when having the competition, you MUST throw all three and she needs to get her turn. If you leave before, the trigger does not occur. After two seconds of fumbling, I realize I need to pick the spears back up and finish the trigger. After that, I go to Erana's Pool.

I am here to fill two waterskins. One is for a Dispel Potion, the other is to give so I can get another ingredient for a Dispel Potions. I am headed, after this, to the Big Tree, where I encounter the T-Rex on my way, which goes quicker than any of my previous attempts. I was thrilled.

When I enter the second screen (the part where I am actually scaling the side of the tree) you will notice I do not move right away. Actually, you will notice NOTHING moves (even the waterfall). I have tried to click lower on the tree and even on the path and the pause still occurs. The more you click, the longer this lag lasts, so I make sure to only click when I see the waterfall move. It happens again once I have the Magic Fruit.

Also, if you just click at the bottom of the screen from the doorway, you run right back inside the top room, which is an obvious problem in a speed run where backtracking matters. Moving slightly down the stairs fixes this routing AI issue. Back to Tarna.

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[REVISITING TARNA:]
I am here for the Dispel Potion, but there is a proper way to acquire it to maximize time efficiency. You want to enter the city at sunset, so you can talk to the hippy about the Dispel Potion, give him the ingredients, and then sleep and purchase them the next morning. If you arrive too late at night, it counts as the same morning even if you sleep until the next day, requiring a trip out to the savannah to waste time.

That is why I hang outside until sunset. After purchasing TWO Dispel Potions, I head back to the Simbani Village.

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[COMPETING FOR A BRIDE:]
You can only use the Dispel Potion and open the gate when the unnamed guard is there. If Yesufu or Uhara are there, they will not let you do anything, even if she is your bride.

You MUST do the competition as the Fighter, as the Laibon will not allow you to pay the bride price until you recognized as a full Simbani Warrior. This first screen is quite a bit glitchy, and crashes sometimes and does other weird mouse/sound/graphical things. What you are supposed to do to win this is climb the tree, and retrieve the ring that way. My Fighter has no climbing skill, so there is no sense wasting time.

The second event with the circle and the log is fast, and you'll win everytime as long as you do not click the other spear.

YOU MUST SAVE YESUFU!! IF YOU DO NOT, IT WILL GAMEOVER YOU AT THE END OF THE COMPETITION! The only way you can skip saving Yesufu is if you win the bridge competition, which is NOT going to happen at my skill level and having done no training with Uhura. To be honest, you want to lose that competition, because winning takes so, so much longer. By saving Yesufu, you also do not have to ask the Laibon for the Drum; Yesufu requests it and gives it to you as his victory prize.

I head back into the Laibon's hut, exit again, and re-enter which allows me to make the bridal price by talking with him about marriage. Once my bride is free, we are headed to the jungle.

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[JUNGLE, NON-PEACE-CONFERENCE, MONKEY VILLAGE:]
Finding your wife in the jungle is the same as an RNG encounter. I tell her about the drum, and skip through every dialog I can. Once there, you watch some magic, and then I get to present the drum and start the peace conference. Once the peace conference fails, you have to run back to the jungle.

RNG encounters here could be better, because the T-Rex obviously wants revenge.

Once you are on the third screen, you automatically enter a dialog with the monkey you freed, which kicks to another automatic travelling scene that ends at the Monkey Village. As the Fighter with no Climbing skill, you have to talk Manu through some dialog trees and then request the "swingladder." I talk to Manu about the Lost City, and then ask him to take me four times. With higher communication skill, you only have to ask him once, but there is no good way to make that happen in this short of a run.

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[WATERFALL AND LOST CITY:]
I collect two vines, and tell Manu I need him to take the rope across. Once I am back on the map, this last encounter is not RNG, but scripted.

You have to "Say Goodbye" to Manu to reach the next screen. After that, you open the door. There is nothing I can do to avoid this next fight, so I man up and make it happen. The next demon fight does not start with full health (no idea why, but it happens every time), and he goes down fairly quickly thanks to the new Weapon Skill starting strat. This could still be faster, but I have no good way to build further Weapon Skill, so it is a matter of RNG.

Throw the Dispel Potion at the next demon after heading into the prison room.

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[ENDGAME:]
You cannot win the fight against your doppleganger. Fastest thing you can do is spam the attack key until you are almost out of health, at which point the Thief from the beginning of the game comes and saves you. You do have to be a little careful, because you can die if you are too fast.

The next area is the last. The last fight happens, and this guy goes down quick as well. Throwing the spear kills the bad guy.

Once the shield is clicked on the altar-thing, that is the last official input past dialog skipping.

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[AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT]

Better RNG during battle, obviously, but this was fantastic compared to my last accepted run. Even so, the savings only amounted to about a minute. Better map RNG would certainly be welcome.