30 QUESTIONS CONCERNING LUNAR Answered by Kei Shigema But, first, some Notes: Though this question list was taken from a Japanese artbook, I've used the English names here; I felt that otherwise enumerating and explaining the numerous Japanese-English name changes in such a relatively small space would make this document a minefield to navigate. Spoiler alert! As of this writing, the Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Remix hasn't yet been released on U.S. shores, and this document contains many spoilers for both the The Silver Star and Eternal Blue plotlines. (Yes, it's based on the Sega CD games' continuity, but the 16-bit and 32-bit Lunar 2 plotlines aren't that far apart, and the spoilers here for the original Eternal Blue will most assuredly ruin the remix as well.) If you've only played SSSC, please proceed with caution! The spoiler-intensive EB questions are #2, 8, 16, 18, 19, 20, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, and 29 (and #3, 4, 13, and 14 if you know nothing about the game's premise and would like to keep it that way). If you insist on proceeding, I'd suggest something on the order of making the window in which you view this document long and very narrow so that only a few lines can be glimpsed at a time, covering the left side of the screen so you can only see the numbers of the questions, and advancing with caution, skipping the spoiler ones. *************************************************************************** 30 QUESTIONS CONCERNING LUNAR Answered by Kei Shigema The story of Lunar II is slightly marred by a sprinkling of unintentional lapses...pressing matters like unexplored details or realities of the world of Lunar that still trouble fans. Now, at our request, Keitsuke Shigema has responded to some of them for us. Read on for the answers! 1. How did the world of Lunar come into being? It is thought that Lunar's primary role was as a place of refuge from the ravaged Blue Star, locked in eternal winter. Althena and the four dragons transformed and brought life to Lunar to found a new civilization and reclaim the Blue Star. 2. What is the connection between Lunar and the Blue Star? The Blue Star is a generator, so to speak, of energy to revive the Blue Star - like a energy emittance system. This power, collected from the magic power of the people and living things on Lunar, will be used to revive the earth of the frozen, dead Blue Star. Just like Lucia said, Lunar exists "for the purpose of the Blue Star". Though this may be true, after so many years, Lunar's purpose has been forgotten, and the people now look upon the Blue Star as their birthplace only in legends. 3. What's the connection between Althena and Lucia? When Althena was on the Blue Star, where was Lucia? Althena, Lucia, and Zophar are all probably the same type of entity. They are said to be gods, and while that's possible, the truth is probably a little different. So, then, what are they? Well...we really don't know. C'mon, this isn't sci-fi; gimme a break if I can't be clear on everything . 4. Why is Lucia so zealous about her mission? Because Lucia and Althena were the last hope of the world and its people just before its destruction. So, if you think of things that way, Althena and Lucia bear the responsibility for everyone and everything that was supposed to have been destroyed. That is Lucia's raison d'être - that, and, equally as much, reviving the Blue Star. 5. Most all the main characters are in their teens, and yet we hardly ever see both a character's parents - usually, only one appears. Why? We like the ages of the characters to be close to those of the players, so that the players can more easily identify with the characters and come to like them. If you ask why there are few characters with a full complement of parents, I'd probably say it's because I wanted Lunar's story to be part of an ongoing, traditional boys' adventure story (maybe children's literature). When I think back on the works I loved as a child, like "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and "Anne of Green Gables", I believe I may have been vaguely influenced by them. 6. What about Hiro's parents? Actually, all we know is that Grandpa Gwyn is not Hiro's real grandfather. The identities of Hiro's parents are unknown; all we know is that Gwyn took Hiro in when he was a baby. Beyond that, it's a mystery. 7. What has Hiro brought back from his expeditions so far? Well, before he met Lucia, he broke into a few old ruins...actually, it looks like he explored them some, but other than his boomerang, he didn't score any major finds. It seems like Ruby didn't have much faith in his abilities either... 8. Why was Jean attacked before she joined the carnival? To leave the Order of the Blue Dragon means death. To protect his secret, Lunn, as the Masked Man, attacked Jean. 9. Why does it take so much time to design the female characters as opposed to the males? "It took more time for the designs of the female characters to gel," says [Lunar character designer] Toshiyuki Kubooka. Hey, I think the "particulars" are different. 10. Why does Ronfar look so scruffy? Ronfar: Hey, shut up! That's none of your business. Leave people alone about how they look! 11. When did Ronfar learn dice hustling? It seems he picked it up during the time he spent in Larpa. 12. How can Ronfar drink sake if he's underage? [Note: the Lunar I & II artbook lists Ronfar's age as 19, but the age of majority is 20 in Japan.] Hey, 'cause it's another world! The residents of Lunar don't seem to approve of the idea, though. 13. Lemina is Mia's descendant. So whom did Mia marry? Doesn't the color of Lemina's hair make that answer perfectly clear? [Actually, _no_, since Lemia/Remilia's hair was a similar color when she was younger, as, in "Tamashii no Kokuhaku", was her mother's. But is the question of whom Mia married that hard to figure out, really?] He really wasn't rejected. He is... 14. Does Lemina have a significant other? Not previously, it doesn't look like it, no. Now, though, the current Ramus seems like a candidate, but after Vane is restored, many suitable men will flock to the city, and he'll have lots of rivals. But, in the meantime, everyone will be anxiously waiting... 15. About how much money has Lemina amassed after all her hard work? It's a secret. Lemina does have a piggy bank under her bed, and she likes to count the change every night before she goes to sleep. She keeps only the small change in the bank, though, since she likes to hear the sound of the coins clinking; we don't know where she keeps the big money she earns. It's not all that important, though. 16. How did Ruby know all by herself that she was a child Red Dragon? When Ruby heard of the "Red Dragon" in Hiro's stories of old, she insisted that she was a Red Dragon too. The fact that she could breathe fire when she tried was one of the things that convinced her even further. Whether or not she really believed it herself, though, is the question. 17. For about how long had Ruby lived before she met Hiro? Ruby's earliest memory is of playing together with Hiro when he was still a child. She has no recollection of anything before that time. She doesn't know where she was born or how she arrived at Hiro's house. It seems that it involved Hiro's parents, but exactly how is unknown. 18. Is the previous Red Dragon Ruby's parent? What happened to the previous Red Dragon? The Dragons aren't actually living things, but are instead, for lack of a better word, the "crystallization" of Lunar's magic power. That is to say, Ruby and the Red Dragon, Lunar I's Quark and Nall, are all part of the same great power. Individual will creates their physical forms, and the growth of their will fuels the growth of their bodies. 19. After he was separated from Alex, did Nall live with anybody? After Alex and Luna's lives as humans came to an end, Nall was very lonely. He wandered all over Lunar, met many people, and got caught up in an adventure that rivaled the war against Ghaleon, but he couldn't find anyone to whom to he felt he could pass the Althena's Sword that Alex entrusted to him. He probably eventually came to think that Alex was the last worthy Dragonmaster. Finally, depressed and alone, Nall remembered the ancient Grindery and founded a "Neverland" consisting only of children, which took his mind off his sadness. 20. What did Gwyn do long ago? When he was young, he was a rather good-looking man. He himself says that he tracked down some ancient ruins, visited a few of them, and had a few adventures in the process. He probably met Hiro's parents on one of these adventures. In that time, he gathered extensive information on the Blue Spire and Blue Star. Actually, it seems that he also met Nall... 21. Is Gwyn renowned as an archaeologist? Well, not really... No one really had an interest in archaeology in Lunar at that time in the first place. When Leo came all that way just to see him, Grandpa Gwyn was actually very happy, he was. 22. Why are Mauri and Leo different from other people? They're of the beastman race, like Master Mel [actually called "Admiral Mel" in the original Japanese...] and Jessica of Lunar I. There seem to be many types of beastmen - Jessica and Mel seem to be cat-types; Mauri and Leo, dog-types. Well, then, you might say, are there hippo-types and seagull-types? Umm... that's a good question . 23. Doesn't Mauri's horn smart when you kiss her? Ronfar: Heyyy, SHUT UP! That's none of your business! 24. What happened to Mauri after the Four Heroes disbanded? What happened to Serak Palace? Mauri grew close to Ronfar, and they moved in together. She's a bit of a nag, but... Serak Palace was converted to a normal shrine to Althena, used to spread the goddess's teachings. 25. Did Ghaleon's sense of guilt disappear when he fought Hiro? What Ghaleon felt in Lunar II was more "shame" than "guilt". I think he lived the life of a man in disgrace in order to atone for his past sins. Well, he's a complicated man, and I don't understand him well myself, but...when he says "Friends..." in his last moments, looking at a point afar and completely at peace, could it not be because he will finally be reunited with Dyne? Let us pray so. 26. Why didn't Lucia come when Zophar was weak? The goddess Althena was originally supposed to oppose him on Lunar. That Althena would do what she did, or the situation would progress to the nearly irreversible point that it did, never crossed Lucia's mind. Matters on Lunar were not her concern, unless some calamity arose that threatened the revival of the Blue Star. 27. Does Zophar's Keep symbolize the evil thoughts of humans? The "evil thoughts of humans" is basically what Zophar is, isn't he? 28. The dragons know of each other's existence, don't they? Yes, they do. Like with Nall in Lunar I and Ruby in Lunar II, if there is any sort of disturbance upon their awakening, they lose the knowledge that they are dragons and cannot use their abilities. 29. Has Lucia been reincarnated like Althena? No. In order to revive it the Blue Star, Lucia has slept all alone on it from the time it was decimated. She was to awaken when the power of Lunar had restored the Blue Star to its previous state. Her purpose was then to ensure that the people did not return to their foolish ways. How long had she slept before she awoke? No one knows. 30. What's next for Lunar? The history of Lunar will probably continue. If everyone out there loves this story enough, I think they'll once again have the opportunity to visit it. I swear it. *************************************************************************** Translation by Rebecca Capowski at RACapowski@worldnet.att.net. Lunar is the property of Game Arts and Working Designs, and I am not affiliated with either.