Tales of the Abyss - Nebilim [Tear Solo/No Damage/Unknown Mode]

[@Muctales]

╔════════════ ║Description (1/2) ╚════════════ The battle must always start with Tear at close range. The reason is that Nebilim always starts the fight with Mystic Cage and she must be stopped with Overlimit. The idea is also to cast Enhance Cast for as long as possible before triggering Overlimit. That way I am able to release the spell and trigger Innocent Shine when Nebilim is still kneeling. This prevents her from getting closer and it gives me an advantage for the next spell I want to cast. Nebilim won't get in range with melee attacks if she is far enough, meaning it's pretty easy to manipulate her position. This is very important as her high Iron Stance makes it particularly difficult for Tear to start a combo. She starts the fight with 3 high level spells in her arsenal : Thunder Blade, Blessed Drops and Ground Dasher. The last one is the most interesting one as it allows a powerful FoF change while the first one is extremely annoying to dodge due to its deceptively big hitbox. What makes Nebilim such an interesting fight is that she gets access to many many Artes at different HP thresholds, some being extremely deadly and at the same time it's that same mechanic that guaranteed her doom. The first threshold unlocks after just some damage: Big Bang. This Mystic Arte is a full range attack and can't be dodged. Thankfully, Tear has access to the only spell that grants i-frames in the game: Force field. Since Big Bang is predictable, I can use Force Field easily without the fear of being interrupted. Big Bang is also one of those MAs where the enemy can still take damage and can stagger before the animation ends, which I took advantage of to start a very long combo and deal quite a lot of damage. That combo allowed me to reach the 2nd threshold which is Meteor Storm. The spell has multiple blind spots, but the idea was to run far away to get enough time to both buff my casting speed and set up spells once Nebilim tries to get closer. This take features quite a lot of Cluster Raid FoF changes which noticeably shortened the fight and made me reach new thresholds faster. Another combo allowed me to reach Innocent Shine which is very easy to dodge thanks to its long startup animation. Once again, I go to the other side of the battlefield to set up my next combos. The next HP threshold is Time Stop. Once again, I can deal additional damage during the Mystic Arte animation so I decided to finish my combo with Holy Lance. Time Stop can't be cancelled at this point so the best I can do is delay Nebilim to avoid getting punished when incapacited. That's why I ran away to the opposite side of the battlefield last time too, it forces Nebilim to travel more distance to reach me. After a very scary Thunder Blade dodge, it's finally time for the meat of the battle, because the next threshold is... Indignation. Indignation is probably the most infamous MA in Abyss and there are a lot of stories about it among challenge runners. After 1 year of trying multiple options, I can finally and safely say that Indignation is a full range undodgeable attack and that the only way to avoid taking damage is with the Nullify AD Skill. Double jumping at the right time won't work. Using Force field with extended protection time won't work. Forcing the AI to run away from the spell after being locked won't work. Using a freaking Hourglass won't work. No, Indignation is an omnipotent Mystic Arte that doesn't care about all your options and stupid challenge restrictions. After so many months trying to dodge it, I was resigned that I wouldn't find a solution for this. Then I started thinking that maybe I was approaching the problem the wrong way. What if, instead of trying to dodge Indignation, I tried to completely prevent it from happening? After rewatching some of my attempts and youtube videos, I finally found a solution in the Neby Mad video from MasterLL. Does Tear have access to MA-Spell Lock? No, and even if she did, I'm not sure I would want to resort to this glitch. No, what I saw in this video wasn't its original purpose. What I saw in that video is that Nebilim was triggering all her HP threshold Artes in reverse order. This allowed me to finally understand some enemies' patterns in this game and it was game changing. When an enemy reaches multiple HP thresholds, they will always prioritize the very last one if they can trigger it. So the question was: Can I prevent Indignation from happening if I keep forcing Nebilim to trigger later HP thresholds? This glimmer of hope became reality... but that was not an easy feat. Disclaimer for everything that's following. I could have made everything simplier by having max offensive stats (I have ~6000 here) but killing Nebilim in less than 2mins wouldn't feel fair at all and wouldn't force me to overcome the current situation. And I also prefer to show the middle finger to Nebilim with lower stats so~... The first challenge I had to face is that Indignation is literally a mid-battle Mystic Arte, meaning I would have to skip to multiple HP thresholds until the end of the battle to prevent it from happening: A real sword of Damocles that threatens to hit for 2 very long minutes. Even worse, Nebilim can trigger it instantly from (almost) anywhere. The second challenge is that the 2 next HP thresholds are close range Mystic Artes (Fragmented End, Rending Saber). Those can't be countered due to their nature (Nebilim can't stagger till the end of the animation). I just won't have enough time to start a combo since she would trigger Indignation instantly after those. So the only solution is to skip to the 3rd HP threshold which is another Big Bang... The problem, as you probably understood, is that I need to remove a damn lot of Nebilim's HP to reach this point. And once again, since Indignation is instant, I have to do it 1 one single string of attacks... Sounds almost impossible, but I found a solution! The first step was to get close to Indignation's threshold to reduce the number of damage I have to deal in that single string. Indignation happens when Nebilim reaches 516500 HP so there's a bit of improvisation here to try to get as close as possible to this number. Once I'm satisfied with Nebilim's current HP, It's time to act quickly. I need first to refresh Enhance cast, go to the opposite side of the battlefield and set up a spell combo. After that long combo, I used Overlimit to push the boss to the most extreme side of the battlefield. Maybe you think that I could have used Innocent Shine instantly but doing so would have resolved in a failure simply because the MA doesn't deal enough damage to reach the next HP threshold and enemies can't be staggered after being hit by a MA. Your next thought would probably be "Doesn't that mean that Nebilim will use Indignation after your MA, no matter what?". This is where I took advantage of a strange exploit that has the most ridiculous conditions ever. Earlier, I said that Indignation was a full range Mystic Arte. The Mystic Arte itself has 100% range... but it's triggering range is only about 98%. What this means is that there is a small window where your character can be considered out of range for Nebilim to trigger Indignation... and the condition to make it happen is to have both your character and Nebilim at the complete opposite sides of the battlefield. A situation you'll never encounter normally and that is hard to set up even if you know about it. The reason it's so hard to trigger is that you need to combo the boss or use Overlimit to push her to the edge of the battlefield and get enough time to run to the opposite side before Nebilim triggers Indignation. The problem is that the triggering system for Indignation actually starts being calculated when she is standing up. Look at the video, and you'll see that Tear is nowhere close to the opposite side when it happens. This is where Innocent Shine is absolutely mandatory as it's the only way to prevent Nebilim from releasing her Mystic Arte. Thanks to that, I'm finally in the situation where I'm considered out of range for Nebilim to use Indignation. When this happens, Nebilim will just slowly walk towards her target and start acting again after some time. This precious time is just what I needed to cast Holy Lance, which will finally trigger Big Bang's threshold and cast Force Field to protect myself. Once again, since Big Bang doesn't protect its user, I can use it to my advantage to deal massive damage and start a new combo. You can also notice a nice showcase of FoF Cancel. Now the problem is that I need to reach the next threshold with only melee Artes and basic attacks. Basic attacks stop chaining on the 34th hit so I basically learnt all the combos you see to be able to extend the hit counter and be at the perfect position for Severed Fate. Any positioning mistake and the combo would break.

[@Muctales]

╔════════════ ║Description (2/2) ╚════════════ Next threshold is Meteor Storm and thanks to the previous combo, I forced Nebilim to stand where there is a blindspot which enabled me to start a combo without the fear of being hit. This part is actually one of the hardest in the fight because I need to break Nebilim's ridiculous Iron Stance to start a new combo and trust me I failed many times here. In any case, after starting the combo, I have to face another huge challenge. The next threshold is Fortune's Arc. It's an instant Mystic Arte that can only be dodged with Force Field. My casting speed buff wore off, I don't have overlimit anymore, I have no way to cast my spell on time. And even if I wanted to, Nebilim can instantly trigger Indignation after Fortune's Arc with no single possibility to prevent her from doing so. This means that, just like Indignation, I have to skip Fortune's Arc. I have 2 options. One is to do a long combo to reach the threshold for Time Stop. The problem is that Nebilim is in the middle in the battlefield and this requires hoping I can dodge her upcoming attack then start a new combo before she triggers Fortune's Arc (you know, Iron Stance issue). The other option is to overextend my melee combo to its limit and kill Nebilim in one go. The problem is that such a chain is freaking hard to pull off and I never used such a combo in previous fights for that same reason. In the end, I still went with the second option to get an epic finish. I got lucky with TP management in this one. I think all the Cluster Raids at the beginning really helped me there. In all my challenge run history, this is probably the only time I showcase an invisible threat that is omnipresent for more than half of the fight. A threat that was always in my mind while playing, a threat that was always there menacing to happen, a threat that as a viewer you can't know exists without reading this description. And I'll be honest... this was fucking thrilling! It's been a while (almost 2 years) since I did such a major breakthrough in challenge runs that overcoming this issue was one of the most satisfying moment I got. Sayonara Nebilim. You were a cute attempt at trying to break my mind and stop my No Damage restriction but you forgot the most important thing about this series: Something hopeless is not something impossible. Happy New Year Everyone.

[@OmegaVideoGameGod]

Very good as always :)

[@mMarikom]

Possibly the most intricate approach I've ever seen to this fight. Genuinely impressive to watch as a long time Tales challenge fan. Fantastic job and I really hope you feel accomplished in pulling this off because it's absurd in the best way. Thank you!

[@Muctales]

Thanks a lot for the kind comment!

[@Kevassa]

The threshold abuse alongside spacing and comboing was fucking brilliant! Definitely a peak Muc moment of strategizing and prioritization! I'm very glad you finally managed to get this out and let's let that damn Indignation die deep down in the depths of hell it belongs

[@Muctales]

Thanks! I'm so happy I was able to find a consistent way to prevent Indignation, but it was definitely painful to get it right x)

[@Kevassa]

@@Muctales You had to think out of the box and then out of the box out of that and then use a satellite view of the fifth layer of boxes within boxes, but you got it! I never expected Indignation to be this godlike but nothing strategy can't solve

[@GreyVictory1510]

This is one of these fights that you watch, are very impressed, read the description and then need to watch again! Wooooow! Congratulations on conquering this fight! ^^

[@m.art_136]

Impossible! I can't believe this! That was my reaction to this Congratulations,Muc! Thiss the best Nebelim battle video i have ever seen!

[@Muctales]

Thanks! I'm so glad you enjoyed it ^^

[@MrRetribution777]

You have outdone yourself in such a beautiful and orchestrated way that I have no words left to explain. An astounding performance that needs a standing ovation. Beautifully done Muc. I low key love you now XD

[@Muctales]

Thank you so much 😊

[@HorangiTiger]

This (and your entire Tear playthrough) is seriously insane! This solo must have taken forever to pull off. I can't believe I haven't seen your channel until now. That being said, I thought that Indignation was able to be dodged. In Vercsase's Jade solo of Nebilim, it looks like he manages to pull it off with a double jump somehow (the only video where I've seen it done). I don't like to bring up other people's videos in a comment section, but I figured that it was worth a mention because I thought your method of dealing with Indignation was super interesting.

[@Muctales]

No worries about bringing up other people's videos, especially when it's about dodging Indignation. I've been doing multiple tests to see if it was truly possible to dodge Indignation as nobody was ever able to reproduce what Verc did and with different methods I was able to confirm that Indignation hits the whole battlefield. So unfortunately, even a perfectly timed double jump can't escape the Mystic Arte and it means Verc simply triggered the Nullify AD Skill off camera :( Kinda wished there was a nice and fun dodge but it seems Indignation was programmed very differently to the point there's no other solution against it.

[@HorangiTiger]

@@Muctales I see. Thanks for clarifying! I've been under the false impression that Indignation was able to be dodged with some precise jumps for years due to that video haha.

[@Jamesaga]

You absolute legend! What an insane display of game knowledge! Absolutely blown away by that explanation!

[@Muctales]

Many Thanks! This is one of the rare case I actually feel like writing a description, especially when there's so much going behind the scene.

[@Jamesaga]

@@Muctales And I very much enjoyed reading it!

[@ShinobiKev]

The big description really helps understanding the intricacies of the video and it really show the labbing it caused Great job pulling this out and happy new year Muc 👍

[@Muctales]

Thanks a lot! Glad the description helped. Happy New Year to you as well!

[@arienariazar4775]

And I still don't know how it is that your solo fight doesn't have so many likes, we know that it is also an anime, but it was on par with one of the good ones your fight and the best thing was the waifu of that story, personally for me one of the Tales of, this has the best game mode and designs of its techniques, the science of the powers and the mechanics of them, the theoretical bases on which they were inspired were really significant, the story although some say that it was somewhat weak , has a lot to tell, in principle we could notice that they had the intention of continuing it. A game that encourages you to use all its characters without any waste of fun, a memory that leaves you like Jade sighing at the end of the game✨

[@openinginawe5518]

This was excellent gameplay I love it.

[@OmegaVideoGameGod]

One of my favorites

[@Lonewulf321]

Excellent plays as always. Happy new year.

[@Muctales]

Thanks! Happy New Year to you as well!

[@dangarcios9047]

You have given its epic and legendary Solo to this beautiful and noble character of all tales of 👍

[@champion5545]

This was insanely epic. Holy shit

[@OmegaVideoGameGod]

I remember doing this years ago with no herb upgrades, it took me 3.5 hours to beat her with Luke I died once due to indigestion but I still won lmfao if you can free run but time it right she will always cast a spell 🤣

[@brandonheat5266]

Вот это я понимаю мастерство.

[@rickylugo8926]

Amazing. Tear is the main character, change my mind.

[@yumaoverstar]

This is so cool!

[@donganbonavito9751]

Nice video, are you haki user?

[@jeantippman7179]

😱😱😱😱😱😱👊💪💪💪

[@Steven17264]

Sorry for mentioning one of the rival series, but does anyone else hear Final Fantasy XIII's "Eidolons" in this track, vocals aside? Or is it just me?

[@JohnRambo1947-July-6th]

Music from Mana Khemia?

[@Muctales]

Yep ! It's Stigmata from the first Mana Khemia