- Return to テンドーブレード
Controls
Select: x
Cancel: z
Menu: c
Speed-up the game: Ctrl
Screenshot: Space
Turn angle (counter-clockwise): q
Turn angle (clockwise): w
Soft Reset: F9 (returns to Title Screen; Memory Save should be available if created.)
Note that unlike most Touhou games, where the x key performs the cancel command, in テンドーブレード the x key performs the select command.
Config
| Japanese | Translation | Option |
| もどる / 保存せずもどる | Back / Return without saving | n/a |
| 保存 | Save | n/a |
| デフォルト | Default | n/a |
| キー配置 | Key Layout | Allows you to change(?) the controls |
| ウィンドウモード | Window Mode | ウィンドウ Window, フルスクリーン Full Screen |
| ウェイト | Wait | 垂直同期 V-Sync, タイマー Timer |
| FPS表示 | Show FPS | 有効 / 無効 (On/Off) |
| 画面サイズ | Screen Size | 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x960 |
| テクスチャフィルター | Texture Filter | 有効 / 無効 |
| アンチエイリアス | Anti-Aliasing | 有効 / 無効 |
| ピクセルシェーダ | Pixel Shader | 有効 / 無効 |
| 表示軽量化 | (Not entirely sure...) | 有効 / 無効 |
| BGM | Music | 有効 / 無効 |
| BGMボリューム | Music Volume | 0~10 (low~high) |
| SEボリューム | Effects Volume | 0~10 |
| パッド (接続なし)* | PAD (No connection) | 有効 / 無効 |
| 文字アンチエアリアス | Character Anti-Aliasing | 有効 / 無効 |
*: 接続なし appears if your computer is not connected to a PAD.
Menu
You can access the menu anytime anywhere in the game by hitting c.
- ステータス(Status): Check the status of your party members.
- Hitting x once more after selecting your character will enable you to view the character's moves.
- 装備(Equip): Equip your party members.
- 所持品(Items): Your list of items.
- 隊列(Formation): View/modify your party formation.
- 履歴(History): View events that you have opened/cleared.
- 設定(Config): Change your settings for the game.
- セーブ (Save): Save your progress.
- メモリセーブ (Memory Save): Appears in the menu if the player is in a map other than the save maps listed in the Save section. Temporarily saves the progress of the player. The memory save will be erased if the player turns off the game.
Save
The player can save his/her progress anywhere anytime. There are two modes of saving the game, and depending on where the player is at, only one mode will be available.
The player can Save the game if he/she is in one of the save maps: Heaven, Forest of Magic, Rabbit's Inn, Kappa's Freemarket, and Palace of Earth Spirits. If the player saves the game, all progress up to that point will be saved in a file and be accessible in subsequent games.
The player can Memory save the game if he/she is not in the save maps. Memory saving the game will temporarily store the player's progress in a temporary file and will be erased once the player shuts down the game. The memory save is especially useful before challenging a boss.
Formation
- Main article: テンドーブレード: Formation
The formation of your party plays a crucial role in the game. Depending on what your party formation is, you may either win a boss battle easily or be unable to beat the boss at all. Several formations include the following:
- X formation: Place your characters in the shape of X. The vanguards receive a +3 STR bonus each and will protect the other two rows. The middle character receives a +2 STR and +2 INT bonus. The rear guards receive a + 3 Int each.
- T formation: Place your characters in the shape of T with the T pointing towards the enemy side. The front member will receive close-range attacks before the other two rows. The front row receives a STR bonus of 2. The middle row receives a STR bonus of 3. All three members of the rear row receives an AGI bonus of 1. The left member and the right member of the rear row receives an additional INT bonus of 1.
- Arrow formations: Place your characters in the shape of either a greater than, >, or a less than, <, sign. These 2 formations give the highest bonuses, but really only to one character. Greater than, >, is good for protecting a INT-oriented character or healer. Grants +6 INT to the rear guard and +2 STR to the vanguards. White tiled characters receive no stat bonuses, but do have cover. Less than, <, is an inversion; +6 STR to the vanguard and +2 INT to the rear guards. No bonus for white tile, but they're still covered. Good if you have 2 INT-oriented characters and 1 tank.
Growth
Unlike most other RPG games, テンドーブレード does not have a formal leveling up system. Instead, each character's stat is randomly increased every time the party wins a battle. The distribution of the increase in stats is different for each character, and the player cannot decide what the stat distribution for each character will be. For instance, while Suika's stats are inclined towards increasing Strength only, Patchouli's stats are inclined towards increasing Intelligence only.
Defeated enemies give what is known as skill experience or technical merit(技術点). What this actually does is somewhat a mystery, since characters learn abilities in a different fashion. It quite possibly adds to the maximum Ethanol reserve or is the determining factor in leveling up weapon proficiencies/learning weapon skills*.
- *Some characters learn skills from the non-sword type weapons(Magic, Witchcraft/Curse, Machinery, Heavenly). These skills are only available with those specific weapon types(i.e, Patchy can only use Double Cast from a book's command list after learning the skill. It will NOT be available with a sword's commands). These skills are learned by "leveling up" the character's proficiency with those weapon types.
- (something)がアップ! Signifies a rise in Hp, Sp, Ep, or a stat.
- (魔法, 妖術, 機械, or 神法)のレベルがアップ! Signifies a "level up" with Magic, Witchcraft/Curse, Machinery, or Heavenly. It will list the new ability available to the character with the weapon type, if they do happen to learn one. The announcement will look something like:
- 魔法のレベルがアップ!
- ビルドアップを使えるようになった!
- 魔法のレベルがアップ!
- Meaning, in this case:
- Magic level up!
- Buildup now available! "Buildup" being the new skill that the character can use with a 魔法/book type weapon.
- Magic level up!
- The possible theories for leveling are:
- Just earning 技術点 while having such weapon in a weapon slot
- Finishing combat with such weapon type as active weapon
- Actually using skills from such weapon types
技術点 accumulated is not shown anywhere(at least I think), but the weapon levels are. They are listed on the bottom left in the status menu, under the character's stats and before their abilities.
Recharging Health & EP
If characters loses Health or EP during a battle, they will recover at the end of the battle by consuming what's known as Ethanol(エタノール - probably Sake(酒)) in the game. The initial amount of Ethanol is very small, but as the game progresses, the amount of Ethanol available increases. If the amount of Ethanol reaches 0%, recovering EP becomes unavailable. However, HP and SP will still be replenished at the end of battles. The player can refill their Ethanol reserve with the keystone in Heaven.
Running away in battle
The player may choose to run away(choose run away(逃げる) from the pre-battle menu) from a non-boss battle. If the player decides to do so, the player consumes 2% Ethanol per character in party (e.g. if the player has 4 characters in the party, 8% Ethanol is consumed). Therefore, if the player runs out of Ethanol, the player will be unable to run away from battles.
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