Greetings! The wrasslin’ boys Fei and Bart have fallen Gear-first into a dank cave system. We discuss the contextually appropriate but questionably alive organisms down there before we run into your classic old-sage-in-a-cave, Balthazar. This prompts a dive into the influence of gnostic Christian texts, speculation on the creation myth metaphor, Xenogears’ internal god-tier systems, and the tight grip on the pen that writes history. A man made god? Created with the wisdom of a god? Such a Gear would have the power of a thousand Gears. In a wave of its arm, it could destroy whole cities. Its battle cries would thunder in the heavens.

00:22 – Intro 01:18 – The boys fall through a sinkhole into a cave / Corvette sidequest 03:17 – Pirate territory and ethics 04:14 – Citan “Foreshadower” Uzuki chats with a silver-haired, very tanned man aboard the Yggdrasil 06:19 – Destroying the local flora and fauna in Gear combat 11:04 – Boulder #2 & Beyond 11:30 – Spelunking & self-sufficiency 12:35 – This cave-dwelling, Gear-fixing dude Balthazar lives here 13:20 – Balthazar etymology 15:40 – FOSSICKER 19:50 – Balthazar’s myths and legends. “Omen” (music sample) 32:15 – Gear education and cave switch flipping 35:09 – Bart asks about the “God Gear” and we ask about localization 39:50 – Who’s controlling history? 40:39 – Balthazar sees Weltall, the host for the spirit of the slayer of god 43:14 – Balthazar’s relationship with Calamity 45:43 – Weltall & Brigandier vs Calamity 52:00 – Meeting up with Sigurd and (Old) Mason…and Citan 52:57 – Outro

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