Strayed is the NEXT of Armored Core: For Answer's protagonist LYNX. They are referred by many nicknames in the game such as The Collared one (首輪付き Kubiwatsuki) (JP version), Lynx of Collared (カラードのリンクス Karādo no Rinkusu) and Lap Dog by Old King (US version).
Overview[]
Strayed does not speak and is a very skilled LYNX/LINX much like Anatolia's Mercenary. They are the top ranked LYNX in Collared after Otsdarva's defeat during the battle of Line Ark. Kasumi Sumika is their Operator.
Strayed begins their battle by fighting for the League or Line Ark through the early couse of the game. Should the player decide to go on the Line Ark Path, they will fight alongside Anatolia's Mercenary in defense of Line Ark while siding with the League, you face Anatolia's Mercenary and side with Otsdarva.
The next part has you make the choice between three masters eventually, one being the League again, siding against ORCA or siding with ORCA against the League. As a subplot of the ORCA path, the Destruction Path puts you in line with Old King to personally destroy the Cradles that house half of humanity. By siding with League, you keep the status quo by saving the Cradles and destroying ORCA. On the otherhand, ORCA's path has you bring down the Cradles but also opens up humanity's future in the way of destroying the Assault Cells orbiting the planet. In this, humanity is free to colonize space.
Paths[]
- If the Player follows the League path by defeating as many as the ORCA LYNX as possible, they will assist Wynne D. Fanchon in attacking the ORCA brigade at Big Box and then eliminating ORCA all together at the Arteria Cranium.
- If the Player follows ORCA by attacking the Arteria Ulna, Strayed will fight the League and become the sole remaining member of ORCA. Later, they will fight Wynne D. Fanchon and Roy Saaland (And Ostdarva if on Hardmode) at the Arteria Cranium. They will then carry out the Closed Plan by directing power from the Arteria into the anti-satellite cannons and firing them. This forces the Cradles to crash land, costing the lives of a large number of civilians, but will allow Mankind an opportunity to flourish in space by destroying the Assault Cells in orbit.
- If the Player chooses to destroy Cradle 03 with Old King, the two will be tricked by the League and ambushed by the top 4 LYNX (5 on hard mode), and in the end Strayed will be victorious whether or not Old King survives. The player will go on to destroy the remaining Cradles.
NEXT Strayed[]
The NEXT Strayed that you begin with, as well as the equipment you can mount on it, will differ depending on the company you choose at the beginning of Armored Core: For Answer.
GA: GAN01-SUNSHINE-L. Essentially a tank with arms and legs, this model features high defenses against conventianal weaponry and a high load-capacity. Its defense does however have a backside, as energy-based weaponry will cut through the armor easily, and it takes quite a bit of power to move around, making energy weapons a poor choice of armaments. If you think "laser blades!", think again, because the Fire Control System on this thing DOES NOT like laser blades. Not at all. Straight from the stock, you get a rifle with a laughably large amount of ammunition, a "bazooka", which is essentially a low-velocity large-caliber cannon, and two different missile launchers. All in all, this is a somewhat sluggish yet newcomer-friendly NEXT with newcomer-friendly weapons and relies on armor and guns to get the job done.
Interior Union: Y01-TELLUS. The exact opposite of the SUNSHINE, the Tellus features sky-high defense against energy weapons, low energy-consumption and a high-power Rayleonard generator, making energy weapons the natural choice. It comes from the stock with options for a plasma rifle, a laser rifle, an additional radar unit and a true Fire And Forget missile launcher (You don't even need to lock on, just turn your next to face the target and fire, the missile will lock on by itself).
Omer: TYPE-LANCEL. Manufactured by Rosenthal, this design is essentially a mix between the Tellus and the GAN01 SS-h with decent overall defensive stats and average performance across the board. It also features a KRB overboost system, making it the only starter next with Assault Armor. It starts off with a standard rifle, a laser blade, a chain gun (essentially an oversized, electrically operated machine gun) and a "missile swarm" launcher, making it the most versatile starter craft.
Independent: 03-AALIYAH. Rare, expensive, did I mention fast? This is the ultimate close-combat Laserblade throatpunch-machine, and features speed, speed, high compatibility with energy weapons. Despite its amazing mobility, it offers good protection from energy weaponry, and few other NEXTs can match its Primal Armor protection. However, there's one problem with the design, a high-performance NEXT like the AALIYAH requires A LOT of power to run, which leaves little left for power-guzzling weapons. If you decided to leave the ground, you'll also find that simply staying in the air consumes energy at an alarming rate. In the hands of a skilled LYNX, this design's speed, firepower and good protection doubtlessly makes it the most powerful starter NEXT, but it takes skill, quick reflexes and high situational awareness to be successful in it.
The base parts for each company are as follows :
GA:
- GAN01-SS-H
- GAN01-SS-C
- GAN01-SS-AL
- GAN01-SS-LL
- YELLOWSTONE01
- GAN01-SS-GL
- GAN01-SS-ML.CG
- GAN01-SS-B.CG
- GAN01-SS-S.CG
- GAN01-SS-O.CG
- GAN02-NSS-WR
- GAN01-SS-WB
- VERMILLION01
- PLATTE01
Interior Union:
- H01-TELLUS
- C01-TELLUS
- A01-TELLUS
- L01-TELLUS
- LAURA
- S08-MAXWELL
- MB107-POLARIS
- S01-V3
- SB128-SCHEDAR
- BB103-SCHEAT
- SAMSARA
- LR01-ANTARES
- BM03-MEDUSA
- RD01-SIRENA
Omer:
- HD-LANCEL
- CR-LANCEL
- AM-LANCEL
- LG-LANCEL
- FS-HOGIRE
- GN-HOGIRE
- CB-HOGIRE
- KRB-PALLAS
- AB-HOGIRE
- LB-HOGIRE
- RF-R100
- EB-R500
- MP-O200
- CG-R500
Independent:
- 03-AALIYAH/H
- 03-AALIYAH/C
- 03-AALIYAH/A
- 03-AALIYAH/L
- INBLUE
- 03-AALIYAH/G
- 03-AALIYAH/M
- 03-AALIYAH/O
- 03-AALIYAH/S
- 03-AALIYAH/B
- 01-HITMAN
- 02-DRAGONSLAYER
- TRESOR
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- On League path, the player saves the corporations from the ORCA threats and becomes the League's guardian. The cradle's occupants will live on in peace, until pollution reaches the atmosphere, wiping out humanity.
- On ORCA path, the player will be sole survivor of the ORCA brigade, sacrificing the lives of those inhabiting the cradles in order for humanity to expand into outer space and escape the pollution that plagues the earth.
- If the player chooses to take on the destruction path, NEXT Strayed will become the strongest machine on the planet since no other NEXTs capable of opposing it will remain.
- Just like in the tutorials, if no save file is loaded in multiplayer mode the default AC will be the Lancel version of Strayed, this along with both secret stabilizer parts being Lancel parts, the heavy relevance of Omer in the campaign's events, and the presence of an Assault Armor capable Overbooster in Strayed's schematics (one of the game's main new features) may suggest that Strayed's canonical Schematic is the Type-Lancel.