After defeating the One-Armed Hero Lyle at Forward Base One, you notice that his Fading Bond still exists, showing that you can return to his era and change things. However, this bond is currently too weak to be used. Even a more emotionally-connected item won’t be enough this time. Lou tells you that you need to find Lyle in another era and change history from there. That’s her only hint, but it’s enough to get you moving.
Travel to the Free Exploration Era. Usually, this time period doesn’t have much story, but this is an exception. After visiting a hero’s era, they usually appear as partners with quests in MagMell, but Lyle hasn’t reached that point yet. Instead, head to Forward Base One. This era is set after Lyle’s era but before the Upheaval, giving a small window before he disappears.
When you arrive, you’ll see Lyle standing in the ruins, mourning his family. Your return gives him some motivation. He says he’ll build a memorial for his friends before leaving, and he hopes you’ll visit to pay respects. The quest won’t update in your journal now, but it does once you go back to the Present Era and return to Forward Base One. There, a new bond appears, and you can interact with a small memorial for the Dawn Chorus. Interacting with it allows you to go back to Lyle’s era.
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After returning to Lyle’s era, you’re tasked with meeting the Dawn Chorus members, who are still in Pioneer Castle. They have sent Lyle on a mission to the Great Sealed Mine to find the cause of strange happenings in the region. You set out to help him, with Craig insisting on coming along as your partner.
In this section, Craig can’t be deployed as a partner and remains Assimilated, giving you bonus damage. In the mines, you meet with Lyle, who continues his investigation, while you and Craig do your own exploring. You find letters from the late Queen Imogen—Craig’s mother—which explain her exile and reveal the evil lurking beneath the Corroded Scar.
Along the way, you experience flashbacks until reaching the end, where you see Queen Imogen, now clearly losing her mind from years of holding back the regional threat. At this point, Lyle joins you as a partner, while Craig returns to Pioneer Castle to help defend it from an ambush by Gobbo and his forces.
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To defeat Pioneer Queen Imogen, if you’ve already fought a version of her during the Free Exploration Era, this battle will feel familiar but more intense. The full version of the fight takes place now. Imogen mostly fights at close range, using some projectiles and circling moves to keep you on your toes, requiring proactive defense.
For ranged players, the Bayonet can be useful thanks to its long-range attack options and bullets. Lyle is also helpful, dealing significant damage and building up stagger, making it easier to defeat her. Once she’s defeated, Craig returns to say they defended Pioneer Castle successfully, with most of the ambush wiped out thanks to a sudden earthquake.
As a reward, you get Craig as a summoned partner, the Blood Code of Pioneer Queen Imogen, and the ability to fight Hero Lyle in the Present Era.
