I really enjoy Thursdays.

Thursdays mean you’ve passed the middle ground of the week and are coming up on that glorious finisher we call Friday. Normally, I find them nice - today, Thursday is more than nice - it is absolutely fantastic. Valkyria Chronicles DLC is going live on PSN, and I’ve got more details for you Valkyria Fans, as well as a free Valkyria Chronicles Artbook to give away!

First, it’s time for the details on the DLC pack that everyone has been clamoring for since the beginning: Behind Her Blue Flame. Now some of you out there can pretend if you want to, but we all know the real reason you’ve been looking forward to this pack - something to the tune of a silver-haired, lance-wielding, beautiful queen of the battlefield known as Selvaria Bles. So let’s get to it.

The Battlefield seen from red eyes

One of the coolest things about Behind Her Blue Flame is that  you get to see the war play out from the eyes of the Empire.  I thought this was a really nice touch, as it brings up the often-forgotten fact that the soldiers of the Empire are people too - they fight for their own beliefs, have their own families, and, at least in Johann’s case, suffer from the same ailments - namely, fainting.

Johann (pronounced Yo-han), the main character in Behind Her Blue Flame, is an engineer whose squad gets folded into Selvaria’s regiment. This is good news for you, because otherwise you’d have absolutely no hope of beating these missions. This is also bad news for the Gallian troops, because Selvaria - as anyone who has played the main story knows - can one-shot tanks and units alike.

You’ll have to work to unlock her full powers, but even in her shocktrooper-esque mode she can run further than any of your units, run straight past incoming tanks and pretty much kill anybody or anything that looks at you the wrong way. Yes, it’s just as much fun as it sounds.

However, Selvaria dislikes pretty much anything to do with ragnite - meaning she won’t carry anything to heal herself with. She also can’t get past barricades by herself since she has no grenades, meaning that Johann has to stick right by her side, both to heal her and clear the way for her to mow down some more Gallian troops. Especially in the first mission, make sure you keep Johann just behind her, or you’ll spend a lot of time later trying to have him catch up.

Unlockables, New Missions, and interesting situations with Selvaria

Thanks Otto, you jerk.

Here’s the lowdown on what you get in the Selvaria Pack:

• Four new missions, playing as the Empire
• New unlockable weapon in the main Gallian campaign
• Fan-freaking-tastic Voice acting (Serious props to the actors for Selvaria, Johann, and Otto)
• Bonus unlockable mission made of pure win

I’m not going to spoil what you get for completing all of the missions, but after I played it today I can wholeheartedly say it is awesome. You’ll probably be smiling the entire time you play the bonus mission, and for good reason.

Of the three, the Selvaria pack by far gives you the most new content in regards to storyline. You’ll get to see what Selvaria is like outside of battle - and, thanks in part to Johann’s fainting you’ll find yourself in one or two rather awkward situations: like waking up on Selvaria’s bed. I’ll let you guys discover how that one plays out…

Valkyria Chronicles - Contests and Free Merch

Do you guys remember the blog post where I asked you which communities and fansites you wanted SEGA to reach out to for contests and giveaways? With DLC coming out today, it’s time to unleash a slew of sweet Valkyria goodness upon the fans as a thank you from SEGA for the amazing support you guys have shown for this game in your communities and across the web. I’ll be posting here with details on each contest as it goes live - as a teaser, it should be known that some of those limited edition pre-order art books (the ones that sell for as much as the game) might just show up, and there may also be some imported collector’s figurines going out too… stay tuned!

Now then, a mini-giveaway to get the celebration started: If you’re the first person to comment on this blog post saying “I LOVE VALKYRIA CHRONICLES!”, I’ll hook you up with one of the Valkyria Chronicles pre-order artbooks. Of course, even if you aren’t the first, you can still add your comment to the list - if you’re as excited as we are about today, add in your voice and let us know!

The wait is finally over, but the fun (and free stuff) is just getting started.

Happy Valkyria Chronicles DLC Day everyone!