BLACK/MATRIX Advanced for Sega Dreamcast Mini-games guide by iatneH (rotting_angel$h0tmail[dot]c$m) Version 0.2 This guide has been submitted to GameFAQs exclusively. If you accessed this from any other site, please contact me and I will make some attempt to put down the smack. I will however allow other FAQ writers to include this in whole or in part in their own guides as long as proper credit is given. History: 03-06-04 - Updated activities and events, added stat comparison section Basically, the guide is now complete. (but not final) 03-06-04 - Started writing the guide Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Maps 3. Activities (and stats) 4. About Items 5. Other events 6. Little details 7. Comparison of initial stats and final stats 8. Credits and contact *************** 1. Introduction *************** My first ever guide! So apologies for any horrible layouts and general confusion. This is the tactical RPG developed by Flight-Plan (http://www.flight-plan.co.jp) and published by NEC Interchannel (http://www.neic.co.jp) for the Sega Dreamcast console. The game was only released in Japan, although there was a plan for a North American release which was sadly cancelled. Unfortunately, I do not read or understand very much Japanese, so I cannot give a complete walkthrough of the game. The only part of the game I will describe in this guide is the very first part where you are still undergoing rehabilitation at your master's house before getting into the actual game with all the battles and events. Brief battle FAQs have been made elsewhere by other fans of the game. Contrary to what one ignorant game magazine reviewer said, these mini-games are NOT pointless; Certain activities will raise Abel's stats, so you don't have to go into your first battle complaining how weak Abel is, like that other person who obviously didn't take the time to go through the various activities. Trust me, even though rehab can take over two hours of game time, it is VERY well worth it if you don't want to be completely slaughtered in your first battle. ******************************* 2. Map of goshujin-sama's house ******************************* It is going to be incredibly difficult for me to map out the house in the 3/4 view, so I have rotated everything counter-clockwise by 45 degrees. Available activities are indicated by lower case words on the map. Paths to different parts of the house will be shown in upper case words. Note that the activity "eat" is available anywhere, as long as you are equipped with an edible item. (Costs 2 AP) More about eating in sections 3 and 4. Also, most items can be given to your master by equipping the item and then pressing "X" while next to her/him. (Costs 1 AP) 2.1 House Interior ________ __________/reading/ /barrel / / ________ / _________________/ / /_____/ /fireplace diary | | | TO BEDROOM | | | _| | |bath | | cutting veggies |cleaning | |_______________ | |TO OUTSIDE 2.1.1 Bedroom _______________ | |drawer |sleep | | |____ |_ | pots TO HOUSE INTERIOR |_________________ 2.2 Outside Oh boy this one's going to be tough... TO HUNTING RANGE_______TO CLIFF | _______________ | | | TO CAVE 1 \ | TO GATE |TO HOUSE | | \ \ ___ | \ \ | | field | \ chop firewood | \ TO STREAM L___ | \_____| TO STREAM R OMG what a disaster... 2.2.1 Gate TO OUTSIDE Going through the gate ends your rehabilitation. | | Once you have left, there's no going back to the | | happy life you enjoyed with your master, and | | you will now be at the mercy of black-winged | | angels who don't quite give you that warm fuzzy TO THE CRUEL WORLD feeling your master does. 2.2.2 Hunting Range TO CLIFF | | | | hunting | | | | | TO OUTSIDE 2.2.3 Cliff tree climbing ____| | picking flowers TO HUNTING RANGE______ | |TO OUTSIDE 2.2.4 Cave 1 _____________ pick up rock \ | | | | | | \____ _____/ TO OUTSIDE 2.2.5 Stream R TO OUTSIDE |_ | _| | picking flowers |_ | | | \ | | | \ | \pick up turtle 2.2.6 Stream L TO OUTSIDE | | TO CAVE 2_| | |_ |_ fishing | | | |picking flowers |_______| 2.2.7 Cave 2 _________ | | | |__| | | | |___ ___| TO STREAM L ************* 3. Activities ************* You start the game in the spring season, and as days pass the seasons will change, with winter being the last season before circumstances force you to leave the house. For each activity, I will state the amount of AP required, in which season it becomes available, which stat is raised, and what item you receive. More about the purpose of items will be discussed in section 4. Please note that it is not obvious where the activities are on the game map, so there may be several that I missed. You start out every day with 10 AP. It's up to you how to spend them, but I recommend doing all the mini-games several times to increase your stats in a somewhat balanced way, although WHEN the stats go up seems pretty unpredictable, as your stats do not increase every time you do the activity. Stat descriptions: HP - Hit points. You should all know what this is. STR - Strength. How much damage you dish out in battle. VIT - Vitality. How well you take damage in battle. BP - Blood points. Similar to magic points, for using skills or spells. INT - Intelligence. For smart people only. Increases skill/spell power. DEX - Dexterity. How well you weild a weapon in battle, for hit %. 3.1 Sleep AP needed: none Available: Spring onward Stats raised: HP Item received: none Replenishes your AP and makes one day pass. Some events occur during sleep, particularly on day 2 and 3 of spring. (I think) 3.2 Reading AP needed: 3 Available: Spring onward Stats raised: none Item received: none There are two bookshelves. The first shelf contains four books on the topic of the biblical history of the world on the left, and five more on the right. The second shelf contains seven books on the left, one for each of the seven sins. The last book is "Love", and you might be wondering why that is a sin. Remember that this world is ruled by the black-winged angels who worship the High god Satan. There are an additional seven books on the right side of the second shelf. In the Playstation version of this game, reading the books raised Abel's INT. At first I thought there were only eleven books, and I did not discover the other twelve books until it was too late to read them all, so I can't say for sure whether INT will increase by reading all of the books. 3.3 Fireplace AP needed: 2 Available: Autumn onward, when the fireplace is lit Stats raised: none Item received: none Requires you to be equipped with firewood received from the chopping firewood activity. This *might* increase a stat but it hasn't happened to me yet. 3.4 Bath AP needed: I forgot :p Available: Autumn, when the bucket is filled with bubbling water. Stats raised: HP Item received: none Take a relaxing toasty bath. Naked. :) No your master doesn't get in with you. :p 3.5 Cleaning AP needed: 2 Available: Spring onward Stats raised: DEX Item received: none Abel puts the muscle down on the dirty floor. 3.6 Chopping vegetables AP needed: 3 Available: Spring onward Stats raised: none, or DEX. I forgot this too. Item received: some kind of food You are briefly shown a list of coloured vegetables. Press the corresponding colour controller button as the items go by, and before time runs out. If you screw up, you don't get an item! Finish with 5+ seconds remaining: Cabbage 4-4.99: Apple 3-3.99: Banana 2-2.99: Bell pepper These are the only ones I know so far. I haven't finished with more than 6 seconds, or fewer than 3. The first time you do this activity, only red and blue are used. Then only yellow and green. Then three colours, and eventually 4, to the point where it just gets crazy difficult for a person like myself who is more used to the Playstation controller button colours. Anyway, in general, faster is better, and any mistake is not forgiven. 3.7 Pots, barrel, and drawer AP needed: 1 Available: Spring onward Stats raised: none Item received: Gum Your master's private stash of gum! 3.8 Chopping firewood AP needed: 4 Available: Spring onward Stats raised: STR Item received: firewood The task is to split a bunch of firewood logs in 20 seconds. Press 'A' when Abel raises the axe high enough to split the wood in two. Press the button too soon and Abel will miss, wasting time. Wait too long and Abel falls over (cute! ^_^). The first time you do this, it shouldn't be too hard to chop all the wood you're given, but as more and more pieces of wood are added, I think it becomes impossible to get a perfect score here. 3.9 Tending to the field AP needed: 5 Available: Spring to Autumn Stats raised: VIT Item received: varies Each time you do this, the activity cycles through tilling the dirt -> sowing seeds -> picking the crop. So...you don't get the item until you pick the crop. The type of crop depends on which season you are in, and also I think the longer you wait between sowing the seeds and picking the crop, the nicer the thing you pull out of the ground is. i.e. pick it the following day -> radish but wait a few days and pick -> bok choi (at least that's what it is in Chinese, LOL) 3.10 Picking flowers AP needed: 1 Available: Spring onward Stats raised: none Item received: varies I have found three locations where this is possible. Pick a pretty flower for your lovely master. Or, you can eat it. O_o. The type of flower depends on the season. 3.11 Picking up the turtle AP needed: 1 Available: ?? I didn't discover this until autumn. Stats raised: none Item received: turtle Beats me what this is for. Give it to your master, or trash it or something. I don't remember if it's edible. 3.12 Picking up the rock AP needed: 1 Available: Autumn? Stats raised: none Item received: rock I don't know what this is for either, but when you give it to your master, you get a different response from the other things. 3.13 Tree climbing AP needed: 5 Available: Spring onwards Stats raised: none Item received: none Gives you a good view of the world, most notably the Tower of Babel and its gigantic magical chains. 3.14 Hunting AP needed: 5 Available: Summer to Autumn Stats raised: DEX Item received: varies You have three arrows, and can move left and right along the fence to aim. There are four types of animals to shoot: 1. The rabbit which is very close to the fence, is very slow, and is almost but not quite as stupid as a particular game magazine reviewer. 2. The fox which is intermediate in distance and runs a bit faster. 3. The boar which is really fast and is the farthest away, and also has the smallest gap between the bushes so you have to be good. Highly desirable. 4. Some ultra-rare something-or-other which appears between the boar and fox areas, and zooms across the screen at a crazy high speed. I have never caught one of these but I have a feeling it's good. Shooting a cute rabbit or fox is kind of sad, and your master won't cook it for you. If you give a boar to your master, he/she will give you a yummy meal the next day. ^_^ The animals themselves are not edible. If you miss all three shots, Abel hangs his head dejectedly and it's kind of cute/funny. 3.15 Fishing AP needed: 5 Available: Spring to Autumn Stats raised: I forgot Item received: fish There is an arrow which is at the right side of a bar. When a fish bites, the arrow begins to move left. Pressing 'A' stops the arrow, and the closer the arrow is to the right side, the larger the fish you catch. After that, mash the 'A' button like crazy! You've got 10 seconds to reel in that bugger! You catch the fish when the bar fills up to where the arrow is, starting from the left side. The fish is edible, or you can give it to your master. 3.16 Diary AP needed: 1 Available: Winter Stats raised: none Item received: diary I think this item only appears when Zero is your master. You can read it for 2 AP, I think it has some pretty cute content. Then you can give it to Zero for 1 AP, and he says something like "Ba....Baka! ...you didn't read it, did you?" Of course not, hehe. ************** 4. About Items ************** Most of the items you get during rehabilitation are edible, or you can give them to your master. The firewood, and rock are the only items which can be placed in the fireplace. Eating consumes 2 AP, and giving items to your master consumes 1 AP. I have raised VIT by simply eating stuff I get directly from the activities, such as vegetables from the field and cutting board, raw fish, and flowers. O_o If you give your master a flower, or firewood, you get a piece of gum as a present. I don't think it's too useful as I have not raised a stat and I have eaten a lot of gum. If you give your master something you got from the cutting board or field, or a fish or boar, the next day you will receive a cooked meal which for me has raised HP, STR, VIT, and INT. If you give your master a turtle, he/she lets it go. If you give your master a rabbit or fox, he/she says something about it being sort of sad. So...be nice, and don't shoot rabbits. ************************************* 5. Other events during rehabilitation ************************************* On the second day of summer, your master will give you a Super T-shirt as a birthday present. Be careful when you use this! Because if you are too close to your master, you will end up giving it back instead of putting it on, and your master will be a bit unhappy :( So, move away a little, and use the item to raise Abel's STR. (Costs 2 AP to put on the shirt, LOL) On the sixth day of summer, your master starts the day by commenting on the hot weather, and asks if you would like to go play in the water. You are given the option of yes or no. I would say...HELL YEAH! This means that for an entrance fee of 5 AP, you get to see a nice artwork of your master in a swimsuit! Yes, even if your master is Zero! A typhoon strikes near the end of autumn. You get to see some artwork of your master drying off :) The event happens after you choose to go to sleep, however, after the event you will have only recovered 2 AP. Either that or you start out that day with only 3 AP. Your master gets sick on the third or fourth day of winter! When you go to sleep, you see Abel waiting by your master's bedside. How sweet. :) On the last day of winter, your master will not be in the house as usual. You can still do various activities, however, you cannot go to sleep. The only thing left to do is to go through the gate and into the real world. If you leave this way, your master comes home to find the gate door open and Abel gone, and is quite upset. What I recommend you do is when you suspect you are nearing the end of winter, to save your game every day before you go to sleep. Then, if your master is not in the house in the morning, load your saved game and then leave, so that your master can give you a necklace as a parting gift. And thus begins the story... Abuse! You can save your game when you are inside the house. So, you can save your game before and after risky activities such as chopping, fishing, and hunting, and maximise what you get from your AP! If you screw up, you can just load your game from a few seconds ago and try the activity again. ***************** 6. Little details ***************** Depending on who you choose to be your goshujin-sama, the decor in the bedroom is different. Main differences will be patterns on the floor rug, and of your master's bedding. As I recall, the walls may be a different colour as well. For example, Dominna's bedroom has a red ambience, while Craze decorates her room in green. On the same topic, the story goes in the same general direction for all choices of goshujin-sama. However, depending on who your master is, certain characters may end up being your enemies or allies. And supposedly the story for Zero is supposed to be more different than the rest. Well, it makes both Zero and Abel homosexual, but that's not the important part, heh. ********************** 7. Comparison of stats ********************** The following stats were taken from my game in Normal mode. Here are Abel's initial stats: HP 19 BP 10 STR 11 INT 10 VIT 11 DEX 10 And here are his stats when I left on the second last day of winter, with Zero as my master. Note that I have made several screw-ups in the course of my rehabilitation so it's highly probable the stats could be higher for other players. HP 26 BP 10 STR 14 INT 12 VIT 13 DEX 12 ********************** 8. Credits and contact ********************** Thanks to my pal who helped me find a used Dreamcast for a sweet price. Thanks to Flight-Plan for a wicked game. Thanks to Anime Jyanai for helping me get my hands on a copy. Got something to contribute? Have I missed a mini-game? Send mail to the address at the top of the document (which has been weirdified in some effort to ward of spammers) with a descriptive subject, and hopefully I will add it to my guide! Copyright 2003 Geoffrey Tien All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. END OF FILE