Walker Boh's Guide to:
     Lufia: The Legend Returns on Gameboy Color
Author: Walker Boh
Real Name: Bryan Peterson
E-mail: b-peterson@@earthlink.net
     Contents:
I: Legal stuff
II: Intro
III: Controls
IV: Hints and Tips
V: Characters
VI: Walkthrough
VII: Closing Comments
     Legal Stuff
  This document is copyright 2001-2003 by Walker Boh AKA Bryan Peterson and
may not be used for profitable purposes. You may print this for your
own use or the use of friends as long as you do so without making money
off of it. You may not edit this FAQ in any way. If you see mistakes,
E-mail me about them. Be specific and be polite! With the legal business out of
the way, let's get onto the guide.
     Intro
  You have no idea how long I've been waiting for Lufia III to make its
appearance...unless of course you waited longer than I did. I actually had no
idea a third Lufia game was in the works until
2000, when it was still Ruins Chasers and it was going to be made on
PS1 or PS2. I found out courtesy of a website called Forfeit Island
(some of you may know of it). I checked frequently for news of it and
was extremely disappointed when I found out that it had been canceled. Then,
not long afterward I discovered that though that particular Lufia had indeed
been scrapped, they were still going to continue the saga. The reason why the
game took so long to reach us is that it underwent a few name changes, lots of
financial trouble, that sort of thing. As you can
imagine it kinda turned into a bit of a bad joke. However, there are reasons.
Part of it was due to the worrisome news that Yasunori Shiono (he composed the
music to the first two games), hadn't yet confirmed that he would be composing
the music for the third chapter. Since Yasunori Shiono's compositions were part
of what made the two SNES Lufia games as good as they are, this news put lots of
fans on edge. What  if the music didn't live up to the previous games?
Fortunately, Yukio Nakajima, the backup composer is very nearly as talented as
Mr. Shiono, though his compositions have a different style. No need to worry
though. Yasunori Shiono returns, but
this time Yukio Nakajima contributes some of his own work to the soundtrack. It
seems those two work well together. I for one was quite impressed. Though the
GBC's audio hardware is nothing compared to that of the SNES or PSX, the music
itself is very good. The play/control is a little different here, but I'll go
into more detail on that later. For now, suffice it to say that it's a very
involved game. Unfortunately, as many times as it was delayed, Lufia 3 is
frought with typos and translation mistakes in dialogue. Fortunately, these are
funny more often than not.
     Controls
  In this section I'll talk about the controls of Lufia: TLR.
A Button: Start conversation, scroll conversation, search barrels,
chests and shelves, confirm selections on menus. Can also be used to
swing sword in dungeons. Hold down this button while in dungeons to
create the Spirit Wave, release to perform this special attack.
B Button: Cancel Selection, hold button down while in towns and
dungeons to run.
D-pad: Move characters on game screen or cursor in Menus.
Select: Access the game's Automap feature. Brings up the dungeon maps.
From within this screen you can press Start to access the Field Log,
where you can create a temporary saved game for if you need to stop the
game but you're not near a save point. Note: Doing this will save your game
until you retrieve it next. Once you retrieve it the Field Log will be
erased, so after retrieving this field log, make sure you find a save
point or you will not be able to permanently save your game.
Start: Accesses menus and will bring up the field log save from within
the map screen. The battle system is pretty much the same as far as the
controls are concerned. You once again use the cross-shaped selector.
Once you choose Fight, the up arrow pressed in conjunction with A will
access the spells of the character you are on. Press Down to access the
menu where that character's IP abilities are displayed. Press Left to
access the Item menu. Press Right to defend with your shield. All three
active characters will have this selector displayed. If you wish to run
from a battle, rather than pressing A at the start of battle, press
Down and A simultaneously. This will select the Run option, which will make
your party attempt to run.
     Hints and Tips
  This is just a section of pointers on various aspects of gameplay.
First, and most important, carry healing supplies with you any time you
leave towns. Monsters are abundant and some can do major damage. Heal
when necessary.
Second, if you seem to be having trouble against a boss or even a
normal enemy, two things could be the problem. One, you may not have
the best equipment. If this is the case, go back to the closest town
and upgrade your armor and weaponry. Second, your level may be too low.
If you get defeated even if your armor and weapons are up to date, head
back and do some leveling up in a place where you know the enemies
aren't too strong for you. Then come back and try again.
Finally, you'll find Ancient Texts in many places throughout your
quest. These are your IP skills. You may have noticed an option on the
Menu screen called Ancient Texts. That is where you learn those skills.
However, you need spiritual force or SF to learn them. To get SF you
need both companions and LP. LP are learning points that can be used to
learn magic and IP attacks. Let's say you have a party of three, and
you want one of the guys to learn...let's say Bolt Attack. You would go
to the Ancient Texts menu, select the person you want and then the text you
want to learn from. There's one very important thing you should be aware of
here though. SF comes in several different colors I.E. red, blue, green and I
believe yellow (I'm not sure if that's all of 'em). Each character has a
different color SF. To learn...let's say Energy Punch, you need tenrRed SF and
ten blue. Aima's SF is blue, so you would then need another character with blue
SF, let's say Seena. Aima might not have a very strong SF on her own, but if
Seena is either right next to her or behind her, the force should be stronger.
Raise Seena's SF by using the Wave option on the Ancient Text menu. This will
convert the Learning Points you get from battle into more SF. This should also
increase Aima's power if she's in a direct line with Seena (this doesn't means
Seena has to be in your active party). Once Aima's SF is at the proper level,
she can learn Energy Punch. Basically, the texts any given character can learn
depend partly on who's standing immediately around that character, because that
determines the SF he or she is receiving. Remember this when you want to learn
a new ability.
Characters
  Here's where I'll talk about the characters you'll meet, in order.
Wein: Wein is the main hero. He's a descendant of Maxim. He's a bit dense
sometimes, but he seems to have a good sense of humor, which seems to irritate
Seena rather a lot. Wein's magic leans more towards defense rather than
offense, but his IP abilities can go either way.
Seena: Seena claims to be a Fortuneteller. Mostly she's not very good at her
art, but lately her predictions have become very accurate. What could this
mean? She seems not to have a sense of humor though, and calls Wein stupid when
he makes a joke. Still, she has considerable magic at her disposal.
Dei: Dei is a likeable robber rather like Robin Hood. He steals money from the
wealthy and gives it to the poor, leaving little or nothing to himself.
Aima: Aima is a monk who is training to be a master of the fist. She
accompanies you after her temple is destroyed by Gades and the Garland Gang.
Melphis: Melphis is the princess of Alstadt Castle. She was imprisoned in a
dungeon when someone supposeably loyal to Alstadt betrayed them. She joins your
quest to try to find reasons for the odd behavior of the Alstadt army.
Randolf: Randolf is an aged swordsman who has sworn to protect Melphis. He
joins you for good after you rescue Melphis from a monster.
Dekard: Dekard is a heroic pirate who has a thing against real pirates. He
doesn't join you until later in the game, but he does appear to save your skin
on several occasions before then.
Mousse: Mousse is this game's one and only capsule monster. You can't control
him, and therefore he does not need to be one of your three active characters
in order to act.
Ruby: Ruby is a female gambler, but she has a soft side...
Isaac Shaia: Isaac is a descendant of Lexis and Raile Shaia. Like his
ancestors, Isaac is an inventor. He will help you at various points in your
quest.
Milka: Milka is an elven girl who witnessed all the Doom Island Wars (they're
called battles, dammit!). She's a
naturalist.
     Walkthrough
     Part 1: The Quest Begins Party's Level: 1
  When you turn on your GBC or GBA with this game inserted, you will be
treated to the classic Fortress of Doom theme. While this is going on, the
introductory story will scroll across the screen. Bypass this if
you wish by pressing Start or a. This brings up the main menu where you
select New Game. I'm going on the assumption that this is your first
time with the game. Select New Game and name your main hero. Note: I'll
be sticking to the default name here for the sake of this guide.
  Once you've named Wein whatever you want, press Start. It'll show a
boat sailing into a shore and docking. A girl will get off. The music
here is cool, and it changes to the Epsis Continent theme and then to
the theme of Patos Village as the girl enters the town. For now we'll
call her the Adventurer. As she moves through the town  she says
something about this being where she felt his energy. That isn't made
clear yet. The girl spots a young lad and asks him if he can fight. He
responds, not knowing what to make of this girl, and she decides to rough him
up with a Bolt spell. He doesn't like this much, but the girl seems to think of
it as a show of spirit. Wein then forgets what it is he was going to do. After
the
scene you will take control of Wein. Explore the town for items if you want,
but if you want to advance the story, leave town and reenter. A scene will take
place. The music dies for a moment, then
changes to a different tune as a bolt of energy strikes the town, coming
from what the people of this small village of Patos call the Tower of
Death. You hear a voice say that the time has come for destruction.
Another bolt strikes the house of Lamika, a girl who asks you to come for
dinner if you talk to her before this scene. The house
catches fire, and Lamika is still inside! Wein doesn't hesitate to rush in to
the burning house to save the day. The music's cool, too.
  After that, Wein is shown bringing the girl out of the house, to
rather sorrowful music I might add. Though the girl's fine, Wein
himself has inhaled some smoke. The Adventurer girl heals him partly and takes
him home. After the sleep scene (they didn't keep the classic Inn theme
from the previous games), we open on the house of Wein. The girl
prepares a soup for him. He eats it, but finds it to be quite nasty. The girl
just tells him that it'll make him stronger. After
that we learn that the girl's name is Seena, and that she's on a quest.
It seems that the four Sinistrals are once again abroad. Seena is on a
quest to stop them, but needs warriors. After some talk you agree to go
with her. I can't really place the music in this scene, but it kinda
makes me think of the old Love theme from Lufia II, even though it's
nothing like that. When you get control, search the town for items and buy
weapons if you have the money. If you did fight around the town
beforehand, then you'll have amassed some LP. With that in mind, head to the
Church in this town. Here you can save your game, which is always a good idea.
Anyway, when you enter a church, you will always have the option of learning
magic. Here, you can learn Strong and Poison. You'll definitely want to learn
Strong. When you've done whatever you need to, head out of town and fight
around. You will most likely want to level up to about 4 or 5 if
you can manage it. For a first dungeon, the Tower of Death houses some
rather tough monsters. When you've raised your levels as much as you
want, head north from the town. There's a cave. Enter it and you'll be
in the Patos Cave, or as I like to call it, the Secret Skills Cave,
'cuz that's basically what it is. In here you'll meet Ibla, the trainer, He'll
instruct you in some of the finer points of gameplay, so pay attention.
Follow him into the cave and kill the enemies you encounter. Ibla'll
teach you how to use the two sword moves which will help you in every
dungeon. The first is the normal sword attack for cutting bushes and
stuff. Perform this move simply by pressing A. The second move is also
easy. Hold down A for a few seconds, then release it. This is the
Spirit Wave (I think that's its proper name). This will help you break
down walls and discover traps. There aren't any challenging puzzles in
this game like in Lufia II. Well, there aren't any Zelda type puzzles,
just secret passages that your sword can open and traps that you can
avoid if you manage to uncover them without triggering them. Anyhoo,
follow Ibla's lead and do as he says. After the lesson, Ibla congratulates you
and leaves. If you want to heal, head to Patos again and stay at the
inn. Save again if you wish, then head back to the cave. Now just
continue walking straight north from the entrance. You'll come out on
the other side of the cave, and the Tower of Death stands before you.
  This dungeon is a little tough, but if you leveled up before coming
you should be all right. There are I believe 10 or 12 floors, but only
5 or 6 are open to you right now. Right when you enter you'll notice
the cool music. Ibla will drop by again and give you your very first
Ancient Text, Drive. Ibla's music is rather funky if you ask me.
Anyway, he'll fill you in on how to accumulate SF and how to equip
Ancient Texts, so pay attention. After he leaves, explore the tower and
collect all the stuff you can Be careful of some of the things you
uncover with your sword. Some are traps which will disorient you
temporarily, and I even found one that put me to sleep. This lasts only for
about a second, but it can be deadly if a monster happens to stumble upon you
while you're stunned. I once had the misfortune to trigger one of these traps
right next to some monsters. As you can guess, they gave me quite a thrashing.
In short, be careful. When you reach the topmost floor, you'll meet...No!..It's
impossible! It just can't be!..it's...I can barely bring myself to say
it!..It's Gades, Sinistral of Destruction! So it seems Seena wasn't lying! The
music here is pretty cool, too, even if it isn't as memorable as in Lufia II.
It's the same
theme that played when Lamika's house was attacked. Anyway, correctly
suspecting Gades as the one responsible for the attack on Patos, Wein
gets pissed! Gades remarks that the destruction of Lamika's house was
just child's play to him. He gives you a taste of his true power by
destroying this floor of the tower and opening up the later floors! Note the
typo in Gades' next line. I didn't know destruction could be Frue! Frue
(although I doubt it's spelled the same when used as a slang term), is slang
for Sexy. Sexy destruction? Anyway, Wein decides to teach this bastard a
lesson. You'll have a chance to prepare for battle, so do so.
     Boss Battle: Gades HP: N/A
     Recommended Level: 5+
  The music in this battle is pretty cool, a bit like the theme for
when Wein rushed into Lamika's house to rescue her. Anyway, you aren't
supposed to be able to defeat this guy right now. He's supposed to be
way too strong. His Spiritual Force of Destruction is more than strong
enough to take you out. About two uses and you're done, assuming he
doesn't hit you with his physical attack as well. Actually, it is
possible to beat him here, and you'll get the Gades Bracelet if you do manage
to do so. For the first four or five rounds, Gades will stand there and use his
Checking Situation ability, and this is the time when you should unload on him.
On the first round, have one character use Head
Crush and have the other use a Hi-Bomb. Then just use Hi-Bombs after that. If
you do everything right you should be able to bring him down before he unloads
on you with his attacks.
  After the battle (whether you win or lose), Gades will decide to spare you
for now. He departs. Wein wonders if Gades might have some human qualities
after all, as he believes an immortal would not have gotten mad so easily when
provoked. Not for the last time, Seena calls him stupid.
     Part 2: Albano and the thieff Party's Level: 5+
  After the scenes, leave the tower. You'll come across another cave.
It's Laphon Cave, and what's more it's where we need to go. The enemies
here are weigh too tough for us now, so we'll do what we did when we
went back to Patos Cave after the training session. Just walk straight
north and you'll exit near Albano town.
  Albano town has cool music, but that isn't why we're here. We're here
to upgrade armor and weapons, first of all. Then we can explore the
town. There are a few houses of note. One is a really big one that's
finished being built, and the other is a really big one that's not finished
being built. Both belong to a rich man called Fugo. If you talk
to him, you'll have some conversation, then somebody rushes in and
steals a bunch of gold. Fugo will ask you to go after the thieff, so
that's what we're going to do. He's supposedly gone to the Slani cave
to the west of Albano.
  Slani Cave has around 9 floors (I don't remember exactly how many),
but it isn't very confusing. The enemies can be a little tough, but if you
learned all your ancient texts and have the latest equipment you should
be all right. Throughout the cave you'll find Gold in chests, of
varying amounts. These are not gold pieces like you get from monsters.
They're kinda like checks. You sell them for the amount
they're worth, so a Gold 100 would be worth 100 gold. It's kinda like
cashing a $100 check. Work your way down to the bottom floor, where
you'll find a healing point, a save point, and the thieff. Talk to him
and he'll run off. So now let's leave here.
  North of Albano is the village of Majari. The music is very relaxing
and...well, peaceful, even a bit sad. Anyway, talk with the people. The
thieff is here, but he gets a bit shady when you approach him. Upgrade
your supplies and then try to leave town. You'll hear a monster growl.
The thieff appears to be fighting it, so let's jump in and help.
     Boss Battle: Belamie HP: ???
Recommended Level: 6+
  This battle isn't too tough if you know what you're doing. Explosives
work well on this guy, so use them. Also use Flash if you have it, as that
works fairly well on him too. He has some nasty attacks though,
so don't forget to heal. Oh yeah, and the boss theme here is cool.
  After the battle, Fugo appears and tells you off. He says something
about Belamie eating gold and that being why he keeps it handy. Then he
scampers off with the thieff. Talk with the citizens of Albano and
they'll tell you that the thieff's name is Dei , and that it's because
of him that they're so well off. He takes money from those who use it
badly and gives it to people who actually need it, leaving nothing to
himself. He's kinda like Robin Hood.
  Head back to Albano and enter Fugo's...uhm...completed house. Enter the
library and search the bookshelves. One fronts a secret passage into Fugo's
Dungeon (that explains why Melissa was never allowed in here.
  This is a fairly easy area, just don't get lax and forget to heal if
you get beat up. I believe it has around 7-10 floors, but I don't
remember right offhand. The music's cool, too. It's sorta Egyptian. Anyway,
just work your way down and you'll find the thieff and another Belamie. It
appears that Fugo was telling the truth! That thing's eating perfectly good
gold! So now
it's time to end its little feast!
     Boss Battle: Belamie HP: ???
     Recommended Level: 7+
  Just use the same strategy you used on the prior Belamie. Hopefully
you did find a good strategy in the prior battle. He's not too tough, though.
  After the battle, Dei will thank you for helping him and join the
party. Now work your way out of the dungeon.
  Upon exiting the dungeon, you'll be confronted by one of Fugo's
servants, who rushes off to get his master. Before Fugo can tell you
off properly however, Gades appears. Seems he's back for more! Fugo
orders Gades to get off his property, but Gades doesn't listen. On the
contrary, he decides to punish Fugo by destroying his new house. It seems that
even after two defeats at the hands of Maxim and his descendant, Gades hasn't
learned not to mess with humans!
     Boss Battle: Gades HP: ???
     Recommended Level: N/A
  Again you aren't supposed to win. Doing so would net you a Gades
Blade, but I never beat him at this point. Note: Rae Caven
(raelcaven@earthlink.net), sends this hint. The strategy for beating Gades the
second time around is the same as the first one, except that your levels should
be higher. Also, you probably should use Head Crush twice this
time and then have everyone else use Hi-Bombs. You might lose a character, but
if you do enough damage to Gades before he attacks you should be able to take
him down. If you give the Gades Bracelet and Gades Blade to the same person
(Wein would be my suggestion), he will become quite a formidable warrior.
  After the battle, whether you win or lose, Gades leaves. Fugo mistakenly
thanks you for helping defend his house, but
Wein sets him straight.He was helping Dei!
  Now there are a few Side quests we can undertake. If you talk to the
carpenter who is working on Fugo's house, he'll agree to rebuild
Lamika's house, but for that he will need Good Wood, which is on Lidal
Continent. We won't be able to get that yet, but if you return to
Majari and talk to Lurissa, she'll be worried about her father, who
went to work in Laphon Cave. As a favor, why don't we go find him for
her?
  Laphon Cave shouldn't be too tough now, what with you being at higher
levels than you were on your first time in this cave. Just work your
way down to the bottom and you'll find Lurissa's father. He'll be glad
someone came to look for him. Seena casts Strong on him to heal him. He
takes off for Majari. Now if you talk with him in Majari he'll give you
a dragon egg.
  In Albano, you can talk to Eltra, Fugo's wife, for another Dragon
Egg, however that will need to wait until Gades is finally defeated.
Now let's advance the story, shall we?
     Part III: The Garland Gang Party's Level: 10+
  To reach the next town, we need to go through yet another cave. The cave we
want is called Broffo Cave, and I believe it is north of
Majari. Again, just walk on through to the opposite exit. Believe me,
you don't want to brave this dungeon yet! Anyway, exit this cave and
you'll be in the area where the port city of Seiantao is.
  Enter the city of Seiantao. Players of Lufia II should recognize the music
here. This town is the only port on Epsis Continent, and it is being harassed
by a gang of thugs. In the Northeast part of town you'll meet a few thugs who
are
threatening a girl. Before you can interveen however, another person
does. It is Aima, one of the monks of Leong Temple. She scares off the
gang members and introduces herself. Then a messenger appears and says
that Leong Temple is on fire. Aima leaves, so that's where we have to
go next. Leong is Northeast of Seiantao.
  When you first enter here, search around for some items, then talk to
Aima. She'll join you, so now let's head west to the Garland Gang's Hideout.
  This area has rather strange music, but it fits. It isn't a hard area, nor
are the two guards you have to fight
before you can proceed. They have about 200+ HP, but you should be able to
handle them as long as your levels are high enough and you have good equipment.
They can inflict significant damage.
  Work your way down to the bottom floor. There you'll
find the Garland Boss. It seems he wants an Ancient Text called Jigen
Ryu (Energy Punch).
     Boss: Garland Boss HP: ???
     Recommended Level: 13+
  Ok, this guy is a pain. He's a bit like Idura from Lufia II. Periodically
he'll summon a couple of thugs. Do not kill them until the leader is dead! If
you do, he'll just summon more. Lightning attacks such as Bolt, Flash or Bolt
Attack are fairly effective. Head Crush is basically useless. Just attack him
and watch your HP and MP. After he's dead, you can destroy his buddies.
  Afterward, the Garland Boss will be angry that he lost, then die. Get
the prison key and free Aima's master. He's been hurt, but he tells Aima to
worry about herself. Then there's an explosion that seems to have come from
Seiantao! We'd better get back!
  When you return to Seiantao, you'll find it's been completely destroyed!
Interestingly enough, every citizen is in almost exactly the same spot he/she
was in before the town was destroyed, a bit like the citizens of the city of
Gordovan in Lufia II. They will all talk about a strange man who appeared out
of nowhere and destroyed the place. Gades again! He's in the center of town, so
let's head on over for a little chat with our immortal buddy.
  When you talk to Gades, Aima will attempt to fight him, but she isn't strong
enough. However, her master confronts Gades and actually manages to inflict
damage! Impressed, Gades leaves, saying that he will spare Seiantao...for now.
  After Gades leaves, Aima's master dies. It seems the Energy Punch took it all
out of him. You'll then get the Ancient Text Energy Punch, and believe me, it's
well worth it! If you want, go search around for items, then it's time to head
back to the Tower of Death!
     Part 4: End of Destruction Party's Level: 15+
  The Tower is completely open to you now, so work your way upwards. On
one of the final floors you will find a healing point and a save point,
so use them. Then proceed to fight Gades. Oh yeah, and this time it's a battle
to the death. Before the battle though, Wein talks big to Gades, who laughs at
him and says what a funny joke that was. Wein assures Gades that he wasn't
joking (either because he really missed the sarcasm or was just pretending),
and Seena, who after all seems to have no sense of humor, calls him stupid.
Gades gets another laugh out of the situation, then you get to prepare for
battle. This time, do everything you can to get ready! The slightest thing
could mean victory or defeat.
     Boss Battle: Gades HP: 2000+
     Recommended Level: 15+ **20 if possible)
  Gades can be tough sometimes. Make sure you're at least level 13 before
attempting to beat him here. Though his attacks seem weaker than they were the
last times you fought him, he can still take you down easily if you're not
careful. Below is a list of his attacks, or at least all the ones I've seen.
Urge to Destroy: To my knowledge this attack does nothing, so if he uses it
when you're trying to heal, consider yourself lucky.
Spiritual Force of Destruction: This one's a force to be reckoned with. Though
it's no longer fatal, it still hits everyone for major damage. Try to watch
your HP when you get hit with it.
Destructo: As far as I know, this is a somewhat weaker version of the Spiritual
Force of Destruction. It only hits one character, which is what I meant by
"Weaker." Watch your HP.
Physical Attack: That isn't it's name. It's just your average physical attack,
a rather strong one.
Curse: This is the one you really want to be careful of, as it's instantly
fatal. Just be glad it only hits one person. It reduces the affected party
member's HP to 1, then poisons him, effectively killing him.
  Now that you've got the low down on Gades' attacks, let's discuss the
strategy for defeating him. Some spells, like Flash, are somewhat effective, as
is Bolt Attack. Head Crush comes in handy, but the really invaluable one is
Energy Punch, which does about 400 damage, probably more. Holy Attack is also a
good one to use, but it isn't necessary, so don't worry if you don't have it.
Bombs are also helpful. As for healing items, use the Strong spell and any
healing IPs you have. Goddess tears should be saved for situations when all
party members are in need of major healing. Just keep your attacks coming
(don't hesitate to use normal attacks if you feel you can risk it), and you
should win eventually.
  After the battle (interesting music, huh?) Gades will take a moment for the
usual anger about being defeated, then turn around and dismiss his defeat as
nothing. As long as the Spiritual Force calls upon them, the four Sinistrals
will be resurrected. Then he disappears. The party talks it over and Seena
explains that Gades is the weakest of the four and that the Sinistrals will
seek out their home, Doom Island. You then decide to go to Lydall Continent, so
it's time to head back to Seiantao and get a ship.
  Leave the tower by magic if you have learned Escape, or just work your
way down. Time to head back to Seiantao! If you want though, you can
head to Albano and get the Dragon Egg from Eltra. If not, then just
head for Seiantao town. Talk to the captain at the docks to sail to
Lidal Continent. You'll arrive in Caan.
     Part 5: The Princess and the Knight Party's Level: 20+
  Explore Caan for items, learn any magic you want, then try to leave
the town. You'll encounter an old knight who seems wounded. He mumbles
something about a princess and then takes off. If you haven't upgraded
your supplies, then do so now, otherwise head Northeast to the Deserted
Lighthouse.
  The Lighthouse has some of the coolest music in the game. It sounds almost
Egyptian. Anyway, there are around 11 floors. When you reach the sixth floor
you'll see the old soldier engaged in battle, and decide to give him a hand.
     Boss Battle: TowerSnake HP: 2100
     Recommended Level: 22+
  This isn't a very tough fight. The monster can poison you, but that
can be easily cured. Attack with your best weapons and you should be
fine. You won't have Seena with you though, as she's tending the old guardsman.
  After the fight, the knight will tell you his name, Randolph, and
join you. Then it's time to work your way up to the top floor. On the
top floor you'll see Princess Melphis engaged in battle. Time to help
her as well.
     Boss Battle: DevilGrome HP: 2000
     Recommended Level: 23+
  Again, a fairly easy boss. Hit him with your best weapons and heal
when you need to. You'll probably have to cure status, since he has a
confusion attack. He also has an attack which allows him to copy
himself, making it harder to hit him.
  After the fight, Melphis will join you. It seems something isn't
right in her homeland of Alstadt Kingdom, which is why Melphis was imprisoned.
And yes,
we're gonna set it right.
     Part 6: Pirates Ahoy! Party's Level: 25+
  After the scenes, head southeast from Caan to Tomis Cave. Just work
your way to the other exit and you'll be outside. Head Southeast to
Tomis town, which has the coolest town music I've heard so far. You may
notice a bridge to the east, but we'll do that later. It leads to
Copley Forest, where Gantz's Good Wood can be found, but you can't
enter yet. In Tomis, talk with everyone and learn some more magics if
you wish. Definitely try to learn Warp. Anyway, when you've explored
and done all that town stuff, talk to the lady in the center house to
buy a ferry ticket. En route to the next area, you'll be attacked by
pirates! Wein gets insulted and does what he does best, which is
complain about it.  I'd imagine Maxim is probably turning over in his grave in
disgust. No matter, Aima takes care of the pirates for the little whiner.
  The pirate ship has about 5 levels and possibly the best dungeon music so
far! Work your way to the bottom to fight the Pirate Boss.
     Boss Battle: Pirts. Head HP: 2500
     Recommended Level: 26-30
  This guy is very annoying! First off, do not kill his companions yet.
He's a bit like the Garland Boss. Take out his buddies and he'll just call
more. Focus your attacks on him first, then when he falls, take
out his cronies. They'll run after they attack though, so you might not
even have to worry about them at all if you time it just right and defeat him
before he calls more!
  Afterward, you'll escape to your own ship, just as another pirate
ship approaches (Noooo!) Fear not, for it is Dekard, the uhm...good pirate?
Yep, it is. Dekard smashes up the Pirate ship and one of your characters
remarks that that's one way to stop the flow of illegal weapons to Alstadt.
Then you head back to Tomis.
  Go back to where you bought the ticket earlier and talk to the kid.
His name is Keit, and he offers to lead you to Pirate Island. His
mother doesn't think much of this suggestion at all, but Keit overrides her.
Buy a ticket and take another trip on the Ferry.
  The Pirates' Hideout has the same music as the Garland Gang's hideout and I
believe a total of 14 levels. When you reach
the first Basement, in the room with the Save Point you'll be attacked
by the Pirate Boss. He steals off with Melphis and leaves you to fight
one of his pets.
     Boss Battle: Aligator HP: 800
     Recommended Level: 27-30.
  The reason I gave such high recommendations of level is because the next boss
will be considerably tougher. This battle is
not too tough at all. Just attack it normally with your best stuff.
  After the battle, work your way down to the bottom of the hideout and
heal and save. Then go up to confront the Pirate Boss. He'll be angry
that you killed his pet (how else could you still be alive?) and challenge you.
     Boss Battle: Pirts. Head and H. PirateX2 HP: Pirts. Boss 3500 H.
Pirate ???
     Recommended Level: 30+
  This is going to be a long, tough fight. Again, don't kill his
buddies. He'll summon more. Just attack him. True, this gives his
cronies all the chances they want to hurt you, but you need to take out
the big boss or you'll never win. If you can manage enough IP, then
don't hesitate to use Energy Punch. Once the boss falls you can take
out the little pirates, and this can be done with a single Death Powder or
Perish spell.
  After the battle, the Pirate Boss will be angry that you defeated him
and escape with Melphis again (dammit!) Use the teleporter he used and
you'll be outside. Keit will have been hurt, but Seena heals him.
Safely onboard your ship, you notice that the Pirate ship's escaping.
The boss threatens you with Melphis's life, and it looks pretty
hopeless, but Dekard saves the day again, and boy is his theme cool!
The party senses a fight in the wind, especially when Dekard rescues
Melphis. He then jumps to your ship and prepares for a fight. This
fight won't be against the boss, but his pet Squido.
     Boss Battle: Big Squido HP: 4000+
     Recommended Level: 31+
  This was not a super-tough fight for me, but let me tell you, it was
no walk in the park either! He has high HP, so it'll be a long battle.
He has a lot of water-based attacks (well duh, he's a seamonster after
all). Just use your best attacks (Bolt and Bolt Attack work pretty
well), and heal when your HP get low and you'll defeat him.
  After the battle, the Pirate Boss will be furious, but don't worry.
You've seen the last of him. You head back to Tomis to give Melphis a
chance to rest.
  In Tomis, heal at the inn and talk to everyone. It seems Alstadt
Kingdom's making its move. Troops are heading to the Tower of Illusion,
which is beyond Copley Forest. If you talk with Keit's mom, she'll realize that
she underestimated her son and wants to apologize to him.
     Part 7: Chaos in the Kingdom! Party's Level: 30+
  Now that we've cleared up the trouble with pirates, we've got bigger
problems. Alstadt's making an odd move, so we'd better go investigate.
Perhaps it's another of Gades' gang? Yes, that's how Wein says it. I REALLY
think Maxim's probably turning over in his grave from sheer disgust. Anyway,
head east from Tomis across the bridge. GO into the
forest, whose music is rather...uhm...strange. At first I thought it wasn't
really fitting, but it is. Anyway, Copley Forest is a maize, so don't expect
this to be an easy area. Work your way deeper into it and Seena gets irritated
and has a fight with Wein. After a little more wandering in what looks like
the exact same area for a certain amount of time (you're not, it just
seems that way), Seena gets frustrated again and leaves. Keep wandering
into the forest and soon you'll see Seena and a monster. Wein gets it
into his head that the monster hurt Seena and decides to attack. Seena
stops him, thereby introducing you to your new companion, Mousse. He's
this game's one and only Capsule Monster. You can put him wherever you
wish, as he attacks on his own and is not subject to the controls of
this game. Search this area carefully, because the Good Wood is in one of the
trees here.
  After you get the Good Wood (assuming you chose to), you can take it back to
Patos and give it to Gantz if you wish. You'll just have to go through Copley
Forest again unless you stop by the village of Cobe before leaving for Patos.
Oh, and if you enter Lamika's rebuilt house you can get a Dragon Egg. Anyway,
when you've done all you needed to, head on through the forest to the village
of Cobe, which has very fitting music for a quiet fishing village. Here you can
upgrade your supplies if necessary. Then head for the Tower of Illusion.
  The Tower of Illusion has some of the best music in the game, at least in my
opinion. Unfortunately, the one MIDI I've found of it was so far off the mark I
got to wondering if the sequencer had even reached this point in the game.
Either that or he was tone deaf. Anyway, this tower is very tough where enemies
are concerned. I still
haven't figured out what works well on what. Just work your way up to the tenth
floor.