-----------------------------------------------------------------------------79 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shining in the Darkness A complete FAQ/Strategy Guide by Marak Version: 1.0 Author: Mark Quaintance, a.k.a. Marak e-mail: nematocyst@hotmail.com OR mquaintance@sbcglobal.net ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents: 1. Legal Text 2. Revision History 3. Introduction to my Guide 4. Getting Started 5. The Labyrinth (full game walkthrough) 6. Quick Monster Reference Chart 7. Full Shop/Item Lists 8. Potent Magic Items 9. Magic Spells: Tips on Usage and Full Spell Lists 10. XP Charts For All Three Party Members 11. Wrap up and things to come 12. Credit where credit is due ------------- 1. Legal Text ------------- This FAQ is copyrighted material. LIMITED REPRODUCTION LICENSE: This FAQ may be posted, emailed, or saved to a disk without express permission, provided that the FAQ remains unaltered, and the full copyright notice is in place. Removing the copyright notice and rights disclaimer voids any rights assigned. Exclusions: This FAQ may not be used for promotional purposes, nor may it be incorporated in guides, magazines, secured websites, or in any state or place where a fee is charged in order to obtain the information contained within. All professional use rights are retained by the author. Future revisions of this FAQ may be found at http://www.gamefaqs.com. Contact me! If you have anything you want me to add to this guide, if you know something I don't know, if you have a better way to beat a certain enemy or Boss, or if you have CONSTRUCTIVE criticism/feedback, or heck, even if you just have a question about the game, PLEASE e-mail me at: nematocyst@hotmail.com OR mquaintance@sbcglobal.net This FAQ should be found in only one place: http://www.gamefaqs.com (and I better not see it anywhere else...) ------------------- 2. Revision History ------------------- Version 1.0 - Completed 11/03/04 My first effort. I think it turned out pretty well, but we'll see. Guide includes a walkthrough of the entire game from start to finish, tips on fighting EVERY monster (yes, Bosses included) in the game, and where to find every essential item. Also included is a comprehensive set of Appendices that list EVERY SINGLE item in the game and what it does; every spell in the game with tips on when/where/how to cast them, and XP charts for all three characters up to Level 99 (you can beat the game at Level 55 easily). Now that we have all that out of the way, it's time for the... --------------------------- 3. Introduction to My Guide --------------------------- Welcome! I'm glad you've chosen to at least check out my complete Shining in the Darkness Guide. I picked up playing this oldie-but-goodie after my most recent play-through of Shining Force II, and when I went to GameFAQs to look at the FAQs available, I found that they were woefully inadequate. The guides at GameFAQs at the time were ALL incomplete! This irritated me to no end; this game deserves a COMPREHENSIVE Guide, a complete guide, for those fanatics like me that still play this game because it's one of the best RPGs EVER made, period. Yeah, all ten of you :P Seriously, this game is in need of a full, complete source of info. I'm hoping that this Guide can fill that niche. No "to be continued" or "to be completed later" CRAP in MY guide! *looks around with a manic gleam in his eye* ANYway, I'm going to state a few things here: this is not going to be a hand-holding, step-by-step walkthrough. No "walk 3 steps, turn left, take the first right, open the chest" instructions. Nope. Half the fun of this game (at least in my humble opinion) is the exploration. The mapping. Discovering that chest nestled away in a dead-end in the middle of nowhere that might contain a powerful new piece of equipment, an important Artifact - or a soul-sucking Ghost! So, I'm going to instead give a general overview of the Labyrinth Levels as they become available. In each Labyrinth Level's entry, I'll note what Level(s) your Party should be at when they attempt to tackle this area. After that, I give you General Advice on important things you should do, see, or be wary of on this Floor of the Labyrinth. After that, I launch right into the Monster Menagerie, which describes ALL the monsters that you will encounter in this portion of the Labyrinth. And finally, I give some Final Thoughts before moving onto the next section. The Final Thoughts give some basic instructions on how to proceed to the area covered in the next section, as well as some tips on what you should spend your hard-earned Gold coins on. Your equipment is vitally important to your success in this game, so don't forget to go shopping every time you leave the Labyrinth and return to Town. After the Labyrinth Walkthrough are several appendices (in order): 1: A Quick Monster Reference Chart, which lists the statistics, Special abilities, XP, and Gold reward for EVERY monster in the game, including all Mini-bosses (and full-fledged Bosses). 2: Full Shop and Item lists. Every shop, every item, where they're found and what they can do for you. Includes item prices (to buy and to sell), times available, strength of equipment, area(s) found, and item/equipment special abilities, among other things. 3: Magic Spells, including tips on spell usage and full spell lists for both Milo and Pyra. The spell lists tell you when each Spell is learned, when a Spell increases in Level, how much MP a spell requires to cast it (per Level), how many targets it affects (at each Level), and what its effects are and/or how much damage it deals (and the Element of said damage). 4: XP Charts for all three Party members. This allows you to see how close a character is to Leveling up at a glance, without having to go back to the Shrine (which is horribly inconvenient). Milo and Pyra's charts also show what spell(s) (if any) they learn at each Level. ----------------------- Game Menus and Controls ----------------------- For the sake of completeness, I'll go through the game's controls and menu screens: Genesis Controller (featuring the worst ASCII art ever, compliments of yours truly): ____/_\___ Buttons A and C: both function to confirm menu __/ \__ choices. _/ _ \_ / _| |_ Start C \ Button B: cancels menu choices, exits the Town / | Pad | B \ or the Castle if no menus are open. | -|_|- A | | _______ | Start Button: generally does nothing. | _/ \_ | \ / \ / Control Pad: moves Party around, and highlights \___/ \___/ menu choices. Pressing the A or C button while standing in Town or the Labyrinth will bring up the game's Main Menu. It should be noted that the B Button will act to either cancel the current selection (if you're confirming something) or take you back to the previous set of Menus (if you're not). Each Menu has four choices, and I will list the options in each menu by starting with the top choice (or option) and working clockwise. Town Main Menu: ENTER: Enter the building you're standing the front of. The name of the building you will Enter using this command will be shown in large, white letters. ITEM: Brings up the Item sub-menu. The Item sub-menu is as follows: --USE: Use an item. Press left and right to select a character's inventory. Press A or C to enter said character's inventory. Use the Pad to select an item. Press A or C to select the item, then select the character you wish to use it on and press A or C one final time. --EQUIP: Change a character's equipment. Press A or C. Select the character you wish to equip, and press A or C again. Use Up and Down on the Pad to select from available weapons, and press A or C to equip it. Your Weapon Factor will change accordingly. Follow the same steps to equip a character's Armor, Helm, and Shield. --DROP: Drop an unwanted item. Press left and right to select a character's inventory. Press A or C to enter said character's inventory. Use the Pad to select an item. Press A or C to drop the item. Please note that dropped items CANNOT BE RECOVERED BY ANY MEANS! So be careful. --GIVE: Give an item from one character to another. Press left and right to select a character's inventory. Press A or C to enter said character's inventory. Use the Pad to select an item. Press A or C to select the item to be transferred, and finally select the character to receive the item. Press A or C one final time to complete the transfer. STATUS: Brings up the Status screen. Press up or down to select a character, and press A or C. The top of the screen shows the character's silhouette, Level, HP, and MP. The lower window shows the character's Statistics (IQ, Speed, Luck, Attack, and Defense), along with the Party's Gold. Pressing A or C again will show the character's inventory, with an "equipped" tag on equipped items. Pressing A or C a second time will show a full list of all the spells that character knows (for Milo and Pyra only). Press A or C again to exit the menu. SPELL: Use this command to cast a spell outside of battle. Select either Milo or Pyra and press A or C. Select the spell to be cast and press A or C. Finally, select the character to receive the benefits of the spell and press A or C one last time to cast the spell. Some spells do not have a specific target; in this case, the Spell icon will flash instead, prompting you to press A or C to confirm that you really, truly want to cast the spell. The Labyrinth Menu is identical to the Town Menu, except that ENTER is replaced with: SEARCH: Use this command to open Treasure Chests, or to examine extremely suspicious locations (of which there are very few; this command is primarily there for the opening of chests). When you encounter monsters within the Labyrinth, the game will automatically display the Combat Menu, which has the following options, starting from the top and working clockwise: For the Hero (who is the first to receive your commands): --ATTACK: Attack with the Hero's equipped weapon. This is the default option, so you have only to press A or C to use it. Use the D-pad to select which monster group you wish to target, and press A or C again. --ITEM: Brings up the Hero's inventory of items. Highlight the item you wish to use with the D-pad, and press A or C. If the item affects a specific target, you must choose the target by pressing left or right on the D-pad, and then press button A or C again. --RUN (Hero only): The Party attempts to flee the battle. The higher your characters' Levels, the greater the chance for success. Failure means the monsters will spend a round attacking you. You cannot flee from any Bosses or Mini-boss monsters. --SPELL: the Hero cannot use spells. If you select this option, the game will tell you that the Hero is not a magic-user, then return the cursor to "Attack". For Milo and Pyra (who are given commands after the Hero): --ATTACK: Attack with Milo or Pyra's equipped weapon. This is the default option, so you have only to press A or C to select it. Use the D-pad to select which monster group you wish to target, and press A or C again. --ITEM: Brings up Milo or Pyra's inventory of items. Highlight the item you wish to use with the D-pad, and press A or C. If the item affects a specific target, you must choose the target by pressing left or right on the D-pad, and then press button A or C again. --DEFEND (Milo and Pyra only): Milo or Pyra take a defense stance on their turn, halving the physical damage they take this round. This command does not actually take effect until the character has "acted" and a message appears telling you that they have taken a defensive stance. --SPELL: have Milo or Pyra cast a spell. Milo or Pyra's combat spells appear on the right-hand side of the screen. Select the spell you wish to cast with the D-pad, and press A or C. If the spell affects a specific target, you must choose the target by pressing left or right on the D-pad, and then press button A or C again. That's all you really need to know to play the game. Now we'll move on to... --------------------------------------------------------- 4. Getting Started (and how to name all three characters) --------------------------------------------------------- When the game begins, you will be greeted by a sleepy sage. He asks you for your name. Unlike in other games, the Hero does NOT have a default name. You must enter a name for yourself no more than five characters long. Thus, I will refer to the Hero as Marak (in fact, my nickname Marak originated after playing this game. Marak, son of Mortred). Yeah. Enough about me. Once you've named your Hero, the cursor will automatically place itself on "End". DO NOT PRESS A BUTTON AT THIS POINT!!!!! It's a secret (that apparently only I know of, I've never seen anyone else EVER mention it) that you can name your other two characters at this point! They do have default names - Milo and Pyra - but you can now name them whatever you like. Do the following: The cursor is on "End" right now. Move it with the D-Pad. Select the first letter of your second character's name (he's a Cleric), and press A or C. The cursor will pop back to End. Move it back to the alphabet, and you can enter the rest of his name, 1 character at a time. If you want a name less then five characters, put in spaces (that empty spot next to "Z") until you have five characters entered. So, you'll now have 10 consecutive characters: the first five for your Hero's name, and the second five for the Cleric's name. You may now enter five more characters for your third character's name (she's a Magic-user). You won't be able to see the final two letters in her name (they "scroll" off the side of the screen), so be careful when you're inputting them. Once you have all three characters named, select "End". The game will take you back to the sage. He'll ask you to pick a message speed. This game involves a LOT of turn based combat, so I STRONGLY recommend choosing "FAST" messages. The sage then gives you some background info: You are *insert name here*, son of Mortred, a fledgling knight in the Kingdom of Thornwood. You have two good friends: Milo Brax and Pyra Myst. (Note: the game will always refer to your two friends as Milo and Pyra, even if you've renamed them. However, YOUR names will appear in battle and in all the menu screens, which is what's important.) He goes on to tell you that bad things are about to happen, you may be the only hope, etc., and then he sends you on your way... ------------------------------- Introduction: a Knight's Errand ------------------------------- You will appear in the throne room, standing before King Drake and his advisors. The nameless Minister (a trend in Shining games, it seems) introduces you to the King. It seems you have volunteered to find the missing Princess Jessa, since your father, Mortred, was safeguarding the Princess when both of them vanished. The King asks Tristan what his opinion of you is, and Tristan answers that you are skilled in battle, second only to your father in swordplay. Impressed by Tristan's words, the King tells you to begin searching for the Princess. The Minister then gives you 200 Gold pieces, tells you to buy yourself some equipment in town, and then return to see the King. And thus, the game takes you to the World Map and gives you control. You'll notice that there are three locations: a blue keep-looking building to the left, the Castle (currently flashing) in the upper right corner, and a town in the lower right corner. Press down and highlight the town, then press A or C to enter it. The town is one big square, shown in a first person view. Press left and right to select a building (its name will appear in large white letters) and use the A or C button to enter it. If you scroll in a single direction long enough, you'll wrap around the town and end up back where you started. Here's a quick overview, starting with the town entrance and working to the right: EXIT: This is where you enter the town. Selecting this "building" will take you back to the world map. You can leave town in a much more efficient manner (from ANY position within it) simply by pressing the B button when no menus are open. You can also exit the Castle by pressing the B button. WEAPONS: Believe it or not, this shop sells weapons. More on that later. Don't buy anything here yet; your starting weapon and big muscles are more than sufficient to take you through the first areas of the Labyrinth. TAVERN: The Tavern serves as the game's Inn: press left until you highlight the BELL, press A or C to ring it, and for 10 coins (per person) you can restore all your lost HP and MP. In addition, a large number of folks gather at the Tavern, and you can talk to them. They generally won't tell you much, but some of their conversations can be amusing and/or informative, so stop in to chat whenever anything important happens. ARMORER: Sells various types of armor - helms, shields, and suits of armor. This will be our first stop, but more on that in a bit. You'll visit this place a LOT: there are 3 "categories" of Armor, and you'll be updating each type (for each Character) frequently. ALKEMIST: Well, the shop owner may not be able to spell (a-l-c-h-e-m-i-s-t), but she can still sell you a variety of useful consumable items and magical relics. If you sell any obsolete Artifacts (Keys, mainly) to any vendor, they will wind up in her "Deals" display, should you decide you need to buy the Artifact back at a later point. SHRINE: This indispensable building is where you can see how many XP you need to go up a Level (if you're not using my charts, that is), cure any Status Ailments (Poison, Paralyzation, Curses) for a nominal donation, and - most importantly - save your game. Always make this your last stop before leaving town. Note: if you "walk" right from the Shrine you'll end up back at the EXIT. Okay, now to put that 200 Gold to good use. Go to the Armorer. Select BUY, then SHIELD, and purchase a Gauntlet for 120 Gold. Exit the shop and equip it (a process described in the Controls section above, if you don't know how to do it), and it will raise your Defense by 6. Now, enter the "ALKEMIST" shop, and purchase at least 2 Herbs, if not 3 or 4. You'll be relying on Herbs to keep yourself alive early, and since they're only two more gold than a stay at the Inn, you should stock up early and often. Now you're equipped, stocked with Herbs, and almost ready to rumble. But first, let's take a closer look at what our Hero can do: Marak, son of Mortred (the Hero) Class: Knight Starting Level: 1 Starting Stats: MHP: 24 IQ : 8 Attack : 18 (23 with the Bronze Knife, already equipped) MMP: 0 Speed: 8 Defense: 4 (12 with the Woven Robe, already equipped) Luck : 6 At Level up: HP: 6-10 (avg 8) IQ : 2-4 (avg 3) Attack: 3-5 (avg 4) MP: 0 Speed: 2-3 (avg 2) Defense: 1-3 (avg 1) Luck : 1-3 (avg 2) ***** Please note that the numbers after avg (average) are not, in fact, a true numerical average. Instead, this number denotes the most common number - within the given range - that a statistic will increase by when the Character Levels up. Thus, a typical (or average) Marak Level would give him 8 HP, 3 IQ, 2 Speed, 2 Luck, 4 Attack, and 1 Defense. ***** And yes, before you ask, throughout this Guide I'm going to refer to the Hero as Marak. I hate calling him "Hero" or "the Hero" all the time. Just a pet peeve of mine; the Hero HAS TO HAVE A NAME, or it bothers me. Thus, the Hero will be called Marak. Feel free to read "Marak" as "whatever name you gave to your Hero" instead. So, what do all these numbers mean, exactly? It's pretty simple, really: Marak will always have a LOT of HP, but no MP. His Attack will always be very high. He will have average IQ and Luck. His BASE Defense and Speed will be low. Keep in mind that Attack and Defense are BASE values - they only show you what a character's attack and defense power are BEFORE all their equipment is factored in. Now, consider that Marak, being a Knight, can equip the BEST weapons and armor in the game, period, and you have a character that deals a LOT of physical damage - and typically has a very high defense - but suffers from an utter lack of magic ability and generally poor speed. It's not uncommon to have Marak strike last in battle, especially when you first enter a new area. Marak is rather one dimensional, being purely a physical fighter, but at least he fights exceptionally well. And now, a quick rundown of your characters' statistics and what they affect: Hit Points (HP): Your life force. When a character drops to 0 HP, they're dead. HP are lost whenever a character is attacked, but they can be restored with healing items, the Heal spells, or a stay at the Tavern. Magic Points (MP): A character's ability to cast spells. Each spell has a specific MP cost, and a character cannot cast a spell if he/she does not have enough MP to cover that cost. Marak cannot use magic and thus has no MP. MP can only be restored by using a Magic Ring or by staying at the Tavern. IQ: A character's mental capacity. Has a very minor effect on how much damage a character's spells deal. Has a much greater effect on a character's Magic Resistance, Breath Weapon Resistance, and Status Ailment Resistance. Speed: How quickly the character acts in combat. The higher the number, the more likely they are to act before their foes can. This stat also affects how much Quick spells will affect a character. Luck: A character with high Luck will strike more Critical blows and will enjoy a greater chance of not being affected by Status Ailments. Attack: The character's basic, unmodified attack strength. This stat is modified by the character's equipped weapon. It determines how much damage a character will deal in melee combat. Finally, this stat determines how much Boost spells will affect the character. Defense: The character's basic, unmodified defensive strength. This stat is modified by the character's equipped defensive gear. It determines how much damage is absorbed when the character is struck in melee combat. Weapon Factor: the sum of a character's Attack and the power of his/her equipped weapon. This number - less a monster's Defense - is how much damage a character will deal in melee combat. Armor Factor: the sum of a character's Defense and the strength of his/her equipped defensive gear. Each point in this stat reduces how much damage the character takes in melee combat by one. However, large discrepancies between a monster's Attack and a character's Armor Factor can result in less damage being absorbed. Okay, okay, enough about numbers and statistics; it's time to get on with the storyline. Right now, you should be ready to return to the Castle. Press B to exit the Town, highlight the Castle with the D-pad, and press A or C to enter. I'll take this time to tell you about King Drake and his advisors (from left to right): Melvyl: Absent at first, Melvyl appears once you begin the Trials of the Ancients. Melvyl is curiously knowledgeable about the Labyrinth, and is usually willing to tell you useful info about the Trial that you're currently facing. Theos: the King's Counsel is a lot like Melvyl in that he will ramble on about what you can expect to find within the Labyrinth. He'll also describe some of the Artifacts you come across in your explorations. King Drake: the monarch of Thornwood Kingdom. King Drake is a benevolent ruler who is distraught over the disappearance of his daughter. He doesn't usually say much, but there are many times when you must speak to him in order to proceed. Minister: more often than not, the Minister speaks for the King and gives you new directives. It is he who kick-starts your quest to overcome the Trials of the Ancients by giving you an important artifact - once you find proof of Jessa's whereabouts. Baron Vyrun: The ambitious Baron doubts your abilities at first, but later wises up and offers (mostly worthless) advice. He's never really worth talking to, except for back story reasons. Tristan: this seasoned commander will offer you encouragement. And, uh, that's about it. Like Vyrun, he's fun to speak with, but very little of what he says is vitally important. However, he does reward you when you bring back proof of Jessa's whereabouts. In order to get on with your mission, you must speak to King Drake. He welcomes you back, and then the Minister tells you that Jessa and your father were last seen in the vicinity of the Labyrinth. Just then, the screen flashes and shakes! The King, the Minister, Baron Vyrun, and Tristan all take a defensive stance as a tall, dark, mysterious, blue-skinned stranger appears out of thin air and addresses the King. This man calls himself Dark Sol (Sol is another word for Sun. A very appropriate name for a villain that wants to cover the world in Darkness, no?), and he shows off some disturbing powers: he knows all the members of the King's court BY NAME, and seems to know what they will do - or say - ahead of time. After intimidating Tristan and Vyrun, he tells you that he has Princess Jessa "safely tucked away", and that he'll return her - if King Drake agrees to abdicate his throne and leave the Kingdom forever. Before the King can say Yea or Nay, Dark Sol disappears, saying that he'll be back when the King is ready to leave. Speak to the King and his advisors (who are more than a little unnerved by what just transpired), and then press the B button to leave the castle. A message appears saying that, by order of the King, you have been given permission to enter the Labyrinth. It's not a bad idea to go to the Town and save at the Shrine before venturing into the Labyrinth. The penalty for dying is 1/2 your current Gold coins, and that's a LOT of battles you'll need to fight in order to recoup your losses. It may be better to reset if you die early - and thus, saving before you venture forth. Resetting without saving would be bad, mmm-kay? Return to the World Map, and press Left. The Labyrinth will highlight. Press A or C, and prepare to explore... ------------------------------------------------------------ 5. The Labyrinth (and thus begins the full-game walkthrough) ------------------------------------------------------------ As I said before, I'm not going to hold your hand and walk you step by step through the Labyrinth. I VERY STRONGLY RECOMMEND you either get yourself several sheets of graph paper and a mechanical pencil, or consult the handy .gif maps at GameFAQs: http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/genesis/game/6727.html Your call there. I prefer to map as I go and savor each section of the Labyrinth, but to each his own. Speaking of sections, let us begin with the... ------------------------------- Labyrinth Entry Level, Part One ------------------------------- Marak's Starting Level: 1 Recommended Level to Reach: 3 (12 XP to Level 2, 34 to Level 3) Foes you'll face: Slimy Ooze, Cave Slug, Pit Worm General advice: --------------- STAY CLOSE TO HOME. If you travel too far West (you begin facing North, for reference), you'll begin to encounter monsters that are too tough for you to handle at such a low Level. Stay near the entrance and fight the Slimy Ooze, Cave Slugs, and Pit Worms you find there until you're at least Level 3. Yes, it's boring fighting Slimes over and over (ack! Shades of Dragon Warrior I!), but you need the extra HP, Speed, and Defense that a few Levels will give you before you can venture deeper into the Labyrinth. WATCH YOUR HP! When you're Level 1, even the lowly Slimy Ooze can deal 2 damage per hit, and they're often faster than you. Try not to start a fight with less than 16 HP, or you may regret it. The game loves to have monsters ambush you when you're low on HP. Herbs are your friends; use them. DON'T GET LOST! Either make a map as you go, keep a window with an online map open, or print an online map out on paper for reference. Getting lost could mean that you wander into hostile territory (and die at the hands of monsters that deal a LOT of damage); or, you might wind up wandering aimlessly until your Herb supply runs out (and then you die at the hands of the lowly Slimy Ooze). The moral of the story is: to avoid a frustrating early death, don't get lost! Make and/or use maps! Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Here's a breakdown of my Monster entries: Monster Name (Monster Type and incarnation) # Appearing: how many you can expect to encounter at once HP: how much damage the monster can take before dying Attack: its attack - your defense = how much it can hurt you Defense: your attack - its defense = how much you can hurt it Speed: how fast the monster is; if your speed is lower it will often act before you do XP: how many points of experience your Party will gain by killing this critter Gold: how many gold coins the Party will collect after killing this foe Description: what to expect when fighting this foe. I'll tell you what special attacks or spells it has as its disposal, as well as general tips for killing them in an expedient manner. Got all that? Then let's begin with... Slimy Ooze (Slime 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 6-8 Attack: 14 Defense: 14 Speed: 8 XP: 1 GP: 2 Slimy Ooze are weak, pathetic creatures. With a Gauntlet equipped, they can barely hurt you at all. One whack will usually kill them, so just attack them repeatedly until they're all dead. Cave Slug (Slugite 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 7-9 Attack: 13 Defense: 15 Speed: 8 XP: 1 GP: 2 Cave Slugs are almost identical to Slimy Ooze, but they occasionally take no damage from your attacks. Ugh. They give the same amount of XP and Gold that the Ooze do, but are harder to kill. Running may not be a bad idea. Pit Worm (Trihead 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 9-12 Attack: 15 Defense: 12 Speed: 8 XP: 1 GP: 2 Pit Worms are very slightly tougher than the Slimy Ooze, but give the same XP. Bleah. At least the 3 Gold (instead of 2) makes them worth fighting: at this point, you need all the gold you can get your grubby little mitts on. Final Thoughts: --------------- The goal here is to pick a hallway near the Labyrinth's Entrance, and wander back and forth, fighting foes until you're Level 3. Don't try to explore yet; a Bronze Door blocks progress to the East, and powerful foes await you to the West. Just stay put in one of the beginning hallways and fight. If the status bar at the top of the screen turns yellow, it means that you've dropped below 50% of your Maximum HP. This is a good time to use an Herb. Once you're Level 3, head back to town, and rest at the Tavern to recover all your HP. Once you've done that, buy a Leather Helm (if you can; it costs 300 Gold and you probably don't have enough yet) from the Armorer, and equip it. Save at the Shrine, replace the Herbs you used, and you're ready to explore deeper into the Labyrinth. ------------------------------- Labyrinth Entry Level, Part Two ------------------------------- Marak's Level: 3 Recommended Level to Reach: 5 (116 XP to Level 4, 188 to Level 5) Foes you'll face: Slimy Ooze, Cave Slug, Pit Worm, Man-Ape, Dark Jelly General advice: --------------- HERBS ARE YOUR FRIENDS! Keep at least 2 or 3 on hand at all times. The monsters over here can deal more than 1 damage at a time, and you might find your HP reserved running dry very quickly. Use an Herb when the screen goes yellow! CONSIDER PURCHASING AN ANGEL FEATHER. For a mere 24 Gold, it allows you to instantly leave the Labyrinth, no matter how deep in it you are. A great item if you overextend yourself, if you fill up your inventory with loot, or even if you just don't feel like walking back out. LOOT, LOOT, LOOT. There are quite a few chests in this area: be sure to track them all down. You can make a lot of money that way, and at this point, you need every coin. UPGRADE YOUR ARMOR FREQUENTLY! Your starting weapon, combined with the large increases Marak gets to his Attack power every Level, means that you can kill everything in this part of the dungeon - typically with a single blow - without having to buy any new weaponry. So, focus instead on buying new pieces of armor whenever you can. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Man-Ape (Hybrid 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 10-13 Attack: 21 Defense: 18 Speed: 9 XP: 2 GP: 4 Man-Apes can put the hurt on you if you've been neglecting your armor. Other than that, they're nothing special. Dark Jelly (Slime 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 9-12 Attack: 24 Defense: 20 Speed: 12 XP: 3 GP: 5 Dark Jellies are merely stronger versions of Slimy Ooze. They have that annoying "takes no damage" thing going on, but other than that, they should pose little threat if you're at least Level 3. Final Thoughts: --------------- Not much happening in this part of the Labyrinth, to be honest. Just fight your way along, raiding chests and amassing XP. Once you head down a twisting hall and begin encountering Darkbats and Killerbees, you'll know that you've entered... --------------------------------- Labyrinth Entry Level, Part Three --------------------------------- Marak's Level: 5 Recommended Level to Reach: 8 (188 XP to Level 6, 294 to Level 7, 448 to Level 8) Foes you'll face: Man-Ape, Dark Jelly, Darkbat, Killerbee, Kaiser Krab Artifacts found: Royal Tiara, Dwarf's Key (from the Minister) General advice: --------------- PURCHASE AN ANGEL FEATHER. It's a long walk out, and the monsters won't make it any easier - or faster. A feather is only 24 Gold (that's only 3 Killerbees' worth of Gold); make sure you have one on you before you leave Town. BEWARE: KILLERBEES CAN POISON YOU. It doesn't happen often, but when you get Poisoned, you lose 1 HP for every 4 steps you take. Your options at that point are to either A) walk around anyway, losing HP, which cuts your visit short; or B) use a Depoison to cure yourself; however, you have to buy them in town and they're basically a waste of inventory space. What I'm getting at here is that Killerbees should always be the first foes you kill. BEWARE THE LONG HALLWAY WITH THE TORCHES. At the end of this hallway is the game's first truly tough fight, which you WILL NOT win unless you're Level 8 and have the best equipment you can afford - and at least 2 Herbs. You've been warned. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Darkbat (Werebat 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 11-14 Attack: 30 Defense: 25 Speed: 15 XP: 3 GP: 6 Darkbats can do some serious damage if attempt to fight them before Level 5 and/or have inadequate protection, but if you're ready for them, they fall rather easily. Killerbee (Hornet 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 12-15 Attack: 35 Defense: 23 Speed: 16 XP: 4 GP: 8 Killerbees are the strongest standard monster you'll face in this part of the Labyrinth. On top of that, they can Poison you (it only has about a 3% chance of affecting you, fortunately), which can be irritating to no end. On the bright side, they are worth quite a bit of XP and Gold. Final Thoughts: --------------- There are a few more chests to snag here, so explore! You'll need to fight a lot of battles anyway, since the upcoming Mini-Boss, the Kaiser Krab, is basically unbeatable until you're Level 8 (well, okay, you CAN beat it at Level 7, but it's dang hard) and have a decent weapon and some Herbs. So, fight everything you run into and try to save up about 600 Gold - 300 for the Leather Shield and 300 for a Bronze Saber. Once you have those, and are Level 8, go ahead and head to the end of that long, lit hallway, and turn left. Take a step forward and prepare to battle... The Kaiser Krab --------------- HP: 45-50 Attack: 55 Defense: 50 Speed: 22 XP: 40 GP: 50 Reward: Royal Tiara The Kaiser Krab means business. He can attack twice per round (but won't always), and on top of that, his attacks will sometimes be Critical Hits - which can deal as much as 30 damage! You have little choice here but to trade blows with the Krab and using Herbs when your HP nears 30. If you're Level 8 and have at least a Bronze Saber and 2 Herbs, you will be able to out-last the Krab and claim victory. Once you've vanquished the Kaiser Krab, you will find the Royal Tiara. If you wish, you can look down the brazier-lined passage the Krab was hiding in, but you can't do anything there... yet. Use your Angel Wing to get out of here, and head for the Castle. For the curious: yes, you CAN equip the Royal Tiara - it's a darn good helm in fact - but you won't be able to keep it (without cheating, which I'm not going to get in to), so there's really no point in donning it - you'll just end up re-equipping your old Helm anyway. Once back at the Castle, you have no choice but to talk to the King. He says that he gave that Tiara to Jessa on her 12th birthday, and that he suspects that Jessa is being held somewhere in the Labyrinth. Gee, ya think? Didn't Dark Sol come right out and tell you that before? I think the Princess' loss has rattled the King more than he's willing to admit... Anyway, talk to Theos, and he and the Minister will ask you to form a search Party. After all, the more people looking for the Princess, the better chances that someone will be successful, right? The Minister then says that he has something for you once you have your Party assembled. Talk to Tristan and he'll take the Tiara and give you 200 Gold coins in return. Hey, money is money. Take your leave of the King now and head back to town, because... -------------------------------- You've Got Friends in Low Places -------------------------------- Well, it's time to meet your other Party members. Go the Tavern, where you will find Old Vic and Pyra arguing. After they notice you watching them, Pyra joins you, an event that incites some harsh words from Vic. As you try to leave the Tavern, Pyra (literally) bumps into a mercenary named Gila. After some humorous dialogue, you're free to look for Milo. Milo is skulking around the Shrine, so head there next. Save, don't save, whatever, nothing you do matters until you try to leave the Shrine, at which point Milo finally pipes up and says that he's not going to let you enter the Labyrinth without him. Boy, that was rough, wasn't it? Now that your Party is formed, let's take a quick look at what Milo and Pyra can do. Milo Brax --------- Class: Cleric Starting Level: 1 Starting Stats: MHP: 20 IQ : 15 Attack : 13 (18 with Bronze Knife, already equipped) MMP: 7 Speed: 10 Defense: 5 (9 with Cotton Robe, already equipped) Luck : 12 Starting Spell: Heal Level 1 At Level up: HP: 5-8 (avg 6) IQ : 3-6 (avg 4) Attack: 2-3 (avg 3) MP: 5-7 (avg 5) Speed: 2-4 (avg 3) Defense: 1-3 (avg 2) 40+:3-4 (avg 3) Luck : 2-4 (avg 3) ***** Note: the "40+" entry listed under MP is the new range of MP that Milo will receive starting with Level 41. Also note that it's lower than his "original" range.***** Milo is an all-around average character in pretty much every way. Good HP, MP, and Luck; average IQ and Speed. He has respectable Attack and Defense, as well. Milo eventually learns a host of curative and Party-buffing magics as wall as a trio of attack spells. In addition, he can equip all but the heaviest and bulkiest weapons and armor. While Milo can't fight quite as well as Marak (although he IS faster) nor fry foes with spells quite like Pyra can, he more than holds his own since he can do a little bit of everything, and still do it all well. He's also (statistically) the best character. All these are reasons why Milo needs so many more XP go up each Level, and why he eventually lags several Levels behind Marak and Pyra. Pyra Myst --------- Class: Magic-User Starting Level: 1 Starting Stats: MHP: 16 IQ : 10 Attack : 8 (13 with Bronze Knife, already equipped) MMP: 10 Speed: 12 Defense: 6 (10 with Cotton Robe, already equipped) Luck : 10 Starting Spells: Slow Level 1 and View Level 1 At Level up: HP: 4-7 (avg 6) IQ : 4-7 (avg 6) Attack: 1-2 (avg 2) MP: 4-7 (avg 6) Speed: 3-5 (avg 4) Defense: 2-4 (avg 3) 40+:3-4 (avg 3) Luck : 2-3 (avg 3) ***** Note: the "40+" entry listed under MP is the new range of MP that Pyra will receive starting with Level 41. Also note that it's lower than her "original" range.***** Pyra is your typical Wizard-type: great MP but only moderate HP; good IQ, Speed, and Defense; mediocre Luck and Attack. She has a rather limited set of weapons and armor that she can used - well, compared to her companions, anyway. Pyra learns a wide variety of damaging, disabling, and dungeon delving magics, and is adept at killing or incapacitating entire groups of monsters using her spells. While she's fast as all get out, Pyra can't do much in physical combat due to her weak weaponry and poor base Attack power. Pyra's physical damage output gets MUCH better once you starting finding/buying Whips, but that doesn't happen until much later. Pyra is a bit of a mixed bag. She can do some serious damage with her spells; however, it's hard to keep her MP up. The game gives you exactly three items that restore MP while in the Labyrinth (and even then, you won't find them until almost the end of the game), and given the sheer number of battles you fight, it always seems that Pyra is running out of MP just when the going is getting rough. However, if you need to kill several monsters at once, Pyra's definitely your gal. That, and she has Sleep, which by itself makes her your most useful character for reducing the amount of damage the Party takes. First things first, your new allies need some weapons - badly! Unlike Marak, they cannot kill everything with only a Bronze Knife, their bulging muscles, and a few Levels. If you can afford it, buy a Short Axe for Milo and a Bronze Saber for Pyra. That should allow them to at least kill some of the "basic" Labyrinth monsters in a single blow right off the bat. If you find yourself short on coins, try getting them both Short Swords instead. If you have any spare gold after purchasing weapons, also buy your Allies some basic armor: a Woven Robe for Milo, a Straw Robe for Pyra, and Cloth Hoods for both. Whatever you can afford. Now, you're (theoretically) ready to begin the Trials of the Ancients. When you return to the Castle, the Minister will give you an Artifact: the DWARF'S KEY, which will unlock any Bronze Door in the Labyrinth (yes, there's more than one). Bronze Doors are the ones with a strange greenish hue (as opposed to the Rune Doors which are stone colored). Anyway, what you must do now is return to the Labyrinth, find that Bronze door just to the East of the entrance, and from there find and pass the Trial of Strength. No problem! Once you have the Key, you can talk with the King and his advisors. Speak to Melvyl and Theos in order to get some basic info about the Trial (the others don't say anything terribly important), and you're ready to leave the Castle. Before we go gallivanting off for parts unknown, however, I very strongly recommend that you buy an Angel Feather (or two) and SEVERAL Herbs. Now, take your new friends back to the area where you fought the Kaiser Krab, and get them both up to at LEAST Level 5 by fighting Killerbees, Darkbats, and Man-Apes. It shouldn't take too long, seeing as how the monsters magically start appearing in larger groups (up to 6 monsters per battle, instead of only 3) now that you're not alone anymore. Why power Milo and Pyra up instead of venturing through the Bronze Door, you ask? Well you see, there's a good chance that you'll encounter Kaiser Krabs on your way to the Cave of Strength, and an angry Krab will eat your 1st Level allies for breakfast. So, in order to save you the hassle of dealing with a lot of dying, leaving, reviving, and backtracking, it's best to get Milo and Pyra up several Levels (and then buy them all the armor you can) before you go unlocking that Bronze Door. Once Milo and Pyra are up to snuff Experience-wise and geared up in some shiny new armor, it's time to head... ----------------------- To the Cave of Strength ----------------------- Marak's Level: 9; Milo and Pyra's Level: 5 Level to reach: Marak - 10, Milo and Pyra - 8 Foes you'll face: Man-Ape, Dark Jelly, Darkbat, Killerbee, Scavenger, Mad Gnome, Kaiser Krab General Advice: --------------- WATCH MILO AND PYRA'S HP. They're big wussies compared to Marak, so heal them early and often. If you wait until they're "in the yellow" to restore their HP, they can wind up dead before the healing gets to them, which is always a blast. You can hold a LOT of Herbs at this point, and Milo has a Heal spell, so - heal, heal, heal! KAISER KRABS NOW APPEAR AS STANDARD FOES. And they're all just as tough as the one you fought to get the Tiara. So, either practice walking backwards (they will ONLY appear in places where the passage turns left relative to which way you're facing) or be prepared for a potentially lethal Krab battle. Pyra's SLOW spell makes these things much easier to handle, so... use it! Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Scavenger (Slugite 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 11-14 Attack: 31 Defense: 27 Speed: 18 XP: 4 GP: 8 Scavengers will appear beyond the Bronze Door to harass you. They're not too hard to handle (Freeze will do a number on them), but if you leave them alive long enough they can cast Blaze Level 1, which will damage a character for 7-12 damage or so. Kill these things first, it will save you some pain. Mad Gnome (Little People 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 12-16 Attack: 35 Defense: 25 Speed: 17 XP: 5 GP: 7 The Gnomes hit hard, but their defense and HP are lacking. If you have your defense up near 30, they won't be able to do much to you; if not, you may want to try to kill them quickly. Final Thoughts: --------------- OK, this ends up being another short little power-up run. Collect the chests beyond the Bronze door and fight everything that gets in your way. Ignore the staircase for now, as we're not QUITE ready for the Cave of Strength: Milo and Pyra really need a few more Levels and some better armor, first. There are 2 ways to gain Levels and Gold at this point: 1) The easy, safe, slower way. Pick a long hallway with NO left-hand corners or side-passages and walk back and forth, killing monsters. Or... 2) The dangerous but generally faster way. Find a left-hand corner or side- passage and walk into and out of it. A Kaiser Krab will occasionally scuttle out from around the bend. Have Pyra cast Slow on it, then beat on it for another round until it dies. Yes, it can kill Milo or Pyra if you get unlucky, but you get 40 XP PER PERSON and 50 Gold coins per Krab killed. You see? Faster, but more dangerous. What we're shooting for here is to get Milo and Pyra up to Level 8 while amassing several hundred Gold pieces. Use that Gold to buy a Cloth Hood and a Fur Coat for Milo and Cloth Hood and a Straw Robe for Pyra (if you didn't/couldn't buy them earlier). With their HP up and defense boosted, it's time to take that ominous staircase down to the... ------------------------------- Cave of Strength, initial areas ------------------------------- Marak's Level: 10; Milo and Pyra's Level: 8 Level to reach: Marak - 12, Milo and Pyra - 10 Foes you'll face: Darkbat, Killerbee, Scavenger, Mad Gnome, Dark Hermit, Neanderthal, Widowfang, Cave Goblin, Killwave, Chestbeak General Advice: --------------- LOOT AT YOUR OWN RISK. Some of the chests in the early parts of the Trial will contain Chestbeaks instead of treasure. Chestbeaks are the first type of "chest beast", and like all their brethren, they're dangerous and hard to kill. It might not be a bad idea to skip chests entirely until you have a map of entire Western half of the cave, because by that point your Party will be more than up to the task of killing Chestbeaks. If you're feeling brave, be sure to follow the tips I give you in the Chestbeak monster entry below. BEWARE THE PUDDLES OF WATER, as some contain Killwaves - the first form of Water Elemental. Killwaves can attack twice in a round and cast Freeze Level 2, so make sure you're healed before walking over any puddles! OPEN PITS ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. There's an area beyond an open pit in the floor that you cannot get to until MUCH later, when you acquire a certain helpful Artifact. You're free to walk into the pit if you like: it will merely dump you into a small sub-basement level. There's a chest down there, so it's actually not a bad idea to venture down there (via pit or stair) at some point to get the item it contains; that particular chest is NOT a Chestbeak chest. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Dark Hermit (Apparition 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 13-16 Attack: 30 Defense: 30 Speed: 21 XP: 6 GP: 7 While they look like that might be nasty, Dark Hermits don't pose any more of a threat than Mad Gnomes do. Neanderthal (Hybrid 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 16-19 Attack: 45 Defense: 28 Speed: 23 XP: 7 GP: 9 These guys pack a punch compared to what you've been facing. On the bright side, they're not difficult to kill. Widowfang (Spider 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 17-20 Attack: 43 Defense: 28 Speed: 22 XP: 8 GP: 11 While Widowfangs don't have quite as much Attack power or Speed as Neanderthals, they make up for it with more HP and higher Defense. They can also Poison you, but the chance of infection is quite low. Cave Goblin (Goblin 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 17-20 Attack: 46 Defense: 31 Speed: 25 XP: 8 GP: 13 These beasties are a bit like bigger, tougher, slower Neanderthals. They can spend a turn defending, which greatly increases their Defense, but big deal. They have a critical hit like the Kaiser Krab's, but it deals nowhere near as much damage (15-18 is typical). All in all, you should be able to hack your way through these guys without too much difficulty. Killwave (Water Elemental 1) - Mini-Boss (pools of water) HP: 60-65 Attack: 50 Defense: 40 Speed: 30 XP: 50 GP: 30 While not quite as bad as Chestbeaks, Killwaves are still dangerous due to their ability to attack twice in a round (although they won't always) and cast Freeze Level 2. My advice is to have Pyra SLOW it, and then beat it down as quickly as you can, hopefully finishing it off before it can Freeze your Party. Chestbeak (Chest Beast 1) - Mini-Boss (appears in treasure chests) HP: 95-100 Attack: 80 Defense: 48 Speed: 25 XP: 85 GP: 60 Ugh. Chestbeaks hit hard, have a crapload of HP, high defense, and (to top it all off) they are outrageously magic resistant. A real fun battle. About all you can do is have Marak and Milo attack while Pyra casts Heal on whomever is taking the hits. On the bright side, you get a good chunk of XP for killing one. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once your characters have explored the Western half of the trial, they ought to reach Levels 12 (Marak) and 10 (Milo, Pyra). You should also have at least 1,000 Gold coins to spend. So, when you're ready, head back to town and make some equipment upgrades. I recommend the following, but there's a lot of choices as to what you can buy at this point, so the final decision is yours: For Marak: for now, a Fur Robe should be all he needs, and even then, only buy that if you have coins left over when you're done buying for Milo and Pyra. For Milo: a Leather Shield is the best buy right now, and a Woven Hood is also nice if you have enough coinage. Another option is to forget the Hood and buy him a Sword instead, sacrificing defense for offense on par with Marak's - at least, for now. For Pyra: a Straw Robe (if she doesn't have one already) is a must, as is a Woven Hood. Since Pyra can't use any Shields (yet), you should give her priority over Milo on Armor and Helms. Once you begin venturing further than points 17 steps East (use Pyra's View spell or a Wisdom Seed to find your position) you'll begin encountering newer, stronger foes. This is the sign that you have entered the... ------------------------------- Cave of Strength, deeper depths ------------------------------- Marak's Level: 13; Milo and Pyra's Level: 12 Level to reach: Marak 14; Milo and Pyra: 13 Foes you'll face: Widowfang, Cave Goblin, Triklops, Vampyre, Skeletar, Punkinhead, Vile Ooze, Deathguide, Killwave, Chestbeak General Advice: --------------- HARDER, FASTER, STRONGER. That's what the new monsters around here are. If you don't have good armor (Fur Robes and Woven Hoods, a Leather Shield for Milo, etc.), the stronger monsters will be dealing 8 damage (or more) per hit, and it won't be long before you find your MP reserves sucked dry by repeated castings of various Heal spells. SLEEP IS YOUR FRIEND. While it's tempting to have Pyra hitting large groups of monsters with Blaze Level 2 to open every fight, it's normally better to cast Sleep Level 1 instead. Why? Because Blaze Level 2 rarely deals enough damage to kill anything outright... but a successful Sleep spell (which has the same MP cost) will disable every monster it successfully affects for at least 2 rounds - rounds in which they aren't attacking you! Sleep is especially nice to use on Triklops (see below), Punkinheads, and Vampyres. TRIKLOPS IS THE DEVIL! These annoying little buggers can "shine with a strange aura" and suck up to 10 (!!!) MP from Milo or Pyra. THESE THINGS MUST TAKE PRIORITY IN EVERY BATTLE YOU ENCOUNTER THEM IN. If you leave them alive ANY longer than you absolutely must, you can lose SEVERAL spells' worth of MP! Kill them immediately, or you'll regret it. RESCUE GILA, IF YOU WISH. Your good buddy Gila (the "green" mercenary from before) is stranded in a long dead-end passage in the Northeast corner of the cave. If you agree to take him back out of here, he will become a "free" Party member: while he doesn't appear on your status screen or battle screen, he will still occasionally "join the fray" (WA-CHUNGA!) and smack something upside the head to the tune of 80 damage. The downside is that he will leave you once you spend a night at the Tavern. THE END IS NIGH. In order to complete the Trial, you must find a long hall flanked by three pairs of basket-shaped braziers. The "dead-end" at the end of this hall is the end of both the Cave and the Trial. If you choose to complete the Trial at this point (you can back away and return later, if you like), you will be teleported back to the entrance of the Cave. This is a nice way to leave the Cave if you've finished looting it, but it also means a lot of backtracking if you left chests behind! So, don't complete the Trial until you've finished exploring and you're quite sure you've found and looted every chest. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Triklops (Trihead 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 16-20 Attack: 45 Defense: 30 Speed: 29 XP: 9 GP: 17 THESE THINGS MUST DIE ASAP! If you don't kill them immediately, they will "shine with a strange aura" and suck up to 10 MP from Milo or Pyra. That is very, very bad. Kill Triklops on sight, ignoring all other threats, or you'll be sorry. Vampyre (Werebat 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 17-20 Attack: 52 Defense: 30 Speed: 31 XP: 12 GP: 13 Vampyres wouldn't be so bad... if they didn't occasionally Paralyze a character. The ONLY way to cure Paralysis at this point is to use Smelling Salts on the afflicted character. Paralysis WILL wear off on its own, if you walk around long enough, but then you run the risk of getting into a battle and being forced to fight shorthanded. Put Vampyres at the top of your priority list (unless you're also fighting Triklops). Skeletar (Skeleton 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 20-24 Attack: 55 Defense: 33 Speed: 28 XP: 13 GP: 16 Skeletars are dangerous to the inadequately armored adventurer, due to their high attack power. In addition, they can Poison a character. Still, you'll find that Skeletars are the least of your worries in the deeper depths of the Cave of Strength. Punkinhead (Gourdemon 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 18-21 Attack: 47 Defense: 32 Speed: 34 XP: 14 GP: 18 A nasty little critter. They may not be the greatest fighters, but they can heal themselves and their monstrous brethren with Heal Level 1 spells. Again, these things should take priority, or their ability to heal will make a lot of battles last longer than they should. Pyra's Sleep spell will also keep the amount of Heal spells they cast to a bare minimum. Vile Ooze (Slime 3) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 21-23 Attack: 49 Defense: 35 Speed: 36 XP: 16 GP: 21 Oh, another weak Slime monster, right? Wrong. Vile Ooze may not have the most impressive stats, but they CAN cast Freeze Level 1, which will pound a character for 10-14 damage. You should attempt to kill them before they can do that. Deathguide (Apparition 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 22-25 Attack: 52 Defense: 38 Speed: 38 XP: 19 GP: 19 Deathguides are annoying for one reason only: they can sprinkle Sleeping Powder, which attempts to put all 3 characters to sleep. This gets irritating in a big hurry, since there's no way to "cure" sleeping characters; all you can do is wait for them to wake on their own after a few rounds (or when the battle ends). You can turn the tables on Deathguides by putting THEM to sleep with Pyra's Sleep spell. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once you finally reach the end of the Trial, the Spirit of Light will greet you. She tells you to step forth, and when you do, your Party will have completed the Trial. You'll then be returned to the entrance of the Cave of Strength. With the Trial completed, the wall immediately to your right will crumble away. This opens up a new passage which leads, eventually, to the Cave of Courage. Before you go that way, however, you should really head back to Town. Rest up at the Tavern (and say good-bye to Gila) to restore your HP/MP. Now, it's time to go SHOPPING! You should have at least 3,500 Gold coins at this point. This gives you a lot of options; I recommend the following purchases: For Marak: a Sword, some Leather Armor, and a Bronze Shield. For Milo: a Sword (if you bought a Woven Hood before), a Woven Hood (if you bought a Sword before), and a Bronze Shield. For Pyra: a Woodstaff and a Hemp Robe. Once you've spent all your hard-earned cash, be sure that you have an Angel Feather, a couple of Herbs (or, even better, Healing Seeds), and a Smelling Salts or two. You still need the Dwarf's Key, as well. Save your game, and make your way back to the stairs that lead to the Cave of Strength. The new passage in front of you leads... ---------------------- To the Cave of Courage ---------------------- Marak's Level: 14; Milo and Pyra's Level: 13 Level to reach: Marak - 15, Milo and Pyra - 14 Foes you'll face: Skeletar, Vile Ooze, Deathguide, Stinger, Killer Gnome General Advice: --------------- MP MOSS AND YOU. You'll come upon some glowing green... something (I'll call it moss, but it could be lichen, too) in the hallways beyond the "strength wall". Each step you take while traversing the MP Moss will sap Milo and Pyra's MP by 1. Yes, this is extremely irritating, but you must cross the Moss in order to reach all the treasure chests both here and in the Cave of Courage itself. There is a way to save a few MP, however: whenever you come to a corner while walking over the Moss, walk into the wall in front of you. The screen will flash red and you'll hear a "boom" sound. Now, when you turn the Party around the corner, you won't lose 1 MP. Big deal, you say? Well, you'll see things my way after my little "corner trick" saves you several MP over the course of a twisty, Moss-ridden hallway. Or two. Or three... YOU SHOULD SCOOT AFTER YOU LOOT. There's a LOT of MP Moss (see above) between you and the chests in this short area. If you try to re-cross the Moss after getting the chests, and then enter the Cave of Courage, you'll find yourself starting the trial with about half your maximum MP (Milo and Pyra will both lose 28 MP - 24 with the Corner Trick). It's better to Egress out after raiding the chests and start the Trial fresh, with a full reserve of MP. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Stinger (Hornet 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 22-25 Attack: 61 Defense: 42 Speed: 45 XP: 18 GP: 20 Stingers don't seem to be able to Poison you like their smaller cousins - the Killerbees - could. However, they are fast and can cast Slow Level 1, making one character more slower and more vulnerable (if it works). Killer Gnome (Little People 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 23-26 Attack: 63 Defense: 45 Speed: 40 XP: 19 GP: 22 Killer Gnomes pack a punch, and their high HP and defense means that Milo and Pyra are going to have a hard time felling a Gnome in one blow. On top of that, they can howl for help, which will usually (about 75% of the time) cause another Gnome to instantly join the battle. Once again, Sleep is a good idea, especially if the howling results in a large group of Gnomes. Another good thing about Gnomes: each Gnome that arrives via howling gives you full XP and Gold. Final Thoughts: --------------- After a few twists and turns, you'll come across a side passage (see SCOOT AFTER YOU LOOT, above). This passage contains a LOT of MP Moss but only a little treasure, making it completely optional. If you continue to go straight down the "main" passage, you will eventually reach the descending staircase which leads to... ---------------------------------- The Cave of Courage, initial areas ---------------------------------- Marak's Level: 15; Milo and Pyra's Level: 14 Level to reach: Marak - 17, Milo and Pyra - 16 Foes you'll face: Vile Ooze, Deathguide, Stinger, Killer Gnome, Wild Orc, Hydrax, Clodhopper, Killwave General Advice: --------------- GO WEST, YOUNG MAN. There are 2 Bronze Doors in the Cave's initial "room": one to the South, and one to the West. For now, go West. There are several chests to be looted, and MP Moss to contend with, and the monsters here are generally not that strong. Going South is another matter entirely, and should be saved for your second or third trip into the Cave. MORE MP MOSS means a lot of leaving to restore your allies' MP and coming back. Yes, it's irritating, but your only other recourse is to skip virtually ALL the treasure in the Cave and attempt to go straight for the Orb of Truth. I don't recommend that, as you'll be trying to do the Trial's deeper depths first, and that's never a good idea. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Wild Orc (Goblin 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 17-20 Attack: 73 Defense: 37 Speed: 40 XP: 20 GP: 23 Wild Orcs can defend themselves (similar to Milo and Pyra's Defend command), and, uh, that's about it, really. They're just fodder otherwise. Hydrax (Jellybeast 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 20-23 Attack: 66 Defense: 36 Speed: 40 XP: 21 GP: 19 And you thought Deathguides with their Sleeping powder were bad. Well, guess what? Hydrax can sprinkle Paralyzing powder, which will attempt to Paralyze each Party member in turn. Fun! These guys should get a Sleep spell when they appear, and then follow that up with a thorough beating. Clodhopper (Runner 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 21-24 Attack: 75 Defense: 38 Speed: 42 XP: 22 GP: 26 These things are all about strange looks, attack power, and speed. However, they lack HP and defense, and thus are not really that hard to kill, nor are they ever much of a threat. Just mow 'em down and keep moving. Final Thoughts: --------------- By the time you've opened all the chests in the West half in the Cave, you'll most likely be tapped out of MP and inventory space, making that an ideal time to head back to town for some shopping. After selling everything you don't need, you ought to have at between five and six thousand Gold coins. Here are some options for equipment: For Marak, Chainmail and a Bronze Helm. Or you could choose one of those two, and then buy a Longsword - but I would only do this if you have a lot of spare cash, since Marak doesn't really need an attack power boost at this point. For Milo, Chainmail and a Fur Hood. Or, you just buy a Madu (for far less defense but a lot more attack power). For Pyra, about all you can get at this point is a Fur Hood. So get it! Once you've picked up all the treasure in the Cave's Western half, you have two choices: head down that long, twisty, torch-lined corridor and complete the Trial, or head through the South Bronze Door and get the Orb of Truth. Actually, it's not really a choice at all... you have to do both eventually, and the monsters are about the same in both areas, so just pick one to do first and finish the other one later. At any rate, it's time to look at... ---------------------------------- The Cave of Courage, deeper depths ---------------------------------- Marak's Level: 17; Milo and Pyra's Level: 16 Level to reach: Marak - 18, Milo and Pyra - 17 Foes you'll face: Wild Orc, Hydrax, Clodhopper, Nightstalker, Grimfowl, Minotaur, Cyblok, Tortolyde Artifacts found: Orb of Truth General Advice: --------------- WHEN YOU ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY HAVE TO KILL THOSE MONSTERS IN ONE ROUND, nothing beats a combination of Milo's Burst Level 1 and Pyra's Freeze Level 2 (or Bolt Level 1). Those two spells, when cast on the same monster grouping, pretty much guarantee that the entire group will lay dead at your feet by the end of the combat round. This technique of doubling up attack spells is what I like to call "the double whammy", and it's viable throughout the game - just cast your highest Level attack spells. The double whammy does have a major drawback: it will quickly sap both your magic-users' MP reserves dry, so try to save it for particularly nasty and/or dangerous monster groupings. WHEN YOU SEE A GIANT BLUE BALL ROLL ACROSS THE HALL, STOP. That's a boss, so be sure to restore all your HP before you follow it to the end of the hall and a fight begins. If you're low on MP, leave, heal, and come back. The Tortolyde certainly isn't going anywhere: it will patiently wait for you to return with enough MP to defeat it. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Nightstalker (Slugite 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 23-26 Attack: 76 Defense: 41 Speed: 41 XP: 24 GP: 27 While they may look all innocent, Nightstalkers are actually a force to be reckoned with. If left to their own devices, they will unleash lungfuls of scorching hot air (basically, a non-magical version of a Blaze Level 2 spell). This is not something you want to be standing around enduring all day, so do your utmost to kill or disable any and all Nightstalkers you encounter without delay. Grimfowl (Darkfowl 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 22-25 Attack: 78 Defense: 39 Speed: 43 XP: 26 GP: 24 In addition to hurting a lot, an attack from a Grimfowl can Paralyze a character. As with most foes around here, you can do a little "damage control" by putting them to sleep. Minotaur (Werebull 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 24-28 Attack: 80 Defense: 40 Speed: 44 XP: 28 GP: 25 Minotaurs are the most physically powerful foes that you'll face in the Cave of Courage. They can take a fair amount of abuse - especially when they boost themselves with their Quick Level 1 spell - and aren't shy about dishing out the damage, either. As always, large groups should be dealt with by using Sleep. Cyblok (Blokhead 1) - Mini-Boss (appears most anywhere) HP: 85-90 Attack: 90 Defense: 50 Speed: 45 XP: 80 GP: 50 Cybloks, seeing as how they are given the same sort of billing as Killwaves and Kaiser Krabs, seem like they're going to be this big, nasty, powerful creature. They're not. Sure, they have high stats, but since you only ever face one at time, you really have little to worry about. To make life even easier, have Pyra cast Slow on it to lower its defense. Tortolyde (Shellbeast 1) - Boss, Unique HP: 85-90 Attack: 95 Defense: 44 (66 with Quick) Speed: 50 XP: 100 GP: 80 Reward: Orb of Truth This large, aggressive beastie is the "boss" that you must defeat in order to recover the Orb of Truth. And without the Orb of Truth, you cannot face the Trial of Truth... so get cracking! The 'lyde packs a whallop - and can attack twice in a round - so I recommend using Quick on all 3 Party members in turn, while Pyra heals whoever is injured. The 'lyde will also cast Quick Level 1, but there's nothing you can do to prevent it. Anyway, once everyone's defense is up, it's just a matter of beating on the 'lyde and healing. You can outlast it easily as long as you don't try to fight it after you've walked over a ton of MP Moss. Final Thoughts: --------------- As I said above, you have two goals in the deeper depths: complete the Trial, and claim the Orb of Truth from the Tortolyde. Once you have the initial areas explored, go ahead and hunt down the Tortolyde for the Orb, and then worry about finding the Hall the leads to the conclusion of the Trial. You need MP to fight the 'lyde with, and you DON'T need MP to complete the Trial; so, if you have an unfortunate encounter with MP Moss on the way to the Trial's end it won't be such a big deal, since you've already beaten old 'lyde and claimed the Orb. Once you have the Orb in hand and completed the Trial, you'll be taken back to the entrance to the Cave of Courage. For now, it's best to head back to Town, in order to buy equipment and to find out just how, exactly, this Orb is supposed to get you into the Cave of Truth. Once back in town, you know the drill. Tavern. Shops. Buy. Save. Okay. With all the equipment options you have at this point, it's getting hard to say, "buy this for character A, that for character B." So, I'm going to list what equipment each character should end up with by the end of the Trial of Truth. Buy what you can, when you can, and make every effort to have your Party equipped with the following items as soon as you can manage it: Marak should be equipped with a Longsword, Bronze Armor, an Iron Helm, and a Madu. If you're rolling is cash (and the Weapon seller has offered it to you), go ahead and pick up that Long Spear. Milo should be equipped with a Sword, Bronze Armor, a Fur Hood, and a Madu. If you so desire, you could give him the Magic Hood, but I typically give that to Pyra instead. Your call. Pyra should be equipped with a Woodstaff, a Hemp Robe, the Magic Hood, and the Wood Shield. Yes, Pyra's armor costs 10,000 Gold coins, but trust me - by the time the Trial of Truth is over, you won't be hurting for money. Just buy the Magic Hood and the Wood Shield when you can afford them. When you're done shopping, healing, and saving, and are in possession of an Angel Feather, return to the Tavern and speak to Lupo. He will give you some idea of what to do with the Orb of Truth. When you're finished speaking with him, leave Town and make tracks for the Castle. Speak with the Minister and Theos, as both will tell you a bit about the Cave of Truth. Where you have to go now is still a bit obscure, so I'll spell it out in case you're lost. Look at your map of the Labyrinth Entry Level; right smack in the center (about 5 steps East of where you fought the first Kaiser Krab, in fact) is the Demon Wall that you need to destroy in order to advance. We'll cover the encounter with the Demon Wall in this next section, entitled... -------------------- To the Cave of Truth -------------------- Marak's Level: 18; Milo and Pyra's Level: 17 Level to reach: Marak - 18, Milo and Pyra - 17 Foes you'll face: Hydrax, Nightstalker, Grimfowl, Minotaur, Dark Wing, Toadstool First things first: when you get to that wall I told you about, you'll notice that it's begun glowing. It didn't do that before, but then, you didn't possess the Orb of Truth before, either. Once you're standing directly in front of the wall, use the Orb of Truth. A demon will (kind of) burst out of the wall, and you'll have to do battle with the... Grimwall -------- HP: 75-80 Attack: 120 Defense: 70 Speed: 45 XP: 150 GP: 100 The Grimwall is more annoying than anything. Yeah, it packs a whallop, and it's got a lot of defense (and is magic resistant to boot), but all you really need to do is cast Slow on it (it will work, but it might take more than one casting), then attack it for a round or two and it will, um, die, and the way to the Cave of Truth will be open to you at last. General Advice: --------------- SELL THE DWARF'S KEY; YOU WON'T BE SEEING ANY MORE BRONZE DOORS. Since you can only hold 8 items per person (and 4 of those item slots are taken up by equipment), inventory space starts to get a bit slim. Selling the Dwarf's Key means you have one more slot for, say, the Orb of Truth, or maybe another Healing Fruit or Smelling Salts. If you ever need it back (you won't until MUCH later, and only then if you're being extra thorough), you can buy it from the "ALKEMIST"s Deals display for a mere 300 Gold. MARVELOUS. MORE MOSS. At least you can circumvent it this time. Basically, you have a choice to make: take the shorter, MP-sapping, Moss-covered route, or the longer, MP-sapping, monster-infested route? Hmm, come to think of it, it's not much of a choice after all... MUCH LARGER GROUPINGS, MORE HP. You'll begin to fight battles that require a bit more strategy than "push A six times and gain XP". Most battles in this area contain 5 or 6 monsters, chiefly 3-packs of Grimfowl and Minotaurs. Toadstools also appear in large groups. Sleep Level 2 is a great way to keep them from dealing much damage to you while you whittle away at their numbers. BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR MORE GLOWING WALLS, especially in areas where the map doesn't "line up" properly, or if the wall in question has a "blank space" behind it. If walls like these are glowing, you can use the Orb to call out a Grimwall. When you defeat it, you'll normally find a chest (or something important) behind ol' Grimmy. You can find Grimwalls like this all the way through the game, up to and including the upper reaches of the Labyrinth Proper, so again, keep your eyes peeled for suspicious locales and/or glowing walls. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Dark Wing (Werebat 3) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 27-30 Attack: 78 Defense: 44 Speed: 46 XP: 33 GP: 24 Eh, what's to say? You hit them and they'll die. They hit you and do little damage with a small chance to Poison the character struck. Next! Toadstool (Fungoid 1) # Appearing: 1-7 HP: 33-37 Attack: 82 Defense: 42 Speed: 43 XP: 36 GP: 22 When you see a huge group of Toadstools pop up, you might be tempted to blast them with Burst and Bolt, but since Toadstools are magic resistant, that strategy might not be such a good idea. Instead, try putting them to sleep or Muddling them, and then you can pick them off one by one. They also have an irritating tendency to "flex their muscles" (defend), which turns them into meat shields for the rest of the group. AND they can sprinkle Sleeping powder! Ugh. At least the XP they give you is nice. Final Thoughts: --------------- There's only one chest here, and it's about 3 steps away from the Grimwall. So, once you've looted it, just make your way to the far Northeast corner of the Entry Level and look for the descending staircase that will take you down to... -------------------------------- The Cave of Truth, initial areas -------------------------------- Marak's Level: 18; Milo and Pyra's Level: 17 Level to reach: Marak - 20, Milo and Pyra - 19 Foes you'll face: Grimfowl, Minotaur, Darkwing, Toadstool, Bullsnout, Deathgrin, Tombwalker, Cyblok, Ghost, Sea Stallion General Advice: --------------- FLOOR SPINNERS AND YOU. OK, these spin-you-around-floor-disc-things are pretty confusing - until you know their secret. If you walk forward onto one, it will force you to "rotate" right three times and then take a step forward: the end result is the same as if you had turned left and walked forward one step. If you BACK onto one, the same thing occurs: you "spin" right three times (equivalent of a "left turn") and walk forward. If you're still confused, think of it this way: stepping onto a spinner results in an automatic left turn. Armed with this knowledge, you can navigate the Spinners with getting, uh, turned around. HEAL BEFORE CROSSING ANY BODIES OF WATER! The new Water Elemental - the Sea Stallion - is the toughest monster you can encounter at this point. They can attack twice, which is just insane because while their regular attack deals 40 damage, they can also use Freeze Level 3 to deal about 40 damage to the entire Party. And yes, they can Freeze you twice in a single round. These things are unfairly powerful when you first fight them, so don't be surprised if you get killed by one. All you can do is try not to let it live very long by launching a furious offensive. GHOSTS SUCK. They can kill characters outright with the Desoul spell, plus they're fast and have insane attack power. If you're tracking down all the chests for goodies, be prepared to fight a few of these "placed by the programmers to make you backtrack" monsters. At least Ghosts have a weakness or two that you can take advantage of: Slow and Sleep spells will both work on them (but not 100% of the time). Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Bullsnout (Goblin 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 36-40 Attack: 84 Defense: 42 Speed: 49 XP: 37 GP: 24 Bullsnouts are only a "threat" because they can cast Heal Level 2 to keep their companions alive. Of course, monsters that heal should always be near the top of your priority list... Deathgrin (Runner 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 27-30 Attack: 85 Defense: 44 Speed: 50 XP: 39 GP: 32 Deathgrins don't appear to be much of threat - until one scores a critical kick for 30+ damage! While they may not get a critical every time, they still get them often enough that you should try to kill any Deathgrins you encounter off before they gang-tackle Milo or Pyra and kick them into oblivion. Tombwalker (Mummy 1) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 32-35 Attack: 88 Defense: 45 Speed: 46 XP: 42 GP: 28 These walking dead can be troublesome: they can Paralyze your characters with their attacks, plus they can sprinkle Paralyzing power, and they can defend themselves. That's quite the combination of abilities, but at least they're worth a lot of XP. Ghost (Chest Beast 2) - Mini-Boss (appears in treasure chests) HP: 105-110 Attack: 135 Defense: 70 Speed: 56 XP: 160 GP: 90 I'll level with you: Ghosts are crap. They are worth so much more XP than they give you, it's not even funny. With the ability to deal 50 damage with its standard attack and kill a character outright with its Desoul spell, a fight with a Ghost is a bit like playing Russian roulette: you never know when one is going to Desoul a character, forcing you to go back to the Shrine to revive them. Alas, the only way to avoid Ghosts is to not open any treasure chests... Sea Stallion (Water Elemental 2) - Mini-Boss (pools of water) HP: 95-100 Attack: 125 Defense: 55 Speed: 70 XP: 250 GP: 120 Since Sea Stallions pull double duty as the Water Elemental for both the Truth and Wisdom Trials, they are insanely powerful when you first face them at the beginning of the Cave of Truth. They can deal 80-90 to the entire Party in a single round (if you get unlucky), so your best bet is to HEAL BEFORE APPROACHING ANY PUDDLES and forget about magic - just attack, attack, attack, and hope you kill it before it kills you. Final Thoughts: --------------- After facing Spinners, a slew of new monsters, Sea Stallions lurking in puddles and a Ghost that pops out of a treasure chest, you'll eventually make your way to a long hall that runs along the southern edge of the Cave. Near the end of this hallway, you'll find that you have entered... -------------------------------- The Cave of Truth, deeper depths -------------------------------- Marak's Level: 20; Milo and Pyra's Level: 19 Level to reach: Marak and Pyra - 21, Milo - 20 Foes you'll face: Bullsnout, Deathgrin, Tombwalker, Death Rattle, Ostrik, Dark Wizard, Jackobutch, War Lizard, Ghost, Sea Stallion, Doppler Artifacts found: False Idol, Rune Key General Advice: --------------- OH, YOU HAVE MORE PARTY MEMBERS? WELL, SO DO WE! Once again, the game ramps up the number of monsters that it will throw at you at once: from 6 to 8. You'll also begin to encounter more than 2 types of monsters at once. This is the game's subtle way of telling you that playtime is over, and that from here on out the monsters are going to get progressively more varied, powerful, and yes, even unfair. Be on your toes and watch your MP! FALSE IDOLS AND YOU: you will come across an area in the Southeast corner of the Cave that contains 2 Spinners in close proximity. Before you head North, along the East wall of the Cave, make sure you venture West and pick up the False Idol in a chest cleverly hidden down a long, MP Moss-ridden passage. If you don't get it now, you'll just have to backtrack - and I mean REALLY backtrack - to get it later, when you find an empty niche that needs filling. THE END IS NOT THE END? Nope. You'll come to a place that looks to be the end of the Trial... but it's not. You still have an entire corner the Cave to explore, after all, and that's your BIGGEST HINT THAT ALL IS NOT AS IT SEEMS. Remember, you still have an Orb of TRUTH in your inventory. *Cough* WOE IS ME. When you hear this, grab your trusty False Idol, restore your HP, and remind yourself that you're facing the Trial OF TRUTH. That's all I'm gonna say to keep this relatively spoiler-free. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Death Rattle (Naga 1) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 35-38 Attack: 100 Defense: 48 Speed: 52 XP: 50 GP: 30 That 100 Attack power may look intimidating, but after your first trip through the Trial, it won't scare you much anymore. Another enemy you can beat down without too many problems. Ostrik (Darkfowl 2) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 37-40 Attack: 98 Defense: 48 Speed: 53 XP: 58 GP: 35 Ostriks seems like nothing special at first. Alone, they're nothing too dangerous. It is when you get GROUPS of Ostriks, however, that you'll learn to fear them. You see, when you have 2 or more Oskriks in a group, they will "attack as one massive force", dealing exactly 10 * (number of Ostriks) damage to one character. So, if there's 4 Ostriks, and they "dance", someone is taking 40 damage. The worst part is that if there is more than one Ostrik alive, they will ALWAYS attack in this manner. Your best defense against this is to double up attack spells from Milo and Pyra and kill them all. Be warned that Sleep and Muddle are quite ineffective on Ostriks. Dark Wizard (Magic-User 1) # Appearing: 1-6 HP: 35-39 Attack: 90 Defense: 42 Speed: 65 XP: 66 GP: 37 You'll learn to hate these guys REAL quick. They're FAST, and they LOVE to pick away at your HP reserves with shots of Blast Level 1. They also have a lot of HP (especially for a magic-user) and can cast Screen Level 1 in an effort to shut down Milo and Pyra's spell casting ability for the battle. Give these foul magic-users priority, and snuff them with extreme prejudice. Jackobutch (Gourdemon 2) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 41-44 Attack: 110 Defense: 41 Speed: 65 XP: 73 GP: 41 Jackobutchs are surprisingly similar to their cousins, the Punkinheads. They hit hard and have good HP, but mediocre defense and speed. Oh, and they also cast Heal Level 1 on their injured comrades. War Lizard (Lizardfolk 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 39-43 Attack: 120 Defense: 50 Speed: 55 XP: 85 GP: 52 There's a reason these things are worth the most XP of any monster of the Trial. Massive attack power, good HP, high Defense, and the ability to cast Quick Level 1 - which only makes them harder to kill. I recommend trying Sleep to keep their damage output down, combined with Slow Level 2 when you can sneak one in. Doppler (Blokhead 1) - Boss, Unique HP: 150-155 Attack: 140 Defense: 65 Speed: 55 XP: 300 GP: 130 This surprising foe fights just how he looks: hard hitting but slow. For reasons I'm unsure of, getting punched in the face by the Doppler can lull your characters to sleep (??). His critical hits can deal up to 100 (!) damage, but fortunately are pretty rare. You can make life easier by casting Quick Level 2 and Slow Level 1 in the first round, and then having Marak and Milo beat on the Doppler while Pyra heals whomever needs it most. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once you've overcome a pair of tricky obstacles, you'll find yourself with that shiny new Rune Key in hand, standing in front of the happy end-of-Trial braziers with a satisfying number of Gold coins rattling around in your purse. You know what that means, right? Yep, time for more shopping. If your characters already have everything on the above list (Cave of Courage, deeper depths, Final Thoughts), consider the following purchases: For Marak and Milo, well, there isn't much. You could buy one of them the Long Spear, but 9500 is a lot to drop on a single piece of equipment at this point, and to be honest, Marak doesn't need the attack power boost, so it's really only good for Milo and only if are rolling in coinage. For Pyra, I'd pick up that Thorn Whip pronto. It's not that much better than her Woodstaff Weapon Factor-wise, but it allows Pyra to STRIKE EVERY MONSTER IN A GROUP WITH HER REGULAR ATTACK. Huge. Get it as soon as you can. You can talk to Lupo and Theos to find out the purpose of the Rune Key, if haven't guessed it yet. But think about it... there's exactly ONE place in the Labyrinth Entry Level that you couldn't get to with the Bronze Key and/or the Orb of Truth. That's right, it's that Stone Door to the West of where you fought that first Kaiser Krab. Open the Stone Door, take seven steps, and take those stairs down to... --------------------------------- The Cave of Wisdom, initial areas --------------------------------- Marak and Pyra's Level: 21; Milo's Level: 20 Level to reach: Marak - 23, Milo and Pyra - 22 Foes you'll face: Ostrik, Jackobutch, War Lizard, Smoke, Tarantia, Mazerunner, Sea Stallion, Krusher Foes you'll face on Floor B1F: Smoke, Tarantia, Mazerunner, Nightwraith, Cokatoris, Sorceror, Sea Stallion, Krusher General Advice: --------------- THE LEVEL CURVE BEGINS TO TAKE EFFECT HERE. What does this mean? Well, you'll notice that Milo needs more XP to reach Level 22 than Marak does to reach Level 23. From this point onward, Milo will slowly fall behind the Marak and Pyra in Level, but don't be concerned; they did this to balance out the fact that Milo is, statistically speaking, the best character. YOU CAN NO LONGER PLAN ON BUYING SOME ARMOR AND REDUCING THE DAMAGE YOU TAKE FROM EVERY MONSTER TO ONE. The game's difficulty ramps up significantly for this final Trial. The monsters' Attack ratings finally start outpacing your characters' Armor Factors, the result being that you can no longer expect to take 1 damage per hit from everything you meet. Instead, you'll be taking 6 or 10 or even more damage per hit, even with optimal equipment on. Also, almost every monster you fight has a Spell or Ability that you get to, uh, discover... and contend with. Things get especially fun when you near the end of the Trial, and you're low on MP, searching desperately for the Happy Braziers, and then you encounter some new monster (like the Cockatoris) and say, "It just did HOW much damage to my half-dead Milo?" when it clocks you for more damage than you can afford to be taking. In short: be prepared to make more than a few trips through the Cave of Wisdom. HOARD YOUR GOLD. You might have noticed that your Party is running out of things to buy from the Armorer and Weapon stores. Well, let's just say that you'll have some new equipment options once you earn the right to enter the Labyrinth Proper, so save those coins as you WILL have a good use for them soon. HIDDEN PITFALLS WILL PLAGUE YOU. There's almost TWO DOZEN concealed pitfalls scattered throughout this Cave, but fear not: all of them are concentrated in two major areas, and you can find maps for both areas which show you the location of said pitfalls ahead of time. If you start falling into concealed pit traps, start looking around for one of these Maps when you return from the basement level (there's always a way back up, and it always forces you to backtrack to get back to where you fell) - the Map you need is somewhere near to where the pits are. ONE WAY DOORS: A SURVIVAL GUIDE. You'll come across some purple doors that open to your touch, requiring no key. Seem like a gimme in a Trial full of traps and trickery? Well, it is. Once you pass through such a door, it becomes an impassable wall! If you come across a one-way door from the wrong side, rest assured that there is SOME way to get behind it... you just need to find it. DON'T LET DAI DIE! Awful puns aside, you can find Dai (formerly of the Tavern crowd) cowering in the Southwest corner of the Labyrinth. As with Gila, Dai will kinda sorta join the Party. Unlike Gila, when Dai joins the battle (with a very fey "Tally-ho!", I might add), he'll be lucky to do 10 damage. Right. This wuss boy's doing 10 damage with his Bronze Knife and he fought his way halfway through the Trial of Wisdom HOW? Oh well, we'll overlook that, I guess. When you next visit the Tavern, Dai will have a tearful reunion with his sister Dyan, and you'll be rewarded with a warm, fuzzy feeling and a bit of dubiously useful information. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Smoke (Gaseous Form 1) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 42-45 Attack: 123 Defense: 48 Speed: 73 XP: 89 GP: 55 *Rant mode: On* I hate Smoke. They're one of the most unfair and overpowered monsters in the game. You look at their stats and say, "big deal," for the most part. BUT. They have high speed. And a fair amount of HP. AND THE ABILITY TO CAST FREEZE LEVEL 3, WHICH WILL POUND YOUR PARTY FOR 30-40 HP PER CHARACTER PER CASTING. Now imagine getting ambushed by 5 Smoke, all of whom decide to Freeze you. That's right, game over, all because you had the gall to step foot in the Cave of Wisdom. Oh, and they're only worth 89 XP. You have to wonder what the programmers were thinking here (I'M thinking someone goofed and made their Freeze Level THREE instead of Level TWO, which is what it SHOULD be). Anyway, about all you can do to prepare for these guys is keep your HP up at all times. Once battle is joined, Sleep is about your only viable option, since Smoke are ALSO Magic Resistant and take lessened damage from pretty much every elemental attack spell. Whatever. Tarantia (Spider 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 40-43 Attack: 123 Defense: 53 Speed: 68 XP: 97 GP: 59 When a Tarantia is feeling threatened, it will spew out stick webbing, which basically amounts to something like Sleep or perhaps temporary Paralysis, in that if the character is affected they will be unable to act until they "wriggle free of the webbing" a few rounds - usually 1-3 - later. Mazerunner (Runner 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 44-47 Attack: 122 Defense: 54 Speed: 72 XP: 108 GP: 62 These grinning things continue the irritating Runner trend of looking stupid while critically kicking you for 40+ damage. Sleep is a good way to avoid a very painful kick to the groin from these guys. Nightwraith (Apparition 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 43-47 Attack: 120 Defense: 55 Speed: 75 XP: 120 GP: 65 While not quite as dangerous as Smoke (well, nothing is, really), the Nightwraiths still make a nuisance out of themselves by continuously casting Blaze Level 2, which "only" deals 9-15 damage on average (but still adds up when you fight large groups of 'wraiths). On the plus side, a single 'wraith only has enough MP for a single casting of Blaze, after which it will waste turns trying to cast it again with insufficient MP. Sorceror (Magic-User 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 40-43 Attack: 120 Defense: 51 Speed: 69 XP: 132 GP: 72 Another spell-casting foe placed in this Trial by the programmers for your enjoyment. Sorcerors can cast Bolt Level 1 (which thankfully only hits a single Party member for about 15 damage) as well as defend themselves. As with most monsters, you can put them to Sleep, which will keep the number of Bolt spells your Party has to eat to a minimum. Krusher (Sphere Demon 1) - Mini-Boss (long hallways) HP: 195-200 Attack: 175 Defense: 68 Speed: 70 XP: 350 GP: 200 Another mini-boss type of creature, that only appears in long hallways where you cannot see a wall in the distance. These things REALLY pack a whallop - with the ability to strike Critical hits that can deal over 175 (!!!!!) damage - so keeping your HP up and casting Quick Level 2 are essentials when fighting one! You have a few things in your favor, namely that it's easy to affect a Krusher with Sleep and Slow spells, and an asleep Krusher will normally die before waking. So, open with Sleep and Quick, and cross your fingers. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once you've passed the first "room" of concealed pitfalls and braved the one-way doors to rescue Dai, you'll find yourself in... --------------------------------- The Cave of Wisdom, deeper depths --------------------------------- Marak's Level: 23; Milo and Pyra's Level: 22 Level to reach: Marak - 25, Milo and Pyra - 24 Foes you'll face: Smoke, Mazerunner, Nightwraith, Cokatoris, Sorceror, Driffid, Fungoid, Sea Stallion, Krusher General Advice: --------------- PIT TRAPS YOU'LL ENJOY FALLING INTO: The first one, at 5 steps East, 13 steps South, leads to a small B1F area. Grab the outrageously powerful Flamesword from the chest behind you before heading through the one-way door and North to the stairs. Once you're back on ground level, and grab Map 2 from the chest to the East. Map 2 shows you another pit trap-infested section of the Cave (the Northeast corner) - and where there's a rip in the map, that's your destination (it's 18 steps East, 10 steps South). DON'T MISS THE MITHRIL! Before you complete the Trial, don't miss that long, long hall (complete with MP Moss) the wraps around the outer edge of the Cave and ends in a chest containing Mithril Ore. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Cokatoris (Cockatrice 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 49-52 Attack: 125 Defense: 45 Speed: 73 XP: 127 GP: 70 You might expect that a Cokatoris would have some sort of instant death/petrification attack, but then you would be mistaken. The worst they can do to you (other than peck you with that 125 attack power beak) is "glare at you with bloodshot eyes". This ability is identical to Paralyzing Powder. Their standard attacks also have a small chance to Paralyze you. A fairly powerful foe, and yet nothing terribly dangerous, either. Driffid (Jellybeast 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 49-52 Attack: 130 Defense: 56 Speed: 78 XP: 138 GP: 74 Much like the Hydrax before them, the Driffids are here to harass and annoy, what with their not inconsiderable attack power and Sleep-inducing grey mist that they are fond of spewing. Fungoid (Fungoid 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 44-47 Attack: 127 Defense: 57 Speed: 72 XP: 138 GP: 74 Fungoids are... weird. The can sprinkle Poison Powder (always irritating), and they can "split in two" (creates a new Fungoid with full HP that gives full XP and Gold as well). Unlike Toadstools, however, Fungoids are not magic resistant at all, and you can kill entire groupings with a well-placed shot of Frost Level 3. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once you've completed the Trial, head back to Town and sell everything you're not currently using: both Maps, the Dark Block, the Flail, the Steel Saber... everything. Don't forgot to rest at the Tavern and make a save, and then it's time to return to the Castle. Once again, you must speak with King Drake, as the advisors will say nothing until you do. After chatting with everyone, you'll come away a few useful tidbits of info: 1) Melvyl mysteriously vanished upon hearing that you passed the final Trial. Hmm. 2) "Past the unseen demon and between the pots of fire lies your path," says Theos. I have confidence that you can figure out where the entrance to the Labyrinth Proper is even without Theos' cryptic comments. 3) The Arms of Light are also mentioned. The Arms of Light are the penultimate weapons and armor for the Shining Knight - that's you. Or, it will be. Yeah. The Arms of Light are REALLY potent arms and armor for Marak, so be on the lookout for them. Also, the Town will undergo 2 major changes: the clientele of the Tavern has been... slightly altered, and our good, good friend the Trader is now open for business! The Trader, nestled snugly between the Weapon store and the Tavern, sells a wide array of new equipment. And, if you give him Mithril Ore a sizable quantity of Gold coins, he can craft a piece of Mithril equipment for you. We'll get to what you should Craft first in a minute. If you bought the Long Spear for Milo and the Thorn Whip for Pyra and got the Flamesword from the Cave of Wisdom, you won't need to buy any new weapons right now. Instead, consider the following purchases: For Marak, choose two of the following: Iron Armor, Steel Helm, Steel Shield. For Pyra, a Leather Robe. After selling your old equipment, you should still have at least 22,500 Gold coins, two hunks of Mithril, and a Dark Block. Now, you have a choice here: save up 38,000 Gold coins and use one of your pieces of Mithril Ore to Craft the Mithril Axe for Milo, or blow 20,000 coins and the Dark Block in order to Craft the Hex Whip for Pyra. There are pros and cons for both options: Mithril Axe - Pros: awesome Weapon Factor; lets Milo deal more damage than Marak for a little while; you'll never need to equip Milo with any other weapon, ever. Cons: very expensive, you won't be able to afford until after you've made at least one more trip into the Labyrinth. Hex Whip - Pros: Pyra's best weapon, a +60 Weapon Factor beast that hits an entire group of monsters; cheaper than the Mithril Axe; Pyra is most in need of an attack power boost at this point. Cons: the Hex Whip is cursed, and will occasionally entangle Pyra - effectively removing her from battle for a few rounds (but she deals her damage before getting entangled). Despite the curse, I still recommend the Hex Whip, for a few reasons: the curse won't take effect until AFTER Pyra deals her damage, so you can make a pseudo double whammy by having Pyra attack and then having Milo cast a spell. Also, the curse won't take effect IF PYRA DOESN'T ATTACK. So, it's okay to leave the Hex Whip equipped for Boss battles and such, as long as you remember to have Pyra stick to Spell-casting and Item-using ONLY. Finally, the Hex Whip, with its +60 Weapon Factor, is like a Mithril Rod that hits multiple foes, turning Pyra into an offensive juggernaut... well, for a magic-user, anyway. After your first trip into the Labyrinth Proper, you will have enough coinage to worry about Crafting LightRobes, Mithril Shields, etc. For now, focus on Crafted weaponry. One final note: the Trader can also Repair damaged equipment. What damaged equipment, you ask? Well, if you use an item in battle (like, say, the Flamesword), it may become damaged, and the game will give you a message like "the Flamesword warps from the heat of the flames". If you use the Flamesword again, it will "break" and be gone forever. Ouch. However, for a fee of 25% of the item's value, the Trader can repair the item to like-new condition, and you'll be free to use its special ability again. One final note on Crafting and Repairing things: the Trader will tell you to "come back later" to pick the item up. In order to make it be "later", simply exit Town, enter the Labyrinth, turn around and leave the Labyrinth, and re-enter Town. Now hit the Trader's stall and claim your shiny new item. Oh, and you can sell the Rune Key now. You won't be needing it anymore. Once your preparations are complete, head for the "pots of fire". What was once is blank wall is an obstacle no longer. In the final unexplored space of the Entry Level is a Magic Teleporter that will instantly whisk you away to... ------------------------------------------------- The Labyrinth Proper, Second Floor, initial areas ------------------------------------------------- Yes, the Second Floor. The Labyrinth Entry Level could really be called the Labyrinth Proper, Ground Floor or something similar. At any rate, the Entry Level is the ground Level, and this is one floor up; therefore, we are on the Second Floor. Marak's Level: 25; Milo and Pyra's Level: 24 Level to reach: Marak - 26, Milo and Pyra - 25 Foes you'll face: Cokatoris, Sorceror, Driffid, Fungoid, Deadhead, Reaper, Maligator, Billow, Mantoro, Demi-Wight, Berserker, Brikeye, Sentinel Before going anywhere, cast View. You'll notice that the Teleporter in the Labyrinth Proper is located at 13 steps East, 11 steps South. This is significant because the Teleporter in the Labyrinth Entry Level is located at 12 steps East, 10 steps South. Why the discrepancy? I'm not sure, but it sure can %*!@ up your map of the Second Floor if you assume the Teleporters are in identical locations on both Maps (which they logically should be). This whole "teleporter location shift" wouldn't be so bizarre if it wasn't for the fact that it is the ONLY thing in the ENTIRE game that doesn't line up properly. Anyway... General Advice: --------------- FEAR THE REAPER, for he can put a quick end to your trip into the Labyrinth Proper. Yes, Milo has the Revive spell now, but what happens if he himself gets Desouled? Yep, you're heading back to Town. So, Sleep the Reapers when you encounter them; or, destroy them with a double whammy of Blaze and Blast from Milo and Pyra. STOIC SENTINELS BAR THE WAY, so be prepared. These once-dormant statues will now animate and attack when you approach! Restore your HP before walking up to one, and be sure to follow my battle tips below. THE BEAUTIFUL BALCONY BECKONS. Once you reach the northern portions of the floor, you'll come to a grey stone-looking door. It's unlocked, fortunately, and it leads to a long, curved balcony that takes you from the Northwest corner of the floor to the Northeast corner. The whole process is automatic, so sit back and enjoy the view. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Deadhead (Skeleton 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 55-58 Attack: 131 Defense: 70 Speed: 62 XP: 146 GP: 76 Deadheads are just like Skeletons, really, only they're red and have better stats. If you've been buying what I tell you to, you'll mow these things down like grass. If you like, you can put large groups to Sleep (how do you put something that's undead to Sleep, anyway?) and cut down their damage output. Reaper (Grim 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 48-51 Attack: 132 Defense: 55 Speed: 63 XP: 155 GP: 89 As their name and appearance would imply, Reapers are more than capable of casting Desoul Level 1, which can (as you're probably aware) slay one character instantly. My advice is to use Sleep spells liberally to keep the chances of a successful Desoul-ing down. Maligator (Lizardfolk 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 53-56 Attack: 140 Defense: 61 Speed: 66 XP: 163 GP: 84 Another foe to be wary of, the Maligators are fond of releasing their scorching hot breath, which deals 20-26 damage to every character. What fun. As is the norm, Sleep will put them down and reduce the number of times you're breathed on, so use that. Then kill them. Billow (Gaseous Form 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 52-65 Attack: 135 Defense: 56 Speed: 80 XP: 165 GP: 73 If you're like me, when you first saw these things appear, you envisioned them casting Freeze Level 4 (or something equally nasty) on you. However, strangely enough, Billows have NO SPECIAL ABILITIES whatsoever. They have good speed, and that's it. Just wipe them out at your leisure. And yes, you can Sleep them. Mantoro (Werebull 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 56-59 Attack: 135 Defense: 62 Speed: 66 XP: 170 GP: 85 Mantoros are straight-out fighters. As such, they're not much of a threat, as a shot of either Sleep or Quick will negate a lot of the damage they can deal. Once either spell has been cast, you can switch to physical attacks to polish them off. Demi-Wight (Mummy 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 58-62 Attack: 137 Defense: 62 Speed: 65 XP: 175 GP: 88 No Paralyzing powder this time, just a healthy variety of direct damage spells: Burst Level 2 and Blast Level 2, both of which deal between 18 and 25 damage to your Party. Another monster that needs to be put to Sleep as soon as you see one. Berserker (Demonic Warrior 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 60-63 Attack: 142 Defense: 63 Speed: 90 XP: 180 GP: 91 Another purely physical foe, but these guys are actually a bit troublesome, due to their surprisingly high attack power and incredible speed. Oh, and they can Critical blows deal upwards of 45 damage. That kind of damage output shouldn't be taken lightly, and I strongly recommend you open every Berserker battle with a Level 1 (or 2) Sleep spell. Brikeye (Blokhead 2) - Mini-boss (appears most anywhere) # Appearing: 3 HP: 95-100 Attack: 145 Defense: 59 Speed: 63 XP: 200 GP: 250 Don't let the fact that there are three Brikeyes intimidate you, these things are only moderately dangerous. Your best bet is to use Sleep (or Slow) and then pound on them. The Brikeyes should expire in a few rounds, hopefully without getting too many licks in. However, if you get unlucky, one of their attacks might Paralyze someone, or your Sleep/Slow spell might fail, leaving all three Brikeyes to pound on you and keep each other alive with their Heal Level 2 spells. Sentinel (Guardian 1) - Mini-boss (statues that animate) HP: 165-170 Attack: 190 Defense: 80 Speed: 65 XP: 430 GP: 250 Sentinels typically guard treasure chests, but some are just standing around in dead ends or other suspicious places. They act as powerful physical guardians, a job they do well. Insane attack power, high defense, magic resistance, and the ability to attack twice per round make these things something to not underestimate. They won't attack until you approach, so heal up first, then open the battle with Quick Level 2 and Boost Level 1 (cast on Marak). A second round of attacks should kill it, but have Pyra heal whomever is most hurt, just in case. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once you've walked across the balcony and emerged in the Floor's Northeast corner, you'll find yourself smack dab in the middle of... ------------------------------------------------- The Labyrinth Proper, Second Floor, deeper depths ------------------------------------------------- Marak's Level: 26; Milo and Pyra's Level: 25 Level to reach: Marak and Pyra - 28, Milo - 27 Foes you'll face: Reaper, Maligator, Billow, Mantoro, Demi-Wight, Berserker, Mandrake, Salamander, Kamil, Deathserpent, Wingblade, Sentinel, Kromeball General Advice -------------- SILLY SENTINEL, SURRENDER THE SUN ARMOR. In the Southeast corner of the Floor you'll find a four-pack of Sentinels, 3 of which guard chests. Two of the chests are nothing special - some Gold coins and a Worn Robe - but the third chest contains the mighty Sun Armor. Equip this on Marak as soon as you get it, as it will give him some protection from Fire-based attacks (and it will also raise his Defense, unless you sprung for some Mithril Armor). KROME-PLATED HALLWAYS. The long hall that stretches north-south the entire length of the Floor is filled with the fearsome Kromeballs, who really pack a whallop. I recommend putting them to Sleep and then dealing as much damage (Slow cast by Pyra in the 2nd round helps) as you can before they have a chance to wake. In any case, keep your HP up as close to maximum as you can while traveling this and any other long halls, just in case. ONLY THE BEGINNING. When you come finally come to the stairs that lead up to the Labyrinth Proper's Third Floor, don't overlook the gold-colored fountain a few steps away. You can't do anything at the Gold Fountain now... but you WANT to remember its location for later. This is important! Mark the Gold Fountain on whatever map you're using for later reference. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Mandrake (Tree Devil 1) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 55-58 Attack: 143 Defense: 65 Speed: 64 XP: 200 GP: 101 Deceptively dangerous, Mandrakes should be feared for two reasons: they can cast Heal Level 1 (not good when you're fighting Mandrakes and, say, Salamanders) to help their monstrous brethren; also, a Mandrake can (and will) "furrow its brow in concentration" and drain 6-12 MP from Milo or Pyra. Yeah, that lovely little ability is back. Destroy Mandrakes on sight. Salamander (Elezard 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 61-64 Attack: 155 Defense: 62 Speed: 62 XP: 220 GP: 120 Salamanders begin appearing on the eastern side of the Floor, and boy will you ever wish that they never began popping up at all. Not only do they have a ton of HP and good Defense, they're VERY fond of spewing crimson flames that scorch the entire Party for 50-65 (!!) damage. Yeah, ouch. If you get ambushed by these, you could be in serious trouble. The worst part is, Sleep won't affect them (although Muddle will, strangely), so what I recommend doing is going "all out" and having Pyra cast Freeze Level 3 while Milo casts Blast Level 3, and cross your fingers that those two spells combined can kill a 'mander or two. Kamil (Naga 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 57-60 Attack: 160 Defense: 66 Speed: 65 XP: 240 GP: 97 Beware here! Kamils may look innocent at first, but they will suddenly "shuffle their feet in an eerie dance", which deals 15 points of damage PER KAMIL DANCING to the entire Party! Couple this attack with an ability to call for help and an immunity to sleep spells, and you can suddenly find yourself in a lot of trouble. It's not a bad idea to give groups of two or more Kamils a Triple Whammy: Marak uses the Firesword, Pyra the Flamestaff, and Milo casts Blast Level 3. That should ensure that all Kamils lie dead at your feet. Deathserpent (Lizardfolk 3) # Appearing: 1-3 HP: 58-61 Attack: 152 Defense: 68 Speed: 68 XP: 270 GP: 115 While not as strong as Wingblades (see below), the Deathserpents make up for it by being able to cast Blaze Level 3. That's a lot of damage (although not as bad as the Salamander's crimson flames) to the Party, so make every effort to off these guys as quickly as you can manage it. Sleep is effective, so consider casting that. Wingblade (Bird Battler 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 59-62 Attack: 160 Defense: 70 Speed: 70 XP: 300 GP: 115 Oof, these guys pack a punch! And you can't use Sleep on them either, they resist it. Slow will work, but only rarely. You COULD muddle them, but I prefer just to waste them all at once with a combination of Freeze and Blast Level 3. Kromeball (Sphere Demon 2) - Mini-Boss (long hallways) HP: 295-310 Attack: 225 Defense: 85 Speed: 75 XP: 500 GP: 300 Kromeballs are another unfair monster. They have ludicrously high attack power, attack twice a round nearly every round, a large supply of HP, and - to top it all off - they sometimes explode if you badly injure one but don't quite kill it before it has a chance to act. If it explodes in this manner, it will deal 90-100 damage to the entire Party. Right, sure, whatever. If you're running low on MP and are walking down a Kromeball-infested Hallway, consider Egressing out of the Labyrinth before you get caught by one of these with your pants down and are slaughtered. When a Kromeball appears, try to put it to Sleep and then Slow it, while Marak beats on it and Milo uses Quick. Pyra using Boost Level 1 on Marak instead of Slow on the Kromeball is another viable option. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once you're all done exploring this floor, take a few moments to ascend the stairs up to the Third Floor - but don't go anywhere just yet. You see, merely by reaching the 3rd Floor you will advance the storyline and open up some new information at the Castle. Once you've set foot on the Third Floor, however, your "job" is done and there's no further reason to hang around (your Party's probably not in the best of shape anyway), so just Egress out. At some point (now would be good) you'll want to return to town to heal up and spend some of your Gold coins. I recommend buying both Marak and Milo Magic Shields as soon as you can afford them, as the monsters are starting to deal more and more damage, and the extra defense will certainly help. Also consider crafting Milo or Pyra a LightRobe, if you have a hunk of Mithril Ore left. When you're healed up and done shopping, return to the castle. Speak with King Drake, who will introduce you to Xern the Elder, who's taken Melvyl's place on the far left. Apparently Xern was Melvyl's mentor, and... well, it's best to hear the story from Xern himself. Xern drops ye olde bombshell: Melvyl was/is Dark Sol! That explains a lot, doesn't it? Remember how Melvyl was absent when Dark Sol appeared in the beginning of the game, only to return later? Remember how Dark Sol knew all the King's advisors by name? Yep, information he picked up masquerading as Melvyl. Anyway, it appears that Melvyl himself passed the Trials of the Ancients in secret years ago, and managed to unlock some of the Labyrinth's dark secrets - and thus, Dark Sol was born. Xern goes on to explain that the Labyrinth was built by the Ancients to serve two purposes: to contain and seal in the powers of Darkness, and to train a champion of Light should the need arise. Xern then gives you the MEDALLION. This item is just plain awesome. It comes in two halves: you drop one half in the waters of a Gold Fountain, and when you use the other half, you will be INSTANTLY TELEPORTED TO THE GOLD FOUNTAIN THAT THE FIRST HALF IS IN. Oh yeah! This item will save you a TON of time backtracking and fighting "obsolete" foes. There's one drawback to the Medallion: you have to remove it from the Gold Fountain it's currently in (by SEARCHing it) if you want to relocate it to a Gold Fountain on a higher Floor. By the time you find a "new" Gold Fountain to put the Medallion in, however, you should be more than strong enough that one more trip across the Floor to transfer the Medallion should be more than manageable. Well, enough chatter. Return to the foot of the stairs up to the 3rd Floor, restore your HP, USE the Medallion while standing in front of the Gold Fountain, take a deep breath, and you'll be ready to explore... ------------------------------------------------ The Labyrinth Proper, Third Floor, initial areas ------------------------------------------------ Marak and Pyra's Level: 28; Milo's Level: 27 Level to reach: Marak: 31, Milo: 29, and Pyra: 30 Foes you'll face: Mandrake, Kamil, Sea Stallion, Deathserpent, Wingblade, Tommyhawk, Grim Specter, Hellknight, Battle Oxe, Kromeball, Mad Tut, Shellbeast Artifacts found: Medallion (from Xern at the Castle for reaching this Floor) General Advice: --------------- A FIRESIDE CHAT WITH "MELVYL" will occur the next time you go to the Tavern. After he learns that you know about his alter-ego, he stands up and sheds his disguise. Dark Sol now stands before you, and says that he has a proposal for you. He wants you to join him, to embrace the Darkness and rule this land together. Of course, you refuse, and Dark Sol prattles on about how he would kick your butt from here to kingdom come - but it's only an "image" that stands before you. He then vanishes, leaving Old Vik and his wife rather befuddled. Well, Dark Sol knows of you now, and you can be sure that he has some nasty surprises in store for you as you climb ever nearer his sanctum at the top of the Labyrinth Proper. WHY YES, THE GAME DID JUST RAMP UP THE DIFFICULTY, THANKS FOR NOTICING. The monsters in this area take giant leaps in nastiness: more HP, more Speed, and a wide array of damaging and/or deadly special attacks. There's a reason for this: the monsters have to be able to drain your resources in only a single Floor's worth of space, since you now have the Medallion that allows you to skip the Second Floor entirely. Don't worry, however; even though you'll get stomped pretty badly when you first enter the Level, things will be easier once you've beaten the Shellbeast and purchased/crafted some Magic/Mithril equipment. SHELL BEASTS AND YOU. The one and only Shellbeast is waiting for you smack dab in the center of the map, at the end of a long passage that wraps around itself several times. If you follow my advice above, you shouldn't have too many problems in defeating it, but be warned: there a couple of much more powerful bosses in the near future, so be diligent about keeping your HP up (and leaving when your MP gets too low). MORE MONSTERS THAN YOU CAN SHAKE A STICK AT! This floor is basically split into three distinct "encounter zones", each with a wide new array of foes to torment you. There are no less than TWENTY different monster types on this Floor (including the unique Shellbeast), so read up carefully on each of the following monster entries so you have an idea of what to expect. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Tommyhawk (Darkfowl 3) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 60-63 Attack: 173 Defense: 71 Speed: 75 XP: 330 GP: 108 No Ostrik-esque dancing here. Tommyhawks are straight melee fighters that pack a mean punch with their beaks and can (oh no!) defend themselves from physical blows. These things are the least of your worries on this Floor. Grim Specter (Grim 2) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 58-61 Attack: 165 Defense: 70 Speed: 74 XP: 380 GP: 124 Grim Specters are simply a tougher, stronger, faster version of the Reapers you fought on the Second Floor. They still use Desoul Level 1 in an attempt to snuff out a character's life, and there is one thing that makes them more dangerous: you cannot use Screen to stop their spells. Either try Sleep, or give them the double whammy: Blast Level 3 combined with Blaze Level 3 or Bolt Level 2. Hellknight (Animated Armor 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 64-67 Attack: 175 Defense: 75 Speed: 76 XP: 430 GP: 128 Another purely physical foe, the Hellknights look pretty intimidating, but they're not very dangerous compared to monsters like Grim Specters and Battle Oxen. As with most foes of their ilk, Hellknights are relatively easy to put to Sleep, so do that and start hacking away. Battle Oxe (Werebull 3) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 63-66 Attack: 185 Defense: 68 Speed: 78 XP: 470 GP: 130 These guys are sure to coax a groan out of you when they appear. In addition to having a LOT of HP and high attack power, the Oxen can exhale a "freezing blast of icy breath" which will deal 32-38 damage to the entire Party. The best way to deal with a group of Battle Oxen is to double whammy them with Blast Level 3 and Bolt Level 2, since they are apparently COMPLETELY IMMUNE to Sleep spells. A real fun monster. Mad Tut (Mummy 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 61-64 Attack: 170 Defense: 71 Speed: 76 XP: 500 GP: 138 The Tuts are worth the most XP of any monster on this floor, and I'm not sure exactly why. I'm not going to deny that Slow Level 2 will weaken your characters, but you can counteract its effects with a Quick Level 2 spell of your own. I'd rather be slowed than take 30-60-90 damage from multiple blasts of Icy Breath, wouldn't you? At any rate, you can put these things to Sleep, so do that and save your "double whammy" MP reserves for Oxen and Grim Specters. Shellbeast (Shellbeast 2) - Boss, Unique HP: 335-355 Attack: ?? Defense: 125 Speed: 74 XP: 1500 GP: 500 A rather one-dimensional creature, the Shellbeast is only capable of breathing crimson flames at the Party. Now, the flames will deal 55-65 damage to everyone at once, but you can plan ahead once you know this. I recommend the following battle plan: first, restore your HP before approaching the "shell". In the first round of combat, have Marak and Milo attack while Pyra Boosts Marak. In subsequent rounds, Marak attacks, Milo attacks or heals an injured comrade, and Pyra casts Slow Level 1 until it works, then switches to healing duty. The Shellbeast has insane defense but not too many HP (for a mini-boss) and it should go down in 3 or 4 rounds. Basically, once you've found and beaten the Shellbeast, every step you take beyond that point takes you further and further into... ------------------------------------------------ The Labyrinth Proper, Third Floor, deeper depths ------------------------------------------------ Marak's Level: 31; Milo's Level: 29; Pyra's Level: 30 Level to reach: Marak: 34, Milo: 32, and Pyra: 35 Foes you'll face: Tommyhawk, Grim Specter, Hellknight, Battle Oxe, Mad Tut, Bloodrooster, Living Dead, Dreampuff, Troll, Soulthief, Gryphon, Demonika, Necromancer, Scizzar, Blackbone Artifacts found: Mystic Rope, Light Helm (Arms of Light found: 1/4) General Advice: --------------- THE LONG, LONG HAUL. The Third Floor wins the coveted Marak Award for Most Irritating Floor Ever (tm). The bulk of this Floor consists of long, LONG passages that double back on themselves and generally force you to walk thirty steps in order to advance five steps in a specific direction. Of course, this means that you'll encounter more than your fill of monsters on the way. If you go treasure hunting with the Mystic Rope (see below) and claim all of the loot on this Floor (which includes the LightHelm; again, see below), be prepared to make seven (or more!) trips across this Level before you finally drop the Medallion in that shiny Gold Fountain nestled at the foot of the stairs that lead up the Fourth Floor. THE MAGICAL, MYSTERIOUS, MYSTIC ROPE opens up a LOT of things for you. You've been walking under holes in the ceiling for a LONG time now, and you probably just assumed that they were there for "decoration", like torches and fountains. Well, you'd be wrong. With the Mystic Rope, you can climb up into those holes from below! Not only does this nullify open pits as a hazard, but it allows you to use ceiling holes as a staircase of sorts, and if you do enough hopping between the Labyrinth Proper Floors, you'll come across some nice treasure. Of course, climbing up to the next Level of the Labyrinth Proper before you have the current Floor cleared and, uh, Medallion-ed is always risky (due to the powerful, dangerous creatures you encounter), so be cautious when using the Rope - keep your HP full at all times. If you're willing do spend some time and do some backtracking, you can now go on a bit of a treasure hunt with the Mystic Rope: First, buy back the Dwarf's Key from the Alkemist, and return to the Trial of Strength (the Peace Spell is your friend for this endeavor; re-cast it whenever it wears off). Fall into the Pit at 8 steps East, 18 steps South, then use the Rope to climb right back up. At the end of a short wrap-around hallway is a treasure chest. Now, return to the Labyrinth Proper, Second Floor via the teleporter in the center of the Entry Level. There will be a Pit in the ceiling at 15 steps East, 25 steps South. Use the Rope to climb up to the 3rd Floor. Just around the corner ahead of you is a treasure chest. Return to the Second Floor (by falling back down that pit you climbed up through) and continue along as though you were heading towards the Balcony. In a dead end at 1 step East, 11 steps South there is a another hole in the ceiling. Ascend with the Mystic Rope and head south. Beware; you'll face the most powerful Third Floor monsters in this hallway! At the end of the passage is a glowing wall; use the Orb of Truth, defeat the Grimwall, and claim your reward. In addition, there are THREE ceiling holes on the Labyrinth Proper's Third Floor that take you to small, treasure-laden areas of the Fourth Floor: 1) The hole at 22 steps East, 3 steps South leads to a short wrap-around hall with a Guardian (think Sentinel on steroids, a dangerous fight at this point) that, uh, guards a treasure chest. 2) The hole at 1 step East, 27 steps South leads to a longish hallway that ends in a treasure chest. You'll have some nasty Fourth Floor foes to contend with here, so don't get complacent. 3) The hole at 30 steps East, 27 steps South leads to a small area containing both a treasure chest and a staircase that leads back down to the Third Floor. Open the chest, then head down the stairs to find ANOTHER chest. Score! HOW LIGHT WAS MY HELM, AND MANY MORE BOOKS. Pardon the obscure Shining Force reference, but I couldn't resist. At any rate, in the Third Floor's Northeast corner you'll come across a one-way door heading East. Go through it, walk a few paces South, and you'll come upon a chest containing the Light Helm! This thing is a significant improvement over the Steel Helm (or even a Mithril Helm), so put it on Marak immediately, and just think... only 3 more pieces of Light gear to go... MIGHTY MINI-BOSSES WILL SURELY TEST YOUR METTLE. First off, Scizzars - the new and improved version of the Kaiser Krab - await you in the Southern reaches of the Floor. With their high attack power and freezing breath, they're sure to take large chunks out of your HP. Even more amusing, however, are the Soulthieves that, with Mystic Ropes of their own, drop down from the holes in the ceiling and attack. These guys might not look like much, but they have some outrageous attack power. With the help of Quick, Slow, and Sleep spells, however, you can put them out of their misery. Last but not least, we have the Blackbone, which raises from the ground near the end of this torturous Floor. The Blackbone is a dangerous foe; it can deal 100 damage in a single stroke, and it will often strike twice! Only with Quick, Slow, and diligent healing (and a bit of luck) will you prevail over these foul things without losing anybody. USE THE ROPE, LUKE. There will come a point (right after you get the Light Helm, in fact) on this Floor where you reach a dead-end - with a hole in the ceiling. In order to reach the end of this Floor, you must use the Mystic Rope to ascend to the Fourth Floor, follow the short wrap-around passage to an open Pit trap, and fall back down. From that point you can reach the Gold Fountain and the stairs that lead to the Fourth Floor. If you somehow missed the Mystic Rope, you HAVE to go back now and get it, as you cannot advance without it. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Bloodrooster (Cockatrice 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 56-59 Attack: 188 Defense: 75 Speed: 78 XP: 560 GP: 153 Think Cokatoris with better stats, and you've got Bloodroosters. These things will be the least of your worries around here, so don't waste any MP when fighting them if you can help it - large groups may require a Sleep spell, however. Living Dead (Ghoul 1) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 57-60 Attack: 190 Defense: 90 Speed: 76 XP: 600 GP: 185 The Living Dead have decent attack power and defense, but are slow and not too difficult to put down. They can sprinkle Poison powder, which is irritating, but other than that they pose little threat to the Party. As with Bloodroosters, consider Sleeping large groups, and saving your MP for more dangerous adversaries. Dreampuff (Gaseous Form 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 59-62 Attack: 192 Defense: 91 Speed: 82 XP: 640 GP: 210 Dreampuffs are actually an easy source of XP! They will howl for help (summoning more Dreampuffs) when the going gets tough, and each new Dreampuff gives full XP and Gold. They can attack as one massive force, but it only affects one character, and only deals 10 HP per 'puff (???). Did the "massive force" damage of the Dreampuffs and Kamils get switched around as a programming mistake? One has to wonder. Troll (Troll 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 61-64 Attack: 200 Defense: 82 Speed: 75 XP: 670 GP: 165 They're big and they're dumb, but Trolls still have respectable HP and Speed and high attack power. Putting them to Sleep is never a bad idea. Trolls have no special abilities for you to worry about. Soulthief (Rope Raider 1) HP: 375-400 Attack: 255 Defense: 85 Speed: 90 XP: 700 GP: 400 These guys drop down from holes in the ceiling on their own version of the Mystic Rope. Note their incredible 255 attack power - that HURTS. You can fight back by having Milo cast Quick Level 2 on the Party. Pyra should cast Sleep Level 1 until it works, then switch to Slow Level 1 until THAT works. Once Quick, Sleep, and Slow have all taken effect, the fight should be yours. Gryphon (Griffon 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 63-66 Attack: 205 Defense: 84 Speed: 81 XP: 710 GP: 230 Gyrphons don't appear to be very dangerous - until one of them "flaps its wings", which is a non-magical effect identical to Blast Level 3, dealing 30-35 damage to the whole Party. Great: they're Battle Oxen with more HP and Speed. Wonderful. You can always try Sleep or the old double whammy if you encounter a large group. Demonika (Demonic Warrior 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 65-68 Attack: 210 Defense: 83 Speed: 84 XP: 770 GP: 265 A fierce opponent indeed! The Demonika has high attack power - and will occasionally attack twice in a single round! Needless to say, a group of these can put the hurt on someone in a very short period of time, so consider a shot of Quick Level 2 from Milo and Sleep from Pyra. Necromancer (Magic-User 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 64-67 Attack: 180 Defense: 78 Speed: 83 XP: 820 GP: 250 Another good source of XP. Necromancers will howl for help - but instead of calling more Necromancers, Meat Zombies are summoned. Meat Zombies are a Fourth Floor creature with very high attack power and a lot of HP, so don't be afraid to double whammy them if the Necromancers get summon-happy. The Necromancers also love to annoy you by casting Heal Level 2 on wounded Meat Zombies, so be ready for that. A battle with a large group of Necromancers and Meat Zombies can really drain your HP, but it can also be worth almost 10,000 XP, making such battles well worth your while. Scizzar (Krab 2) HP: 300-325 Attack: 235 Defense: 130 Speed: 80 XP: 1000 GP: 600 Hoo boy, it's the Kaiser Krab's big brother. Scizzars are a pain in the rear, I'll warn you now: first off, they love to use their special attack, during which a "freezing cloud billows forth from Scizzar's jaws". This deals 67-82 damage to the entire Party. Yeah, 67-82 damage, sure, that's fair *Sigh*. You can make the fight a bit faster by having Pyra cast Boost Level 1 on Marak, and then Slow Level 1 on the Scizzar. No matter what the Scizzar hits you with, you're going to take some considerable damage, so keep your HP up when traveling through Scizzar-infested areas. As with Kaiser Krabs, Scizzars only appear from side-passages to YOUR left. Remember that you can (sometimes) walk backwards to keep such passages on your right, and thus avoid encountering any Krabs at all. Blackbone (Skeletal Fiend) HP: 335-360 Attack: 300 Defense: 105 Speed: 88 XP: 3000 GP: 2500 Blackbones will plague here from here until the highest reaches of the Labyrinth Proper, but it's here where you first meet them that they are the most dangerous. How dangerous? Well, a Blackbone can deal over 100 damage in a single attack - and it attacks twice per round more often than not. Oh, and it can critical for 180 damage or more. Insane enough for you yet? You can make things a bit fairer by using Quick Level 2, Slow Level 1, Boost Level 1 (on Marak or Milo), and by using Milo's Heal Level 3. Don't forget that Milo can Revive a fallen comrade, because if the Blackbone attacks a character twice AND gets a critical hit, they're dead. At least you get a reasonable amount of XP for killing one... Final Thoughts: --------------- A quick question and answer session: Q: WHY ARE THERE "HOLES" IN MY MAP? A: Because you didn't use the Mystic Rope to explore EVERY hole in the ceiling. Now get going! Q: WILL I EVER BE ABLE TO OPEN OR BYPASS THOSE STUPID METAL GATES? A: Yes, soon. MORE ON MITHRIL ORE: if you've been diligent about grabbing the contents of EVERY chest you can reach, you'll have found a total of 4 hunks of Mithril Ore. You can buy a 5th hunk of Ore out of the Alkemist's Deals display. I recommend using ALL FIVE on equipment for Milo and Pyra. Craft your allies some LightRobes, Mithril Hoods, and Mithril Shields. As soon as you have the coins, be sure to Craft the Mithril Axe for Milo. Why aren't we Crafting anything for Marak, you ask? Simple. Marak gets the Arms of Light, which are FAR more powerful than anything you can Craft for him out of Mithril. Of course, you COULD use some of your IRREPLACEABLE Mithril Ore to Craft Marak some Mithril equipment that will quickly become obsolete, replaced by the Arms of Light... but it's really a better idea to use all the Mithril Ore on Milo and Pyra, who will benefit from their Crafted Mithril gear until the very end of the game. Once you've grabbed the Mystic Rope, scaled every hole in the ceiling, gotten the LightHelm, and transplanted your Medallion to the Gold Fountain on the Third Floor (see, I TOLD you it was going to take several trips to accomplish everything), you're ready to move on to... ------------------------------------------------- The Labyrinth Proper, Fourth Floor, initial areas ------------------------------------------------- Marak's Level: 34, Milo's Level: 32, and Pyra' Level: 35 Level to reach: Marak: 38, Milo: 36, and Pyra: 37 Foes you'll face: Troll, Gryphon, Demonika, Necromancer, Dragonspawn, Vyper, Living Armor, Warbird, Scizzar, Deathbringer, Mandagora, Meat Zombie General Advice: --------------- GO TOWARD THE LIGHTS. The way to the deeper depths of the Fourth Floor lies at the end of an EXTREMELY long, twisting, torch-lined hallway. The best thing to do when exploring this floor is to take every side passage, saving this "main" hall for last. That way, you're sure to find all the chests - and you won't have to do any backtracking. STEAL THE STEEL WHIP from that lone chest nestled along this Floor's West wall. The Steelwhip is Pyra's most versatile weapon (assuming you're not using the Hex Whip). It only increases her Weapon Factor by 35 (just 10 more than the Thorn Whip) but the point is that it attacks every monster in a group at once - it's like turning her standard attack into a free Bolt Level 2 spell! Never a bad thing, if you ask me, but I'm sure some will prefer the higher "single target" damage that a finely Crafted Mithril Rod provides - or the "high risk, high damage" Hex Whip. MATTERS OF LIFE AND DEATH: the Mandagoras that appear here can "howl in pain", which is identical in effect to a Desoul Level 2 spell - Instant Death attempted on all three characters! Now, if Milo and Pyra have either a LightRobe or a Mithril Shield equipped, they will have some protection from being slain instantly, but Marak will fall prey to this "attack" almost every time. Kill Mandagoras on sight, or you'll regret it. Conversely, the mis-named Deathbringers don't use any Instant Death attacks at all; instead, they cast Revive Level 2 on their fallen comrades, which sucks because you end up killing quite a few Deathbringers more than once, and yet you don't get any extra XP (or Gold coins) for all your hard work. Bleah. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Dragonspawn (Dragon 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 70-74 Attack: 215 Defense: 80 Speed: 83 XP: 900 GP: 270 While they may appear intimidating, Dragonspawn really aren't too threatening. I expected them to breathe fire for massive damage to the entire Party, but fortunately they can only hurl balls of flame at a single character for 55-60 damage (less if they target Marak in the Sun Armor). You should be able to tackle these with little trouble, but a large group might require a Sleep spell, just to be safe. Vyper (Naga 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 6x-6x Attack: ?? Defense: 95 Speed: 86 XP: 930 GP: 302 A truly bizarre monster, the Vyper will never attack physically. The only thing they will do is attempt to Paralyze you with their piercing gaze. Now, since having all three characters Paralyzed at once means that it's Game Over, you shouldn't feel inclined to let them live too long. Sleep is iffy on these things, so a double whammy may be in order if you get a large group (or groupings). Living Armor (Animated Armor 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 60-63 Attack: 220 Defense: 135 Speed: 85 XP: 950 GP: 230 Living Armor can pose a bit of a problem. Unlike most construct monsters, they follow logic - and thus, you can't affect them with Sleep or Slow spells. Living Armor will also get lucky and score the occasional Critical hit. On the bright side, they have low HP - thus making a Boost Level 1 spell cast on Milo a very good idea. Warbird (Bird Battler 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 76-80 Attack: 225 Defense: 93 Speed: 88 XP: 970 GP: 310 Yet another foe that can damage the entire party at once - by flapping their wings and creating an effect like a Blast Level 3 spell. War Birds also have high attack power, but you can help nullify both of their attack modes with Pyra's Sleep spells - or a Freeze/Bolt and Blast double whammy. Deathbringer (Grim 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 68-72 Attack: 235 Defense: 92 Speed: 87 XP: 1010 GP: 380 Deathbringers have quite a few things in their favor, and few weaknesses. They posses very high attack power, resistance to all elemental damage, and the ability to cast Revive Level 2 to bring their monstrous comrades back to life with full HP. Ugh. Your best bet, really, is to use Quick Level 2 or Boost Level 2 and just slug it out with the 'bringers. You don't have to worry about them casting Desoul on you, as - unlike their lesser brethren - they do not use it. Mandagora (Tree Devil 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 67-71 Attack: ?? Defense: 95 Speed: 86 XP: 1060 GP: 420 Oh, here we go. HERE'S the monster that uses an instant-kill attack! You knew there had to be one... the Mandagora will never attack you physically, and will even waste the occasional turn "watching you warily" - but it can and will howl in pain, which is identical to a Desoul Level 2 spell and can thus kill the entire Party if you get unlucky. They can also use Heal Level 2 to restore the HP of injured comrades. In short, these are the nastiest monsters you will face on this Floor. I recommend going all out and blasting them with a combination of you highest Level Bolt/Freeze and Blast/Burst spells. Meat Zombie (Ghoul 2) # Appearing: 1-4 (or summoned by Necromancers) HP: 94-99 Attack: 235 Defense: 95 Speed: 80 XP: 1250 GP: 390 Meat Zombies are the tanks of this Floor - they're slow, but they pack a punch and have a LOT of HP, plus their attacks will randomly induce Poison. You can double whammy them with Blaze and Blast, but it's really better to save your MP for more dangerous foes. Instead, consider using Quick and just duking it out with them in melee combat. Final Thoughts: --------------- Be sure to grab the Steelwhip before you head too far North; any point on this Floor that is less than "15 steps South" qualifies as... ------------------------------------------------- The Labyrinth Proper, Fourth Floor, deeper depths ------------------------------------------------- Marak's Level: 38, Milo's Level: 36, and Pyra' Level: 37 Level to reach: Marak: 42, Milo: 39, and Pyra: 40 Foes you'll face: Cerebus, Troglodyte, Deathmask, Gollum, Handeater, Lancerot, Hobgoblin, Bildblok, Syren Artifacts found: Cell Key, Light Blade, Light Shield (Arms of Light found: 3/4) General Advice: --------------- GET THE ELUSIVE LIGHT BLADE AS SOON AS YOU CAN! The chest containing the Light Blade is located at 11 steps East, 5 steps South, behind a Grimwall. You must turn away from the torch-lined "main passage" (see my entry about it above), and head Northwest past 2 Spinners to get there. Not only does this beast of a weapon increase Marak's attack power by 150 (!), it also casts Bolt Level 3 when used in battle! Get it as soon as you can, as it REALLY turns Marak into a powerhouse. The Light Blade rests behind what happens to be the final Grimwall, so you can sell the Orb of Truth the next time you're in Town. HOT REVERSE BALCONY ACTION awaits! At the end of the lit "main hall", you'll come to another Balcony, which whisks you from the Northeast corner to the Northwest corner of the Floor. There's some nasty... fights waiting you in this last area of the Fourth Floor, so don't go venturing too far away from the Balcony until you're fully prepared. WOE IS ME, TAKE TWO. Okay, this is the real deal. This entry contains a whole bucket load of *****SPOILERS***** so stop reading now if you don't want stuff spoiled for you. The Princess' cell is located at 5 steps East, 13 steps South. When you reach the intersection in front of her cell, she will call out to you. When you approach her cell, she tells you that you won't be able to free her without the key - which Mortred is guarding! That's right, your father is safeguarding the key that will free the Princess! But... why would he do that? As a Knight of the realm, your father is doing the exact opposite of what he should be doing... And then, Jessa drops another bombshell. Mortred has turned to the Dark side (hooooo pah, hoooooo pah) and now serves Dark Sol as a Dark Knight. That's right - you must face your own corrupted father (hooooo pah, hooooo pah) in order to free the Princess and face Dark Sol. The Princess again begs you to find the CELL KEY and free her. You have little choice but to continue onwards, in search of the Cell Key... SHOWDOWN WITH THE DARK KNIGHT: okay, I'll do it again... *****SPOILERS***** Don't walk down the hallway to the left just beyond the Princess' cell. If you set foot in the section of hall at 7 steps East, 14 steps South, the voice of Mortred challenges you. But... is this your father? A Dark Knight, dressed in blood red armor and wielding the Dark Blade, steps forth and attacks. Dark Knight ----------- HP: 1600 Attack: 335 Defense: 105 Speed: 155 XP: 1000 GP: none The Dark Knight is the game's first real, true, honest-to-goodness Boss. He has hellacious attack power, incredible speed, and far more HP than anything you've yet faced. He will also attack twice EVERY round. I recommend the following battle strategy: Round 1: Marak attacks. Milo casts Quick Level 1 on himself. Pyra casts Attack Level 1 on Marak. Round 2: Marak attacks. Milo casts Quick Level 1 on Pyra. Pyra casts Attack Level 1 on Milo - or Heal Level 2 if someone's been reduced to less than 150 HP. Round 3: Marak attacks. Milo casts Quick Level 1 on Pyra (or Heals someone with less than 150 HP). Pyra is now free to Heal if needed or chip away at the Dark Knight's HP with Bolt Level 3 or Freeze Level 4. Rounds 4 and on: Marak attacks. Milo Heals who needs it or attacks. Pyra Heals who needs it or casts Bolt 3/Freeze 4. As long as you get Quick Level 1 on everyone as soon as you can, the Dark Knight won't be quite as dangerous as his attacks will deal much less damage. And, with Attack Level 1 on Marak and Milo, you can deal a LOT of damage to the Dark Knight in a single Round. Once you deal 1,000 damage to the Dark Knight, his helmet comes off! Nothing else changes, however, he just continues to whack you with the Dark Blade. When you see the Dark Knight sink to his knees, you've won. Mortred comes to his senses and tells you about the Dark Blade - a gift to him from Melvyl. It slowly robbed him of his free will... Mortred tells you not to mourn; after all, you freed his soul from the clutches of Darkness. Mortred then renounces the Dark Blade and the Darkness that spawned it. With his last breath, he tells you that the Cell Key lies in the passage ahead, and then... he collapses, never to rise again. Walk North, turn East, turn South, and open the Chest for the Cell Key. Return to Jessa's cell and use the Cell Key to free her. She will ask how you came to possess the Cell Key... and expresses horror when you tell her that you had to slay Mortred in order to get to it. She curses Dark Sol and then joins the Party. And no, she doesn't attack in combat. She's the Princess! Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Cerebus (Cerberus 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 81-85 Attack: 240 Defense: 102 Speed: 91 XP: 1100 GP: 450 The main reason that Cerebus are dangerous is the fact that they can attack twice in a round (a benefit of having three heads, no doubt). My advice (as usual) is to use Sleep spells to "disable" as many Cerebus as you can. Troglodyte (Elezard 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 94-99 Attack: 255 Defense: 94 Speed: 88 XP: 1300 GP: 510 The Troglodytes are an Icy version of their cousins, the Salamanders. As such, they can emit a freezing cloud that deals 76-88 damage to the entire Party. They also have a large supply of HP and high attack power. As with any monster that can damage the entire Party at once, I recommend either a double whammy or Sleep spells. Deathmask (Demonic Warrior 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 95-100 Attack: 275 Defense: 95 Speed: 94 XP: 1330 GP: 470 These guys are a real blast: their critical hits don't do increased damage - no, they simply kill a character outright. Whee! You can try Sleep, but it's not terribly effective... in fact, there's not much you can do to make fighting Deathmasks less dangerous. You'll just have to grit your teeth and hope that they don't score a Critical Kill on Milo. Gollum (Golem 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 105-110 Attack: 295 Defense: 125 Speed: 95 XP: 1460 GP: 590 It's not a good idea to underestimate Gollums just because they have no mass-damage ability - they still have very high attack power, coupled with the ability to pull off the occasional Critical hit. Oh yeah, they have a lot of HP, too. It's hard to double whammy these without burning a ton of MP, so consider trying Sleep or Muddle Level 2 (once Pyra learns it) instead. Lancerot (Dark Knight 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 103-108 Attack: 275 Defense: 100 Speed: 93 XP: 1500 GP: 450 Lancerots are best dealt with decisively, because the longer you let them live the more damage they can do to you. First off, they can lower your Party's defense with Slow Level 2. Once your defenses are down, they'll begin attacking twice in a round. Not a nice combination. You can counter this with either Sleep or Quick spells, then give them the thrashing they deserve. Handeater (Chest Beast 4) 66 HP: 95-110 Attack: 350 Defense: 175 Speed: 98 XP: 1500 GP: 500 The last and most dangerous of the Chest Beast monsters, Handeaters may lack HP but they make up for it with insane defense, attack power, and speed. Oh yeah, and they can emit a freezing cloud that deals 68-82 damage to the Party or - if you're really unlucky - they'll "pull a Mandagora", howl in pain, and attempt to Desoul everyone. My advice is to cast Boost Level 1 on Milo and hope that he can kill the Handeater before it has a chance to act. If he can't, you're in for some pain. Hobgoblin (Goblin 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 89-94 Attack: 290 Defense: 96 Speed: 90 XP: 1570 GP: 480 Nothing special here. Use Sleep. Attack. Rake in easy XP. No special abilities to worry about or anything... so why are they worth more XP than Handeaters? Baffling. Bildblok (Blokhead 2) HP: 475-500 Attack: 300 Defense: 125 Speed: 95 XP: 2500 GP: 1000 I hate these things. Not only do they do good attack power, way too many HP, and high defense, they also can emit a cloud of freezing gas that deals 120-139 damage to the entire Party. Yeah. 120 damage or more to everyone, and they're only worth 2500 XP. Whatever. If you can, have Pyra Slow the Bildblok, as this will make the fight a little shorter. Syren (Water Elemental 3) HP: 455-480 Attack: 325 Defense: 100 Speed: 100 XP: 3400 GP: 2900 And here we have the latest and greatest Water Elemental, the Syren. Syrens can do a few different things to you: they can attack twice, cast Muddle Level 1, and spew paralyzing mist. However, you can put them to Sleep! So, have Marak and Milo attack while Pyra casts Sleep, and you'll be victorious in no time. Dark Knight - Boss, Unique HP: 1600 Attack: 335 Defense: 105 Speed: 155 XP: 1000 GP: 0 Well... I already told you how to beat the Dark Knight, but I'll review anyway. Buff everyone with Level ONE Quick and Level ONE Boost, then alternate attacking and healing. As long as the Dark Knight doesn't get a critical on a character who's low on HP, you should be just fine. Final Thoughts: --------------- BRING JESSA BACK HOME... OR NOT. The obvious thing to do at this point is bring Jessa back to the Castle. However, it's FAR more amusing to take Jessa to the Tavern first. Everyone wigs out upon seeing the Princess before Vic scolds you and shoos you out of the Tavern. But, the fun isn't over... go back into the Tavern again for some additional amusing dialogue. When you've had your fun, bring Jessa back to the Castle. The King and Princess share a moment, and then the King thanks you and gives you a Magic Ring. This awesome little item will restore some MP to Milo or Pyra when they use it! Of course, it will eventually crack and you'll have to repair it, but at least you now have an emergency store of MP that you can take into the Labyrinth with you. You're now free to speak with everyone. Theos mentions DemonBreath, a fearsome Dark spell that only the Shining Knight can overcome. Vyrun also tells you the legend of the Shining Knight, which is a nice little bit of foreshadowing. The others don't offer much (other than praise), but speak to them if you like. It's also a good idea to speak with Edward at the Tavern to find out a little more about the Water Spirit, the Patron of the Shining Knight, a.k.a. the Spirit of Light. He mentions that you need a VIAL, which you don't possess... yet. MAKING USE OF THE CELL KEY. Remember all those irritating barred grates that have been blocking your path? You can now use the Cell Key to open all of them! Here's a full list, so you can go back to all these areas and do some more treasure hunting: In the Cave of Strength, a barred gate at 20 steps East, 7 steps South hides a chest behind it. In the Cave of Courage, a barred gate at 16 steps East, 19 steps South hides a chest behind it. In the Cave of Truth, a barred gate at 26 steps East, 15 steps South hides a chest behind it. In the Cave of Wisdom, a barred gate at 30 steps East, 28 steps South hides a chest behind it. On the Labyrinth Proper's Second Floor, a barred gate at 9 steps East, 28 steps South hides a chest behind it. On the Labyrinth Proper's Third Floor, a barred gate at 3 steps East, 1 step South hides a chest behind it at the end of a long hall. This chest contains the Light Shield for Marak, making it well worth the trek. You should now be ready to snag the Medallion out of the Third Floor Gold Fountain, and transfer it to the Gold Fountain on the Fourth Floor. You can't miss it, it's just to the West of where you found the Cell Key. Once you've transferred the Medallion, it's time to take those stairs up to the Fifth and final Floor of the Labyrinth Proper. It's time to search for Dark Sol in the... ------------------------------------------------ The Labyrinth Proper, Fifth Floor, initial areas ------------------------------------------------ Marak's Level: 42, Milo's Level: 39, and Pyra' Level: 40 Level to reach: Marak: 47, Milo: 44, and Pyra: 45 Foes you'll face: Gollum, Lancerot, Hobgoblin, Hellhound, Centaurian, Gargoyle, Graveroc, Chimera, Colussus, Ghoul Artifacts found: Vial of Tears (in the Castle) General Advice: --------------- HERE WE ARE, THE HOME STRETCH. Dark Sol is hiding somewhere on this Floor, and it's up to you to find him and end his evil schemes. Unfortunately, the way to Dark Sol is long and treacherous, filled with the strongest monsters in the entire Labyrinth. So, some advice: -Bring as many Magic Rings as you can carry. You should have 2 already, and you can find a third in the Southern portion of the Floor. Whenever Milo or Pyra start to get too low on MP, start using the Rings to restore their MP - until the Rings begin cracking, anyway. Hey, it's not like you can't afford to repair them. -Abuse the Light Blade! I have yet to see THIS thing crack, so have Marak use it in any battle with 3 or more foes in it. Hey, he can either do 140 damage to a single monster or almost 100 to all of them. Gee, which is better? LEVELS, LEVELS, LEVELS. You will be SHOOTING up Levels at this point, as the XP needed to reach the next Level tapers off at about 65,000 per Level - while the XP gained per battle has skyrocketed to almost 10,000 (assuming 3 or 4 foes)! If you spend any time on this floor at all, you'll be gaining Levels like mad - but you'll need them, as Dark Sol surely won't be a pushover. And, in related news: DIMINISHING RETURNS? Once Milo and Pyra reach Level 40, they will no longer get 6-8 MP per Level. Instead, they will starting getting literally HALF that, gaining only 3 (and rarely, 4) MP per Level. I assume this was done to keep Milo and Pyra from overshadowing Marak (if they ended up with too many MP they could just cast spells all day long). However, it's still annoying, as it makes their Levels seem almost pointless, what with no new spells to learn and them only gaining half as many MP per Level as before. Oh well, you still need the bonuses to the "big" stats - HP, Speed, Attack, and Defense - that each Level tacks on. GO SOUTH FIRST. There's a trio of chests to be looted down there. It's a good place to gain a few Levels, as well. I'M RUNNING OUT OF CLEVER WAYS TO TELL YOU HOW TO KILL MONSTERS IN THE SAME MANNER... so, the next couple of Monster Menageries aren't going to have detailed instructions. I'm just going to tell you what attacks the beasties have and assume that you know by now to have Marak use the Light Blade, have Milo cast Burst 3-4 or Blast 3-4, and have Pyra either attack with the Steel (Hex) Whip or use an attack spell in order to win almost every battle in a single round. That's right, it's time to forget Sleep and Muddle. All three characters now have a means to deal substantial damage to every foe on screen (not to mention Milo and Pyra's now substantial MP reserves), so now is the time to stop pussyfooting around and go for the jugular. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Hellhound (Cerberus 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 90-95 Attack: 255 Defense: 104 Speed: 99 XP: 1640 GP: 620 Hellhounds, due to their multiple heads, will frequently attack twice. Oddly enough, they don't have any sort of fire breath. Centaurian (Centaur Warrior 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 115-120 Attack: 285 Defense: 113 Speed: 100 XP: 1680 GP: 790 Just a basic physical fighter. No special abilities. Not much to say here; use the Light Blade and Pyra's Whip, and watch them die. Toss in a Blast Level 3 if you're worried about leaving survivors behind. Gargoyle (Winged Devil 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 93-98 Attack: 258 Defense: 110 Speed: 96 XP: 1680 GP: 550 Gargoyles have no special abilities, making them a minimal threat. Triple whammy them into the ground. Graveroc (Griffon 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 91-96 Attack: 235 Defense: 106 Speed: 102 XP: 1860 GP: 760 Graverocs can savagely flap their wings, which has the same effect as a Blast Level 4 spell. Ouch. Don't hold back on these guys, or you'll be wasting a bunch of Milo's MP healing. Chimera (Myth Demon 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 95-100 Attack: 265 Defense: 112 Speed: 100 XP: 1940 GP: 980 Chimeras like to emit freezing clouds, which deal 52-68 Ice damage to the entire Party. This hurts even more than the Graveroc's ability, so again, don't hold back on these critters; kill them on sight with powerful magic and the Light Blade. Collossus (Golem 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 120-125 Attack: 285 Defense: 120 Speed: 97 XP: 2030 GP: 840 Ugh. A lot of HP, high defense, high attack power, resistant to most magic. Plus they can hurl boulders, which is really just an Attack Power 350 attack against a single character. Try the Light Blade, Blast 3/4, and Freeze 3/4 to tackle large groups. Ghoul (Ghoul 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 105-109 Attack: 250 Defense: 109 Speed: 98 XP: 2240 GP: 800 The Ghoul's attack can induce Poison. Big frickin' deal. Just blast them with your triple whammy and collect your XP. Final Thoughts: --------------- A VIAL OF THE PRINCESS' TEARS can be yours if you return to the Castle after visiting the Fifth Floor for the first time. Speak with the Princess, who explains that she told the King (and the others) of how you were forced to take Mortred's life in order to free her. She asserts that Mortred was but a victim of the powers of Darkness, and that she is determined that he will not be branded a traitor to the realm. When the Princess begins weeping, Theos whips out a VIAL and catches her tears in it. Speak with Theos to receive the VIAL OF TEARS, an item will come in handy quite soon. Once you've raided the three southern chests and gotten the Vial of Tears, return to the Fifth Floor and take the North passage. You'll walk down what is easily the longest hallway in the game. When you finally reach the Southeast corner of the Floor, you'll have reached... ------------------------------------------------ The Labyrinth Proper, Fifth Floor, deeper depths ------------------------------------------------ Marak's Level: 47, Milo's Level: 44, and Pyra' Level: 45 Level to reach: Marak: 51, Milo: 47, and Pyra: 48 Foes you'll face: Graverok, Chimera, Collossus, Dragonfyre, Warhorse, Deathpaw, Lokjaw, Bildblok, Kamiliun, Demonesk, Ragnarock, Serpi, Syren, Brimstone, Guardian Artifacts found: Light Armor (Arms of Light found: 4/4. Congrats.) General Advice: --------------- TRAPS AND MORE TRAPS litter this area of the Floor. More annoying than anything, the concealed pits merely force you to backtrack a bit (but they do fill in some of those "gaps" in your Fourth Floor map). The Handeaters shouldn't be a threat by this point, provided you're willing to spend 9 MP casting Boost Level 1 on Milo. THE LAST OF THE ARMS OF LIGHT, THE LIGHT ARMOR, is found in a chest at 9 steps East, 5 steps South. Be sure to grab it before you fall into that non-concealed pit to the West. That pits leads to the Labyrinth's final areas... for now, you should backtrack to the Rainbow Fountain, and... BLESSED BY THE WATER SPIRIT, WRAPPED IN LIGHT; DARKNESS FEARS A SHINING KNIGHT. You will come upon a strange, rainbow fountain (the coordinates are 3 steps East, 26 steps South) which houses the Spirit of Light. Use the Vial of Tears, and she will appear before you, saying that she has waited long for one such as you. If you haven't found all four of the Arms of Light, she simply tells you to come back once you have. If, however, you possess all four Arms of Light, she will "give you the power to use them to their utmost". From this moment on, you are the Champion of Light... the Shining Knight! Finally, she informs you that you can use the waters of her fountain to restore yourselves after you have been wounded in battle. With a final command to go and drive the Darkness from this land, she heals the Party to full HP AND MP, and then vanishes. From this point on, all you have to do is face the fountain, and your Party will have their HP and MP fully restored. You can do this as often as you like. It always works and it never costs you anything. However, for reasons I will never understand, you're NOT allowed to use the Talisman here. If you leave the Labyrinth, the game forces you to walk all the way across the Fifth Floor, every time. Lame, but at least you have this spot to restore your MP after the trek. Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Dragonfyre (Dragon 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 102-107 Attack: 290 Defense: 110 Speed: 102 XP: 2100 GP: 830 Dragonfyres are fond of emitting a white-hot gas that deals 112-135 Fire damage to the entire Party. I don't know why a monster worth so little XP can deal so much damage, but there you are. Use the Light Blade and 4th Level Freeze/Blast spells. Warhorse (Centaur Warrior 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 131-136 Attack: 315 Defense: 113 Speed: 110 XP: 2110 GP: 1230 You'll see a lot of these guys, but fortunately for you they aren't anything special. Just give 'em the Whammy and watch them die. Deathpaw (Cerberus 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 104-109 Attack: 290 Defense: 102 Speed: 106 XP: 2270 GP: 962 Be afraid; Deathpaws can use Muddle Level 2 and will frequently attack twice. Light Blade, Blast, Freeze, dead. Lokjaw (Winged Devil 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 124-129 Attack: 300 Defense: 110 Speed: 112 XP: 2450 GP: 1000 Lokjaws can cast Screen Level 1, but you should be faster than they are, so just whammy 'em and they'll all die before they get a chance to silence anyone. Kamiliun (Myth Demon 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 118-123 Attack: 300 Defense: 119 Speed: 108 XP: 2520 GP: 1120 High attack power, but no special attacks (with all those heads? What?). Try the Light Blade, Blast, and Freeze. Demonesk (Demonesque 1) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 113-118 Attack: 285 Defense: 112 Speed: 107 XP: 2600 GP: 1030 These guys must be related to the Dragonfyre: they aren't worth all that much XP considering they can nail you with freezing gas that deals 125-145 damage to the entire Party. Light Blade, Burst, and Blaze/Bolt should do it. Ragnarock (Golem 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 137-142 Attack: 365 Defense: 115 Speed: 101 XP: 2800 GP: 1350 Big HP, big attack, big XP. Try the Light Blade, Blast, and Freeze. Serpi (Winged Devil 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 110-115 Attack: 280 Defense: 108 Speed: 114 XP: 2900 GP: 1400 Serpi cast a spell that game says is Desoul Level 2 - but it only affects a single character. Still, it's best to kill these things with the Light Blade, Blast, and Bolt/Freeze before they can attempt to Desoul anyone. Brimstone (Demonesque 2) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 154-160 Attack: 315 Defense: 110 Speed: 113 XP: 3580 GP: 1500 Ahh, Brimstone. They give the most XP of any "standard" monster, and all they do is hit hard and cast Muddle Level 2. Use the Light Blade, Blast, and Freeze. Guardian (Guardian 2) - Mini-Boss (statue that animates) HP: 345-370 Attack: 375 Defense: 135 Speed: 120 XP: 4500 GP: 3000 Guardians are Sentinels on steroids. Open with either Slow Level 1 or Boost Level 1 (on Marak) from Pyra and Quick Level 2 from Milo, then just alternate Heal spells and physical attacks until it goes down. Muddle and Sleep are not effective on Guardians, and Slow is very iffy as well. Final Thoughts: --------------- Once you've been blessed by the Spirit of Light (which also means you have the Light Armor), you're ready to fall down that pit just to the West of where you found the Light Armor (it's located at 7 steps East, 6 steps South). From there, ascend the staircase to the West, and you'll emerge at... ---------------------------------------------------- The Labyrinth Proper, Fifth Floor, Dark Sol's Domain ---------------------------------------------------- Marak's Level: 51, Milo's Level: 47, and Pyra' Level: 48 Level to reach: Marak: 56, Milo: 53, and Pyra: 54 Foes you'll face: Warhorse, Bildblok, Ragnarock, Serpi, Brimstone, Ramiun, Crystal Ooze, Dark Sol, Dark Demon Final Advice: ------------- TRY TO SAVE YOUR MP FOR THE BATTLE WITH DARK SOL. As such, it's advised to use the Light Blade as much as you can, and try to save Milo and Pyra's MP by using items (like the Storm Sword and Ice Staff) instead of spells. Also, you brought all three Magic Rings with you, right? Well, there's no time to use them like RIGHT BEFORE FIGHTING THE LAST BOSS, correct? So use them. Make sure your MP is as full as you can get it before entering Dark Sol's inner sanctum. BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR METAL SLIMES... I MEAN, CRYSTAL OOZE. Yep, you will (once in a blue moon) encounter Crystal Ooze in the hallways nearest to Dark Sol's lair. Crystal Ooze only have 2-3 HP, but then they take only 0 or 1 damage from any elemental attack, and are only affected by physical attacks about 20% of the time. They're worth a LOT of XP but are very hard to kill in a fair fight... so try the following items to snuff them outright: the Forbidden Box, the Black Box, the Shock Box, the Earth Hammer, or the Ogre Flute. The Forbidden Box is found in a chest behind a locked gate, but you have to get lucky with the other items... they will (eventually) appear in the Alkemist's Deals display... Monster Menagerie: ------------------ Ramiun (Myth Demon 3) # Appearing: 1-4 HP: 147-153 Attack: 325 Defense: 120 Speed: 122 XP: 3200 GP: 1200 Another monster that should be worth more XP than it is. Ramiuns can unleash white-hot gas that deals 120-135 Fire damage to the entire Party. Strike first with the Light Blade, Burst, and Freeze. Crystal Ooze (Slime 4) # Appearing: 1-6 HP: 2-3 Attack: 225 Defense: 256 Speed: 300 XP: 30000 (!!!) GP: 5000 Ahh, the Crystal Ooze. First off, these guys pack a mean punch with the Freeze Level 4 spell. They can also cast Muddle Level 2. They can also howl for help, which summons a random monster into the fray. Oh yeah, and they're about 25% likely to flee in any given round. PLUS, they have incredible speed (think Level 70 Pyra type Speed) and are basically immune to all elemental damage and status ailment spells: elemental attack spells will deal either 0 damage or (if you're really lucky) 1 damage. Finally, physical attacks only affect them about 20% of the time. Sound unfair? Well, there's a reason they're so hard to kill: they are worth THIRTY THOUSAND XP APIECE. That's right, 30,000 XP per person per Ooze. Since killing even one Ooze in a fair fight is difficult at best, it's safest (if you can) to have Pyra use an Instant Death item - the Forbidden Box, the Shock Box, the Earth Hammer, the Black Box, or the Ogre Flute - to snuff any Crystal Ooze she sees, before they can act. For some reason, the damage caused by the Earth Hammer is not reduced to one (it must be non-elemental damage), so it will kill all Crystal Ooze on screen. Final Thoughts: --------------- ONLY THE SHINING KNIGHT MAY FACE DARK SOL. If you haven't been blessed by the Spirit of Light, you will be unable to enter Dark Sol's lair, plain and simple. WITH THE FATE OF THE KINGDOM OF THORNWOOD AT STAKE, the Shining Knight and his stalwart companions enter Dark Sol's Inner Sanctum at the highest point of the Labyrinth Proper. Dark Sol welcomes you, saying that he's been bored lately with none to challenge his power. Your death, it seems, will make Dark Sol's victory over the Light all the sweeter... Dark Sol -------- HP: 1475-1525 Attack: ?? Defense: 115 Speed: 115 Specials: Demonbreath; 45-65 Evil damage to the Party Bolt Level 3; 20-48 Lightning damage to the Party I know what you're thinking; those are some pretty pathetic stats for the last Boss. Well, that's because this is just his first form. Even still, he can be a bit annoying... I recommend doing exactly what you did when fighting Mortred: Quick Level 1 on Milo, Marak, then Pyra and Boost Level 1 on Marak then Milo. Then, attack and heal until you deal 1500 damage to Dark Sol. He wall drop to one knee and express disbelief at his defeat. As his strength wanes and he collapses to the ground, he whines about how he was supposed to have been granted true power, and pleads with the powers of Darkness not to let their plans be undone by a group of children. And the Darkness answers. Dark Sol's body begins to twitch, and then, the Sphere behind him glows red! Electricity flows from it, and Dark Sol is reborn! Dark Demon ---------- HP: 1950-2050 (to disable Arms) Attack: 420 (Physical Arm) Defense: 120 3475-3525 (total HP) 512 (Main Body) Speed: 135 Special attacks --------------- Main Body: Demonbreath; 75-125 Evil damage to the Party Magic Arm: Bolt Level 3; 20-55 Lightning damage to the Party Blaze Level 3; 10-25 Fire damage to the Party Dark Sol's Demon form has three parts: the Main Body, the Physical Arm, and the Magic Arm. Each turn, Dark Demon (almost always) attacks twice, choosing Arms at random to attack you: the Physical Arm has a powerful physical attack (duh); while the Magic Arm makes its presence felt by casting Bolt Level 3 and Blaze Level 3. He will also (rarely) cast Demonbreath from the Main Body, dealing 75-125 Evil damage to each character. This counts as a new battle, so all your Quick and Boost spells are gone. Recast them as before, and then it's just a matter of smart healing and whittling away at Dark Demon's HP. Or is it? Once you deal 2000 damage to Dark Demon, the Arms drop lifeless to its sides - and the real fun begins. Now, Dark Demon quits playing around. It still attacks twice per turn more often than not, but now it uses its tail to deliver ludicrously powerful physical blows, and it uses Demonbreath with alarming frequency. Basically, once the Arms go down, you have to take the kid gloves come off and really come out swinging. Hit Dark Demon with everything you've got, and don't be afraid to use Milo's Heal Level 4 if you have 2 characters "in the yellow" at any point. You can use Magic Rings in battle if you run completely out of MP, but if you get to that point, you're really in trouble. If you can sneak it in, Pyra's Bolt Level 4 spell will deal close to 200 damage to Dark Demon. If your Levels are high enough (mid-50's should be enough), and you had close to 200 MP with both Milo and Pyra to start with, there's no reason you shouldn't prevail - it only takes another 1500 (or so) points of damage to put Dark Demon down for good... And, well, that's it. Dark Demon has been defeated. Darkness has been washed away by the Light. Savor your victory, watch the ending, and the credits will roll. Congrats on a job well done. And now, the promised Appendices: -------------------------------- 6. Quick Monster Reference Chart -------------------------------- Slimy Ooze (Slime 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, nearest the Entrance HP: 6-8 Attack: 14 Defense: 14 Speed: 8 XP: 1 GP: 2 Cave Slug (Slugite 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, nearest the Entrance HP: 7-9 Attack: 13 Defense: 15 Speed: 8 XP: 1 GP: 2 Pit Worm (Trihead 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, nearest the Entrance HP: 9-12 Attack: 15 Defense: 12 Speed: 8 XP: 1 GP: 3 Man-Ape (Hybrid 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, southwest section HP: 10-13 Attack: 21 Defense: 18 Speed: 9 XP: 2 GP: 4 Dark Jelly (Slime 2) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, southwest section HP: 9-12 Attack: 24 Defense: 20 Speed: 12 XP: 3 GP: 5 Darkbat (Werebat 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, northwest section HP: 11-14 Attack: 30 Defense: 25 Speed: 15 XP: 3 GP: 6 Killerbee (Hornet 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, northwest section HP: 12-15 Attack: 35 Defense: 23 Speed: 16 XP: 4 GP: 8 Special: attacks can Poison a character Kaiser Krab (Krab 1) Mini-boss (emerges from left-hand side passages) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level, Trial of Strength HP: 45-50 Attack: 55 Defense: 50 Speed: 22 XP: 40 GP: 50 Special: occasionally attacks twice, gets occasional Critical hits Scavenger (Slugite 2) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level (past Bronze Door), Trial of Strength 1 HP: 11-14 Attack: 31 Defense: 27 Speed: 18 XP: 4 GP: 8 Mad Gnome (Little People 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level (past Bronze Door), Trial of Strength 1 HP: 12-16 Attack: 35 Defense: 25 Speed: 17 XP: 5 GP: 7 Dark Hermit (Apparition 1) Found in: Trial of Strength 1 HP: 13-16 Attack: 30 Defense: 30 Speed: 21 XP: 6 GP: 7 Neanderthal (Hybrid 2) Found in: Trial of Strength 1 HP: 16-19 Attack: 45 Defense: 28 Speed: 23 XP: 7 GP: 9 Widowfang (Spider 1) Found in: Trial of Strength 1 HP: 17-20 Attack: 43 Defense: 28 Speed: 22 XP: 8 GP: 11 Special: attacks can Poison a character Cave Goblin (Goblin 1) Found in: Trial of Strength 1 HP: 17-20 Attack: 46 Defense: 31 Speed: 25 XP: 8 GP: 13 Special: gets occasional critical hits, can defend self Triklops (Trihead 2) Found in: Trial of Strength 2 HP: 16-20 Attack: 45 Defense: 30 Speed: 29 XP: 9 GP: 17 Special: shines with a strange aura (saps 6-10 MP) Vampyre (Werebat 2) Found in: Trial of Strength 1 & 2 HP: 17-20 Attack: 52 Defense: 30 Speed: 28 XP: 12 GP: 13 Special: attacks can Paralyze a character Skeletar (Skeleton 1) Found in: Trial of Strength 2, Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Strength Wall) HP: 20-23 Attack: 55 Defense: 33 Speed: 28 XP: 13 GP: 16 Punkinhead (Gourdemon 1) Found in: Trial of Strength 2 HP: 18-21 Attack: 47 Defense: 32 Speed: 34 XP: 14 GP: 18 Special: casts Heal Level 1 Vile Ooze (Slime 3) Found in: Trial of Strength 2, Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Strength Wall) HP: 21-23 Attack: 49 Defense: 35 Speed: 36 XP: 16 GP: 21 Special: casts Freeze Level 1 Deathguide (Apparition 2) Found in: Trial of Strength 2, Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Strength Wall) HP: 22-25 Attack: 52 Defense: 38 Speed: 38 XP: 19 GP: 19 Special: sprinkles Sleeping powder on Party Killwave (Water Elemental 1) Mini-boss (pools of water) Found in: Trial of Strength 1 & 2, Trial of Courage 1 HP: 60-65 Attack: 50 Defense: 40 Speed: 30 XP: 50 GP: 30 Special: occasionally attacks twice, casts Freeze Level 2 Chestbeak (Chest Beast 1) Found in: Trial of Strength 1, Trial of Courage 1 HP: 95-100 Attack: 80 Defense: 48 Speed: 25 XP: 85 GP: 60 Special: magic resistant Stinger (Hornet 2) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Strength Wall), Trial of Courage 1 HP: 22-25 Attack: 61 Defense: 42 Speed: 45 XP: 18 GP: 20 Special: casts Slow Level 1 Killer Gnome (Little People 2) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Strength Wall), Trial of Courage 1 HP: 23-26 Attack: 63 Defense: 45 Speed: 40 XP: 19 GP: 22 Special: howls for help (summons another Killer Gnome) Wild Orc (Goblin 2) Found in: Trial of Courage 1, 2 HP: 17-20 Attack: 73 Defense: 37 Speed: 40 XP: 20 GP: 23 Special: can defend self Hydrax (Jellybeast 1) Found in: Trial of Courage 1, 2; Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Grimwall) HP: 20-23 Attack: 66 Defense: 36 Speed: 40 XP: 21 GP: 19 Special: sprinkles Paralyzing powder on Party Clodhopper (Runner 1) Found in: Trial of Courage 1, 2 HP: 21-24 Attack: 75 Defense: 38 Speed: 42 XP: 22 GP: 26 Nightstalker (Slugite 2) Found in: Trial of Courage 2, Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Grimwall) HP: 23-26 Attack: 76 Defense: 41 Speed: 41 XP: 24 GP: 27 Special: breathes fire (non-magical Blaze Level 2) Grimfowl (Darkfowl 1) Found in: Trial of Courage 2, Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Grimwall) HP: 22-25 Attack: 78 Defense: 39 Speed: 43 XP: 26 GP: 24 Special: attacks can Paralyze a character Minotaur (Werebull 1) Found in: Trial of Courage 2, Labyrinth Entry Level (Truth), Trial of Truth 1 HP: 24-28 Attack: 80 Defense: 40 Speed: 44 XP: 28 GP: 25 Special: casts Quick Level 1 Cyblok (Blokhead 1) Mini-boss (found most anywhere) Found in: Trial of Courage 1, 2 HP: 85-90 Attack: 90 Defense: 50 Speed: 45 XP: 80 GP: 50 Tortolyde (Shellbeast 1) Boss, Unique Found in: Trial of Courage (isolated area) HP: 85-90 Attack: 95 Defense: 44 (66 with Quick) Speed: 50 XP: 100 GP: 80 Special: frequently attacks twice, casts Quick Level 1, magic resistant Grimwall - Mini-boss (glowing wall section) Found throughout the ENTIRE Labyrinth HP: 75-80 Attack: 120 Defense: 70 Speed: 45 XP: 150 GP: 100 Special: occasionally attacks twice, magic resistant Dark Wing (Werebat 3) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Grimwall) HP: 27-30 Attack: 78 Defense: 44 Speed: 46 XP: 33 GP: 24 Special: attacks can Poison character Toadstool (Fungoid 1) Found in: Labyrinth Entry Level (beyond Grimwall) HP: 33-37 Attack: 82 Defense: 42 Speed: 43 XP: 36 GP: 22 Special: can defend self, sprinkles Sleeping powder on Party, attacks can induce Sleep Bullsnout (Goblin 3) Found in: Trial of Truth 1, 2 HP: 36-40 Attack: 84 Defense: 42 Speed: 49 XP: 37 GP: 24 Special: can defend self, casts Heal Level 2 Deathgrin (Runner 2) Found in: Trial of Truth 1, 2 HP: 27-30 Attack: 85 Defense: 44 Speed: 50 XP: 39 GP: 32 Special: frequent critical hits Tombwalker (Mummy 1) # Appearing: 1-5 HP: 32-35 Attack: 88 Defense: 45 Speed: 46 XP: 42 GP: 28 Special: attacks can induce Paralysis, sprinkles Paralyzing Powder on Party Death Rattle (Naga 1) Found in: Trial of Truth 1, 2 HP: 35-38 Attack: 100 Defense: 48 Speed: 52 XP: 50 GP: 30 Ostrik (Darkfowl 2) Found in: Trial of Truth 1, 2 HP: 37-40 Attack: 98 Defense: 48 Speed: 53 XP: 58 GP: 35 Special: can attack as one massive force: deals 10 damage PER Ostrik to a single character Dark Wizard (Magic-User 1) Found in: Trial of Truth 1, 2 HP: 35-39 Attack: 90 Defense: 42 Speed: 65 XP: 66 GP: 37 Special: casts Blast Level 1 and Screen Level 1 Jackobutch (Gourdemon 2) Found in: Trial of Truth 1, 2 HP: 41-44 Attack: 110 Defense: 41 Speed: 65 XP: 73 GP: 41 Special: casts Heal Level 1 War Lizard (Lizardfolk 1) Found in: Trial of Truth 1, 2 HP: 39-43 Attack: 120 Defense: 50 Speed: 55 XP: 85 GP: 52 Special: casts Quick Level 1 Sea Stallion (Water Elemental 2) Mini-boss (Pools of water) Found in: Trial of Truth 1&2; Trial of Wisdom 1&2; Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 95-100 Attack: 125 Defense: 55 Speed: 70 XP: 250 GP: 120 Special: occasionally attacks twice, casts Freeze Level 3, magic resistant Doppler (Blokhead 1) Boss, Unique Found in: Trial of Truth, Prison Cell HP: 150-155 Attack: 140 Defense: 65 Speed: 55 XP: 300 GP: 130 Special: occasional critical hits, attacks can induce Sleep Smoke (Gaseous Form 1) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1 HP: 42-45 Attack: 123 Defense: 48 Speed: 73 XP: 89 GP: 55 Special: casts Slow Level 1 and Freeze Level 3 (!?) Tarantia (Spider 2) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1 HP: 40-43 Attack: 123 Defense: 53 Speed: 68 XP: 97 GP: 59 Special: spews sticky webbing (akin to Sleep powder in effect) Mazerunner (Runner 3) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1 HP: 44-47 Attack: 122 Defense: 54 Speed: 72 XP: 108 GP: 62 Special: gets frequent critical hits Nightwraith (Apparition 3) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1 HP: 43-47 Attack: 120 Defense: 55 Speed: 75 XP: 120 GP: 65 Special: casts Blaze Level 2 Cokatoris (Cockatrice 1) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1, Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 49-52 Attack: 125 Defense: 45 Speed: 73 XP: 127 GP: 70 Special: glares with bloodshot eyes (Paralysis, Party), attacks can induce Paralysis Sorceror (Magic-User 2) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1, Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 40-43 Attack: 120 Defense: 51 Speed: 69 XP: 132 GP: 72 Special: can defend self, casts Bolt Level 1 (only hits one character) Driffid (Jellybeast 2) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1, Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 49-52 Attack: 130 Defense: 56 Speed: 78 XP: 138 GP: 74 Special: spits Sleep-inducing grey mist on Party Fungoid (Fungoid 2) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1, Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 44-47 Attack: 127 Defense: 57 Speed: 72 XP: 138 GP: 74 Special: splits in two (summons new Fungoid), sprinkles Poison powder on Party Krusher (Sphere Demon 1) Mini-boss (long hallways) Found in: Trial of Wisdom 1, Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 195-200 Attack: 175 Defense: 68 Speed: 70 XP: 350 GP: 200 Special: gets occasional critical hits, highly susceptible to Sleep spells Deadhead (Skeleton 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 55-58 Attack: 131 Defense: 70 Speed: 62 XP: 146 GP: 76 Special: can defend self Reaper (Grim 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 48-51 Attack: 132 Defense: 55 Speed: 63 XP: 155 GP: 89 Special: casts Desoul Level 1 Maligator (Lizardfolk 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 53-56 Attack: 140 Defense: 61 Speed: 66 XP: 163 GP: 84 Special: uses scorching breath: 20-26 fire damage to Party Billow (Gaseous Form 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 52-65 Attack: 135 Defense: 56 Speed: 80 XP: 165 GP: 73 Mantoro (Werebull 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 56-59 Attack: 135 Defense: 62 Speed: 66 XP: 170 GP: 85 Demi-Wight (Mummy 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 58-62 Attack: 137 Defense: 62 Speed: 65 XP: 175 GP: 88 Special: casts Burst Level 2 and Blast Level 2 Berserker (Demonic Warrior 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 60-63 Attack: 142 Defense: 63 Speed: 90 XP: 180 GP: 91 Special: gets occasional critical hits Brikeye (Blokhead 2) Mini-boss (found most anywhere) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 95-100 Attack: 145 Defense: 59 Speed: 63 XP: 200 GP: 250 Special: casts Heal Level 2, attacks can induce Paralysis Sentinel (Guardian 1) Mini-boss (statues that animate) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 165-170 Attack: 190 Defense: 80 Speed: 65 XP: 430 GP: 250 Special: frequently attacks twice, magic resistant Mandrake (Tree Devil 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd & 3rd Floors HP: 55-58 Attack: 143 Defense: 65 Speed: 64 XP: 200 GP: 101 Special: casts Heal Level 1, furrows brow (saps 6-10 MP) Salamander (Elezard 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd Floor HP: 61-64 Attack: 155 Defense: 62 Speed: 62 XP: 220 GP: 120 Special: breathes crimson flames: 50-65 fire damage to Party Kamil (Naga 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd & 3rd Floors HP: 57-60 Attack: 160 Defense: 66 Speed: 65 XP: 240 GP: 97 Special: howls for help (summons another Kamil), 2 or more Kamil can shuffle their feet in an eerie dance: deals 15 damage PER Kamil to the entire Party Deathserpent (Lizardfolk 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd & 3rd Floors HP: 58-61 Attack: 152 Defense: 68 Speed: 68 XP: 270 GP: 115 Special: casts Blaze Level 3 Wingblade (Bird Battler 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd & 3rd Floors HP: 59-62 Attack: 160 Defense: 70 Speed: 70 XP: 300 GP: 115 Special: will occasionally not attack, immune to Sleep spells Kromeball (Sphere Demon 2) Mini-boss (long hallways) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 2nd & 3rd Floors HP: 295-310 Attack: 225 Defense: 85 Speed: 75 XP: 500 GP: 300 Special: occasional critical hits, body expands and explodes when low on HP: deals 85-105 fire damage to the entire Party Tommyhawk (Darkfowl 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 60-63 Attack: 173 Defense: 71 Speed: 75 XP: 330 GP: 108 Special: can defend self Grim Specter (Grim 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 58-61 Attack: 165 Defense: 70 Speed: 74 XP: 380 GP: 124 Special: casts Desoul Level 1, immune to Screen spells Hellknight (Animated Armor 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 64-67 Attack: 175 Defense: 75 Speed: 76 XP: 430 GP: 128 Special: gets occasional critical hits Battle Oxe (Werebull 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 63-66 Attack: 185 Defense: 68 Speed: 78 XP: 470 GP: 130 Special: emits freezing breath: 32-38 ice damage to Party Mad Tut (Mummy 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 61-64 Attack: 170 Defense: 71 Speed: 76 XP: 500 GP: 138 Special: casts Slow Level 2 Shellbeast (Shellbeast 2) Boss, Unique Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor, central area HP: 335-355 Attack: ?? Defense: 125 Speed: 74 XP: 1500 GP: 500 Special: breathes crimson flames: 55-65 fire damage to Party Bloodrooster (Cockatrice 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 56-59 Attack: 188 Defense: 75 Speed: 78 XP: 560 GP: 153 Special: glares with bloodshot eyes (paralysis, entire Party) Living Dead (Ghoul 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 57-60 Attack: 190 Defense: 90 Speed: 76 XP: 600 GP: 185 Special: sprinkles Poison powder on Party Dreampuff (Gaseous Form 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 59-62 Attack: 192 Defense: 91 Speed: 82 XP: 640 GP: 210 Special: howls for help (summons another Dreampuff), 2 or more Dreampuffs can attack as one massive force; deals 10 hp PER Dreampuff to one character Troll (Troll 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd & 4th Floors HP: 61-64 Attack: 200 Defense: 82 Speed: 75 XP: 670 GP: 165 Soulthief - Mini-boss (drops down from holes in ceiling) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd Floor HP: 375-400 Attack: 255 Defense: 85 Speed: 90 XP: 700 GP: 400 Special: frequently attacks twice, attacks induce sleep Gryphon (Griffon 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd & 4th Floors HP: 63-66 Attack: 205 Defense: 84 Speed: 81 XP: 710 GP: 230 Special: flaps its wings, same effect as Blast Level 3 Demonika (Demonic Warrior 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd & 4th Floors HP: 65-68 Attack: 210 Defense: 83 Speed: 84 XP: 770 GP: 265 Special: frequently attacks twice Necromancer (Magic-User 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd & 4th Floors HP: 64-67 Attack: 180 Defense: 78 Speed: 83 XP: 820 GP: 250 Special: always acts twice, can defend self, howls for help (summons Meat Zombie), casts Heal Level 2 Scizzar (Krab 2) Mini-boss (emerges from left-hand side passages) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd & 4th Floors HP: 300-325 Attack: 235 Defense: 130 Speed: 80 XP: 1000 GP: 600 Special: emits freezing cloud: 67-82 Ice damage to Party Blackbone - Mini-boss (emerges from the ground) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 3rd, 4th, AND 5th Floors HP: 435-460 Attack: 300 Defense: 105 Speed: 88 XP: 3000 GP: 2500 Special: frequently attacks twice, gets occasional critical hits Dragonspawn (Dragon 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 70-74 Attack: 215 Defense: 80 Speed: 83 XP: 900 GP: 270 Special: hurls balls of flame, 55-60 Fire damage, 1 character Vyper (Naga 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 66-69 Attack: ?? Defense: 95 Speed: 86 XP: 930 GP: 302 Special: never attacks; instead, it glares with bloodshot eyes (Paralysis, affects entire Party) Living Armor (Animated Armor 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 60-63 Attack: 220 Defense: 135 Speed: 85 XP: 950 GP: 230 Special: gets occasional critical hits, magic resistant Warbird (Bird Battler 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 76-80 Attack: 225 Defense: 93 Speed: 88 XP: 970 GP: 310 Special: flaps its wings (same effect as Blast Level 3) Deathbringer (Grim 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 68-72 Attack: 235 Defense: 92 Speed: 87 XP: 1010 GP: 380 Special: defends self, casts Revive Level 2, resists all elemental damage Mandagora (Tree Devil 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 67-71 Attack: ?? Defense: 95 Speed: 86 XP: 1060 GP: 420 Special: never attacks; sometimes watches warily (does nothing that round), casts Heal Level 2, and howls in pain (same effect as a Desoul Level 2 spell) Cerebus (Cerberus 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 81-85 Attack: 240 Defense: 102 Speed: 91 XP: 1100 GP: 450 Special: frequently attacks twice, breathes crimson flames: 55-62 Fire damage to the Party Meat Zombie (Ghoul 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor (or summoned by Necromancers) HP: 94-99 Attack: 235 Defense: 95 Speed: 80 XP: 1250 GP: 390 Special: attacks can induce Poison Troglodyte (Elezard 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 94-99 Attack: 255 Defense: 94 Speed: 88 XP: 1300 GP: 510 Special: emits a freezing cloud: 76-88 Ice damage to the Party Deathmask (Demonic Warrior 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor HP: 95-100 Attack: 275 Defense: 95 Speed: 94 XP: 1330 GP: 470 Special: attacks can induce Instant Death Gollum (Golem 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th & 5th Floors HP: 105-110 Attack: 295 Defense: 125 Speed: 95 XP: 1460 GP: 590 Special: gets occasional critical hits Lancerot (Dark Knight 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th & 5th Floors HP: 103-108 Attack: 275 Defense: 100 Speed: 93 XP: 1500 GP: 450 Special: frequently attacks twice, casts Slow Level 2 Hobgoblin (Goblin 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th & 5th Floors HP: 89-94 Attack: 290 Defense: 96 Speed: 90 XP: 1570 GP: 480 Handeater (Chest Beast 4) 66 Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th & 5th Floors HP: 95-110 Attack: 350 Defense: 175 Speed: 98 XP: 1500 GP: 500 Special: emits a freezing cloud: 68-82 Ice damage to the Party; howls in pain (same effect as a Desoul Level 2 spell) Bildblok (Blokhead 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th & 5th Floors HP: 475-500 Attack: 300 Defense: 125 Speed: 95 XP: 2500 GP: 1000 Special: glares with bloodshot eyes (Paralysis, affects Party), emits a freezing gas: 120-139 Ice damage to the Party Syren (Water Elemental 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th & 5th Floors HP: 455-480 Attack: 325 Defense: 100 Speed: 100 XP: 3400 GP: 2900 Special: frequently attacks twice, casts Muddle Level 1, spews a Paralyzing mist (Paralysis, affects Party) Dark Knight - Boss, Unique Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th Floor, by the Princess' prison cell HP: 1600 Attack: 335 Defense: 105 Speed: 155 XP: 1000 GP: 0 Special: ALWAYS attacks twice, gets occasional critical hits Hellhound (Cerberus 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 90-95 Attack: 255 Defense: 104 Speed: 99 XP: 1640 GP: 620 Special: almost always attacks twice Centaurian (Centaur Warrior 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 115-120 Attack: 285 Defense: 113 Speed: 100 XP: 1680 GP: 790 Gargoyle (Winged Devil 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 93-98 Attack: 258 Defense: 110 Speed: 96 XP: 1680 GP: 550 Graveroc (Griffon 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 91-96 Attack: 235 Defense: 106 Speed: 102 XP: 1860 GP: 760 Special: savagely flaps wings (same effect as a Blast Level 4 spell) Chimera (Myth Demon 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 95-100 Attack: 265 Defense: 112 Speed: 100 XP: 1940 GP: 980 Special: emits a freezing cloud; 52-68 Ice damage to the entire Party Collossus (Golem 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 120-125 Attack: 285 Defense: 120 Speed: 97 XP: 2030 GP: 840 Special: hurls massive boulders (Attack: 350, 1 character) Dragonfyre (Dragon 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 102-107 Attack: 290 Defense: 110 Speed: 102 XP: 2100 GP: 830 Special: emits white-hot gas; 112-135 Fire damage to the entire Party Warhorse (Centaur Warrior 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 131-136 Attack: 315 Defense: 113 Speed: 110 XP: 2110 GP: 1230 Special: shoots an arrow (Attack 335), gets occasional critical hits Ghoul (Ghoul 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 105-109 Attack: 250 Defense: 109 Speed: 98 XP: 2240 GP: 800 Special: attacks can induce Poison Deathpaw (Cerberus 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 104-109 Attack: 290 Defense: 102 Speed: 106 XP: 2270 GP: 962 Special: almost always attacks twice, casts Muddle Level 2 Lokjaw (Winged Devil 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 124-129 Attack: 300 Defense: 110 Speed: 112 XP: 2450 GP: 1000 Special: casts Screen Level 1 Kamiliun (Myth Demon 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 118-123 Attack: 300 Defense: 119 Speed: 108 XP: 2520 GP: 1120 Demonesk (Demonesque 1) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 113-118 Attack: 285 Defense: 112 Speed: 107 XP: 2600 GP: 1030 Special: emits freezing gas; 125-145 Ice damage to the entire Party Ragnarock (Golem 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 137-142 Attack: 365 Defense: 115 Speed: 101 XP: 2800 GP: 1350 Serpi (Winged Devil 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 110-115 Attack: 280 Defense: 108 Speed: 114 XP: 2900 GP: 1400 Special: casts Level 2 Desoul (only targets a single character, though) Ramiun (Myth Demon 3) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 147-153 Attack: 325 Defense: 120 Speed: 122 XP: 3200 GP: 1200 Special: unleashes white-hot gas; 120-135 Fire damage to the entire Party Brimstone (Demonesque 2) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 154-160 Attack: 315 Defense: 110 Speed: 113 XP: 3580 GP: 1500 Special: casts Muddle Level 2 Guardian (Guardian 2) - Mini-Boss (statue that animates) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 4th & 5th Floors HP: 345-370 Attack: 375 Defense: 135 Speed: 120 XP: 4500 GP: 3000 Special: frequently attacks twice, gets occasional critical hits Crystal Ooze (Slime 4) Found in: Labyrinth Proper 5th Floor HP: 2-3 Attack: 225 Defense: 256 Speed: 300 XP: 30000 GP: 5000 Special: casts Freeze Level 4 and Muddle Level 2, very likely to flee, howls for help (summons random monster), only takes 0 or 1 damage from any Elemental attack, physical attacks often fail Dark Sol - Boss, Unique Found in: Labyrinth Proper, Inner Sanctum HP: 1475-1525 Attack: ?? Defense: 115 Speed: 115 Special: Demonbreath; 45-65 Evil damage to the Party, can cast Bolt Level 3 Dark Demon - Final Boss, Unique Found in: Labyrinth Proper, Inner Sanctum HP: 1950-2050 (to disable Arms) Attack: 420 (Physical Arm) Defense: 120 3475-3525 (total HP) 512 (Main Body) Speed: 135 Special: Main Body uses Demonbreath (Level 2); 75-125 Evil damage to the Party Magic Arm casts Bolt Level 3 and Blaze Level 3 Almost always attacks twice per round ----------------------- 7. Full Shop/Item Lists ----------------------- ======== Armorer ======== ------ Armor: ------ Armor Name Cost Factor Equipped By: ------------- ---- ------ ----------------- Cotton Robe 80 4 Marak, Milo, Pyra Woven Robe 200 8 Marak, Milo Straw Robe 250 8 Milo, Pyra Fur Robe 450 16 Marak, Milo Hemp Robe 700 14 Milo, Pyra Leather Armor 700 20 Marak, Milo Chainmail 1200 26 Marak, Milo Bronze Armor 3200 40 Marak, Milo Armor Deals: Armor Name Cost Factor Available Equipped By: ------------ ---- ------ ------------------ ------------ Breast Plate 1850 32 From the beginning Marak, Milo Found Armor: Sells Armor Found Name For Factor In Equipped By: Special Ability ----------- ----- ------ ---------- ------------ ------------------------- Worn Robe 30 2 Proper 2nd Marak, Milo, none Pyra Sun Armor 3750 52 Proper 2nd Marak Resists Fire damage Frost Armor 5625 64 Proper 4th Marak Resists Ice damage Magic Robe 12000 35 Proper 5th Pyra Increases Magic Defense Light Armor 27000 80 Proper 5th Marak Increases Magic Defense ------ Helms: ------ Armor Name Cost Factor Equipped By: ------------ ---- ------ ------------- Cloth Hood 120 4 Milo, Pyra Leather Helm 300 8 Marak Woven Hood 450 8 Milo, Pyra Fur Hood 1030 12 Milo, Pyra Bronze Helm 1200 14 Marak Iron Helm 3400 20 Marak Helm Deals: Armor Name Cost Factor Available Equipped By: Special Ability ---------- ---- ------ ------------------ ------------ ------------------- Magic Hood 5800 18 From the beginning Milo, Pyra Increases Magic Defense Found Helms: Sells Armor Equipped Name For Factor Found At By: Special Ability ----------- ----- ------ --------------- -------- ------------------------ Royal Tiara 200 16 Entry Level Marak Proof of Jessa's whereabouts Elven Hood 10500 20 Proper 4 (Rope) Milo Increases Magic Defense LightHelm 14400 40 Proper 3 Marak Increases Magic Defense -------- Shields: -------- Armor Name Cost Factor Equipped By: -------------- ---- ------ ------------- Gauntlet 120 6 Marak Leather Shield 300 12 Marak, Milo Bronze Shield 700 18 Marak, Milo Shield Deals: Armor Name Cost Factor Available Equipped By: ----------- ---- ------ ------------------ ----------------- Wood Shield 3500 20 From the beginning Marak, Milo, Pyra Found Shields: Sells Armor Name For Factor Found At Equipped By: Special Ability ------------ ----- ------ --------------- ------------ ------------------- Light Shield 15000 50 Proper 3 (Cell) Marak Increases Magic Defense ------------------------------------------- "Weapons" (Shields that also boost Attack): ------------------------------------------- Armor/Weapon Name Cost Factor Equipped By: ----------- ---- ------------- ------------ Main Gauche 900 10 / 8 Marak, Milo Madu 2500 20 / 15 Marak, Milo ======== Weapons ======== Weapon Name Cost Factor Equipped By: ------------ ---- ------ ----------------- Bronze Knife 100 5 Marak, Milo, Pyra Wooden Club 120 6 Marak, Milo Short Sword 200 10 Marak, Milo, Pyra Bronze Saber 300 15 Marak, Pyra Short Axe 330 15 Milo Sword 750 20 Marak, Milo Woodstaff 760 20 Milo, Pyra Longsword 2530 30 Marak Weapon Deals: Weapon Name Cost Factor Available Equipped By: Special Ability ----------- ---- ------ --------- ----------------- --------------------- Morningstar 350 18 Beginning Marak, Milo Long Spear 9500 35 Beginning Marak, Milo, Pyra Thorn Whip 5500 25(Gr) Strength Pyra Attacks entire Group at once Found Weapons: Sells Weapon Found Equipped Name For Factor In By: Special Ability ----------- ----- ------ --------------- -------- ------------------------ Battle Axe 1035 23 Truth, Wisdom Milo none Flail 600 12(x2) Wisdom Milo Hits twice per round Steel Saber 937 25 Wisdom Marak, none Pyra Firesword 9375 60 Wisdom Marak Casts Blaze Level 3 Great Axe 8850 45 Proper 2nd Fl Milo none Firestaff 1500 15 Proper 2nd Fl Pyra Casts Blaze Level 3 Great Flail 5625 28(x2) Proper 3 (Rope) Milo Hits twice per round Storm Sword 18750 110 Proper 3 (Rope) Marak Casts Bolt Level 2 Endurostaff 750 15 Proper 4 (Rope) Pyra none Icestaff 2625 25 Proper 3 (Orb) Pyra Casts Freeze Level 3 Steelwhip 10125 35(Gr) Proper 4 Pyra Attacks entire Group at once Light Blade 48750 150 Proper 4 (Orb) Marak Casts Bolt Level 3 Demonstaff 5080 20 Courage (Cell) Pyra Casts Muddle Level 3 DarkScimitar 21000 120 Craft:DarkBlock, Marak Cursed: wielder freezes Proper 5 up randomly (33% chance) ======== Alkemist ======== Name Cost Description -------------- ---- --------------------------------------------------------- Herb 12 Restores 22-32 HP to one character Depoison 15 Cures Poison in one character Angel Feather 24 Instantly returns Party to the World Map Wisdom Seed 8 See an overhead map of nearby areas you've explored Healer Fruit 100 Restores 75-100 HP to one character Smelling Salts 30 Cures Paralysis in one character Alkemist Deals: Name Cost Available Description ------------ ----- --------- ----------------------------------------------- Mithril Ore 4000 Beginning The Trader uses this to craft Mithril/Light arms and armor Miracle Herb 8000 Beginning Revives slain character with 33% HP (same effect as Revive Level 1) Magic Mirror 3500 Strength May reflect hostile magic; breaks easily Earth Hammer 40000 Level 60+ Creates quake; deals 60-85 damage to all foes Shock Box 50000 Level 70+ Massive explosion; battle won instantly Ogre Flute 60000 Level 80+ Ogre foot squashes foes; battle won instantly Black Box 65000 Level 90+ Creates Black Hole; battle won instantly Found Artifacts: Sells Name For Found in... Description ------------- ----- ------------ ------------------------------------------- Dwarf's Key 225 Castle Opens Bronze Doors (Green colored) Orb of Truth 1500 Courage Reveals Grimwall demon, opens passages False Idol 500 Truth Fill empty niche to open cell door Rune Key 500 Truth Opens Stone Doors (Grey colored) Map 1 500 Wisdom Shows location of concealed pits in SW corner of the Cave of Wisdom Map 2 500 Wisdom Shows location of concealed pits in NE corner of the Cave of Wisdom Dark Block 3375 Wisdom Use to craft cursed equipment Herb Water 1650 Wisdom The next Spell or Breath weapon directed at the Party deals reduced damage Holy Water 6450 Proper 2nd Removes Curse from afflicted character Medallion 1350 Castle Use with a Gold Fountain to leave one half of the Medallion in it; then use other half to warp directly to said Fountain Mystic Rope 300 Proper 3rd Use to climb up through holes in the ceiling Heal Ring 6750 Proper 4th Casts Heal Level 3 when used. Only usable by the character whose inventory it's in. Cracks easily. Magic Ring 9000 Castle, Restores 27-32 MP when used. Only usable Truth (Cell), by the character whose inventory it's in. Proper 5th Cracks easily. Forbidden Box 4500 Strength Has various effects: see Potent Magical (Cell) Items section below. Barrier Ring 5850 Proper 2nd Casts Quick Level 2 when used in battle. (Cell) Cracks easily. Miracle Herb 4000 Proper 4th, Revives slain character with 33% HP (same Proper 5th effect as Revive Level 1) Vial of Tears 750 Castle Awakens Spirit of Light from the Rainbow Fountain on the 5th Floor Mithril Ore Locations: ---------------------- Alkemist's Shop A steal of a Deal at only 4000 Gold coins... Trial of Wisdom Beyond the Trial's end lies a chest... Labyrinth Proper, 2nd Floor Cross the Balcony, then double back... Trial of Strength Requires the Mystic Rope to reach... Labyrinth Proper, 3rd Floor Up the Rope, down the stairs, behind the gate... Labyrinth Proper, 5th Floor Up the Rope, down the passage, behind the gate... Labyrinth Proper, 5th Floor Kill enough Crystal Ooze, and... Total hunks of Mithril Ore: Six, plus whatever you might win from Crystal Ooze. So, don't bet on getting more than six chunks. ======= Trader ======= -------- Weapons: -------- Weapon Name Cost Factor Equipped By: Special Ability ------------- ----- ------ ----------------- ------------------------------ Flail 800 12 Milo none Bullwhip 2000 15(Gr) Pyra Attacks entire Group at once Short Spear 2800 25 Marak, Milo, Pyra none Double Axe 3200 30 Milo none Bronze Lance 5000 35 Marak none Battle Hammer 8800 38 Milo none Broadsword 9000 50 Marak none Iron Lance 12000 75 Marak none Steel Lance 20000 100 Marak none ------ Armor: ------ Armor Name Cost Factor Equipped By: ------------ ----- ------ ----------------- Leather Robe 1800 20 Milo, Pyra Iron Armor 5600 48 Marak Steel Armor 10000 58 Marak Magic Mail 30000 50 Marak, Milo, Pyra ------ Helms: ------ Armor Name Cost Factor Equipped By: ---------- ---- ------ ------------ Steel Helm 5980 25 Marak -------- Shields: -------- Armor Name Cost Factor Equipped By: ------------ ----- ------ ----------------- Iron Shield 2300 26 Marak, Milo Steel Shield 6400 32 Marak Magic Shield 16500 35 Marak, Milo, Pyra ----------------- Crafted Equipment (using Mithril Ore gets you the top item; whereas ----------------- using Dark Block will net you the lower item) --------- For Marak --------- Weapon/ Armor Cross Good Type Cost Item's Name Factor equip? Idea? Special ------ ----- ------------- ------- ------ ----- ------------------------- Weapon 42000 Mithril Sword 125 Nope No None 28000 Dark Scimitar 120 Nope no Cursed: character might freeze instead of acting Armor 18000 Mithril Armor 68 Milo No None 18000 Dark Armor 100 Nope No Curse: may spend round paralyzed Helm 9800 Mithril Helm 32 Milo No None 26400 Dark Helm 50 Nope No Cursed: may attack blind- ly and miss Shield 10000 MithrilShield 40 Both No Increases Magic Defense 27000 Dark Shield 60 Both No Cursed: halves Attack Power -------- For Milo -------- Weapon/ Armor Cross Good Type Cost Item's Name Factor equip? Idea? Special ------ ----- ------------- ------- ------ ----- ------------------------- Weapon 38000 Mithril Axe 120 Nope Yes None 15000 Doom Staff 105 Pyra ?? Cursed; see Armor 24000 LightRobe 44 Pyra Yes Increases Magic Defense 22000 DarkRobe 70 Pyra No Cursed: character helps out foes Helm 11800 Mithril Hood 26 Pyra No Reduces Wind damage 18000 Dark Hood 35 Pyra No Cursed: lowers Magic Defense Shield 10000 MithrilShield 40 Both Yes Increases Magic Defense 27000 Dark Shield 60 Both No Cursed: halves Attack Power -------- For Pyra -------- Weapon/ Armor Cross Good Type Cost Item's Name Factor equip? Idea? Special ------ ----- ------------- ------- ------ ----- ------------------------- Weapon 45000 Mithril Rod 100 Milo No none 20000 Hex Whip 60 Nope Maybe Attacks entire Group Cursed: may entangle Pyra Armor 24000 LightRobe 44 Milo Yes Increases Magic Defense 22000 DarkRobe 70 Milo No Cursed: character helps out foes Helm 11800 Mithril Hood 26 Milo Yes Reduces Wind damage 18000 Dark Hood 35 Milo No Cursed: lowers Magic Defense Shield 10000 MithrilShield 40 Both Yes Increases Magic Defense 27000 Dark Shield 60 Both No Cursed: halves Attack Power --------------------- 8. Potent Magic Items --------------------- There are quite a few items in the game that do something when you use them from the Item menu in battle. These Potent Magic Items can be divided into a few distinct categories, based on what, exactly, they do. Multi-Use Items --------------- First off, we have the Items that have more than one effect when you use them in battle. These two items can only be found within the Labyrinth; they cannot be bought. The items, and their effects, are as follows: Forbidden Box: a very unpredictable item. You never know what it's going to do when you open it up in a battle; in fact, the Forbidden box is capable of duplicating the effects of almost every item in the game, plus it has some tricks that only it can do. The following may happen... -The ground quakes violently, causing 95-115 damage to all your foes. (same effect as Earth Hammer) -A haunting melody plays, which causes both you and your foes fall asleep, no matter what, even if the monsters are normally immune to Sleep spells. -A witch appears from within the box, and casts a "SUPER-QUICK" spell, which means that your characters will always act first and are almost impossible to hit physically. Very handy. (Quick Level 3?) -Lightning flashes from the box, blowing all your foes clear off the screen. You gain XP and Gold as normal for winning the battle in this manner. (same effect as Shock Box) -A Faerie appears from within the box, and is the basis for the Heal spell in the Shining Force games. She also heals your entire Party to full HP (and cures all Status Ailments) while she's here. -A Black Hole is released from the box, sucking all your foes up and sending them spiraling to oblivion. Full XP and Gold are awarded for winning the battle in this manner. (same effect as the Black Box) -A deep fog materializes, which causes both you and your foes (even if they're normally immune) to be Blinded. All physical attacks made by either you or your foes are very likely to miss. -The air resonates to a strange melody, and the monsters begin to leap about wildly. They do a weird dance which has no effect on anything. -Whoever opened the Box "gets dizzy and falls unconscious", which actually means that the character has fallen asleep. -The screen flashes and shakes, and then all is silent. Nothing happens. -The game simply says "Nothing happens." -From far above, a voice rings out: "May the one who opens this FORBIDDEN BOX learn the meaning of Power!" This can have multiple effects: *A giant foot appears from above and squashes all your foes flat, killing them instantly (same effect as the Ogre Flute; full XP and Gold are awarded)! *All your foes are snuffed out like candles. Full XP and Gold are awarded. *All your foes are affected as though by a Boost Level 2 spell. They glow with power while boosted in this manner. -A voice echoes from the depths of the earth: "Beware mortals: This box holds your doom!". This can also have multiple effects: *The game plays roulette with the cursor; whoever the cursor "lands" on takes 150 points of damage. *Both you and your foes are cursed. It never fails to affect everyone on screen. The Demon Staff. Ah, this item is a blast! When you use it, it automatically inflicts on everyone an effect that can only be described as Muddle Level 3. There is no avoiding this effect; when you use the Demon Staff, EVERY combatant becomes thus Muddled. While "under the influence", the following can happen: The monsters you're fighting might: -Rub up against a random Party member. Their turn is wasted. -Sit there, dazed. Their turn is wasted. -Forget to attack. Their turn is wasted. -Become dazed and wander off (same as if they had run away). -Hand over their possessions (this is a great way to get rare items, but it doesn't happen too often. Still, it's the only way to get duplicates of otherwise unique items). -Lash out in fury, with 2 possible outcomes: 1)They will hit another monster, or 2)They will attack the Party. However, your characters will see this attack coming and brace for it. The attack typically ends up missing, but sometimes it's a Critical Hit instead. Your characters might: -Throw down their weapon and attack, doing barehanded damage. After the battle ends, the character's weapon will remain unequipped, so don't forget to go into the character's Item menu and re-equip it! -Act on instinct and attack a random combatant. They might attack the monsters or another Party member. -Defend themselves. -Throw a monster with a sudden surge of power, dealing 1.5 times their barehanded damage. The animation for this one is hilarious, as well. -Use a random item in their inventory. -Strip! The other Party members make smart-ass comments. After the battle, all the character's Armor will be unequipped, so be sure to go into the Item menu and put it all back on. -Deliver an awesome blow to their own head, resulting in a critical hit on the character using his/her own attack power. Ouch! Instant Death ------------ Another useful category of items are the Instant Death items. These things will make you life a whole lot easier, because using them is like casting a Desoul Level 3 spell - every monster you're fighting dies, period. Unless they're a Boss or Mini-Boss. You then get XP and Gold, as normal. My advice is to give these items to speed demon Pyra and win battles instantly without so much as a scratch - until the item "cracks". These items are by FAR the best way to dispose of Crystal Ooze. Have I got you drooling yet? A full listing of Instant Death items is as follows: -The Earth Hammer. Okay, it's not TECHNICALLY in Instant Death item; however, it still deals a lot of non-elemental damage to every foe on screen. That's right, non-elemental - so Crystal Ooze can't resist it; they take full damage and die. So, in a way, the Earth Hammer IS an Instant Death item... -The Shock Box summons up a giant explosion of lightning that blows all your foes clear off the screen! Another Ooze buster/annoying foe snuffer. -The Black Box creates a black hole which sucks all your foes in, killing them instantly. Again, it's great for Crystal Ooze or any other monster type that pisses you off. -And finally, we have the Ogre Flute, which is one of the best items in any RPG, ever. Give it a blow and laugh your arse off while raking in free XP and Gold. Cursed Equipment ---------------- The final category of Potent Magical Items is Cursed equipment. You'll find a couple pieces or Dark/Cursed equipment in chests; or, you can Craft them using Dark Block; or, you might get "lucky" and find one after a battle. Equipping a Dark or Cursed item Curses the character (duh), and you cannot trade or unequip the Cursed item until you either A) pay the Priest in the Shrine to remove the Cursed item or B) use Holy Water on the afflicted character (both these cures will cause the Cursed item to unequip automatically). Each Cursed item carries its own unique Curse with unique effects, as described below: Hex Whip: the only Cursed item worth equipping, the Hex Whip is much more powerful than the Steel Whip, turning Pyra into an offensive powerhouse. The drawback is that Pyra will occasionally get tangled in the whip and be unable to act for a few turns - BUT THIS EFFECT HAPPENS AFTER SHE DEALS HER DAMAGE FOR THE ROUND, making this Curse very manageable. In addition, the Curse only strikes if you're having Pyra attack; you can avoid it altogether if you have Pyra use items or cast spells in battle. Use the Dark Block you find in the Cave of Wisdom to Craft this for Pyra as soon as you can and laugh as Pyra's attack becomes not unlike a free Blaze Level 3 spell. Doom Staff: ugh, what a piece of junk. Sure, a Weapon Factor of 105 is great for a Staff... however, this thing is the ultimate in back-stabbing technology: when you use it in battle, it casts Blaze Level 4... which affects the Party as well as your foes! Also, when you attack with it, the Doom Staff will quite often strike back, harming its wielder for 1/2 the damage they just dealt. Pass on this one. Dark Scimitar: totally worthless. Less powerful than the Mithril Sword to begin with, and then it curses you so that you randomly freeze up in battle and waste your turn instead of attacking. Dark Armor: gives some incredible physical protection, but then the Curse strikes: when Marak is wearing this armor, there is about a 33% chance that the Armor will not allow Marak to move in any given turn. If you don't mind forfeiting a third of your actions in battle, I guess you could leave this on, but... I wouldn't recommend it. Dark Robe: when a character dons this Cursed garment, they will randomly be compelled by the Curse to spend their turn attacking their allies or casting a beneficial spell on the Party's foes. Yes, the Dark Robe does have a better Armor Factor than the Light Robe, but I hardly think that outweighs the damage that its Curse can do. Dark Helm: sure, it has higher a Defense Factor than the Light Helm. But then, the Light Helm doesn't randomly muddle you with a Curse: it will cause Marak to attack blindly, which always results in a missed attack. Dark Hood: considerably lowers your resistance to all forms of Magic, including reduced resistance to all Elemental damage, being more susceptible to all Status Ailments (including Instant Death), and taking more damage from enemy Breath weapons. But at least you have higher physical Defense, right? Steer clear of this item. Dark Shield: cuts your total Attack Power (Attack plus Weapon Factor) exactly in half, no matter what. Not a good trade for a few more points of Defense over a Mithril Shield or the Light Shield. And now, we move on to... --------------------------------------------------- 9. Magic Spells: Tips on Usage and Full Spell Lists --------------------------------------------------- First, some generalizations about the damage dealt by the Elemental damage spells: Fire spells (Blaze, Burst) typically deal more damage to undead foes and slimy, oozy creatures. They deal reduced damage to constructs (golems, sentinels) and demonic foes. Freeze, the Ice spell, typically deals more damage to fire-using creatures and constructs, and deals reduced damage to undead and cold-based foes. Bolt, the Lightning spell, typically deals equal damage to most types of creatures, the exceptions being creatures of demonic origin and some constructs. Blast, the Wind spell, deals the most damage to creatures that float, fly, or simply have wings (Gryphons, Reapers, Bats, Insects, etc.) and reduced damage to most anything else. Note that these observations are merely general guidelines. You must experiment to discover which attack spells deal the most damage to each foe you face. This may use a lot of MP, but it can save your skin when (for example) you're ambushed by a five-pack of Reapers and you need to kill them all in a single round. With some experimentation, you'll know not to use Freeze and Burst (which would deal reduced and regular damage, respectively). Instead, you would cast Blaze (or Bolt) and Blast, since those spells will deal the most damage to your undead, floating foes. Advice on using Sleep, Slow, and Muddle: ---------------------------------------- About Sleep: Sleep is probably the most overlooked spell in the game. Only on my most recent playthrough did I discover its true power. You see, with very few exceptions, Sleep works on ALMOST EVERY MONSTER IN THE GAME - even undead creatures, constructs, and other foes that shouldn't (logically) be capable of sleeping. Use this to your advantage. For example, let's say you've encountered a group of four Battle Oxen. Instead of casting, say, Blaze Level 3 (for 8 MP) and dealing 50 damage to the lot them (but not quite killing any), you could just cast Sleep Level 1 (for 4 MP) and put most of them to Sleep. Now, in the first case (casting Blaze), you've used up 8 MP and still face 4 attacks. In the second case (casting Sleep), you've used half as much MP - 4 - and are only facing 1-3 attacks. Sleep is your friend. Use it often, and it will save your Party from taking a TON of damage over the course of the game. About Slow: Slow is especially handy to use on Mini-bosses. Like Sleep, Slow is effective on most monsters in the game. It lowers their Speed and base Defense by roughly 1/2 (at Level 1) or 1/3 (at Level 2). Yes, that's right, Slow Level 2 is LESS effective - because it affects more than one monster. So, for single foes (like Mini-bosses), stick to using Slow Level 1. Once your foe is slowed, it will take a lot more damage, and will usually attack last in a round. Using slow against regular foes is a bit wasteful; why use 5 MP to slow them down when you could spend 4 MP to put 75% of them to Sleep? About Muddle: I'll level with you here... Muddle Level 1 is worthless. Sure, it's only 3 MP, and you can Muddle quite a few monster types, but even when it's successful the monsters still attack your Party 50-75% of the time. Muddle Level 2, on the other hand, is much more effective: it has a very high chance of success, and when it does work, the monsters will only attack the Party occasionally - they will more often waste their turn, run away, or attack themselves. If Sleep fails, Muddle Level 2 is definitely worth a try. Advice on using Quick and Boost: -------------------------------- First off, Quick Level 1 increases one character's Speed AND Defense by 1/2 of the stat's natural, unmodified value. Thus, having better armor (higher Armor Factor) does NOT increase the effectiveness of a Quick spell. However, going up a few Levels (higher Defense) WILL make it more effective. Quick Level 2 increases all three characters' Speed AND Defense by 1/3 of their stats' natural, unmodified value. Thus, having better armor (higher Armor Factor) does NOT increase the effectiveness of a Quick spell. However, going up a few Levels (higher Defense) WILL make it more effective. Therefore, Quick spells will benefit Pyra the most (high Speed & Defense), while Milo gets a lesser benefit (intermediate Speed & Defense) and Marak gets the least benefit (low Speed & Defense). Secondly, Boost Level 1 will DOUBLE the natural, unmodified Attack of a single character. Having a more powerful weapon (higher Weapon Factor) will NOT increase the effectiveness of a Boost spell, but going up a few Levels (higher Attack) will. Boost Level 2 will increase by 1/2 the natural, unmodified Attack of all three characters. Having a more powerful weapon (higher Weapon Factor) will NOT increase the effectiveness of a Boost spell, but going up a few Levels (higher Attack) will. Therefore, Boost spells will benefit Marak the most (high Attack), while Milo gets a lesser benefit (intermediate Attack) and Pyra gets the least benefit (low Attack). Thus, Quick and Boost spells present you with the same dilemma: the single-character, Level 1 version is MORE potent than the entire-Party, Level 2 version. Against Bosses, it can actually be more beneficial to take a few rounds and hit all three Party members with Level 1 Quick and Boost spells. Also, Boost Level 2 is just a waste of MP. Pyra never deals enough damage that Boosting her is all that helpful, and when you use Level 2, Marak and Milo get a much reduced benefit. Stick with Boost Level 1. As for Quick, Level 2 is nice when you're being attacked by large groups of foes. Combine Quick Level 2 with Sleep (or Muddle), and you'll typically be taking a LOT less damage from the monsters in that battle. Advice on casting Heal spells: ------------------------------ It's pretty simple. A higher Level Heal spell is ALWAYS more efficient than a lower Level one. Some basic guidelines: Character is hurt by 10-50 HP - use Heal Level 1. Character is hurt by 51-125 HP - use Heal Level 2. Character is hurt by 126 or more HP - use Heal Level 3. NEVER use Heal Level 4 unless the Party is in immediate danger of dying. It's the exception to the "higher Level = more efficient" rule (you could heal the entire Party to full HP by using three Heal Level 3 spells for 30 MP instead of 50). Here I'm going to give you full Spell Charts for both Milo and Pyra. These lists could be considered a minor spoiler, so read them at your own risk: Milo's Spells ============= Power Level MP Name Level Learned Used Target(s) Description ------ ----- ------- ---- --------- -------------------------------------- Heal 1 1 3 1 Ally Restores 24-32 HP 2 7 5 1 Ally Restores 72-86 HP 3 23 10 1 Ally Restores all lost HP 4 30 50 Party Restores all lost HP Vision 1 3 1 1 Item Describes item in inventory Detox 1 5 3 1 Ally Cures Poison 2 16 8 1 Ally Cures Paralysis Blast 1 9 2 1 Foe Deals 7-13 Wind damage 2 18 4 1 Group Deals 21-25 Wind damage 3 24 8 1 Group Deals 40-47 Wind damage 4 33 14 1 Group Deals 57-65 Wind damage Quick 1 12 3 1 Ally Boosts Speed and Defense by 150% 2 20 5 Party Boosts Speed and Defense by 133% Burst 1 14 5 1 Group Deals 10-15 Explosive damage 2 22 8 All Foes Deals 20-25 Explosive damage 3 28 12 All Foes Deals 41-48 Explosive damage 4 38 20 All Foes Deals 85-96 Explosive damage Screen 1 16 4 1 Group Silences foes, if successful 2 26 6 All Foes Silences foes, if successful Revive 1 20 15 1 Ally Revives slain character with 33% HP 2 35 35 1 Ally Revives slain character with 100% HP Desoul 1 23 8 1 Foe Slays foe instantly, if successful 2 34 15 1 Group Slays foes instantly, if successful Pyra's Spells ============= Power Level MP Name Level Learned Used Target(s) Description ------ ----- ------- ---- --------- -------------------------------------- Slow 1 1 2 1 Foe Lowers foe's Speed and Defense by 50% 2 15 5 1 Group Lowers foes' Speed and Defense by 33% View 1 1 1 Special Shows overhead map of explored areas Blaze 1 2 2 1 Foe Deals 6-11 Fire damage 2 9 4 1 Group Deals 11-15 Fire damage 3 18 8 1 Group Deals 40-48 Fire damage 4 31 14 All Foes Deals 58-66 Fire damage Sleep 1 4 4 1 Group Puts foes to sleep, if successful 2 17 6 All Foes Puts foes to sleep, if successful Freeze 1 6 3 1 Foe Deals 9-13 Ice damage 2 14 5 1 Group Deals 13-18 Ice damage 3 23 10 1 Group Deals 44-52 Ice damage 4 35 17 All Foes Deals 68-76 Ice damage Heal 1 8 3 1 Ally Restores 24-32 HP 2 22 5 1 Ally Restores 72-96 HP Egress 1 12 9 Party Magically leave Labyrinth Bolt 1 15 5 1 Group Deals 13-20 Lightning damage 2 27 8 1 Group Deals 42-50 Lightning damage 3 36 20 All foes Deals 81-88 Lightning damage 4 44 40 1 Foe Deals 125-150 Lightning damage Muddle 1 17 3 1 Group Confuses foes if successful 2 42 7 1 Group Befuddles foes, higher success rate Peace 1 19 7 Party Weak monsters won't attack (32 steps) Boost 1 22 9 1 Ally Ally's natural Attack is doubled 2 33 20 Party Boosts Allies' natural Attack by 150% ----------------------------------------- 10. XP Charts For All Three Party Members ----------------------------------------- Notes: once a character reaches Level 99, the Priest at the Shrine will say, "So-and-so is physically fit," instead of telling you how many Experience Point(s) they need to reach the next Level - since there is no "next Level" beyond 99. Also, in case you're curious, you can "only" rack up 9,999,999 XP before the game stops bothering to count it anymore. Finally, you could (in theory) hold up to 9,999,999 Gold Coins - but you're never, ever realistically going to have more than 350,000, even if you're insane like me and get all three characters up to Level 99 with 10 million XP. Anyway, onto the charts: For Marak, son of Mortred, the Hero =================================== Total XP needed Total XP needed Total XP needed Level for next Level Level for next Level Level for next Level ----- --------------- ----- --------------- ----- --------------- 1 Starting Level 34 311982 67 2876897 2 12 35 351019 68 2992736 3 34 36 392496 69 3110385 4 67 37 436565 70 3229872 5 116 38 483388 71 3351226 6 188 39 533137 72 3474476 7 294 40 585995 73 3599652 8 448 41 642157 74 3726784 9 669 42 700074 75 3855902 10 987 43 759801 76 3987037 11 1439 44 821394 77 4120221 12 2082 45 884912 78 4255486 13 2986 46 950415 79 4392865 14 4187 47 1017965 80 4532391 15 5782 48 1087626 81 4674097 16 7900 49 1159464 82 4818017 17 10713 50 1233547 83 4964186 18 14449 51 1309945 84 5112639 19 19411 52 1388730 85 5263412 20 25303 53 1469977 86 5416541 21 32210 54 1553763 87 5572063 22 40609 55 1640167 88 5730015 23 50476 56 1729271 89 5890435 24 62193 57 1821160 90 6053362 25 76107 58 1915921 91 6218835 26 92630 59 2013643 92 6386894 27 112251 60 2114419 93 6557579 28 133711 61 2218344 94 6730931 29 157183 62 2323893 95 6906992 30 182856 63 2431091 96 7085804 31 210936 64 2539964 97 7267410 32 241649 65 2650538 98 7451854 33 275241 66 2762840 99 7639180 For Milo Brax, the Cleric =================================== Total XP needed Spell(s) Total XP needed Level for next Level learned Level for next Level ----- --------------- ----------------- ----- --------------- 1 Starting Level Heal 1 51 1634771 2 15 52 1733093 3 42 Vision 53 1834488 4 83 54 1939052 5 144 Detox 1 55 2046884 6 234 56 2158086 7 366 Heal 2 57 2272763 8 558 58 2391024 9 834 Blast 1 59 2512981 10 1231 60 2638749 11 1795 61 2768447 12 2597 Quick 1 62 2900172 13 3725 63 3033955 14 5223 Burst 1 64 3169828 15 7213 65 3307824 16 9856 Detox 2, Screen 1 66 3447976 17 13336 67 3590318 18 18028 Blast 2 68 3734884 19 24220 69 3881709 20 31573 Quick 2, Revive 1 70 4030828 21 40305 71 4182277 22 50674 Burst 2 72 4336092 23 62987 Heal 3, Desoul 1 73 4492310 24 77609 Blast 3 74 4650969 25 94973 75 4812107 26 115593 Screen 2 76 4975763 27 140079 77 5141976 28 166861 Burst 3 78 5310786 29 196154 79 5482234 30 228193 Heal 4 80 5656361 31 263236 81 5833209 32 301564 82 6012820 33 343485 Blast 4 83 6195237 34 389336 Desoul 2 84 6380504 35 438053 Revive 2 85 6568666 36 489815 86 6759768 37 544812 87 6953856 38 603246 Burst 4 88 7150977 39 665332 89 7351178 40 731298 90 7554507 41 801387 91 7761013 42 873666 92 7970746 43 948204 93 8183756 44 1025071 94 8400094 45 1104340 95 8619812 46 1186086 96 8842963 47 1270387 97 9069601 48 1357322 98 9299780 49 1446974 99 9533556 50 1539428 For Pyra Myst, the Magic-User =================================== Total XP needed Spell(s) Total XP needed Level for next Level learned Level for next Level ----- --------------- ---------------- ----- --------------- 1 Starting Level Slow 1, View 51 1478774 2 14 Blaze 1 52 1567712 3 39 53 1659429 4 77 Sleep 1 54 1754012 5 133 55 1851551 6 215 Freeze 1 56 1952138 7 335 57 2055868 8 509 Heal 1 58 2162840 9 759 Blaze 2 59 2273155 10 1118 60 2386917 11 1628 61 2504234 12 2353 Egress 62 2623384 13 3373 63 2744396 14 4728 Freeze 2 64 2867299 15 6528 Slow 2, Bolt 1 65 2992122 16 8919 66 3118895 17 12095 Muddle 1, Sleep 2 67 3247649 18 16313 Blaze 3 68 3378415 19 21915 Peace 69 3511224 20 28567 70 3646108 21 36446 71 3783100 22 45846 Heal 2, Boost 1 72 3922233 23 56985 Freeze 3 73 4063540 24 70213 74 4207055 25 85921 75 4352812 26 104574 76 4500846 27 126724 Bolt 2 77 4651193 28 150951 78 4803889 29 177449 79 4958971 30 206431 80 5116476 31 238130 Blaze 4 81 5276442 32 272801 82 5438907 33 310722 Boost 2 83 5603911 34 352198 84 5771493 35 396266 Freeze 4 85 5941693 36 438053 Bolt 3 86 6114552 37 492836 87 6290112 38 545693 88 6468415 39 601854 89 6649504 40 661525 90 6833423 41 724925 91 7020216 42 790306 Muddle 2 92 7209928 43 857730 93 7402604 44 927261 Bolt 4 94 7598291 45 998965 95 7797036 46 1072910 96 7998886 47 1149166 97 8203890 48 1227805 98 8412097 49 1308901 99 8623557 50 1392531 Notes on numerical and statistical trends: ------------------------------------------ Given that you've got three Party members, the game designers used a rather ingenious system: EVERY numerical statistic related to a character (XP, HP, MP, IQ, Speed, Luck, Attack, Defense, and even Weapon and Armor Factors) is given a "good", "better", or "best" rating. Basically, if the "good" stat for a character is currently X, then the character with the "better" rating will be averaging X+1 for that stat, and the "best" character will be averaging X+2. Note the following statistical trends (using statistics from my Level 99 characters): Hit Points: Pyra (good) will have around 560 MHP by Level 99; Milo (better) will have around 630 MHP; Marak (best) will have around 775 MHP. Magic Points: Marak (good) will have 0 MMP by Level 99; Milo (better) will have around 415 MMP; Pyra (best) will have around 425 MMP. These numbers fail the "X (+1, +2)" test because Milo and Pyra have the same MP Level-up ranges throughout the game, and thus their MMP will stay roughly the same "distance" apart. IQ: Marak (good) gets about 325; Milo (better) gets about 450; Pyra (best) gets about 550. Speed: Marak (good) gets about 220; Milo (better) gets about 330; and Pyra (best) gets about 440. Luck: Marak (good) gets about 175; Pyra (better) gets about 350; and Milo (best) gets about 400. Attack: Pyra (good) gets about 200; Milo (better) gets about 275; and Marak (best) gets about 375. Defense: Marak (good) gets about 130; Milo (better) gets about 200; Pyra (best) gets about 275. Weapon Factor: Pyra (good) gets +35 to +60 (Steel Whip, Mithril Rod, Hex Whip); Milo (better) gets +120 (Mithril Axe); Marak (best) gets +150 (Light Blade). Armor Factor: This can vary, but in general Pyra gets the "good" rating (+110: Mithril Shield, Light Robe, Mithril Hood); Milo gets the "better" rating (+110: Mithril Shield, Light Robe, Mithril Hood but has better equipment for the first 2/3 of the game); and Marak gets the "best" ranking (+170: Light Helm, Light Armor, Light Shield). GBB Points: "good", "better", "best" Points (GBB Points) can thus be awarded to each character for each statistic: a "good" ranking in a stat is worth 1 Point; a "better" ranking is worth 2 Points; and a "best" ranking is worth 3 Points. Your Party members stack up like so: Marak gets 5 "good" rankings, worth 5 Points; 0 "better" rankings, worth 0 Points; and 4 "best" rankings, worth 12 Points. Milo gets 0 "good" rankings, worth 0 Points; 8 "better" rankings, worth 16 Points; and 1 "best" ranking, worth 3 Points. Pyra gets 4 "good" rankings, worth 4 Points; 1 "better" ranking, worth 2 Points; and 4 "best" rankings, worth 12 Points. All of which leads us to: Experience Points: Marak, with 17 GGB Points, gets the "good" ranking overall and only needs 7.5 Million XP to reach Level 99; Pyra, with 18 GBB Points, gets the "better" ranking and needs 8.6 Million XP to reach Level 99; Milo, with 19 GBB Points, gets the "best" ranking overall and needs a whopping 9.5 Million XP to reach Level 99. Like I said, very logical and quite ingenious. Too bad more games don't use a system like this. ------------------------------ 11. Wrap up and things to come ------------------------------ Well, that does it. Everything you ever wanted to know about Shining in the Darkness, save for Level Maps (which simply don't translate well into text format and are available elsewhere on GameFAQs anyway). I'm not sure what else I can add to this thing, really, but if you have any suggestions, my e-mail addresses are listed at the very beginning of this guide. Don't be afraid to drop me a line with suggestions, corrections, clarifications or criticisms. ------------------------------ 12. Credit where credit is due ------------------------------ To Climax Entertainment, for making this fine, FINE game - and all the rest of the Shining Games for the Genesis, for that matter. Oh, and LandStalker. God, I miss these guys. Why did they have to split up into different companies?! WHY??!!! To me, for selflessly devoting another three weeks my precious, valuable free time to writing and submitting another FAQ/Guide for a classic Genesis RPG (the other one was for Phantasy Star IV) to GameFAQs. Thanks, me. You're welcome. To my dad, for suggesting the name "Marak" for my Hero when we first played this game all those years ago. I love that nickname (obviously). Oh yeah, and big props to dad for being an RPG fanatic and getting me into games like this in the first place. To CJayC, for maintaining such an incredibly informative and helpful sight. Oh, and for accepting all three of my contributions, even though they have all been for games that are at least 8 years old and are most definitely NOT on th "Top 10 Most Wanted" list. You rock, dude. To Brian Kern, whose Legal Text was so darn good I just had to mimic it. Thanks again, Brian. Copyright 2004 Mark Quaintance (Marak)