1234567890123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890123456789 ____ ____ ____ _____ ____ _ ____ ____ _____ / _ \/ __\/ _ \/ __// _ \/ \ /|/ ___\ / _ \/ / | | \|| \/|| / \|| | _| / \|| |\ ||| \ | / \|| __\ | |_/|| /| |-||| |_//| \_/|| | \||\___ | | \_/|| | \____/\_/\_\\_/ \|\____\\____/\_/ \|\____/ \____/\_/ _____ _ ____ _ _____ / // \ / _ \/ \__/|/ __/ | __\| | | / \|| |\/||| \ | | | |_/\| |-||| | ||| /_ \_/ \____/\_/ \|\_/ \|\____\ _______________________________________________________________________________ AD&D: Dragons of Flame FAQ/Walkthrough For the Nintendo Famicom Version 1.3 Written by Pseudonym Email: shdwswrm(at)hotmail(dot)com _______________________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents ----------------- Revision History Terms of Use FAQ Introduction Game Basics Walkthrough Closing =============================================================================== Revision History =============================================================================== 04/15/10-Version 1.3 -------------------- I fixed both dungeon maps, and added a few bits of information here and there. Most of the guide got a major overhaul. It took long enough to update this guide though, right? This should be the final update, unless I figure out what several “mystery” spells and items do in the future. 06/15/06-Version 1.2 -------------------- I fixed a few errors and changed the format a little. =============================================================================== Terms Of Use =============================================================================== This document is licensed for public use according to the GNU Free Documentation License. If you'll read the license, you'll see that it allows for inclusion within another work, provided that the other work in turn maintains the license. Some key parts of the license: This license applies to any manual or other work, in any medium, that contains a notice placed by the copyright holder saying it can be distributed under the terms of this license. Such a notice grants a world-wide, royalty-free license, unlimited in duration, to use that work under the conditions stated herein. The "document", below, refers to any such manual or work. Any member of the public is a licensee, and is addressed as "you". You accept the license if you copy, modify or distribute the work in a way requiring permission under copyright law. A "modified version" of the document means any work containing the document or a portion of it, either copied verbatim, or with modifications and/or translated into another language. You may copy and distribute a modified version of the document under the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you release the modified version under precisely this License, with the modified version filling the role of the document, thus licensing distribution and modification of the modified version to whoever possesses a copy of it. To summarize, you may use this document in part or whole, without any additional permission from myself, provided that the resulting document is similarly released under the GNU FDL. The latest version of this guide can always be found at GameFAQs. It's the responsibility of any other site hosting this guide to get the latest version. AD&D Dragons Of Flame FAQ/Walkthrough, Copyright (C) 2010 TC/Pseudonym. =============================================================================== FAQ =============================================================================== Q: How much Japanese do I need to know to play this game? You don't need to know anything really, the game isn't language intensive enough that you can't fumble your way through the menus. There's an English language patch available at donut.parodius.com that you can use too. Q: How do I use the IPS patch? You need a IPS patcher and the original Japanese ROM (Romszz) of the game. The easiest one to use is Lunar IPS IMO. Launch the program, select the patch and the ROM, and you're set to go. Q: What else do you know about the storyline? I don’t know much else about the storyline besides what’s in the game. I’ve never read the books myself but I’ve read that HofL and probably Dof are based on Dragons of the Autumn Twilight. Q: Where is the Score and Exp in this game? No-siree, no points or EXP in this game. =============================================================================== Introduction =============================================================================== In the last episode of AD&D, our illustrious heroes killed the dragon Khisanth and recovered the Disks of Mishakal from within the ruins! That’s not the end of their adventure obviously; it seems some dick named Verminaard is directing the Dragonarmies to burn down villages and kidnap women and children from the surrounding area. It's up to the heroes to put a stop to it! Dragons of Flame is the direct sequel to the craptacular Heroes of the Lance that was released only on the Famicom in 1992. Some people would question the logic of making a sequel to a game that almost nobody liked in the first place and so late in the NES's life but I'll go along with it. The idea behind this guide is to guide you through the game with some terrible ASCII maps that I made and a general walkthrough to help you through some of the difficult areas. There's no wrong way to play this game, but I highly suggest that you map dungeons, or look at the ones that I made, because you will likely be wandering around like a blind person. Much like I did when I first tried this game. If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, praise or criticism, they should be sent to shdwswrm(at)hotmail(dot)com with the heading "Dragons Of Flame" or something similar. All flames, threats, childish comments, etc. will be deleted and your email address filtered. =============================================================================== Game Basics =============================================================================== CONTROLS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Button : Jump Select menu command Advance text/speed up text (hold down A) B Button : Swing your weapon Cancel menu command Advance text/speed up text (hold down B) Start Button : Displays the main menu Select Button : Not used Directional Pad : Moves your party around Up Button : Aim weapon up when swinging it Enter a door Down Button : Duck Pick up an item on the ground Aim weapon down when swinging it CHARACTERS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All information here was taken from the HotL manual. It should still be accurate. GOLDMOON, PRINCESS OF QUE-SHU ----------------------------- Goldmoon is the daughter of a Que-Shu chieftain and her chosen husband was to be chief -- but the higher powers had other plans. Goldmoon fell in love with the least suitable of her tribe, the warrior Riverwind. Her father hoped to get rid of the young man by sending him on a quest to find proof of the old deities. No one ever expected him to return. Months later he did return with a blue crystal staff that he claimed was proof of the Ancients' existence. When the staff did nothing, the chief condemned Riverwind to be stoned as a heretic. Goldmoon threw herself into Riverwind's arms as he began to fall under the angry pelting. Suddenly the staff flashed and the pair disappeared. When they became reoriented, they found that they were miles away from the village, and that all of their wounds were miraculously healed! ** Skip the part about the blue crystal staff. She uses the Disks of Mishakal in this game ** Opinion: Don't use her to fight. She's a typical mage, so almost everything will do a ton of damage to her. It's better to use her to heal the other members of your party and hit enemies with her effect spells. STRUM BRIGHTBLADE ----------------- Sturm is the son of a Solamnic Knight. The Knights were unjustly blamed for the Cataclysm and are now hated by the people of Krynn. Sturm has dedicated his life to the Oath and Measure of the Knighthood. The Oath of the Knights is "Est Sularis oth Mithas: My Honor is My Life. Opinion: A strong attacker and very heroic with his awesome mustache. RAISTLIN MEJERE --------------- Raistlin was so weak when he was born that no one expected him to live. But he did survive because of his half-sister Kitiara's efforts and his strong will. As young boys, the twins Raistlin and Caramon were taken to a local fair where a conjurer was performing simple magic tricks and illusions. That evening, the youngster astonished his family by reproducing every trick he'd seen. A year later, Raistlin was taken to a Master Mage where he again amazed his elders by reading a spell book he had found in the master's library. Raistlin became the youngest mage ever to take, and pass, the Test of High Sorcery to become a full mage. Opinion: Use him for his magic prowess. He'll get the shit beat out of him when you use him to attack enemies with his staff. CARAMON MEJERE -------------- Caramon is the strongest of the Companions, and a fearsome warrior. He was trained in battlecraft by his half sister, who later became a Dragon Highlord in Takhisis' dragonarmies. Although they are complete opposites, Caramon is never far from his twin Raistlin. Much of Caramon's experience in combat comes from dealing with the charlatans and fakes whom Raistlin delights in exposing and humiliating. Opinion: The best fighter you have in the party. Use him to beat the snot out of stuff; he’s not good for much else. TANIS HALF-ELVEN ---------------- Tanis is a half-elf, with a human father and Elven mother. He was never truly accepted by either race. Tanis was driven by his restless nature to leave the Elven nation of Qualinesti to search the lands of Krynn for clerics with the legendary true healing powers. Until he fell in with the Companions, his only friend was the dwarf, Flint. Opinion: Tanis can use a sword or a bow & arrow when necessary making him a flexible warrior. Tanis is quite strong, although not as strong as Caramon or Riverwind. TASSELHOFF BURRFOOT ------------------- Tasslehoff, 'Tas' to his friends, is a kender. The kender are a strange race. They stand less than four feet tall, and generally wear their hair in topknots braided with a brightly colored cloth. Like all others of his race, Tas has a tendency to 'find things.' In fact, he will often find things that might not otherwise have been lost. Kender call this 'borrowing' or explain that they were protecting an item from possible theft or misplacement. Opinion: He has a ranged attack and he can clear traps when you encounter them. You can also use him to hit certain enemies and not get hit back, since he's so short. Keep him on the bench though, unless you need him. RIVERWIND THE PLAINSMAN ----------------------- Riverwind and his family were shunned in the Que-Shu tribe for their observance of the ancient traditions. When he asked for the chieftain's daughter in marriage, it was considered a grave affront. Goldmoon's father hoped to rid himself of this upstart by sending him on a quest to find some magical artifact that proved the existence of the old deities. The Riverwind who returned from the quest was not the same man who left. Riverwind returned with a strange blue staff and no memory of how he had found it. The new Riverwind was somehow changed by his strange journey. He had spoken little and was very stern. After Riverwind and Goldmoon disappeared from the hail of Que-Shu stones, they made their way to Solace. They hoped to give the magic staff to a group of clerics known as the Seekers. The Seekers, they thought, would know the staff's power and use it for the cause of good. Opinion: He’s a good fighter who can use both a bow & arrow and a sword. FLINT FIREFORGE --------------- Flint is a hill dwarf renowned for his skill in metalcraft and in battle. Tanis and Flint became close friends while the dwarf traveled through Qualinesti peddling his wares. Later he and Tanis met Tas and the rest of the Companions. Opinion: He can use a ranged attack and since he's short, he can avoid being damaged by certain monsters. SPELLS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MAGIC USER SPELLS ----------------- Raistlin uses these spells. He starts out with 255 MP. Spell: Charm Effect: Confuses the enemy Cost: 16 MP Usefulness: C-. No effect on enemies as far as I can tell. Spell: Sleep Effect: Puts the enemy to sleep Cost: 21 MP Usefulness: C+. Useful, but not necessary most of the time. Spell: Magic Missile Effect: A damaging distance attack Cost: 16 MP Usefulness: A. It can defeat tougher enemies from a distance, and it's the only way to defeat a boss later in the game. Spell: Web Effect: Stops enemies from moving & attacking Cost: 32 MP Usefulness: B+. Useful against tougher enemies, but the somewhat high casting cost offsets how much you will use it. Spell: Burning Hands Effect: A damaging distance attack Cost: 21 MP Usefulness: B-. Seems to do the same amount of damage as Magic Missile, but it costs more to cast. What? Spell: Fire Ball Effect: A damaging distance attack Cost: 32 MP Usefulness: B. Does a little more damage than the other two distance attack spells, but the high casting cost might not be worth it. CLERICAL SPELLS --------------- Goldmoon uses these spells. She starts out with 255 MP. Spell: Cure Light Wounds Effect: Raises one's HP by 51 points Cost: 5 MP Usefulness: B. Spell: Hold Person Effect: Freezes enemies Cost: 16 MP Usefulness: B-. Works on some enemies, but doesn’t on other enemies. Spell: Spiritual Hammer Effect: A damaging distance attack Cost: 6 MP Usefulness: B. Useful, but not necessary most of the time. Save Goldmoon's MP for healing and leave the attacking to the others. Spell: Bless Effect: I don't know. I'll have to look into this one. Cost: n/a Usefulness: n/a Spell: Dispel Magic Effect: Seems to prevent enemies from using magic Cost: n/a Usefulness: n/a Spell: Heal Effect: Raises one's HP by 127 points Cost: 16 MP Usefulness: A. You will definitely need this at some point. Spell: Turn Undead Effect: Damages undead enemies on the screen Cost: 16 MP Usefulness: B. Useful, but you don’t need to use it. Let Raistlin handle the disposal of enemies with his spells. Spell: Cure Critical Wounds Effect: Raises one's HP by 204 points Cost: 21 MP Usefulness: A. You will definitely need this at some point. Spell: Raise Dead Effect: Brings one dead character back to life Cost: 48 MP Usefulness: B+. Essential, but the high casting cost will eat away at your MP quickly when you are not careful. GAME PLAY ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE MAIN MENU ------------- Hero Select: Switch two characters positions. Select the first and then the second. The two characters that you selected with switch positions with one another. Magic User Spells: Raistlin uses these spells. They are attacking and negative effect spells for enemies. Clerical Spells: Goldmoon uses these spells. They are curative and positive effect spells for your allies. Use: Use an item that a character is holding. Select it and you will be taken to the character profile screen. Select a character and use the direction pad to use or equip the item on the character. Drop: Drop an item that a character is holding. Select it and the character profile screen will come up. Select a character and the item that you want to drop with the direction pad. Give: Give an item to another character. Select it and the character profile screen will pop up. Select a character and use the direction pad to choose an item and the character you want to have the item. Save: Save your game. After you save, you will be given the option of continuing the game or quitting to the title screen. Load: Load a previously saved game. Choose the game and you'll start at the beginning of the area you were in. Rest: Restore some health to the character you are currently in control of. You can only use this when there are no enemies in the room around you. You'll have to wait awhile before you can use it again. THE WORLD MAP ------------- The world map is nearly the same as the one in Zelda 2; it's an action RPG, where the enemies appear in real-time on the world map. The world map is divided into two different areas; the first, "Plains and Forest" which is the chapter 1 of the walkthrough; the second, "Elfland" (nod to Final Fantasy 1 \m/), encompasses chapter 2 to the Cave of Sla Mori. Town: Grey tiles represent the towns of Pax Tharkas and the Elven Village. Mountain: Mountains are represented by the Grey pointy tiles. They are found at the periphery of the two areas you can explore. You can only walk around them. Tree: Green tiles are trees. They can be found all over the first area, not so much in the second area. You can only walk around them also. Water: The Blue tiles are water. Only found in the first area, water covers most of the East side of the map. Since you can't use a boat or other floatation device in this game, you can only walk around them. NPC: NPCs are dressed in Purple, scattered around the first area. Walk into them if you want to talk; sometimes they will give you items. Monster: Monsters are represented by the White NPCs walking around the first and second areas. You will appear on the action screen when you touch one of these things. THE ACTION SCREEN ----------------- You appear on the action screen when you touch a monster on the world map. Similar to Zelda 2, you have to kill several monsters before you can leave. You will appear back on the world map once they are all gone. THE DUNGEON ----------- Dungeons are longer, more complex and filled with tougher monsters than those you faced on the world map. These are the traditional side-scrolling beat-em- up area like first game, Heroes Of The Lance. There are only three things to take note of in dungeons. Doors: Doors take you to the next lowest floor in the dungeon. Items: Helpful items laying on the ground in the dungeon. You should be able to see them easily enough. Traps: It's a trap! You will know you run into a trap when you get hit by falling rocks inside a dungeon. Tasselhoff can clear traps when you run into one. Flint can avoid them too because... well, he's short enough to get by then when the rocks fall. THE MONSTERS ------------ Hornet: Weak insects that are easily killed with a few blows. Back up when you see it raise its stinger to avoid taking damage. H. Warrior: Ragged Humans with clubs that are only found on the outside areas. Back away when it lifts it's club above its head. Baaz Drac. Green lizard-like monsters you will encounter all throughout the game. Watch out for the sword when it appears around the torso of the monster, and the subsequent explosion when you deliver the death blow. Back away to avoid taking damage. Wolf: A wild animal that's easily killed, but will likely put up more of a fight than the Hornet. Duck and swing downward to hit it. Bozak Drac. A tougher palette-swap of the Baaz Draconian that will shoot fireballs at you and constantly walk backwards to avoid your attacks. Duck to avoid the fireballs and hit it when you get close enough. It will also explode when it takes enough damage. Troll: Tall, green creatures that you will first encounter in the Sha Mori Cave. It's difficult to defeat without taking a lot of damage in return, so it's best to avoid them. Cast Web or Sleep with Raistlin and waltz past it when you come across one. Bat: Bats are weak flying animals that start high in the air at first and slowly swoop down at you when you get close enough. You have amble time to hit it when it drops near the ground. S. Minion: Slow-moving revenants that attack by swinging it’s arms at you. You can tell when it’s going to attack when it lifts its arms. Move back when it does to avoid taking damage. Wraith: The Wraith is a weak, floating skeletal creature. It moves slowly and it hits hard when it connects. Back away when it raises its arms to attack. Dragon: A flying lizard of the fire-breathing variety; lucky for you it doesn’t breathe fire at you. It’s tough to fight without taking a ton of damage like the Troll, but it’s the rarest creature you encounter. Wait for it to approach and dive down while it’s near the ground; take the time to jump over it to avoid taking damage. SURVIVING THE DUNGEON(S) OF DOOM -------------------------------- * The single best strategy to use against most monsters is waiting for them to approach, stab a couple times, back up, stab a couple more times, etc. Watch for the monster's "tells"; some monsters will raise their arms before they try to hit you to avoid trading blows with them. * Use magic sparingly if you can help it. Use the REST command or curative items to heal instead of using Goldmoon, and only use Raistlin's spells on stronger monsters like Trolls or Dragons. * Use Tanis, Caramon, Strum, and Riverwind for physical fights. Raistlin and Goldmoon should only be used for their magic. Tasselhoff and Flint should be used for backup and when you need to clear a trap. * Face in the direction you want when you use projectile spells like Fireball and Web. =============================================================================== Walkthrough =============================================================================== PROLOGUE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Tanis and company, having successfully retrieved the Disks of Mishakal from the ruins, watch as the town of Solace burns to the ground. The Dragonarmy has already begun its invasion.] Caramon: How elaborate! Those Dragonarmy bastards have shown up again! Tanis: There are an awful lot of Draconians here... I wonder if they have a base nearby. Strum: Bastards! Women, children, they intend to take everyone! Let's go get them! Raistlin: Please calm yourself, sir knight. If we went right now, we'd only get ourselves caught... But if we wait for the right chance... Flint: I admit, it's regrettable, but what the mage says is right. Strum will just have to put up with it. Goldmoon: I've heard that Pax Tharkas may have been completed. Tanis: It's possible. I wonder where they've taken the people... Caramon: You think they have hostages? Strum: Such boundless cowardice! How can we, as knights, let them run loose like that? Riverwind: Which way do we go? We'll just drop in on the way and see if there are any problems. Tasselholf: Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go quick! Besides, we might get to see some dragons! [Drawing up their plans, the party takes on a new adventure.] TO PAX THARKAS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GOAL: Reach Pax Tharkas (find the Elf, Gilthanas). You start the game out in the middle of a field, likely with a few enemies wandering around already. Nice place, eh? You can talk to the guy in purple if you want but it’s not necessary. He doesn’t have anything interesting to say beside some of the back story. Anyway, the place you are looking for it Pax Tharkas, which is far to the South. So, having said that, we might as well get on our way. Start out by walking [S] until you reach a river that cuts across the land going East to West. Follow the river [W] to where it ends and start going [SW] or [West] and then [S]. You should come across a large forest with a path continuing [S] in the [SW] corner of the game area. You are about half-way to Pax Tharkas at this point. It gets harder now since your movement is restricted to the paths in the forest. You will come across a few Baaz Draconians along with Wolves, Hornets, and Human Warriors while you are here. Head into the forest and follow the initial path that leads slightly [W] and then [SW]. When you reach the fork in the road, that the [W] path and then [S] again until the ocean comes back into view. Don’t go toward the ocean, instead, go [W] and then [S] until you can see the ocean one more time. Follow the [S] route and go along the [W] route when you come to another fork. Continue [S] and you should be right beside the ocean now. You are nearly there. The monsters will clog up the way but you can use one of the other multiple ones to neatly sidestep them when they get in your way. Pax Tharkas is ahead, however you won’t be able to enter the city. That sucks. You will find out in a second that it’s not in your best interest to go there anyway. Talk to the guy standing nearby. You will go into a short cutscene when you do and you will done with this area. “... Entering Pax Tharkas from the front is similar to standing in front of a dragon’s flame. On my father’s orders, I have come here to lead you to the Cave of Sla Mori. First we’ll go to the Elven village and take some rest. You’re probably wounded...” *With Gilthanas guidance, the party arrived at the Elven village. They stayed at that impregnable location for three months...* *When they left the village, Gilthanas came with them.* “The known path to Sla Mori has become a den of ghosts lately, but originally it was the castle of the Elven king Kith-Kanan. With my Elven spells I can open the door into Sla Mori.” TO THE CAVE OF SLA MORI ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GOAL: Reach the Cave Of Sla Mori SECONDARY GOAL: Find the Blacksmith to upgrade your armor. Gilthana will go along with you until you reach the Cave of Sla Mori. He’s hanging around to open the cave for you, not to fight, so don’t count on any extra help. The cave itself is almost directly [SW] of the Elven Village. It's not a direct route, however, you have go through the rock maze found along the edge of this area. The narrow routes will really limit your movement and you will run into quite a bit of monsters here. No worries though. You will run into the same monsters as before, but the occasional Bozak/Baaz Draconian will make a special appearance to irritate you along the way. To reach the cave, take a walk [S] until you reach the rock wall and [W] to find the cave. The blacksmith's shop is in the [NW] corner and there’s just one way to reach it. All other paths will eventually lead to a dead-end. To get there, walk [W] to the rock wall and [N] to find it. The path [N] starts as a random scattering of rocks and trees, but coalesce further into a single path leading to the blacksmith. He will upgrade all armor (+1) and you can continue to the cave. There's nothing else in the area now, except for the cave. Talk about sparse surroundings! Don't forget about the Elven Village; you can use it to heal your party before you start off for your search for the Cave of Sla Mori. Gilthana will open the door for you when you get there, but decline to enter with your party. Pfft. Enter without him and you will be trapped inside with a resounding slam of the door as the author of this guide laughed mightily (not really, I'm on your side). Keep on truckin'. You don't have a choice anyway. THE CAVE OF SLA MORI ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------- | Objects & Monsters Key | -------------------------------------------------------- | 0 (zero) = Door t = Troll | | ! = Raise Dead Scroll b = Baaz Dragonian | | # = Potion of Healing z = Bozak Dragonian | | & = Heal Scroll w = Wolf | | $ = Javelin a = Bat | | ^ = Arrows d = Dragon | | > = Throwing Axe s = Spectral Minion | | % = Fireball r = Wraith | | < = Bullets | | + = Battle Axe +2 | | ) = Quarter Staff +2 | | * = Wyrmslayer Sword | | | -------------------------------------------------------- GOAL: Reach the hidden entrance to Pax Tharkas. SECONDARY GOAL: Find the Wyrmslayer Sword. Overview of the Cave of Sla Mori: Start_____0_________0 | | 0_ta_0 r_0__w____0______0 | | | 0_z__0_b__0____0 _0_ss_0 >_0r___0 | | | | | $_0_< 0_)a_0 !_0_w__0 0_% 0____0__w_0 | | | | 0__b_0_b_______0 0a___0 0_a 0_sb_0____0 | | | | | 0_tw_0____0 0____0__d_0____0 0__^_0 0_a# | | | | | <_0____0 &_0_! 0__w_0_t__0 0__r_0_a__0____0 | | | | | 0_d__0____0 0____0 z_0_b__0 0_ss_0 0_# | | | | | 0_zb_0 0_wa a_0 +t_0_t 0_zs_0_ | | 0_d__0____0 0____0__a_0__t_0 | | | | | 0__z_0_b 0_a 0_s 0_t 0_ss_0 | | 0_d____0_______0 t_0_______0____w_0 | | | | 0_rr_0 0__z_0__b_0 z_0_s__0 | | | 0__t_0_r__0 0__b_0_s__0 0__d_0____0 | | | | | | a_0_ 0____0_>$ z_0_b__0 w_0 0____0 0_s | | | 0_^ 0_s__0_b )_*__0 | 0____0_Pax Tharkas 1 The door will slam shut behind you. There's no going back now. The first floor effectively separates the rest of the Cave of Sla Mori into two sides with the exception of the floor near the mid-section on the right, and where the floors combine near the bottom. You can see what I'm talking about on the map above. It's not worth fully exploring the left side of the cave unless you want to use it to reach Pax Tharkas. There are a number of strong monsters on the way down, however you should at least travel down to where the two Raise Dead Scrolls (!) and the Heal Scroll (&) are located. The centre of the cave has a powerful Battle Axe +2 (+) but it's heavily guarded by several Trolls and some lesser monsters. The right side of the cave has a couple of Potions of Healing (#) and weaker monsters, although there are more of them than there are on the left side. You can find your way to the bottom of the cave however you want. The monsters, particularly the Trolls and Dragons, that you will encounter in the lower floors of this cave are tough customers. Spectral Minions and Wraiths can be a pain when you are not careful as well. The rest of the enemies are weaker types that that won't cause too many problems. The Wyrmslayer sword is located in the bottom right corner. It's a good idea to get it before you head to Pax Tharkas. You will know that you are in the right place when you see a large statue and a throne with a skeleton and the sword beside it. Some text will pop up and you can take the sword. "There is one throne. On top of the throne is a dead body. Is he the legendary Elven king Kith-Kanan? Under the throne a fallen sword is stuck in the ground." Keep going to the far left side of this room to find a Quarter Staff +2 if you want it. Go back up several floors and take the leftmost door to find your way to Pax Tharkas. You will know you've found it when you go down several zigzagging floors as evident when you look at the map. When you get close to the door, some text will pop up identifying the door does go to Pax Tharkas. "No mistake! This is the entrance to Pax Tharkas!" How can one tell the difference, honestly? It looks identical as every other non-descript door in here. In any case, it's off to Pax Tharkas. PAX THARKAS PART 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------- | Objects & Monsters Key | -------------------------------------------------------- | 0 (zero) = Door t = Troll | | ! = Raise Dead Scroll b = Baaz Dragonian | | # = Potion of Healing z = Bozak Dragonian | | & = Heal Scroll w = Wolf | | ^ = Arrows a = Bat | | % = Fire Ball d = Dragon | | < = Bullets x = Encounter (Goblin, | | " = Gem Ember) | | ( = Spear | | @ = Ring of Protection | | / = Sword +3 | | | -------------------------------------------------------- GOAL: Reach the entrance to the interior of Pax Tharkas and kill the dragon, Ember, guarding it. Overview of Pax Tharkas 1: Sla Mori__________0 | 0____0_t__0_a___0 | | | 0_% 0___( 0_d__0 | 0__a_0__w_0 | | 0_tt_0 0_w__0 | | 0____0_d__0 #@___0 | | t_0_a 0_d__0____0 | | 0_bz_0 0_t__0_t__0 | | | 0_t_0_w__0 0_bz_0 d_0____0____0 | | | | | "_0 _z_0 0_a ^_0____0_< 0_a | 0_t__0_w__0 | | 0x________0 0_b | 0____0_________0____0 | | | 0__@_0 0__b_0_z 0_Old Sage | | 0_w__0____0 0_d&_0 | | | 0_tw_0 b_0_z !@_0____0 | | 0_t__0_a__0 0_d__0 | | | #_0____0 0_a__0_a__0 | | t_0_t__/ w_0_t__0_________0 | | d_0 0____0 | 0____x_ Pax Tharkas 2 The door will close behind you again. Nowhere to go except to forge ahead. The path to the boss is more direct than Cave of Sla Mori apart from where it splits toward the end. I have to apologize for my mistake when I first drew the map for this area; I didn’t realize that the path split and I made the map far longer (and different) than it actually looks. Oops. The monsters are tougher here however; there are quite a bit more encounters with Trolls and Dragons than there were in the Cave of Sla Mori. You should, hopefully at least, have the Wyrmslayer to even the odds though. There are traps in several places close to the start, consequently you might want to use Tasselhoff, or a weak party member that you want to pick off (hehe). The trap disappear toward the middle of the map. You don’t have to do a great deal of backtracking to collect items; it’s a good idea to pick up the Potions of Healing (#), Heal Scroll (&), Raise Dead Scroll (!), and Ring of Protection (@). I'm not sure what the Ring of Protection does exactly. I assume it's something for defense or health. The path is straightforward like I said until you encounter the Goblin about halfway down. The Goblin is a sub-boss of sorts, or just a device to move the story along since it’s so weak. It will talk for a bit and then attack you. * A Goblin is dressed up as a small animal. He looks your way and begins speaking with an air of importance. "Clever rats! I don't know where they are coming from, but it's going to be an unhappy sight for Lord Toede." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Goblin is simple to defeat. The arrows it will shoot at you are quite damaging. Just rush him and start stabbing until he surrenders. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After you beat him up sufficiently, it will give you some information in exchange for letting it go. "... Go see the old dragon woman called the Old Sage. Take this door and turn right from there..." You don't have to go too far. Take the door down and walk all the way to the right to find the Old Sage. Enter the door on the far right to find it. You will get some useful information about Ember, another *evil* dragon, and how to defeat it easily. Then it will restore your MP and let you continue through Pax Tharkas. You can return here at any time to restore your MP when you are low. At this point there are two different branching paths that you can take. The left path has some useful items like a Potion of Healing, a Ring of Protection, and a Sword +3 at the very bottom. The right path has a Raise Dead Scroll, Heal Scroll, and a Ring of Protection along the way. Both are roughly the same difficulty-wise, although if you don’t like Dragons, you might want to take the left path; like-wise for the left path if you don’t like Trolls. You can use Raistlin’s Web spell to deal with Trolls when you get tired of them. The Sword +3 is guarded by two Trolls so it will come in handy along the way. It’s more of the same that you have been dealing with along the rest of the way down. Go through the door at the bottom to reach the room of Ember the dragon. It’s a lot like the one occupied by the Old Sage except that the music will change to a more ominous tone. Walk ahead and you find Ember- more like it fades in when you get close enough- at the far end. *What a heavy atmosphere... from inside growls of beastly voices can be heard... What are they doing?* “Who... Is this Ember’s room? Ho... I feel like an insect in here. Poor bastards... Scorched by the flames of this Ember...” ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ember is an imposing but an ultimately weak dragon [bastard], much like Khisanth from HotL. Do what the Sage told you earlier and switch to Raistlin. Use the Magic Missile in the left corner make it easier to avoid the fireballs that Ember [bastard] will shoot out randomly toward the ground. Jump over the fireballs when they get close. Once you hit Ember thrice times, he'll disappear and you can continue your heroic quest. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You will get a short cutscene of the children being released from the dungeon and about to head back to the surface. PAX THARKAS PART 2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------- | Objects & Monsters Key | -------------------------------------------------------- | 0 (zero) = Door x = Encounter (Vermin- | | naaard) | | | -------------------------------------------------------- GOAL: Kill Verminaard Overview of Pax Tharkas 2: 0________Pax Tharkas I | 0_______x You start at a dead end. No worries for you since the big boss man is right ahead. Keep going until you see the door at the far side. Enter and continue until you find Verminaard in his chamber. The room is surprising dark but it has a nice lighting effect. Good thing too. Because I might be too scared to continue, or, I might be eaten by a Grue or something. I don’t know.. Verminaard, I think, has something to say before you get ready to rumble. “I don’t know how long I’ll be ok here...This is the first time that people have broken this far into Pax Tharkas... “ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Verminaard [that bastard!] has two attacks and both of them are the suckage. At a distance, he'll throw energy balls at you that alternate high or low to the ground. The energy balls don't do much damage but they stack up quickly. Close up, he'll bash you with his club, which is his more damaging attack. He'll also teleport around the room. The easiest way to finish this fight is, you guessed it, just rush and attack him when he's close enough. Using magic is a little too slow and awkward to hit Verminaard since you will have to navigate the menus and hope to hit him before he teleports elsewhere. Heal with items and use Goldmoon when necessary. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After pummeling him enough he will fall to one knee and disappear. Congrats! A winner is you! ENDING ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [The morning sun rises... the night of battles seems not to have existed at all in the light of the sun... his purifying light seems to give to the party it's blessing.] Tasselhoff: This adventure is a fraud. There's been a deplorable lack of sovereigns. Caramon: Hey! We are not thieves! Strum: Just being able to see people's joyous faces isn't enough for you? Flint: Huh? I don't want to end up with rocks. Tanis: And besides, this has been dangerous. It would be nice if somebody helped us out. Goldmoon: Surely, Mishakal will protect us. Riverwind: But he could supply a meal every now and then. These days are the gods really the ones granting protection? Caramon: Well, I'm fine, as long as we're opposing those bastards from the Dragonarmy. Raistlin: Brother, have you learned nothing from this battle? Flint: Don't be like that. I'm sure that Pax Tharkas isn't the only fort in the area. Strum: In any case, shouldn't we clear up exactly what we should achieve? Tanis: Uhhh... Well, we get going? To where they require us? [The gentle morning light envelops the party and thus their adventures draws to a close.] =============================================================================== Closing =============================================================================== FINAL WORDS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Goodbye. It's been fun writing this thing for you all. Well, not really, but I had to have something nice to say since this guide is almost at the end. Heh. Just kidding. In all actuality, I really enjoyed writing this guide and that's why I wrote so quickly compared to my other guides. Anyway. If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, praise or criticism, they should be sent to shdwswrm(at)hotmail(dot)com. If you're looking for specific information and it isn't in this guide, please tell me about it and I'll fix it. CREDIT ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -Pony Canyon, SSI, and TSR for making this game possible on the NES. -DVD Translations for translating the game and the .txt file they provided. -Brakzero for some of the information in his HotL guide. -AdamL for bringing this game to my attention. And thank you for reading. End of document________________________________________________________________