Arc the Lad Collection Characters and Inventory Importing FAQ Version 1.4 -- 18 Dec 2002 Written by Monsta (rancid@newmail.ru) ---------------------------------- Contents ---------------------------------- 1. Legal stuff 2. Revision history 3. Introduction 4. Arc the Lad information 4.1. Arc the Lad characters 4.2. Arc the Lad inventory 5. Arc the Lad II information 5.1. Save importing notes 5.2. Arc the Lad II characters 5.3. Arc the Lad II inventory 6. Thanks ============================================================================= 1. Legal stuff This document is copyright 2002 by Monsta. You may not use it for any commercial purpose. You may not alter it in any way. You may distribute it freely, as long as it remains unchanged. ============================================================================= 2. Revision history 1.4 - Added more Toy Ring information, but I wonder if anyone needs it...? 1.3 - I've finally completed the first disc of AtL III. It took me so long because I'm using the emulator instead of real PSX. And all the emulators I tried to use refused to change discs in this game. Two months passed before I received help from the man who had DexDrive... So I decided to release this version. Not much to say about it. In two words, I think that importing from AtL II to AtL III is useless. Read AtL II sections for more info. 1.2 - Changed the numeration of sections. Corrected information on King's Image and Raila's Hairpin items. Completed AtL II and added some information about save importing. 1.1 - Added information on Healing Charm and Raila's Hairpin items. Nothing else today, sorry. 1.0 - Initial version. Arc the Lad characters and inventory information. ============================================================================= 3. Introduction As you (maybe) know, after you'll complete Arc the Lad you can import your savegame into Arc the Lad II using the "Convert" option in the main menu. All your characters' stats will be imported into AtL II, as well as your inventory. So, when one of the heroes from the first episode will join your party, he'll have the same level and abilities he had in the end of AtL. (Inventory will be imported in another way, read below for more info.) Besides, after you complete AtL II, you can do the same thing and import the savegame into AtL III or into Arc Arena. So what's the problem? The problem is that not all the characters will be imported from AtL into AtL II and from AtL II into AtL III. Some of them will become NPC's (non-playable characters), others will simply disappear from the game. In short, this document will tell you which characters you should develop for importing. Also, I'll tell you a few words about importing the inventory. ============================================================================= 4. Arc the Lad information 4.1. Arc the Lad characters There are seven playable characters in Arc the Lad - Arc, Kukuru, Poco, Gogen, Tosh, Iga and Chongara. Also, during the battle Chongara can summon seven other characters. These are Odon, Mofly, Kelack, Hemo-ji, Fujin, Raijin and Choko. They are called "guardians". All these characters will be imported into Arc the Lad II. Except Chongara. You will surely meet him in AtL II, but only as NPC. And all his summoned guardians will become fully playable characters. And, of course, their level and abilities will also be imported into AtL II. So, I recommend developing everyone except Chongara. Don't worry too much about his level - in AtL II he'll become NPC anyway. And DON'T equip him with King's Image. That thing will give all guardians' experience to Chongara, leaving the poor creatures at their starting level! That's useless, because in AtL II the guardians will REALLY need that experience... But I said "don't equip", not "don't get". Get King's Image and leave it in your inventory, because you'll need it in AtL II (read below). There's not much to say about the development of six main characters. If you visited all fighting places (such as Quina Hill), fought about 50 battles at Niedel Tournament and went through all 50 floors of the Forbidden Ruins, your characters should be at level 50 or more. (Well, there's too much 50's in that phrase...) Some characters, such as Arc and Tosh, may even reach level 60 which is maximum for this game! (By the way, check out level 60 Tosh with Hyper Boots equipped. His speed is unmatched.) The important thing here is that at level 50 (or higher) almost all characters will have all their abilities at level 3. This is maximum ability level in AtL AND in AtL II. So gain experience now (in AtL), it'll help you later (in AtL II). Development of guardians is harder. You cannot raise every guardian's level to maximum. Summoning of one guardian takes one Chongara's turn, and almost all of the guardians will be killed after one or two hits. I bet you'll become tired of it very soon. So let's see which guardians you may try to develop. Odon. Using him in battle is funny, as he can morph into enemies and then use their magic. It's useless though, because enemies' magic is often weak, and instead of using it, I prefer a good punch, or sword, or magic of my own characters. Besides, other guardians will get some nice additional abilities in AtL II, but Odon WON'T. So I don't think it's worth developing him. Mofly. In AtL, he can only make floors. This ability helped me to get some chests I couldn't get without it. But Mofly will no longer have it in AtL II. Instead, he will get some pretty useless supporting abilities (such as Ground Shield) and average attack magic (such as Earthquake). You'll get some better magicians in AtL II, so I don't think it's worth developing him. (Again.) Kelack. Now that's a great guy. Oh no, there are three guys! They have pretty nice healing magic in AtL, and in addition they'll get some nice attack magic in AtL II (such as Triple Attack and Acid Breath). I recommend using him in battle as much as possible. Hemo-ji. Another guy with unusual abilities. In AtL, he can morph enemies into Hemo-ji's. They become unable to use magic and their attack and defense are reduced. In AtL II, Hemo-ji will get some cool abilities (Magic Shield, Confusion, Mind Buster), so maybe you'll want to develop him. The problem is that Hemo-ji is very weak, so there is a chance he'll get killed before he kills anybody. I guess you'll have to develop him in AtL II... Fujin and Raijin. You don't have to worry about their development too much. When you'll get them in AtL II, they'll have their magic ability level at 95 or higher, while others will be at 20-30! Besides, in AtL they have only one magic (and you need both guardians in order to use it), but in AtL II they'll get some additional attacking magic and will be able to use it separately. Believe me, even at level 30 each of them will be able to kill almost any enemy with one hit... You certainly don't need to develop them in AtL. Choko. That's a nightmare. For enemies, of course. When you'll get her, she'll be at level 1. And she is VERY powerful even at this level. So there's no need to develop her too much, but if you do so, you'll raise a nice killing machine... In AtL II, my level 60 Choko had about 450 HP, 260 MP and attack power level at 50 (and she didn't even have her best weapon). She'll also get a nice set of magic abilities in AtL II. That's all I can say about the guardians. By the way, if you don't know where to get them in AtL or in AtL II, read other FAQs at www.gamefaqs.com. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4.2. Arc the Lad inventory This section was written using AtL FAQ by Chris VanBergen (CVB@coolaid.net) because I wasn't able to get all the items by myself. So, if you don't know where to get some item, read that FAQ. Well, this section should be called "Arc the Lad accessories" because only the accessories will be imported into AtL II, not ordinary items, like herbs. So I listed all accessories and their properties in AtL and AtL II. It's up to you whether to get them or not. Some items will also change their name when imported into AtL II (these names are shown in brackets). And remember, almost all of these items can't be found in AtL II. So if you think you'll need some of them, you'll have to get them in AtL and import the inventory. Oh yeah, one last note: in the last battle in AtL (when you fight against dark reflections of your characters) or earlier UNEQUIP EVERY CHARACTER, or else there is a chance your inventory won't be imported into AtL II. This is the advice from Chris' FAQ. Fire Charm AtL: Protection from fire magic. (Flame Charm) AtL II: Protection from attack, defense, magic and agility decreasing. +9 defense. Note: There are four elemental charms in AtL II - Flame, Ice, Wind and Earth. Flame and Ice charms can also be found in AtL. You can combine all four charms in Combine Shop (AtL II) to get Light Charm (+11 defense) which has the same properties as Flame Charm, but its elemental attribute is Light. And what is the purpose of such useless combining? Ice Charm AtL: Protection from ice magic. AtL II: Protection from jump, throw, counterattack and catch decreasing. +9 defense. Note: See Fire Charm/Flame Charm note. Tragedy Glasses AtL: It says "CAUTION - unknown effect", but Chris' FAQ says it reduces damage from elemental attacks. AtL II: Reduces damage from elemental attacks. +9 defense. Note: No comments. Anti Hemo-ji AtL: Protection from Hemo-ji condition. Atl II: Same. +4 defense. Note: I think it's useless. No comments on that. Insomnia Card AtL: Protection from sleep. (Sleepless Card) AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: You can combine Tanzanite, Sleepless Card and Sunglasses to get Chaos Tanzanite (+8 defense) which protects you from sleep, darkness and confusion. Not bad. Sunglasses AtL: Protection from darkness. AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: See Insomnia Card/Sleepless Card note. Mirror AtL: Protection from stone. AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: You can combine Crush Boots and Mirror to get Stone Boots. They have petrifying attack, but very little attack power (+9). Not very useful. Antidote Ring AtL: Protection from poison. AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: I think it's useless. Poison doesn't do so much damage. Monolith Crest AtL: Protection from paralysing. (Emblem of Lark) AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: No comments. Hawk Statue AtL: Protection from silence. AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: No comments. Book of Corvis AtL: Protection from all status changes. (Book of Cravis) AtL II: Same. Well I guess so. (It says "Increase status protect".) +6 defense. Note: No comments. Healing Charm AtL: If some character has it equipped and you cast a healing spell on him, it heals him more HP. AtL II: Same. +8 defense. Note: No comments. Sea Breeze Harmony AtL: Heals all your characters each turn. Only for Kukuru. AtL II: Same. +5 defense. Note: Nice thing. It doesn't do much healing though. Raila's Hairpin AtL: If Kukuru has it equipped and you cast a healing spell on her, she'll be fully healed. Only for Kukuru. AtL II: Recovers 10 MP each turn. +5 defense. Only for Kukuru. Note: Nice thing. Sun Hat AtL: Recovers HP each turn. AtL II: Same. +11 defense. Note: It doesn't do much healing. About 5 HP. Necklace AtL: Gain more HP when gaining a level. Great! AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: Get it ASAP in AtL, because you won't find it in AtL II. Hero Crest AtL: Recovers MP each turn. Only for Arc. (Brave Crest) AtL II: Same. It also increases max MP. +5 defense. Note: It recovers about 5 MP per turn. Not bad. Goddess Amulet AtL: Halves MP consumption. (Goddess Prayer) AtL II: Same. +14 defense. Note: Great stuff. Rune Ring AtL: It says "CAUTION - unknown effect", but Chris' (Ancient Ring) FAQ says it doubles MP consumption and slightly increases the power of spells. Only for Arc. AtL II: +6 magic ability, +5 defense. Only for Arc. Note: No comments. Short Sword AtL: +10% attack power. AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +23 attack power. Only for characters who can equip short swords. Note: Pretty damaging for a short sword, huh? Get it in AtL and have fun in AtL II. Power Wrist AtL: +30% attack power. AtL II: +4 attack power, +7 defense. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Phantom Gauntlet AtL: +50% attack power. (Fabulous Gauntlet) AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +6 attack power. Only for characters who can equip gauntlets. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Great Cane AtL: +70% attack power. Only for Gogen. (Power Cane) AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +37 attack power. Only for Gogen. Note: Very powerful stuff. Elder's Charm AtL: It says "+10% defense rate", I guess it's just (Senior's Wish) +10% defense. AtL II: +4 defense. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Armor Stone AtL: +10% defense. AtL II: +2 defense. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Warrior Charm AtL: +30% defense. AtL II: +18 defense. Note: A nice piece of armor. Power Gauntlet AtL: +30% defense. Only for Chongara. AtL II: I couldn't find it in AtL II. Note: The characters from AtL didn't have it equipped and none of the chests in Chongara's Shop had it too. Maybe its name has changed and I missed it? Phantom Shield AtL: +50% defense. (Legend Charm) AtL II: +19 defense. Note: A nice piece of armor. Magic Card AtL: +10% magic ability. AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +4 magic ability, +7 attack power. Only for Sania. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Magic Ring AtL: +30% magic ability. AtL II: +5 magic ability, +7 defense. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Prayer Beads AtL: +30% magic ability. Only for Gogen. AtL II: +8 magic ability, +5 defense. Only for Gogen. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Music Book AtL: +30% magic ability. Only for Poco. AtL II: +6 magic ability, +6 defense. Only for Poco. Note: It sucks in AtL II. Phantom Ring AtL: +50% magic ability. (Fabulous Ring) AtL II: +10 magic ability, +7 defense. Note: It su... oh well, +10 magic ability is not that bad. May be useful. Whirlwind Bandanna AtL: +10% agility. (Gale Bandanna) AtL II: +2 agility, +4 defense. Note: Agility grows very slowly, so this item may help you... Hyper Boots AtL: +30% agility. AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +4 agility, +14 attack power. Only for characters who can equip boots. Note: Average attack power plus agility boost. But it's definitely not the best boots in AtL II world. Kaiser Glove AtL: Sets throw level to 1. AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +9 attack power. Only for characters who can equip gauntlets. Ability is the same as in AtL. You can combine it with Small Sword to get Spatha (+15 attack power). Note: Useful only for characters with throw level at zero. And it sucks as a weapon. Throw Scroll AtL: Sets throw level to 2. AtL II: Same. +9 defense. Note: Useful only for characters with throw level below 2. Junk Bracelet AtL: Sets catch level to 1. AtL II: Same. +9 defense. Note: Useful only for characters with catch level at zero. Skill Bracelet AtL: Sets catch level to 2. AtL II: Same. +14 defense. Note: Useful only for characters with catch level below 2. But defense is pretty good. Jump Boots AtL: Sets jump level to 1. (Temporary Shoes) AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +13 attack power. Only for characters who can equip boots. Ability is the same as in AtL. Note: Useful only for characters with jump level at zero. Counter Bracelet AtL: Sets counterattack level to 1. AtL II: Same. +9 defense. Note: Useful only for characters with counterattack level at zero. Diel's Fang AtL: Sets counterattack level to 2. Only for Iga. AtL II: Same. +5 defense. Note: Useful only if Iga's counterattack level is below 2. Senior Bandanna AtL: Increases hit ratio (don't know how much). AtL II: +4 defense. And that's all. Note: Not very useful item. Hit Scroll AtL: Increases hit ratio (don't know how much). AtL II: +9 defense. And that's all. Note: Not very useful item. Confusion Amulet AtL: Increases hit ratio (don't know how much). (Confusion Jewelry) AtL II: The enemy who hits your character will get the confusion status. +4 defense. Note: Nice thing. "Don't hit me or you'll lose your mind" - that should have been written on this item. Book of Flower AtL: Increases hit ratio (don't know how much). Only for Tosh. AtL II: It says "Increase dodging ability". I guess it helps to evade enemy attacks. +4 defense. Only for Tosh. Note: No comments. Violet Necklace AtL: 100% hit ratio. Chris' FAQ says that with it you also gain more MP when gaining a level, but I don't know much about it. AtL II: Properties have changed totally. +5 defense and +2 move ability! And you can combine it with Wind Robe to get Elven Chain (+21 defense, +1 move ability). Note: If you don't know what move ability is, just remember that a character with +1 move ability can travel 1 more square each turn! Great, isn't it? Fiend Statue AtL: Helps to evade enemy attacks. (Fake Statue) AtL II: Same. +4 defense. Note: No comments. Silk Belt AtL: Doubles experience received. AtL II: Same, I guess. I say so because I couldn't get it in both games. I know how to get it in AtL (it is pretty tricky) but I have no idea about how to get it in AtL II. Note: If you have any information on getting it in AtL II, please e-mail me. King's Image AtL: You get all experience of the guardians, leaving them with nothing. Only for Chongara. AtL II: Increases experience received by 1.5 times. +5 defense. Note: Get it in AtL, but don't equip it. I already said why you shouldn't do that. This item will help you a lot in AtL II. Deity Fist AtL: It says "+Strength against certain foes". Well, (God's Fist) I guess these are flying foes, because this item's description in AtL II says "Increase flying mons damage". AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +26 attack power. Only for characters who can equip gauntlets. Note: Pretty good weapon. Flay's Crest AtL: It says "+Strength against certain foes". What foes are meant here is unknown. AtL II: Protection from light of enemy who hits you will be decreased. In other words, light-elemental attack will do him more damage. +7 defense. Note: Not very useful. Monster Fang AtL: It says "CAUTION - unknown effect", but Chris' (Fabulous Fang) FAQ says it increases the chance of getting an item after killing a monster. I guess it's true. AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +21 attack power. It also decreases enemy's attack power and defense. Only for characters who can equip teeth. (It sounds weird, isn't it?) Note: It's not the best fang in AtL II world, but it has a decent attack power and nice effects. Shell AtL: Increases the chance of getting an item after killing a monster. AtL II: Same. +7 defense. Note: No comments. Unicorn Horn AtL: Increases the chance of getting an item after killing a monster. AtL II: Same. +7 defense. Note: This item is the same as Shell. Phantom Sword AtL: It says "+Attack Range", what does that mean? (Fabulous Sword) AtL II: It's a weapon, not an accessory. +24 attack power. It can place 3 different effects on enemies, and when you upgrade it, there'll be 5 effects. These are: poison, silence, confusion, darkness and sleep. Note: This sword rocks. Get it in AtL and have fun in AtL II. Toy Ring AtL: Shift Flute magic affects entire map. Only for Poco. AtL II: Heals 1 MP each turn. +5 defense. Only for Poco. Note: Useless item. Hell Scope AtL: Increases range of Shingan-ho magic. Only for Iga. AtL II: Attack power of the enemy who hits Iga will be decreased. +6 defense. Only for Iga. Note: Not bad. Yukari's Crest AtL: Adds paralyzing effect to Ouka-raibaku-zen magic. Only for Tosh. AtL II: It says "Cause counterattack". What does that mean? +5 defense. Only for Tosh. Note: I wonder how it works in AtL II... Romancing Stone 1 AtL: Does nothing unless all four Romancing Stones are equipped on one character. If you do so, all spells of this character won't consume MP. AtL II: Sets jump level to 2. +8 defense. You can combine it with all other Romancing Stones to get Romancing Stone (without number). This stone will reduce cost of all spells to zero. Note: Obviously, these stones work best when you've got all of them. Romancing Stone 2 AtL: See Romancing Stone 1 description. AtL II: Sets throw level to 2. Defense and combining possibility are the same as for Romancing Stone 1. Note: See Romancing Stone 1 note. Romancing Stone 3 AtL: See Romancing Stone 1 description. AtL II: Sets catch level to 2. Defense and combining possibility are the same as for Romancing Stone 1. Note: See Romancing Stone 1 note. Romancing Stone 4 AtL: See Romancing Stone 1 description. AtL II: Sets counterattack level to 2. Defense and combining possibility are the same as for Romancing Stone 1. Note: See Romancing Stone 1 note. So, that was the list of all AtL accessories. "But how can I get them in AtL II?", you ask. Well, some "personal" items will be already equipped on characters from AtL. E.g. Arc will have Brave Crest, Gogen will have Prayer Beads, Poco will have Music Book and so on. To get other items, just play the game until you receive access to Chongara's Shop in Alatos. Inside you'll find lots of chests with your precious items. Make sure your inventory is full before opening them. In this case, the game will ask you if you want to get the item from the chest, and you can decide whether to get it or not. That's all I can say about the inventory. If you find any mistakes in here e-mail me and I'll correct them. I'm still missing some information on Silk Belt, Power Gauntlet and Yukari's Crest. If you have information on these items please let me know. ============================================================================= 5. Arc the Lad II information 5.1. Save importing notes Importing your savegame from AtL II to AtL III is not so simple as it was before. You can import the savegame either into AtL III or into Arc Arena, and you can't use the same savegame for both! Why? Let me explain. If you want to import your savegame into AtL III, all you have to do is to play AtL II until Romalia Sky Castle appears. This crystal-like thing will be floating above Romalia, and if you'll get into it, you won't be able to return. Don't worry - everything you need (shop, smith, bed, save point etc.) will be on your ship. Also, there's a save point somewhere inside the castle (you won't miss it - it looks like gray-colored crystal). Just save at this point, then insert AtL III disc one, choose "Start game", then "Convert" in the main menu, and that's all. You don't even have to complete AtL II. I don't know what this importing affects yet. I've completed first disc of AtL III and didn't find anything special. Maybe you know something about it already? If so, please e-mail me. If you want to import your savegame into Arc Arena, you should save outside Romalia Sky Castle, not inside. This means you can't import some cool weapons that can only be found in the castle. But to import the savegame you don't have to play until the castle appears. There is a great FAQ named Arc the Lad Collection Guide by Billy Lee (leeroy3825@hotmail.com), and according to that FAQ, you just have to play until Shante asks you to pay her 1500 bucks. Then you can save and import your savegame into Arc Arena. This importing has the good and the bad sides. The good side is that all your characters and items will be imported. The bad side is that you'll only be able to choose monsters at first. Other characters will be unlocked after you win some battles. Well, it's not the bad side of the importing, it's the bad side of Arc Arena... Anyway, I'm not going to describe Arc Arena here. If you need to know something about it, read Billy Lee's FAQ. Two next sections of this document concern only AtL II to AtL III importing. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.2. Arc the Lad II characters Here's the quote from AtL Collection Board at GameFAQs: From: DanRyoga | Posted: 11/15/2002 4:33:19 PM I'm pretty sure your items don't carry over into 3. Infact very little does. The changes in 3 are all very small and only noticeable if you play through it first without converting and pay close attention to everything (atleast thats what I hear). Unlike 1 which was made with converting to 2 in mind, 2 was originally ment to be the last in the series so thats why theirs no final save after the end boss and also why the save they do use wasn't set up to transfer stuff to arc the lad 3. They basically just kept the conversion option available because it was so popular in the second game, but pretty much the only thing arc the lad 3 is able to tell from you converting is that you HAD a save file at the last save point, and not all the little statistics like what weapons/items you had or what level your party members were. Yeah, right. This piece of text explains almost everything. But I still don't know what these "small changes" are. Now I'll tell you what I know... I know that almost all the characters from AtL and AtL II are non-playable or simply absent in AtL III. The playable ones are Elc, Tosh, and Shu, and it looks like they are only playable during certain jobs. They also have their own equipment (which you can't remove). Look at their stats: Tosh Level: 40 Magic: Ouka-raibaku-zen, Jubakuken, Monji Slash, Shinku-zen (all at lv.3) Shu Level: 50 Magic: Magic shield, Steal, Tenderly Shock, Air Blast (all at lv.3) Elc (sorry, I didn't find him yet) Tosh and Shu were at level 65 or so at the end of AtL II. And they surely didn't have all their magic at level 3. So it looks like the importing doesn't do anything useful. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5.3. Arc the Lad II inventory See the quote above. Nothing to add here. If you know something, e-mail me and I'll place your information here. Otherwise, this version of FAQ is the final one. ============================================================================= 6. Thanks Sony and G-Craft - for great Arc the Lad series. And special thanks for the save importing feature! Working Designs - for translating all three games and releasing them in one package. Great job! Chris VanBergen (CVB@coolaid.net) - for Arc the Lad FAQ. The section named "Item lists" helped me a lot. Al (marietta22@georgia.com) - for help on Raila's Hairpin and Healing Charm items. Billy Lee (leeroy3825@hotmail.com) - for Arc the Lad Collection Guide. Some information on Arc Arena was taken from it. DanRyoga - for posting some helpful info at GameFAQs' board. Maksim Gataulin - for his DexDrive. I couldn't complete the first disc of AtL III without it! Jordan Bramble (jordan_bramble@hotmail.com) - for help on Toy Ring item. You - yeah, you - for reading it. And I hope this FAQ will help you. ============================================================================= - Game over -