FAQ\Walkthrough for Breath of Fire 4 for the Sony Playstation by Zhou Tai An (kain@pacific.net.sg) Version 1.3 Well, people, it looks like I'll have to give up this FAQ. Why? There are lots of other games (some very FAQ-worthy) for me to play and the two other good FAQs for this game render any more work on my part kinda useless in the long term. (They do need help on their plot summaries, though. ^_^) But before I leave, I'll be including some useful Master information my friend wrote up for me...I'm also turning over the FAQ to him, so you MIGHT see an update now and then, but for the most part it's goodbye. :( ****** As always, this document is to be used for nothing besides non-profit. Okay, I've decided to take up writing this again since there's only one other short FAQ and enough people have mailed me. So you can rest in peace. ^_^ And yes - I suggest you use WordPad to view this FAQ. Last note : Like all my other FAQs with translations, I'm using a basic narrative-summary format for this one. Translations will have work put into them, but nothing compared to the effort and attention lavished on Valkyrie Profile and Xenogears. ****** Game Basics and Such : 1. This game uses the BOF3 system of things for the most part - dig up an FAQ on that (I recommend Henry LaPierre's) and chances are that you'll be up and about in no time. I will point out stuff that's unique to 4, though. 2. Unlike BOF3, you don't Examine to learn new enemy skills - simply defending is enough. 3. Any party member occupying a "Back" position in battle automatically regenerates AP the end of a round. However, contrary to what I said earlier, I've discovered the game keeps track of what AP you've spent during the battle and deducts it from your total after it ends...so you can't sit around gaining AP. Still, characters with high CP (Concentration Points, the amount of AP one regenerates in the Back position) can still recover lots, so in lengthy battles knowing when and how to shift positions can be crucial. 4. Several ? regions on the world map have their items in exactly the same places. Try to memorize them for easy procuring of basic goods. 5. You should always search towns for hidden items. BOF 4 is one of those games which likes to hide stuff in bookshelves and the like. 6. When in battle, pressing the Triangle button brings up information on an enemy which is suprisingly complete - if you pay attention, it'll actually show you skills that you can learn and even the enemy's weak points! 7. Any party member with a missile weapon who is placed in the back row will occasionally get a free attack where he\she provides covering fire with his\her chosen weapon. Even if they don't, there's a chance of them doing different things which will help you other party members out. 8. Certain monsters can be hit with spells of a different element to allow them to transform; they become stronger, but the payoff is that they also give more EXP when defeated. ****** Combos : Here's the section with all the information I could find about combos. 1. Elements in combos follow this pattern - Fire to Wind, Wind to Water, Water to Earth and Earth to Fire. However, you can't go Shiza --> Bal (+water/ice) --> Tempest (+earth), for instance. Once you get a combination spell like Mega or Storm, only another spell of the second type (the initiating spell, or I-spell) will continue the combination spell. (Even if it doesn't continue, however, it can still combo, as in the number of hits will continue to rack up.) Also, the power of the combination spell is determined by the level of the I-spell, irrelevant of the first spell; therefore Homurabashira + Shiza is still Mega, whereas Reiga + Gatabreda becomes Disaster rather than Storm or Tempest. 2. Same types also increase the number of hits. I.e, if you were to use healing, then defensive magic on a character, not only would the amount of hits increase, there would be a gain in the strength of each of the spells. 3. Combos tend to get more hits and do more damage when there are a large number of foes involved, especially from spells\skills that hit multiple targets at once. 4. Combos follow in sequence - i.e, if your first two hits kill an enemy, the next attack will hit whoever is remaining and end if there's no one left around. This can get important when doing long and complex strings... List of Combos - Fire - Shizar - Mega Bam - Shezar - Tonmega ****** Fishing : Ah, fishing. Yet another staple of Breath of Fire games, one's that at the same time enjoyable and incredibly irritating...like most extra functions in RPGs. ^_^ Anyway, here's what I've been able to gather about the art of lures, long sticks, fish and controller bashing. Get to a beach. Press the Circle button to cast and the L1 and R1 buttons to rotate Ryu into a suitable position. Then press the Circle button again to prepare to cast - the Power Bar will rise, indicating how much effort is going into your casting. Press again once you're satisfied and Ryu will fling the line into the water. Once in the water, pressing the directional buttons and the Circle buttons will move the lure and reel it in, respectively. Pressing Cross will abort your fishing attempt. The graph at the right-hand side is the depth meter; it shows how deep your lure is and whether it will get snagged on any objects. Be careful when reeling in! You'll Line Break if the lure gets caught anywhere. There are also four special rhythms you can make using your lure to attract fish - each is worth more Technical Points, (i.e being more effective) than the previous one. (If you want to see these, press Triangle to access the menu during fishing and select the second option for the explanation...I've forgotten the rhythms myself, so I can't write them here. ^_^) Now, more about the actual fishing. When the lure is in the water, there'll be a green line just beside the depth meter...tug at your lure when the line is increasing and you'll get a catch. This line is the Tension meter, indicating both the interest of the fish in your lure and how much they're pulling. This is all well and good, but what happens when you actually get a bite? Fighting time. Whatever you do, DON'T let the Tension meter go out of the rectangle at the center - if you do, a warning will sound and the fish you're battling with will escape in a few seconds (or if the bar is either completely filled (Line Break) or depleted (Hook Off) if the situation is not rectified. Happily, one can press the Down button to cause the bar to recede and reel the fish in to cause it to go back up. Quick note: Line Break loses the lure, Hook Off doesn't. So if you're fishing for a Kaseitako and instead find your lure being taken by something with too low an endurance bar to be anything but a Gumifish, just let it Hook Off and save yourself the bother. That's about it. Happy Fishing! ****** Menu Options : (all of these will be from top to bottom) Item (second option is to Rearrange, third to Discard, and then Treasure) Specials (second is to Rearrange) Equipment (second is to equip Strongest, third is De-equip) Status Order Change (second option is for battle order) Settings Save --- Settings Menu : Vibration - ON/OFF Dash - Manual/Auto Camera - Normal/Reverse Direction Key - Left 45 degrees/Zero degrees/Right 45 degrees Sound - Stereo/Monoaural BGM SE on the left side Game Settings Button Settings Screen Adjust Defaults --- Menu Options in Battle : Attack Specials (Left and Right buttons shift from Magic to Skills) Items Defense pressing the L1 and R1 buttons during a fight results in the Attack and Run options being presented. ****** Walkthrough Section : Chapter One - That Which Awakens The game starts out with Clay and Nina on board a sandship sailing over a desert looking for their older sister. Their travel plans are rudely interrupted by the appearance of a large dragon which derails their ship, forcing Nina to go to a nearby town by herself to obtain supplies for repair. (Clay has to stay with the ship to prevent bandits from making off with it.) Before she leaves, Clay gives his younger sister the Royal Sword, telling her it'll come in useful. Nina (or rather you) then starts off on her travels - her first stop is a sand pit where, promptly after seeing a travelling merchant try hard to escape from, she falls in. After a hair-raising encounter with an invisible monster, Nina then meets up with a naked (to her chargrin ^_^) Ryu, who doesn't know who he is or where he's bound. Nina, being a nice sort of person, introduces herself and takes him along with her. You'll then be able to control the two of them. The first area is simple enough, and the enemies should pose no problem. Once you get to the cliff area, Nina will explain the use of the Jump function (don't worry, you can't fall off) and after two short hops, she will end up falling instead. (Do you sense a trend here?) Since Nina can fly and Ryu can't, he ends up taking a nasty bump to the head. A repentant Nina apologies and the two search for a place to spend the night. The scene then switches to Fouru, a mysterious white-haired warrior who appears to be a prince of some kind...judging from his dialogue with his steed. He tells it to protect his resting place and then sets out on a journey. Now you get to control him! The very first thing you'll probably realize about Fouru is that he's inordinately powerful; Level 64 to be exact. So the occasional random encounter shouldn't be too hard to deal with - simply attack. Walk out of the temple-like structure and into a forest - again, this shouldn't prove too hard to nagivate. Fouru will meet two soldiers after a while; he asks their intentions, and then after ascertaining that they are here on order of the king to destroy an evil dragon, makes a nice-sounding speech about humans and dragons and proceeds to toast them. Continue on... ...and eventually, Fouru will meet Yom (though you don't learn his name just yet) one of the four generals of the Empire. Though initially, the small creature tries to trick the prince, the latter sees through it's ruse immediately and a fight ensues. Just use Fouru's Trance ability and the Eraser (first option) and you'll win in no time. Once you've won, Fouru escapes from Yom's prepared ambush, only to have the general order his men to set fire to the forest to flush the prince out. Run around till you get to a bridge, when Fou is cornered - he asks for Yom's name and is pushed down into the ravine when he gets it. It's then back to Ryu and Nina, who are back at the cliffs. Search around for a Revive Seed and then make your way to the nearby town of Sarai. (you might want to stop at a few ? stops to pick up items, though) Nina says that she's off by herself to get parts for the ship...unfortunately, Ryu's stop at the town hasn't jogged any memories loose. Answer Nina's question any way you want (it doesn't matter) and you'll be free to explore the town. What you have to do here is talk to the information man in front of the inn - he'll offer to sell you the info on where to get the parts you need, but first you need to play an appraisal game. Just select how much you think the info is worth; you get four tries. I'm not sure how much it actually is, but it can't be more than 200 zenny...anyway, once that's done, go east from the town until you reach a ? spot with a merchant. (You might need to visit a few.) Talk to him until he gives you the password. After that, you can go back to town and talk to the bartender at the bar to reach a secret shop which sells parts - but first, talk to the old man at the bar to play another mini-game. This one's simple as well; feed the guy alternate amounts of food and drink so you can get his Satisfaction meter to max out without causing either Too Full or Drunk status. Once that's done, he gives you a All-Purpose Medicine and you're off to the shop. (You can also buy a trading treasure from a fishman at the bar.) Unfortunately for Nina, sandships have been considered weapons of war by the Empire and anyone having parts for them is immediately suspect - your visit is not in vain, though, because he sends Ryu and Nina off to a ship graveyard of sorts where they can find the parts they need. This area is simple enough. The only enemies to watch out for are the scorpions (use Shizar, Nina's first spell on them) and the Mage Gummies (which you can learn Bam from). Take the wooden bar up to the next slope and adjust the wheel so you can grab a 200 zenny chest and then open the path. Once inside the ship, use the winch control there to let Nina and Ryu up into another area (don't forget to go up on top of the ship for a Steel Band, though) where you'll meet an old man - choose the second option to get both the scoop and the dog which you'll need for - you guessed it - another mini-game. Without the dog, you'll be digging in the dark, but with the help of this faithful canine, you'll be able to see where to dig. (If you really want to save cash, the parts are right in the middle of the sand pit.) Try and pick up a few extra items (you can pay money to play the game again) and then leave and return to town. Make sure Nina's HP and MP are maxed out in Camp before you do ! ! so, though. Back in town, return to the bar to find a bunch of soldiers demanding the location of a fearsome monster from a merchant. Displeased with his lack of cooperation, the commander blasts him away in a flash of lightning. Nina (who, as I said, is a nice sort of person) can't abide this and tries to stop the man, saying that the war's over. He disagrees and stresses that a temporary ceasefire is VERY different...after that, he makes a cryptic comment about Nina's older sister and summons an Iron Demon to capture her. This is your first boss fight and you'll be only using Nina here. (Probably because it'd be too easy with Ryu's dragon form to assist her.) It's also pretty simple if you're Level 7-8 (which you should be) - simply cast Shizar to attack, Relief when you're injured, and Defend when you see some text appear. (The boss is charging up for a big attack next turn when that happens.) It only has about 1000-1200 HP. Ryu then charges in - the commander makes some sarcastic comment about that being the act of a knight in shining armor before he is rudely dumped on his behind by Ryu's sword swing. This allows Nina and Ryu to make their escape, but also reduces the Royal Sword to the Broken Royal Sword, which necessitates the search for a better weapon. For now, though, the two run off. Trying to get back to Clay from the east side will result in a scene in which Ryu and Nina hide from pursuing soldiers. They might have evaded capture, but with the soldiers roaming about, how will they get back? The answer lies with the merchant from before in the bar - in repayment for the help they rendered him back there, he tells them about an alternate route they can take through Chembar, a town to the north. Nina thanks him and you're on your own again. Once in Chenbar, pop in the first building you see for a Diamond Armband, then go talk to the old man with the bottles. (You can go buy stuff first, too.) He'll tell you that most of the town is cursed from the war and that you'll need to wait if you have business there - his story is confirmed by a bunch of mask-wearing people (the rest of the townsfolk, actually) who have returned from their daily de-cursing activity. (The curse strikes me as a form of pollution, actually, judging by how the people talk about it.) Go to the largest house in town and select the second option twice to elect to wait and talk to the leader. He'll tell you that no one is allowed into the cursed section of town without a guide and the special anti-curse armor. Walk around town and you'll discover that no one wants to be your guide - go back to the leader to find out he can't lend you the armor either. While Nina and Ryu consider options, an ominous presence approaches from cursed side of town...it's MASTER, the dome-headed robot from hell! While not exactly the most original character in an RPG, this little R2D2 lookalike is damn funny - just check out it's fighting pose. ^_^ Anyway, the little critter will argue with the town leader on your behalf, eventually making him capitulating into letting you use Master for your guide with a constant repetition of "if Master says it's okay, it's okay." After thanking itself for helping you (I told you this thing was hilarious) you can then enter the cursed area. Go back out and buy some stuff before entering the area - a Bowie Knife for Ryu is a must to replace the Broken Royal Sword. The enemies here are slightly tougher than what you've encounter before - the heads with gas are no threat (they'll poison themselves and take 3 turns to attack you) but be careful of the Puchi Ghost (coffin enemy - kill them before they wake up) and Violent Zombie. (will attack each other, but are powerful) Get the two chests in the area and head up to a small puzzle. After listening to Master's explanation, this is what you do : 1) Since only Master can enter the cursed area safely, send Ryu and Nina to over the girder to raise the boxes near the signpost. Send Master down to get the chests there and head over to the side where there's a lever. 2) After that, have Ryu and Nina get off the boxes they're on, then send Master over the boxes he went under before. This lets him take Ryu and Nina's place while they go over to activate the second lever. Once that's done with, continue on and Nina will mention that she hears a strange noise. Master says that's normal considering where they are. Go a bit further and a ghostly fish will appear, causing Nina to become a bit worried. More funny dialogue with Master (he laughs at the monster, then, after talking to Nina, agrees that they actually should be running) and then the fish comes after you. Press and hold the Circle button to get away...but I failed and sent Ryu into the drink. Whichever way to do it, it's a boss fight! (Ryu will be poisoned if he went down.) The Skull Fish is easy if you remember NOT to heal the condition caused by it's Poison Breath - it'll just use it again. Have Ryu change to dragon form and cast Fire until it goes down. You might be able to learn a skill from it, but since it uses Poison Breath so damn much it's probably not worth it. After that, you'll be out in the open again, where Nina thanks Master and it thanks itself. ^_^ However, it seems Master wants to accompany Ryu, so it tags along as you head to rendezvous with Clay. Clay is glad to have his sister back - he was worried - and thanks Ryu and Master, while blaming himself for letting her go off alone. During the night, Nina has a dream in which she, Ryu and Clay are in a castle searching for Elina, her older sister. They get to a room which they are almost spotted and escape by running behind the curtain. Upon waking up, it turns out that (surprise!) they all had the same dream, a phenomenom Master calls the Dragon's Eye. Clay puts the two and two together and reasons that if they were to take Ryu along that they might come to place where they could rescue Elina. But first, you need to go past Kurok Valley, where you'll find Ralf, your first Master. (Not, not THAT Master. ^_^) Apprentice Nina to him when he asks. (You might want to apprentice Ryu as well, since being his apprentice bestows a mark on you which automatically lets you attack first.) That's it for now; you can come back to him when you've done a Combo greater than 5. That's easy enough to accomplish - get into a fight with about 4 enemies and use Ryu's transformed forms Fire and Nina's Shizar to create a Mega spell that will get you the 5 hits. It's also worth killing the Bandits around here to get an Engetsu, (Fire Moon) a powerful sword that will last you for some time. Travel east to the dam. There, ask around until you find a fellow who will tell you how to get past the water gate. First, you've got to find Rob (the guy with inflatable), who'll give you the key to open water gate and get the Short Sword from the chest at the other side. There, you'll meet a cute little raccoon girl who needs your help to operate the Fly Wheel, a device which opens the next water gate. It works like this - rotate the directional buttons in a 360 degree motion to rotate the Wheel, and then press the Circle button to start it up. (You can turn the Wheel in either direction.) The trick here is to start the Wheel up slow and then increase speed with more vigorous rotations. (think doing Spinning Piledrivers) Get the chest at the other end, then continue on (pulling the lever to release the plank near the mud) and back to get the Crank from the foreman to fix the now-broken gate. Push the button as fast as you can to lower the lift in time for your party to get o! ! n. As for the enemies here...well, you'll need to get Clay up a level so he can cast Buurei on the slime monsters, and watch out for the white gels, but that's about it. No problems, really. Head north to Kiria Village. At the ! point, your party members will meet the dragon that destroyed the dam as well as an old sea geezer who tell you that the dragon didn't destroy for fun...it seems to be directed by someone. He then asks for money for a song (I paid a 100 - don't know what 10 does.) and says that when the dragons move, so does the world. The village is a strange one - they're traps scattered all around the place! Apparently the village elder thinks this is a good idea...anyway, since you can't into his place via the door (there's a cage trap there) you'll have to look around a bit more. (You can also fight an insect monster at the side of the house - it has good skills you can learn, but it's tough.) At the back of the first house, there are also three chests, the last of which you'll need to beat with magic - you get a Northern Glove for your pains. (Actually, I suspect whichever chest you attack last determines your item; I got the middle one.) Chat with one of the two men standing together for an item, then fall down the hole next to the little boy and climb up the ladder to finally get inside the house. The parrots in the house are, if it's possible, even weirder than the town - they constantly speak in katakana-written Kansai accents. If that's doesn't mean anything to you, just trust me that it's bad. Pick the second option twice, then the third, and then the fourth. This will unlock the forest to the west. At the forest, run around and grab what chests you can find, then go back to the tree stump right at the beginning. Place the apple the forester gave you there - it will lure out the monster the chief of the village has been chasing. Follow it's (you've got to be quick here!) footsteps till you reach the boss monster. Another pretty easy boss. Only has about 2000+ HP...anyway, use the same strategy as the previous boss on it, stopping only to have Clay boost the defense of your party members. Once beaten, (it'll yield a weapon for Master) go back to the village with the chief - he lets you use the secret passage to the town of Senesta (closed after the war) because you saved him and you don't look like you came from the Empire. The scene will shift to Fouru again at this point. He wakes up in a hut owned by a woodsman by the name of Babadel who apparently has rescued him...Fouru thanks Babadel and attempts to walk away when his injuries get the better of him; his rescuer thinks he should rest for a while before going anywhere. This short interlude passes and you'lll be back to Ryu. After being dropped into the cave below the village, climb out and use Clay to move the barrels blocking your way. Then save, heal up and enter the tunnels above the village. This is a big area - it's easy to get lost, so bring along some healing items. You can learn the Goodnight skill from the tadpole enemies here, and Master's new weapon works very well on the zombies. You'll eventually emerge from the town well in Senesta. Head to the first door you see to reach the orphanage, where Elina turns out to have visited and was remembered well as she was such a kind person. Exit and help the young nun catch Chino (the dog-boy), then return to have Nina and Clay ask about their sister's whereabouts. It turns out that Chino knows, but he'll only tell you if you can catch him and his buddies in hide-and-seek. So off you go all around the city to find the little buggers. Nina's flying ability comes in very useful here, as you might expect. Here's a list : 1) Near the lady smoking a pipe. 2) Outer balcony of the city - follow it all the way through. 3) At the city gate. 4) Upstairs in the house with the save record. (Next to the market.) 5) One of the upwards leading stairs near the side of the city. This one is REALLY easy to miss...you can walk up the stairs without bumping into her! Once you've found all 5, go back to the orphange and talk to the nun. She'll ask you whether you've found Chino...of course not, since he was the guy who suggested the whole hiding game. The frog boy will then tell you to go down to the basement of the town and check that out. Upon talking to the guy there, he'll say no one could have gotten past him without knowing and that his throat is dry. (What a change of subject...) So you have to talk to the water vase-carrying girl in town. Follow her until she nears the guy and then talk to her to enter the passage. Check the shelves in the basement for a Revive Herb, Protein, and 80 zenny. (On a side note, the ever-present Roach enemies that appear in EVERY BOF GAME are back - and they attack in the same way too! ^_^) You can learn Bite from the Mice here. When you get to two cells, open the second one and get the bag here for a Lobster Claw for Master. Eventually, after falling through the weak wooden floor in a cell, you'll find Chino. (Unfortunately, no, you can't give him a spanking for making you go through all that trouble...) Chino finally spills the beans about what he saw - some strange people talking to the princess; turns out one of them is the merchant Matlock, who's in town and sells sandships to the Empire. From this, Nina deduces that her sister must be headed east. Go see Matlock - his house is the one with the muscleman in front of it. However, he won't let you in without a fight. He ain't that tough, though. After you beat him, a frogman will show up - turns out he's Matlock. He'll tell you that he helped Erina get to the east with a sandship. Clay, being his usual angry self, wants to know why Erina would need to go to the enemy's main base. Matlock is unruffled by Clay's outburst and says that you do need his help, right? He sends you to get back his stolen goods from some robbers and keeps Nina as colleteral for a while. Go west and enter the next ? stop that you see. Clay talks to a merchant who spooks at the mention of Matlock's name - Clay suspects him of being the thief and you all take off after him. Once you enter the cave...it's time for another mini-game! (Don't tell me you didn't see that one coming?) Block him off with barrels and grab him. It's quite simple - just chase him into an area which you've got two barrels covering the entrance of. Upon catching him, it turns out that the stuff he's carrying is his own, so Clay thinks that you should have a little chat with Matlock. You can then enter the cave and pick up Stall (that's the guy's name) as a Master. However, you'll have to give him all your money first, so I recommend you go off and spend it. He'll give you the useful Receive skill, which can be used to steal items off enemies. Back to town. Since you've failed his assigned task, Matlock decides to give you a job that "doesn't require you to use your head" - something that Clay obviously takes offense to. ^_^ Go north to reach the Sand Bridge. (In case you're wondering, the scenes with Nina and Matlock are him asking her for various massages...which she is kinda reluctant to give. ^_^) Here, talk to the foreman to play yet another mini-game. Use Clay to push all the barrels to the south green area and the jars to the north one. Master's head bash can be used to clear out all the old jars and barrels...be careful not to accidentally destroy new ones, though, because he bashes without you having to push the button. This can be a slightly tricky puzzle, but as long as you're careful not to let any of the jars or barrels get stuck and immovable from any direction you'll be fine. Your reward is another mini-game. *sigh* For this one, you've got to manipulate the crane with the directional buttons and place the crates on the squares on the boat. Watch the crane's shadow and don't let it wave about too much or you'll lose track of it's position. Placing the crates on the light blue squares gives you double points...I'm not sure if getting a high score earns you anything, though. Anyway, after you complete the game, Nina and Matlock show up and he'll give you something (I think it depends on what score you have...) and tell you that you've earned VIP passes aboard his sandship. If the ever-present glint in his eye didn't tell you that something was afoot... ...the fact that your "VIP rooms" are crates should confirm it. ^_^ Matlock tells you that he had to do that in order to hide you from enemies, but Clay thinks that's a stupid excuse and shakes the crate around until Nina tells him to stop it. ^_^ (Note : If you haven't gotten Stall as a Master, do so before leaving on the ship as you won't be coming back for a while.) You're now back with Fouru. Go outside and Fouru will thank Babadel and depart, but not before the latter asks him about his injuries...he couldn't have gotten those just anywhere, so is the war starting again? It turns out Babadel used to be a soldier, but now he despises war and all it represents. Fouru makes another cryptic comment and leaves. Make your way down the paths at the cliffs - once again, the enemies here should be no match for our prince. At the bottom, who should turn up but Yom. Fouru wants to know how they've managed to tail him so far - Yom replies that it's would be easy to follow someone of stature like Prince Fouru. He then summons a Kafu for you to fight. Use Trance and Eraser the pest into oblivion. Fouru and Yom then engage in a conversation where some things are made clear...Fouru is half-dragon (obvious). that dragons are considered gods, that Fouru has no interest in the "shifting humans" and that Yom wants him dead. A brief sky chase ensues with Fouru getting seriously hurt. (again!) Back with Ryu and Co. it seems that they've managed to sneak into the town without much difficulty. Go through the dungeon at the top of town (you can learn Wild Swing from the Living Armors there) and use the elevators to go up. There's also a Glass Domino in a chest somewhere here. Once at the top, a gate of some sort will open, but before Ryu and the others can enter, the Empire commander from before will show up and summon another Iron Attack Ghost for you to fight. (What's with this game and bosses who won't take you straight on?) You know the drill - Ryu changes, the rest whack. However, if you combine Ryu's Fire with Nina's Shizar to form the Mega spell, you can turn the boss around and get in free hits. It has a lot of HP, so hang in there. The gate starts closing, so Ryu and the rest in and jump in before it does, leaving the commander to wonder whether he saw a dragon... On the other side, Clay remarks that the Empire sure is persistent...anyway, take the elevators down again (you can use the main one for a shortcut down to the first floor) and head for the town of Astana. You can pick up Deadly Fires from the ? spot near here - might want to get a few. Once there, you can head through a short dungeon to where Clay, Nina and Ryu had their dream. (They say the exact same lines as well, BTW.) Stop at the first two doors to pick up an item (forgot what it was) and onwards to a bookshelf which has a Magical Fragment. You'll then have to run behind the curtains like before. Unfortunately, you've been spotted. Clay tells the man that they're searching for Erina and he says that she's a very kind person, but no longer here. You're then captured. ^_^ Chapter 2 - Shifting Ones The chapter opens with an old man telling Clay to call on him if he needs anything. We then switch to Nina (who is worried about him) and Ryu. She decides to go to Rudia Castle to see if anything is up, so an escort (Saius, a dog samurai) comes along to make sure you don't run away. Pick up some new weapons and armor at the town, then head to the castle. (It's just east of where you start.) However, once you get there, an old man will prevent you from going further, saying it will interfere with Sir Clay's investigation. Nina gets sad and says this is all here fault, but then resolves to head to Furen, Clay's hometown. Head out of town and to the Forest of Pauze. Just like in BOF 3, you can learn Double Hit from the Nut Fighters here (they'll use it once every two rounds) - and yes, they still avoid normal attacks easily, so Shizar (or Saius's Reiga) should take care of them. Get the Herbs in a chest here and continue to the next screen, where the mist intensifies and Nina says she hears something. That's not the least of your troubles; in true BOF tradition, Nina gets shrunk down to the size of a mouse! Saius tries to search for her, but doesn't get anywhere. Go forwards a little while and fairies will appear, congratulating themselves for having shrunk Nina and wondering what to do with you three - send you to sleep, perhaps? They then get a bit flustered because Master's looking at them (apparently, humans can't see them) and he headbutts one to the ground. Also, Ryu has the Dragon Eyes. As for Nina, she's been carried off by a bird. After revealing that bit of information, the fairies disappear, saying goodbye to the "dragon person! ! ." F ind a tree with the sound of a bird and have Master headbutt it. You're then back to Nina, who has to get out of the nest before the bird returns and eats her. Instead, the bird thinks Nina's a chick because of her wings and brings a bug for her to eat...Nina, vainly trying to explain that she doesn't LIKE bugs, offends the bird, who attacks her. ^_^ Just use Shizae a couple of times to chase it away and then climb down the tree. Seeing as nothing is falling down, Master hits the tree a few more times, dislodging a rapidly-returning-to-her-normal-size Nina who unluckily for Ryu lands on his chest. ^_^ Head out of the forest and to Furen. Once there, meet with the elders, who will discuss what to do about Clay. They tell to to go and meet with the Lady Tabo. Clay's mother who currently resides in the Golden Plains. Before you leave the house, though, go down to the basement for an item. Then, go outside for an unexpected meeting...it's Karn (back with Matlock, remember?), making his entrance in a pretty original way. However, despite his "difficult training" he's not very tough this time around either. A few uses of Saius's Zankoken (Light Slash Sword) and he should go down. After the battle, his teacher will turn up and scold you for "bullying Little Karn." ^_^ You can then apprentice people to her (she's at the ladder at the top of the chief's hut) Her requirements are high Combo damage. (she starts out at 1500) Before you leave the village (I must have said this three times already...) go see the girl near the flying snail to see a short scene - I believe this is necessary before you continue your adventure. Now, go off to the Plains themselves. You'll be in the MOST irritating part of this game, very similar to BOF 3's Desert section. Unfortunately, I don't how the hell you solve this. Yes, that's right - I simply wandered about until I made it to the hut. So if you're looking for help here this is NOT the place to get it. :( Anyway, when you finally get to the hut, you'll meet Clay's mother. After some conversation (and she making a joke that Clay's going to end up dead ^_^) you retire for the night. She also remarks that Clay's got good friends, to follow him all the way out here. Clay in question, though, is having a hard time of his own. His judges have found him guilty of all charges (including having lost the Royal Sword) and despite his heated rebuttals, issue the sentence... ...which, returning to Ryu, we don't get to find out. Go out of the tent and speak to Tabo; she'll give you a choice of three topics : 1) About Erina - She was promised as a fiance to Rudia's Prince Mori, but somehow ran off and disappeared. 2) The disputes with the Imperial Army - All she knows is that if they continue, Clay's in trouble. 3) The Royal Sword - Turns out Clay was entrusted with the sword, but you broke it...however, if it can be fixed, Clay's situation would improve, so Tabo sends you to the Guu Volcano to ask the blacksmith there to create ANOTHER Royal Sword. However, you'll have to go back to Furen to find a way there first. Back at camp, Nina thanks you for your work and you all return to Furen. Go see the elders and they'll give you instructions to get to Guu Volcano; first, go East till you see a large cliff\rock, then South to get to the Volcano. I should warn you, though, that there are no external indications that you've reached the Volcano...it has just the same white line blanking out into the horizon as all the other exits. Once inside, be careful of the hardened flaming magma that you see; you can walk on it and it WILL damage you. I also suggest you equip the Northern Glove on Master (it does ice damage) to deal with the enemies here. BTW, you can cast fire spells on the Wood and Fire Drake enemies to cause them to change form for tougher fights but more experience. (The Glove (and any ice spells, for that matter) also cause\s transformed enemies to return to their normal forms.) Continue onwards till you reach an area with shifting lava plates - you'll have to wait till they align fully with your chosen destination\s before proceeding. A little past there should be the blacksmith's place. However, there is a fact that should surprise no one - he needs the Fairy Drop (a metal that doesn't exist on this world) to make the weapon. (Now tell me; if the original Sword had stuff like that inside it, how come it broke so damn easily?) And of your whole party, Master is the only one that can see fairies, so off you're once again saddled with another task to do. Go down the ladder and to the left, get the chest, then leave the Volcano. (On a side note - because the transformed forms of enemies inside the Volcano yield so much experience, it's an ideal place for levelling up.) This might also be a good time to get Combo Damage of more than 1500 points so Una can teach you Steal, which can (not surprisingly) steal items off enemies. ****** Skills List : Bam - Mage Gummies Bite - Mice Jump - Roach Wild Swing - Living Armor Double Hit - Nut Fighter ****** Master Information Raulf: "Sakigake" allows the character with it to always attack first if he or she is the first attacker. Location: Croc no Tani Requirement: - Adjustment: +1AP, -1At, +1Int Skills: at 5-hit: Tsumujikaze, 2AP wind spell (Rank 1) at 10-hit: Otachidai, 5AP earth spell (Rank 2) at 15-hit: Magic Ball, 5AP physical tech at 20-hit: Homurabashira, 8AP fire spell (Rank 3) Stol: "Itadaki" only works if (1) the character is first in the attack line-up, and (2) if the *first* item the opponent can give is something that you've never seen before, i.e. in ???. On a side note, I think Nusumu and Bundori can only give you the first, and not the second item, as well. Location: Douzoku no Ajito Requirement: Give him all your cash Adjustment: +1Spd Skills: at 80 items: Nusumu, 0AP treasure tech at 120 items: (forgot) Una: I have no idea what "Zenryoku" does. But it's dangerous to leave anyone stuck under her for too long, due to the -2AP and -1Int adjustment. Location: Fullen Village Requirement: - Adjustment: -2AP, +2At, +1Df, -1Int (I think) Skills: at 1500 damage: Bundori, 0AP treasure tech at 3000 damage: Super Combo, 12AP physical at 10000 damage: Abareru, 0AP physical Yousei Njoumo: "Nakimushi", despite sounding dumb, is very useful; every counterattack the character makes will be a critical attack, and accompanied by a non-voiced quote. Incidentally, this is one of the few ways of making Ryu "talk". ^_^ Location: ? house not far from Am Swamp Requirement: Have at least one completed house in Fairy Village Adjustment: -8HP, +1AP, +2Spd Skills: at 7 fairies: Bakugeki, 20AP physical at 12 fairies: Minnagenki, 20AP healing tech at 15 fairies: Battle Song, 20AP stat up tech at 20 fairies: Dance Macabre, 20AP physical Momo: Eheh. "Nonbiri" is of limited usefulness. Essentially, what it does is give the character a very large chance of automatically using "Oyasuminasai" even if he or she doesn't have the skill, when in the back rank; it's also accompanied by a voiced quote. Useful for restoration, but the falling asleep bit can get irritating.] Location: Windia, closest windmill Requirement: - Adjustment: +8HP Skills: at ?: Spray, 2AP physical at ?: Kusamushiri, 2AP physical at ?: Oracle, 2AP physical Chek Elder: Marlock: Crank: Gelg: Rita: Kahn: Babaderu: ] ****** Credits : Maximilian Leung (and a bunch of others) who mailed me about how to find Chino.