POPOLOCROIS: THE FULL STORY (POPOLOCROIS MONOGATARI) Version 1.0 11/02/99 1996 SCEI RPG 1 Memory card block SCPS 10023 NOW AVAILABLE on the Playstation the Best series For a measly 2,800 YEN ($25 or so..) Written by: Bodi Anderson pietoro@email.com NOTE: This FAQ was originally written using 10.5 Century font. In order to get the spacing right I suggest you change to this before printing out or viewing it. EXCITING NEWS! Sugar and Rockets recently announced that they have begun production on Popolocrois 2! You can visit their web page an see art work and screen shots (If they've posted them yet). It's a Playstation 2 game set for release 3rd quarter of next year! Let's hope this one gets translated!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE FIND GON AND DON CONTEST If you can tell me where Gon and Don are hiding at the end of the game I will send you a PoPoLo prize from Japan. Simply be the first to write me an e-mail as to where Gon and Don are hiding and I'll send you something! Contest only good until June 2000. Be sure to include "Gon and Don" on the subject line of your e-mail! Aren't I swell! TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction 2. The Story 3. Basic game controls 4. Menu Mania! 5. Let's Fight! (Combat) 6. Buy, Sell and Save! 7. Role Call 8. The Walkthrough Story 9. Spell and Waza List 10. A Few Useful Items 11. Secrets 12. World Map 13.Thanks 14.Menu Print Out Page ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. INTRODUCTION: Popolocrois dates back to the younger years of the playstation. It was the first major hit for the ol' PSX in the RPG genre. It has a huge following in Japan and has spawned an anime series (which is still running), a sequel and various other merchandise. Popolocrois was also voted the favorite RPG of female gamers in Japan! And, believe it or not it hasn't, and probably never will see the light of day in the foreign market. Why? Well, well I thought you might ask that. This is all due to a little piece of crap game ("kuso game" in Japanese) called Beyond the Beyond (AKA beyond the most boring RPG ever made). You see BtB had something that Popolocrois didn't. Graphics? Story? Plot? Memorable characters? No, these things are all lacking in BtB. But what it does have is the all-mighty power of half-assed 3-D. Yes kids, that's right, 3-D! Get out the red and blue cardboard glasses and get ready for …. 333 DDD Well Sony thought that this sort of thing would sell over the aforementioned characteristics which normally make a good game (Luckily BtB floped big time! Ha!). Well getting back to the point Popolocrois is a great RPG of epic proportions and cute plot twists. It's fun, challenging, has great graphics and it's cheap! In fact, the only possible bad thing about it is that it's in Japanese. But even those of you with little or no Japanese ability should be able to enjoy this game a la my spiffy walkthrough. Due to its easy interface system and lack of Kanji (Chinese ideograms) Popolocrois is a good "First Japanese RPG" for people. The graphics, while not being 3-D, are great! It's like wandering around in a storybook! The plot and background characters both add to the storybook theme. Sure, the plot is supposedly aimed at "younger audiences", but then again if you're still playing video games despite your grad. degree then you shouldn't be so picky . The only problem people might have is that the protagonist is a ten year old kid. But after a bit of playing this is easy to get over. This game rocks and you should play it! The game does what a true RPG (or book) should do. It successfully transports you into a fantasy world. This is why that, even though there is already a FAQ for this game, I've decided to do another. Which brings me to this point. The old FAQ written by some nice guy back in the day has a few problems in it (involving plot order) and will end up confusing you at times. This is not to rag on the guy who wrote it. I have nothing but respect for my fellow FAQ writers. Writing a FAQ is tough work! I simply wanted to give you the player the full greatness that is Popolocrois! Enjoy your game, and remember take time to admire the AMAZING (though 2D) graphics. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. THE STORY: The kingdom of Popolocrois ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. BASIC GAME CONTROLS D-pad: move characters and select from menus. Circle: accept, search, talk. X: Cancel, press while walking to run. Triangle: brings up main command menu. Square: brings up monster diary menu. Start: shows world map. Select: not used R1 and L1: same as the X button R2 and L2: same as the circle button Upon starting the game press circle once to reach the start screen. The top choice is "start a new game" and the bottom "continue". ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. MENU MANIA Thanks to the magic of the triangle button you can access the various menus in the game. They can be accessed at almost any time in the game except in combat and during plot progressing story scenes. Upon pressing the Triangle button once you'll see… MAIN COMMAND MENU 1. Personal Magic 2. Items 3. Equip 4. Status 5. Formation Note: Pictures of current party members and their current Level, HP & MP will be shown above the menu options. Current gold will be shown to the right. PERSONAL MAGIG Select characters with the D-pad. Press Circle once to select magic and again for who you want to use it on. It's all that simple. ITEM MENU The top two choices are for ordering (5 variations) and to go to the Event Items list. Use the old D-pad, Circle button method for these options. To use an item simply highlight it and select it, just like every other RPG ever made. There are 4 basic types of items which are further sub-divided. Luckily, even if you can't read a character of Japanese all the items have useful icons! See the list below… Weapons: Swords (used by Pietoro and White Knight) Staves (used by Narcia) Gloves (used by Gami Gami) Shovels (Used by Naguro) Armor : Bracelets (used by all) Rings (used only by Narcia) Badges (used by Pietoro) Stars (used by the White Knight) Head-bands (used by Gami Gami) Magical Seals (used by all) Shoes (used by all) Talismans (used by all) Medicine: bottle icon Stat Boosters: beaker icon (increases statistics when used) Strange Items: red sack icon (can't be selected) blue sack icon (can be used) Souvenirs: red sack icon (can't be selected) Event Items many different icons, but on a different menu. EQUIP MENU This will show the character's status on the left hand side and will have five slots on the right hand. It looks a bit like this… (Note: this is just an artist's interpretation) NAME WEAPON HP item here MP ARMOR Attack item here Defense item here Magic POTION Magic Defense item here Speed item here Movement Use the D-pad & Circle button to choose your goodies! IMPORTANT: Be sure to equip your potions wisely since each character can only use two different potions in battle. Look at the strengths and weaknesses of each character before equipping a given potion. STATUS MENU Use the D-pad to select your character. Press circle to get to the magic and waza menu. The main status menu looks like this… (Note: this is just an artist's interpretation) NAME Level HP EXP MP Exp. to next level Attack Weapon equipped Defense Armor equipped Magic Armor equipped Magic Defense Potion equipped Speed Potion equipped Movement Press the circle button to see the Magic and Waza menu which look like… Level EXP Exp. for next WAZA LIST SPELL LIST Spell name Level Exp. Note: Different spells go up at different amounts of experience. Also some spells reach their maximum level earlier than others (i.e. "Fire ball" goes up to level 20 while "Magical road" never gets beyond level 1.). You can tell when a spell has reached it's maximum level by looking at the status screen. Spells that have reached their maximum level will be highlighted in green. FORMATION MENU Five different poses to choose from. Of course the specifics of this will change depending on who is in your party. Be sure to check it when you get new members! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. LET'S FIGHT! Combat in Popolocrois is pretty simple. If for some reason this is the first RPG you've ever played I suggest you try something in English first! All the encounters in Popolocrois occur randomly (yes, I know, it sucks!). Much like the battles in Breath of Fire 3 the battles take place wherever you happen to be on the map. This is pretty cool cause sometimes you'll get obstacles and such making for a tougher, or more interesting fight. As soon as you enter a battle the following menu will pop up… MANUAL AUTO 1. Fight 1. Decide what's best 2. Escape 2. Attack with weapons only 3. Use magic (and waza) 4. Full strength attack! 5. Defend yourself The default command is "Fight" use the D-pad/Circle method to choose something else. You'll also be shown this menu between rounds unless you selected the "Auto" command. If you select any of the Auto-fight commands press X at any time during the action. You'll have a chance to choose from the menu again at the next available round. Once you have chosen the "Fight" command the following menu will appear for each character's turn. Move your character with the D-pad before selecting a command. If you choose the "Attack with weapon" command a pointer icon will appear above all opponents in range. Simply select whom you want to attack, this will save you the trouble of moving around the screen and make for a quicker fight! The same pointer icon will also appear when you select a spell or item. IMPORTANT: There are two menus to choose from use the D-pad (right and left) to switch between these two menus as follows. Also all commands highlighted in red are not accessible for some reason or another. For example the White Knight can never use magic so his "use magic" command will always be red. You can only attempt to escape from a given battle once! MENU ONE MENU TWO 1. Attack with weapon 1. Rest (GUTS meter up) 2. Use magic 2. Use item 3. Use waza 3. Escape (single character) 4.Defend (GUTS meter up) SECRET TECHNIQUE: If you select "Attack with weapon" without moving your character and your opponent is far away from you, but can be reached in a straight line (i.e. you don't have to turn to reach him), occasionally you can pull off a "Charge Attack". A "Charge Attack" will act like a critical attack if it succeeds in hitting. STATUS PROBLEMS It's not a joke, in battle status change DOES happen! It's better to be informed than to be out of control. IMPORTANT: All status changes are recovered after battle. This includes being KO'ed (you're revived with 1 HP). If all your characters die in battle you will awaken at the last place that you saved your game. Luckily the status balloons are displayed in English! STATUS EFFECTS Poison loose HP every turn Paralyzed can't…Move… (for X number of turns) Sleeping Zzz. (for X number of turns) Wakes up if hit by physical attack. Confused Attack at random (Friends and foes) Snaps out of it if hit by physical attack. Manipulated Under enemy control (for X number of turns) Blinded Hit rate down (for X number of turns) KO'ed At 0 HP a character is KO'ed. THE GUTS METER The Guts meter is that little bar below your MP that says "GUTS " next to it. At the start of every fight your Guts meter is blue. If you use a physical attack it will start to turn gray. If you use the "guard" or "rest" command it will start to turn yellow. Once your Guts meter is full (all yellow) you can make a "Super attack", and do up to double damage! In addition some Waza require a full Guts meter in order to be preformed (See Magic & Waza section). Basically the more "Yellow" the meter is the more damage you will do, and the more "Gray" it is the less damage your physical attacks will inflict. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. BUY, SELL & SAVE Like all RPGs Popolocrois has its share of inns and shops the following is a guide to make your stay in the game a little easier… SHOPS: There are three choices when you enter a shop. Use the D-pad (right and left) to increase or decrease the amount of items you wish to purchase. 1. Buy If you choose "Buy" you'll see… 1. Weapons 2. Sell 2. Armor 3. Quit 3. Potions INNS: Go to the guy at the counter to see the table below. If you choose to save press the circle button twice and wait a bit (You'll see a blinking yellow arrow at the bottom of the screen) then press it again. If it seems to be taking way to long to save press the Circle button. Yes, the game saves slowly. If you stay the night you'll be asked if you want to save the next morning. 1. Stay the night 2. Save 3. Quit ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. ROLE CALL: Playable Characters (In order of playability) PIETORO (Long brown hair, green tights) The ten-year-old prince of Popolocrois. He longs to meet his mom, who died soon after he was born. He feels alone in the world. GON (The soldier in Blue) Always accompanied by the incompetent Don (yes, Gon & Don are the Vicks and Wedge of Popolocrois) DON (The soldier in Green) Always accompanied by the incompetent Gon (yes, Gon & Don are the Vicks and Wedge of Popolocrois) NARCIA (The blond witch with the red dress) Narcia is a young forest witch. She has a good heart, and is always trying to help others. She has the utmost respect for her big sister Guilda. THE WHITE KNIGHT (Husky fellow in armor with a red cape) The White Knight comes questing from a far away land. He is driven by honor and goodness. He first meets Pietoro while questing for a lost mystical sword. NAGURO (The miner) A master of digging, he's only playable for about 20 minuets in the game. KAI (The Polynesian genie looking girl) Not much is known about the boisterous tomboy. THE GAMI GAMI DEVIL (The old guy in the blue and red getup) Gami Gami is a self-proclaimed evil genius lacking neither in ego, nor in goofy, lisping robot minions and malfunctioning machinery. NON-PLAYABLE CHARACTERS KING PAULO (The only king looking fellow in the game) Paulo once ruled his kingdom with might and wisdom. That was until his wife passed away in the great Ice Demon attack. Now he is but a shadow of his true self. A bit on the bumbling side, Paulo means well but isn't quite sure how to raise Pietoro by himself. QUEEN SANIA (Much taller and comelier than her barrel shaped husband) Tales of her beauty and kindness still echo across the land. Sania died when the Great Ice Demon attacked Popolocrois ten years ago. GUILDA (The witch looking witch) Perhaps the only thing stronger than her magic is her mouth. Constantly criticizing and forcing her brand of "advice" on others. It's often hard to see her how good her heart truly is… MINISTER MONU (The old guy who's always hanging around the King) Momu has little idea how to do much of anything but agree with the King and is the source of much comic relief in the game. YAN (The short wizard in yellow ) Yan is always inventing one useless thing or another. He's got big ideas! POSTOF (The burly sea man in Pasela) A mighty drinker and builder of ships. SAPO (Half doggie half man?) The last surviving resident of Burionia. KAUPA, ZOLDAN, DORUN, & YABU. (The 4 bad guys) The infamous four, evil spirits bent on the resseruction of the great Ice Devil. GREAT ICE DEVIL (Big and cold) He'd love to freeze the world, but being trapped in the world of darkness has put a temporary damper on his plans. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8. THE WALKTHROUGH STORY (Please bear with me…) I) Today was a special day, for today was the Prince's birthday. All the King's soldiers and ladies and ministers, and wise men, and townsfolk and even old spinsters had come bearing gifts and advice for the prince. They wished him the happiest most grand birthday wish. But all was not right, for the prince was not happy. Even the most marvelous gift of glittering gold, or the happiest wish from a knight standing bold. Did make him smile, or even amused, for alas young Pietoro had a case of the blues. Stepping onto his balcony he looked to the sky. "Oh mother, my mother why did you die?". "Of all things I wish upon this dark night. There is only one thing to make my heart right. If only I could meet the mother I never knew. Then, only then would I not feel so blue" But wait what was this? Footsteps form below? "If it isn't my father, the good King Paulo". Down the balcony he stealthily climbed, to follow his father he went down the vines. In to the tower, and up to the top, the young prince did follow the King, yes, his pop. And what did he spy at the top of the tower? The king did lament, his face stood a cower. A beautiful maiden, who lie still in bed. One could not help but wonder, did she lie dead? "What's going on?" the prince took to asking. But the king stood there silent, and the silence was lasting. "BOOM BANG BOM" the sound echoed back. "Hey what is this? We're under attack!" A fat bearded man dressed in a suit that shone red. With a "whizz" and a "click" he dismounted his sled. He'd come to the kingdom to get just one thing. Twas called Crown of Wisdom, and worn by the King. With a puff of blue smoke, it was really a gas. He swiped the King's crown, and did so with crass. But, "OUCH!" what was this? A prick from a needle? Twas the King's son the prince, a lad they called Pietoro. With a bonk on the head the lad was put out. And the man they called Gami Gami Devil, had a very long name that didn't rhyme with much… And he left… CHAPTER ONE: The Devil and The Machines I) With the king still out cold Minister Momu decided to rally whatever troops remained and get them to retrieve the crown. Unfortunately only Gon and Don remained. "Perhaps I better do this myself" Momu might have thought. But luckily Gon and Don's commanding officer was still in critical condition in the infirmary and was thus unable to inform the minister about Gon and Don's previous mishaps (Please refer to the "Misadventures of Gon and Don" for further info.) Still, he knew they weren't quite up for the job. That's why when the ten-year-old prince begged Momu to let him help he gave in. Pietoro wandered around the castle collecting items and information before leaving. (Ahem!) He went to the basement of the castle and found three chests. In these chests were a Map of the Land, a Monster Diary, and a Magic Lantern. The Map was shown when he pressed the start button. The Monster Diary profiled every baddie he fought when he pressed the Square button The Lantern would teleport him back to the location of his last save whenever he used it. (Your current data will not be erased by using this) These three items were VERY VERY IMPORTANT so he didn't forget about them. There was also a piggy bank above Pietoro's bedroom this was also useful so he grabbed it (See items section). Next he headed towards the tower. Then something magical happened. A voice called out… "Pietoro, you must help your father. I know you are still young, so I will lend you my power." With this a sword, the Dragon Sword to be exact, floated down from the sky into Pietoro's grasp. Pietoro went up the tower to look at the mysterious woman again. He felt an unexplainable longing feeling as he gazed upon her. Still, he could only ponder as to why. Pietoro headed back towards the throne room and showed his sword to Momu. Momu said that this was a sign from the gods that Pietoro should go and protect the kingdom. For without the Crown of Wisdom Momu knew that all would soon fall into chaos. With this headed out and was met by Gon & Don at the gate. They were told to head north-east, but before doing so they decided to look around the town. This was Pietoro's first time to see his kingdom with an escort so he was overjoyed to talk to everyone. He found a man who had a huge sword on the second story of his house. The man was going to offer the sword to Pietoro, but then decided that a young boy could not possibly wield such an object. This was a sword that only a burly knight could handle (HINT!). Pietoro was also sure to stop by the inn and save his game since he was tired after the long intro. Heading N/E he reached the town of Takinen (He also picked up the goodies in chests around Popolocrois City on the way). In Takinen he heard much talk of the wise forest witches who lived to the east. He figured that he could possibly ask them for advice on how to retrieve the crown. There was also a bread maker in Takinen where he could rest on the second floor. Next Pietoro exited Takinen to the north and walked through the Forsenia Forest. Here he found a chest with a "Green Ring", an item that could be equipped by a witch. Finally, after crossing a small bridge he came to a "T" in the road to the north was a pond where a friendly fairy lived. This fairy was famous for healing tired travelers who made their way through the forest. Heading to the south he the south the forest became spooky. Pietoro walked till he found a house (And probably till he was at least level 3). Upon reaching the house a blue demon popped out. "Grrr, who dares enter my domain" growled the demon. "N-n-not I" quivered Don as started to flee. "M-m- me t-to" echoed Gon as he sped away. Pietoro found himself alone! Good thing he had studied magic, that fireball spell was quite useful! Upon banishing the demon (stuffed animal?) he was met by the mistress of the forest. The witch they called "Guilda". At first Guilda to Pietoro to go home since all humans are usually up to no good in her eyes… But after some persuading from her little sister, Narcia she agreed to hear Pietoro out. And a good thing she didi because as soon as she found out who he was (the PRINCE!!!) she was quick to offer assistance, her grumpy additude not withstanding. Pietoro then asked Guilda to teach him the roads of the forest. Luckily Narcia agreed to show Pietoro how to get to the Gami Gami city (NARCIA JOINS PARTY). Next Pietoro returned to Popolocrois castle to explain to Momu what had happened. After scolding Gon and Don Momu told Pietoro to go ahead and retreive the crown. Since Pietoro had the dragon sword Momu was sure that nothing would happen to him. Pietoro returned to Takinen and then headed south of Guilda's tree until he found the base of a mountain. Upon climbing Pietoro and Narcia were sure to pick up all the goodies they found in treasure boxes located on the outscurts of the road. Finally they reached a junkyard and the entrance to Gami Gami City. Along the way they found a rusty old suit of armor. Much to their surprise someone was inside. Narcia used her magic to un-rust the armor. The man inside explained that he was called the White Knight and that he was on a quest to recover the fabled "Sword of Legend" but he "got stuck" along the way. Pietoro was puzzled and thought that he might have meant his dragon sword. He drew his sword to show the White Knight (Hence fourth to be referred to as "WK"). WK responded by saying that Pietoro's sword looked like a toy. Then WK drew his own sword! Luckily he was only saving Pietoro from the robots behind him. After explaining his story to the well spoken WK (who uses very formal Japanese, it would probably best be translated as Ye Ole English), WK agreed to help the lad since he was a Knight and bound by honor and all those other knightly virtues. WK also offered to teach Pietoro how to fight and the general art of battle. Both Pietoro and Narcia were happy about this. Next they headed to Gami Gami City. Here they found the funky Gami Department store which had lots of good stuff. They also saw a play above the department store depicting the grand and glourious super genius Gami Gami Devil saving the innocent citizens of Gami Gami city from the dasterdly King and Prince of Popolocrois! There was also a gift store in the city which sold flags, lanterns and (gasp!) suteki na Gami Gami Dolls! Finally they headed into the base. Upon entering they were mocked by the Gami Gami Devil who told them that they had no chance of beating his robot servants. Inside the base they found and elevator and a staircase leading down. They first went down the staircase and found the control panel for a giant machine. They turned the machine on giving the base power. Next they headed up to the 4th floor via the elevator and then using the stairs went down to the 3rd floor. Here the found an ID card in a chest. Next they were sure to explore all the rooms and collect lots of goodies and experience. After doing this they went back up to the fifth floor and found an inn and an item shop. From here they entered the Gami Gami castle! They were again mocked berfore entering the castle. In the castle they found the sword of legend that WK was looking for in the throne room. They exited the throne room left and went up some stairs where they found another control panel. This panel was for the Gami Gami throne-chair-elevator (wow that's a long word). They turned it on allowing the access to the elevator. (The elevator reads as follows from top to bottom… ROOF THRONE ROOM DINING ROOM ). Before heading to the top they opened all the treasure boxes and prepared for battle! They came upon the Gami Gami Devil quite by surprise. Though a bit flustered that they had made it this far he said that he'd take care of them for good! Unfortunately they were standing in the wrong place so he had to politely ask them to move (which they did) only to reveal… The Gami Gami Super Robot! This would be a tough battle with Pietoro's saint arc it didn't last too long (come on guys robot… electric attacks… this is from RPG 101, right.). After beating Gami Gami Devil he pressed the slef destruct button and made a hastly though slightly flawed escape. Our adventurers were then forced to escape through the garbage chute! Having escaped our heroes set about returning home to Popolocrois castle. Along the way they ran into their old friend Gami Gami who they helped out of a hot situation. In return Gami gave them the Crown of Wisdom. Finally Guild came and asked our heroes if they were baking potatoes or had some sort of natural disaster occurred. Using her magic Guilda quickly out the fire and reminded Narcia to return home ASAP after she helped Pietoro. Finally they returned to Popolocrois city where they stopped by the house of the man who had the very large sword. As it turns out this sword was just the right size for WK so he gave it to him, Upon returning to the castle King Paulo congratulated his son. The castle was repaired, Pietoro explained his story to everyone and our heroes parted ways (for the time being)… THE END (of chapter one that is…) Intermission: The intermission explains the tale of Burionia a floating city located in the skies west of Popolocrois. No one is quite sure why or even if it really exists. For some it is a mystery in need of clarification for others a tale of drunken sailors. Who really knows what the truth is… ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER TWO: THE FLOATING CITY With everyone in Popolocrois happy again and the castle back to normal Pietoro found himself in the most frightening of places… SCHOOL! Pietoro grew heavy eyed as his teacher waxed on about the tale of the Ice Demon and it's attack on Popolocrois ten years ago. A great dragon came and saved Popolocrois but the dragon was never seen again. Many wonder if it perished with the Ice Demon. Finally King Paulo came in and asked Pietoro why he was bored since the sage was telling one of the most important tales in the history of Popolocrois. But Paulo could see it in his son's eyes, Pietoro had tasted the forbidden fruit of adventure and longed to go there again. Pietoro begged his father. The king then had a serious look to him and told Pietoro that he had to explain something to him… Taking Pietoro to the top of the mysterious tower where the beautiful woman lie sleeping Paulo told Pietoro that this woman was his mother. Ever since the attack of the great Iced Demon she had fallen into a slumber, and no matter what magic or potion they used she would not awaken. At first Paulo thought that she might be dead and that there was no hope, but when he heard that Pietoro had found the Dragon Sword a new hope was sparked within him. He knew that the Dragon Sword could have only been given to Pietoro by his mother from the dream world. For this reason the King thought it good for Pietoro to study so that he might one day be wise enough to revive his mother, Queen Sanria. Pietoro thought long and hard about all he had learned that night. As he sit on his veranda thinking Guilda and Narcia came up on her flying broom. Guilda explained that Narcia wanted to see Pietoro since she couldn't stop thalking about their exciting adventures together. Guilda then asked why he looked so blue. Pietoro explained what the king had told him earlier that day. Guilda said that she might be able to help so they all went to the tower. Upon examining Sanria Guilda explained that she was not really asleep, but that her soul was in a different plane, The World of Darkness to be exact. Pietoro then asked Guilda how he might go to this "World of Darkness". Guilda explained that only the dead may enter this plane and that though there might be a way for the living to get there, she didn't have the answer. Narcia then gave Pietoro a green flute and told him to use it to call for her whenever he needed her. The next day Pietoro told Paulo about what Guilda had said. The King was quick to dismiss the interpetation of some crazy forest witch, after all they had great wizards at the castle, and told Pietoro to go study in his room. After going to his room Pietoro walked out onto his balcony. Pietoro was fed up with studying and decided that it was time he did something to save his mother. Pietoro then played the flute that Narcia had given him.. He explained what had happened to him and Narcia agreed to help him save his mother. They then set off on another adventure. NOTE: Now is a good time in the game to activate the dragon statue outside of Popolocrois city (west exit) and the one in Gami Gami city (by the entrance). These statues allow you to teleport around the world to any location that also has a dragon statue. Whenever you see a statue activate by touching it and pressing the circle button. Examine it again to get a list of places to teleport. Pietoro had heard of the village of Kanarisha a place known for it's great wizards and witches. All he knew was that this place supposedly lie to the east. With this in mind our heroes then set about traveling south of Popolocrois till they came to a fork in the road (leading south and east), naturally they took the west road till they came to a house. Here they were able to save their game and rest on the second story of the house. They also took the time to find the hidden chests located just off the road leading to the house. Then continuing east they passed through a tunnel and finally found themselves in the city of Goldleaf. Goldleaf was a mining town. Though normally busy there was currently a crisis in Goldleaf. It seemed that a man called Naguro, the head digger and chief miner was missing. For this reason everyone in the town was poor and out of work. Pur tired heroes finally decided to take a rest. Wanting to help our heroes descended down into the mine pit where they met a man. The man laughed at them saying that mere kids could never find Naguro, let alone venture into the dangerous caves. But Pietoro persisited to which point the man took to showing Pietoro just how strong he really was. Then feeling sorry for the kids he gave then 50G and told them to rest the night. In the middle of the night Gami Gami came in thinking this the perfect chance to take his revenge. But after seeing the cute Narcia sleeping he had second thoughts and decided to get his payback later. The next day our heroes left by means of the south east exit of Goldleaf. Here they trudged through a swamp and (again heading eastward) ended up in Kanarisha. (Did you remember to activate the dragon statue in Goldleaf too?). Here they found a number of quacks and wacky wizards. A wacky guy standing by a field told Pietoro that he could teleport him to the World of Darkness, but he turned out to be a fake. One wizard kept pet monsters and said that there existed a supposed village of monsters, where friendly intelligent monsters resided. Another magician who lived in a basement used his magic to change Pietoro's shape (I recommend you try this it's funny). One old guy with many maps in the very back of the town told Pietoro that his best chance of finding his mother lie wrapped in the secrets of Burionia. Burionia, the fabled floating island, home of mystical magic secrets and other mysterious stuff lie hidden from the view of surface dwellers for some time now, though it is believed to be somewhere in the east ocean of Popolocrois. Still the wizard couldn't quite recommend how exactly to get to Burionia(You must do this last event to progress in the plot, the others are amusing, but optional.). Luckily Pieotoro found a man by the name of Yan. Yan had a very big cannon and decided that this would be the perfect thing to help Pietoro get to the Burionia. Pietoro was only too happy to agree, Narcia on the other hand had second thoughts. All was going well when, DA DA. The Gami Gami Devil came and fouled things up sending Pietoro somewhere other than Burionia. Gami Gami then took time to try and flirt with Narcia, unsucessfully. (Yes, this whole thing about an old guy flirting with a prepubescent girl, while an ongoing joke, even in the sequel, is somewhat disturbing. But then again in Japan Lolita complexes are commonplace so one might expect such a thing in a Japanese game. Oh well sorry for that Politically Correct intermission. We now return you to your game walkthrough… ) Pietoro ended up in the bottom of the mines of Goldleaf. And although it was a nice place he thought that he'd better try and make it to the surface . Along the way up he met a man called Naguro. It seems Naguro had gotten lost while digging and due to the large amounts of monsters he decided that it'd be better just to hide for a while. Pietoro agreed to let Naguro join him since Naguro was lost and scared. Next Pietoro needed to find a shovel (called a scoop in Japanese) so that Naguro, an expert digger, could clear the way. Finally he found the shovel in a nearby storage room. Naguro equipped the shovel (equip it under weapons section for Naguro), and when they came to a point where the path was blocked Naguro cleared it. They continued up the mine until they came to a room with a switch on the wall. They used this switch to turn on the moving platform outside. Moving along they found a treasure chest. Or at least they thought that. It was really a mimic with a key inside. Finally they used the key on a door (The door blends into the background a bit so look hard) and were free. In the next room they met Narcia, who had come looking for Pietoro. All she had to do was move a lever to open the bridge. Unfortunately doing this required more strength than she had it also attracted the attention of some monsters. After beating the monsters they headed up where they met a bunch of miners. The miners were surprised that a few kids managed to save Naguro, but they were very grateful (Oh yeah, some of the chests you found along the way contain items that can be equipped by Naguro try and see what works). Well our heroes moved on striving to get to the top of this very deep mine. Their next problem was similar to their last one, a bridge that wouldn't budge. In order to get the bridge to move they'd need someone very strong. Luckily they found that someone who could locked in a jail in a nearby room. But they needed a key to free him and they had to be quite since there were a hoard of sleeping Orcs nearby. Our heroes then snuck past the orcs into the next room only to find… The Orc King. The Orc King put up a bit of a fight but was no problem after a few "saint arcs". Collecting the key and a few treasure boxes Pietoro and company went back to free their friend. The WK was a bit dazed after waking up, but after Pietoro told him his story (about saving his mom) he was very eager to help. So eager, in fact that he escaped from his cell without the aid of a key. Finally with the aid of WK they made back to the surface. Before leaving they talked to Naguro and he taught Pietoro the digging waza skill. On the way back to the castle they met Yan. Yan asked Pietoro if he wanted to try the cannon again promising that it would work this time. Pietoro respectfully reclined. Back at Popolocrois castle they ran into Yan again. This time Yan was trying to convince the king of buying into something or other that he had invented. This is when Pietoro came in. Needless to say Yan was quite shocked when Pietoro came in, and even more so when he found out that Pietoro was the Prince! In a hurry to leave Yan suggested that Pietoro find a man called Postof who lived in the southern port city of Pasela. So our heroes headed south of the castle until they came to Pasela (they also picked up treasure along the way including a good ring for Narcia). There were many things to do in Pasela. There was two inns but one didn't put up foreigners so they went to the other one. They also found a guy outside a shop with a locked door selling "Member's cards" for 1000G. After they bought a members card (optional) they went into the shop and bought things from the merchants. In the back of the shop they found a hallway and a nice chest when they reached the end of the hallway. When they tried to open the chest a fellow came in and told them to stop. (I forgot to translate what the guy said so just choose the second choice, "no, and get the amulet. This amulet protects you from status changes which is really useful when you fight monkeys later in the game equip it then.) They also found a fellow by the name of Ralph in a bar. Ralph was quite distressed and had turned to the bottle ever since his sweetie, Pamie, was lost at sea. Oh, poor, poor Ralph. They also found a cool sailor who offered them advice that bordered on bad poetry about the woman they call the sea. When they were through exploring the city Pietoro and Co. headed into the ship port. Here they talked to some sailors who informed them that Postof was on the second floor and not in the best of moods. It seems that Postof wanted to make a ship but since the line was down between Goldleaf and Pasela and the blacksmith in Goldleaf was pretty grumpy that it would be impossible. Postof told our heroes to leave. But they pressed on and asked him about the ship, called the Flyer Yacht, that he wanted to make. Postof explained that he wanted to make a flying ship but that he needed someone to make him a "propeller screw" first. And since the one person who could make this was the blacksmith in Pasela that it would be impossible. With their heads hung low the threesome left Postof to his brooding. But wait, Narcia wouldn't stand for this not after they'd came so far. She dragged Pietoro and WK with her and went back and explained Pietoro's story to Postof. She also said that since the people of Goldleaf owed Pietoro a favor since he had rescued their head miner and saved the town from it's economic woes. Only happy to help Postof told our heroes to take the plans that he had made to the blacksmith in Goldleaf (NOTE: The plans are in a bucket in the same room as Postof, get them before you go. Also whenever you're given a choice during this whole Postof bit choose the first option). Determined to see his mom again they brought the plans to the Blacksmith in Goldleaf (I hope you used the Dragon teleport). The down and out blacksmith was overjoyed at the chance to work again, his first time in a while. He suggested that everyone stay the night at the inn since it would take a while to get everything done. Our heroes awoke to the sounds of yelling the next morning. It seems that someone had stolen the Propeller screw during the night. A suspicous old guy with a beard and a red mask was spotted around the blacksmith quarters that night. Hmmm,,, who could this be? One of the blacksmiths told Pietoro that the crook left a letter addressed to Pietoro. Pietoro went into the blacksmiths workroom and read the letter (!!!Make sure you read the letter you must do so to advance in the plot. This was left out of the original walkthrough and drove me crazy for a while I searched the globe trying to figure out what to do.. ) The letter was from Gami Gami Devil (Whoah, big surprise). He said that he finally got Pietoro back for what he did earlier and that if Pietoro dared try and get the screw back he would have to be brave enough to challenge the "NEW GAMI GAMI TOWER!!! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha…." Our heroes left Goldleaf out the south west exit. And walked along the track until they came to …. Da da.. the NEW GAMI GAMI TOWER ha ha ha (oops, sorry about that). Around the Tower they found a chest with a GUTS sword in it a sword that, when used, didn't depleat a characters GUTS level. They also found a village of monsters to the south east of the Tower. Here they could save, rest and but stuff. Finally they made it to the top of the NEW GAMI GAMI TOWER! .. heh..uh hah.. ummm. Excuse me… Here they told Gami Gami Devil about the whole thing with Pietoro's mother and despite his ambitions to hold true to the Evil Genius code Gami Gami, with a tear in his eye agrees to give Pietoro the screw. (NOTE: Remember to take the screw from the table before you leave. Also there's a hidden room in the tower. To get there go behind the stairs leading up close to the launch platform. The other room isn't so secret but involves climbing a ladder that's easy to pass by. Be sure to get these items either on the way up or down. The next part of the story is optional but I recommend you do it now, since you won't have a chance for a while. There are three dragon stones that you can get to upgrade your sword you might want to get at least two of them now. The Dragon Saber part in the secrets section should be used with this part of the story if you choose to do it now. First of all go to Goldleaf and save at the inn then go down the elevator. Now go to the guy by the train tracks. He'll ask you if you want to ride the train, choose yes (1st choice). When you ride the train you'll notice there's something on the tracks! Get out and make your way back to Goldleaf. The monkeys you'll fight here are pretty tough so watch out. Spend your time going back and forth from the Monkey Kingdom (that's what this place in the tracks is called) and goldleaf. Remember to equip the status protecting amulet(a purple necklace icon, it's called "riyuu no mifuda" I think) you got at Pasela and you can use the red lantern to easily go to the inn you last saved (Goldleaf) if you need to escape. Well keep fighting monkeys till you're at least level 18 or 19. Then go to the center of the Monkey Kingdom where Narcia will warn you that it's dangerous. Now go inside and fight the Monkey King. The Monkey King will summon minions repeatedly throughout the fight. Use status boosters (Narcia's "wind blaze" and Pietoro's "Dragon blaze"). Once you beat the Monkey king search the wall behind him for a dragon stone. Also there is a chest where you can get a monkey bank (works like the piggy bank but holds more money.). Also get the dragon stone at the bottom of the Goldleaf mines. The final stone is probably too hard to get now and is best saved for later, unless you enjoy building up your levels making the game less challenging. Really you should be tough enough to beat the monkey boss (though just barely) before you advance in the game. This is a good way to measure how tough you are. Still, don't forget to get the last dragon stone and Dragon Saber later. Oh yeah if you visit Guilda at this time in the game (she's in the basement of her house) she'll give you an item　 that restores 300MP. And on with the plot we go! Our heroes then returned to Pasela where they gave Postof the Propeller Screw.. Next they began the long task of building the Flyer Yacht. Finally they finished and were ready to head off when Narcia suddenly informed them that she couldn't accompany them. Because she was a forest witch her powers would be useless on the high seas (or air). So they said their goodbyes and headed out to sea. In the midst of their journey they ran in to something, or rather something ran into them… (Yes it's time for the obligatory ghost ship scene, which finds it's way in to far to many RPGs. Just try your best to sweat it out.) While Postof fixed the boat Pietoro and WK explored the ship for no real good reason. Here they ran into many locked doors. These locked doors could be unlocked by getting keys from defeating mimics (there are 3 total mimics you need to get. Also some doors only open with switches and don't respond to keys so be patient.) Finally they found a big gold key below deck. They used this key to access the captain's room (yeah, there's also an item on the poop deck). In the captain's room they found a scary skeleton captain. He knew Pietoro's name and about Pietoro's mom, in fact he said he knows everything! ha ha ha !. Though, when the WK asked him about the location of the Sword of Legend he drew a blank. The scary skull fellow said he'd meet them in person soon and introduce himself properly. WK and Pietoro headed outside where they met a fish… wait scratch that a giant fish boss. They beat the boss (Okay, just guess which spell works best), and the ship disappeared. And this whole lame, unoriginal and completely superfluous part of the game was over with (sorry for my lack of enthusiasm) The screen then pulled back to reveal Guilda and Narcia looking into their cauldron. While Guilda was commenting on the lack of or heroes' intellegence Narcia was worried about how to save them. They were after all in need of some help in the upstairs department. Narcia really wanted to help her friends but due to the limitations of her powers (she is a forest witch and not a sea hag ya' know), she was unable. In a rare moment of sympathy Guilda revealed the secret of the Golden Key of the Forest Witches to Narcia. With the power of this key a forest witch could transform herself into something else. The only limitation being that no one must ever know of the user's true identity. If someone ever saw Narcia transform it would result in a horrible outcome, the specifics of which Guilda was unsure of. But Narcia decided that since she must help her friends that she would take the risk. Choosing the moniker of "Kai", Narcia or um.. Kai hurried off to save her friends. With the pleasant taste of sand in their mouth's our troublesome twosome awoke on a kitsch little island paradise called… Well, okay I'm not quite sure of the name. But in any case they awoke on a little island kinda like Giligan's Island but with a lot more people. After a brief conversation with the local old guys they found that they were somewhere in the eastern sea and that another westerner by the name of Pamie (ring a bell?) was also on the island. It seems that Pamie was building a ship o leave the island. After talking with Pamie our heroes realized that it would be some time before she was finished so they decided to talk with the locals. A guy in the inn offered to give them a mini-palm tree and even deliver it to Pietoro's house (yeah!, a souvenir). They also found a "Knight Star" in the same inn. A woman also told them that they would be granted a wish if they hit "Whale Rock", located in the center of the island with a hammer. Though this was only a legend our heroes were bored so they decided to give it a go. First off they asked Pamie if they could borrow her hammer. Although she thought them foolish she said it was okay as long as they stopped bothering her, Next they took the hammer (see it by the table there?). Then they headed towards the center of the island. Along the way they found a rusted old sword which they took (later someone would tell them that it is good luck to have found this sword). Finally they reached the center of the island and hit whale rock with a hammer. This in turn brought about… Kai. Kai announced that she was good friends with Narcia and had been sent to help them. While WK was worried about Kai because she looked like a mere girl, she was busy teasing him by calling him "gramps". Kai said that she saw Postof's boat from the sky and that she told Postof how to get to the island. WK and Pietoro were happy to hear this news. After all this talk everyone was a bit tired so they decided to take it easy and head back to the inn to rest a bit. The next morning they walked over to where Pamie was. Here they saw Postof as well. Postof said that it was okay for them to use the boat since he would stay behind and help Pamie. Kai said something about how cool it was to ride in a boat that she..errr.uh.. her friend, Narcia made. After saying goodbye to Pamie and wishing her luck they took off. Much to everyone's surprise WK was very afraid of heights. But since there's a cool anime bit here you can see for yourself… Upon arriving on the island they looked around and found a weird item shop, strange statues, and they also noticed that all the doors were locked. When they tried to enter the main building they had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting the 4 servants of the Great Ice Demon. Yabu of the south, Zoldan of the north, Kaupa of the east, and Dorun of the west (no, this will not be on the test). Yabu is surprised you made it past his fish creature (so he was the one responsible for that). He really doesn't want you to get any further, but since he has other things to do, Namely, the reawakening of the Great Ice Demon he'll deal with you later. Next Pietoro and company went to a house to the left of the enterance and found someone hiding inside. A man, er dog, man? Well, they found a strange guy inside his name was Sapo, and as it turns out he was the last surviving resident of Burionia. Sapo apologized for locking the door but he thought you might be with those 4 nasty fellows who he had seen earlier. Sapo then explained that they were looking for something called "The Book Of Darkness" (BOD, henceforth), an item that would grant mortals passage between the world of light (where they were now) and the world of darkness. Sapo was afraid that Pietoro wanted to use the book as well. In fact Pietoro did, but his motives were different than those of the 4 servants. Thus Pietoro explained everything again. Sapo said that they had nothing to worry about since the book couldn't be accessed without first turning on the main power of Burionia. Sapo then took the time to explain the history of Burionia (via the help of a viewing screen thingy). 3,000 years ago the people of Burionia lived happily on the planet's surface. They were advanced in science well above that of any other people on the continent. One day the oracle of Burionia declared that a great disaster was about to strinke the earth and that the people of Burionia had better escape ASAP. Burionia's scientists got to work and created something called the Ball Heart. A giant intelligent machine that had bizarre powers that even surpassed the expectations and imagination of its creators. Using the power of the Ball heart the continent of Burionia rose into the heavens. Here the people lived happily and carefree. Due to an unexpected side effect of the Ball Heart's powers all who resided on Burionia would never grow old. Still, in time it became obvious that the oracle was wrong and that no great disaster was coming. Forsaking their immortality the citizens of Burionia returned to the earth's surface to live what they considered complete lives. They valued their freedom above all else. But Sapo was different, he was to involved in his studies to leave. Thus Sapo stayed behind and studied and studied for many many years. Until, just a bit ago the 4 servants came… After explaining his story everyone noticed that there was an uninvited guest present. Gami Gami took off fast. Everyone wondered why he was here but Kai had a premonition that he was here to help them. After hearing a large explosion they went outside to find the doors blown open. They proceeded inside to their right they found a room with a strange save/heal point. In the room to the left they found a large library. Trudging through all the floors (don't forget the chests!) they came upon… Mr. Gami Gami. As it turns out Kai was right and Gami Gami was there to help Pietoro. He was trying to find the BOD so that Pietoro could see his mom again. Unfortunately there were so many books that he couldn't find it. Thus Gami Gami joined the party. Wandering into the next room they found Yabu who, unfortunately for our heroes got a hold of the BOD before they could. Not knowing what to do next they rushed up to the top of the tower to find Sapo, who was trying to turn the power on. Sapo then explained that there was a problem with the power. It seems that the Ball Heart had developed a persona of its own. Unfortunately the Ball Heart had to be destoryed in order for them to do anything (they would then rely on back up power systems). Since Sapo helped make the ball Heart he couldn't bring himself to destroy it. This being the case he sent Pietoro and Co. to do the job. Pietoro headed downstairs next to the save point they found an elevator leading down. Here they found a vast engine room. They wandered around to all the rooms and collected goodies before heading for the center (one floor down from the floor you land on). Here they were sucked into some strange pipes and met the Ball Heart. As it turns out the Ball Heart wasn't too happy about being shut down and put up a bit of a fight(Use Holy Lightning and status boosters). After that happened they all got out of there real quick like since the island was falling into the ocean. When they got to their vessel Kai asked them if they wanted to wait for Sapo. They waited but he still didn't come so they decided to go then he came at the last moment and they all split. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPETR III: THE WORLD OF DARKNESS Upon returning home Pietoro wanted to find out more about getting to the world of darkness. Unfortunately his dad, the King, decided that he'd better go to his room (go to the veranda) instead of trying to save the world. Prince Pietoro felt a momentary understanding of previous Fresh Prince songs, but it passed. This was interrupted when everybody heard that a strange bearded guy washed up on the nearby beach. This of course was Gami Gami. After reviving Gami Gami, the ol' devil told Pietoro that he managed to get away with a cool book form Burionia. After turning over the book to Sapo (go to the study room in the castle. It's next to the sleeping wizard) they found out that a place called Radak, to the far east is where the portal for the World of Darkness exists. Still, they all wondered how exactly to reach Radak since the Flyer yacht was busted. Luckily Gami Gami had some sort of giant ship they could take. All they needed to do was head out to his old base (In GG city). Before they left Sapo said he had to stay behind and teach the royal wizards stuff. Now might also be a good time to get the Dragon Saber and all three stones if you haven't done so yet. This will be your last chance for a while. There's also new stuff at the shop in Popolocrois city. Every time there's a new chapter the store gets new things! Upon reaching the base they went to a computer terminal on the first floor. Here Gami Gami entered an access code after having a bit of trouble. Unfortunately something was wrong with the security system so Gami told them to be prepared for robot attacks. Gami was also not too happy about the fact that everyone was going into his secret base, but oh well. Be sure to get the "zenmai" in the chest down the hall to get Gami a weapon later. There's also a good ring for Narcia to found. First off they needed to turn on the main power. They wandered around till they found some big ol' clunky power generator things located in the top corner of a small hall (This part takes a while so be patient and e-mail me if you get stuck). The first switch they turned on malfunctioned and blew the power for the base, so they needed to find another switch. The next switch looked like the first, except it was orange in color and was even harder to find. (This is a pain in the but go as right as you can. Walk along a narrow platform and you'll come across it eventually) After they found it the power was turned on. Next they headed down the big elevator to the bottom of a pit. From here they headed up a ladder and went up some stairs to the 5th floor. Here they met a robot known as the "Engineer Robot . He gave Gami a cannon upgrade and said that he'd be waiting for you under a shop in Popolocrois if you wanted to upgrade anything else. (BE SURE TO DO THIS SINCE YOU HAVE TO MEET THE ROBOT TO ACCESS ANY OF GAMI'S LATER WAZA). Walking back out they found an inn and item shop. After resting they headed to the pipes that they saw on the same floor. Along the way in the pipes they picked up the "mecha-unit" item for Gami (bring it to the Engineer Robot later). They also found a ring for Kai. Finally they reached the ship but it seems that the bad guys had the same idea and were already there. As they made their getaway Kaupa stayed and fought our heroes. Well, with no other ideas they headed to Sapo for advice. He suggested that they go to Burionia and see if anything there was still of use. SO our heroes went to see Postof to catch a ride back to Burionia. In Burionia they went to the top and Sapo told them that there was a ship somewhere at the bottom. Hearing this our heroes trudged to the bottom (where they fought the heart before). Upon reaching the bottom they investigated the side rooms (bottom deck) until they found the room with the ship in it. Next they headed back to Popolocrois. In Popolocrois Sapo told them they could leave anytime but that Pietoro should talk to him first. Pietoro headed down to the basement of the castle and talked to Sapo who taught him the "Magic Hankie" waza. On the way out Pietoro stopped to talk to the King and Momu, who wished him luck, then he went outside and left. On the way Pietoro asked Narcia about her friend Kai. Narcia didn't quite know how to respond. Finally they arrived in Hata-hata village. Here they talked to the villagers who told them that the man they were looking for was at the top of the mountain. So they climbed the mountain. (There's a secret path located behind some bushes at the bottom level of the mountain. It looks a bit obvious. Try and find it cause you can get some swell items if you follow it up). Along the way they saw the Gami RX9 parked. This really got ol' Gami mad. Upon reaching the top of the mountain our heroes noticed our 4 favorite bad guys being tossed off the top. When they arrived they saw a big fellow who said "Uh oh! More people!" before running inside his house. When they entered the house they met the Mountain Sage Raduk and his burly servant Janbo. After Narcia explained their situation Raduk told them that he could help them get into the dark world. But in order to do so without the Book of Darkness they would have to challenge the guardian of the world of darkness. Our heroes were tired from their long journey so they decided to rest on the top floor or Raduk's flat. In the middle of the night Pietoro awoke and wandered outside only to find Raduk. Pietoro asked Raduk about the world of Darkness. Raduk told Pietoro that it was a place where the dead resided, but sometimes the souls of living beings were trapped there. He told Pietoro to seek the help of Dawna the Empress of light. Dawna would be able to judge if Pietoro's intentions were good or bad and then either help or punish him from there. Since Dawna did not like to interact with beings from the world of the living Raduk could only speculate as to wether she would help Pietoro or not. The next day they headed up the mountain and to everyone's surprise they found four fiends waiting for them at the top. This time they turned all our heroes to stone and took advantage of Raduk's weakened state to try and finish them off. With the last of his strength Raudk revived our heroes. They then proceeded to finish what they had started with Kaupa last time. (Use Gami attacks on him as they always hit this annoying boss). Before entering the portal they decied to go back down to the house and save their game (Recommended). Then they plummeted into the dark world. When they finally came to a stop. They heard the voice of the guardian asking them for the Book of Darkness. Then the voice said "Oh yeah, I forgot, three beings bearing that just passed here". Pietoro begged the guardian for help and to listen to his reasons for coming to the World of Darkness. Rather than listen to such a long story the Guardian decided to test our heroes instead. If they were worthy they could pass into the world of Darkness. Inside the playhouse, er… World of Darkness they found a giant house. Here they went inside and talked to the receptionist. To their left was a save/heal point and to their right was a room with a little house. In the room with the little house they drank a potion they found and became very very small. Now they entered the tiny house and got a small key. From here they went back out and found a tiny door and went in that door. The first room had an invisible path to follow (pretty easy), There was also an item for gami in one of the chests. Outside the room they found the Guardian (looks like a little girl) she offered to save/heal for them. The next room was made up of colored tiles. There were two exits. The one to the south led to a small stadium where our heroes had to do battle with the following creatures(going here is optional)… 1. Yaks 2. Alligators with big rocks 3. Elephants on stools 4. Mini-dragons 5. Mimics! (hard!) If they managed to defeat all enemies they got a magic medallion to protect them from all types of magic. Heading back to the tile room they took the north exit where they found a piano. Here they danced o the piano till a fish fellow, named Don Maestro, came out and fought them (Easy boss, use physical attacks). After they fought him Pietoro tried his hand at conducting the orchestra (also optional). In the next room they found a woman playing the harp. This made everybody tired. When they woke up they checked a shelf in the room and found a key. Using this key they headed out south of the conductors room where they encountered something very annoying. Yes, they had to answer three questions about the game. The top choice is yes and the bottom is no. There are 20 possible questions with the answers evenly divided between the two. This can get really annoying. Most of the questions that have their first word in katakana are usually answered "No". Most of the questions that start with kanji (Chinese characters) are usually answered "Yes". Take your time and you'll get it right eventually. The next room had cats in suits who sold items. The middle cat sells you souvenirs which can only be bought here. His options menu (not price menu) reads. 1. Deliver to house 2. Explain 3. Quit. Have your goodies delivered to your house. I think the last cat will save but I'm not sure. Next our heroes went outside and found a room with a roulette. Pietoro stood on a box and they got random items. After doing this enough timeshe got a ladder leading up to the next room. They climbed the ladder and landed on a bird beast named "Karura". Karura was mad about this so they fought. This is a hard fight so be sure to use Narcia's speed wind and mist screen so she can avoid damage. Fight conservatively and you'll eventually win. Finally the guardian deemed our pals worthy. They went down a long slide and then a seemingly endless flight of stairs till they reached Mark, a giant space whale who would ferry them to Dana, the keeper of light. They went to Dana's palace and made it up to where the giant Dana sat, Here she talked with Pietoro. When the prince tried to explain his predicament she simply looked into his eyes and understood. Being tired of meaningless human chatter Dana gave Pietoro the key to the Devil Star, where Pietoro's mother lie waiting. From here our heroes headed down to the out front of the palace (There's a room with an weapon for Gami on the top left floor on the way out). Here they found three maidens waiting. One of the girls would save their game. The girl in the middle opened a door for them with the key then she told them to go see Mark for a ride. Mark gave them a ride and they ended up on the Devil Star. Here they were on the outskirts of a Popolocrois look alike town. On the outskirts of town the found a spring ("Bane"), that Gami could use to make a special attack out of. Finally they entered the fake town. In the Inn they found a head band for Gami. In a the school house they met a ghostly version of Pietoro's mom who would save and heal them. She then warned them not to go any further. Finally our heroes headed towards the castle. Here they found a giant ice castle. One of the plates shook loose carrying Pietoro to the top. Along the way he had to fight three monsters without time to heal (1. Knight 2.Mimic! 3. Blue Devil). Use heat blaze to boost your stats when you first meet the knight. Then it shouldn't be too hard… At the top Pietoro's mother, Sanria, was doing battle with the remaining two of the 4 fates. Finally Sanria reveled her true form, a dragon! She was then distracted by Pietoro and the 2 fates got the upper hand. This in turn let loose the Great Ice Demon who lie sealed below Sanria. Uh Oh!!! Sanria then revealed to Pietoro that she was indeed a dragon. And that she had to stay in the World of Darkness in order to keep the Great Ice Demon sealed in. She then told Pietoro how strong he was (well being half Dragon might explain why he kicks major butt for a 10 year old…), but that he still wasn't strong enough yet. Still if he hurried he could stop the reawakening of the Great Ice Demon. Then she passed out. This was a good idea but Dorun distracted our heroes while Yabu revived the Great Ice Demon. The fight with Dorun aint too hard. Boost your stats and you should win. Finally they escaped (along with another FMV anime scene). Dana soldiers saved them but Dana scolded Pietoro for dooming his home world. Dana can't bring her soldiers into the world of light so fate rested on Pietoro's shoulders. They got on Marks back met the guardian, who said there was something huge that just exited through the gate, and then they returned to Raduk Mountain. Now go back to town and get items (new chest in the old inn). Go to the old mountain man and you'll also see Janbo. Go to your ship and you're outta there…The man explains that the Ice Demon headed west, towards Popolocrois. When they got to Popolocrois Gami crashed, because of the ice… ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER FOUR: THE ICE DEMON While waiting at the castle Pietoro apologizes to his father saying that everything's his fault. Paulo said not to worry since mom could survive 10 years in the Wold of Darkness, she would probably recover and be able to save everyone. Paulo then tells of how he met Sanria. As a young adventuring king Paulo encountered a wounded dragon with a sword stuck in it. Since the dragon had a sad look in it's eyes he decided to help it. The dragon then vanished and a beautiful woman appeared. This was Sanria. Years later when the Ice Demon attacked Sanria suddenly turned into a dragon and saved the Kingdom. After the battle she lie in a deep sleep. She sacrificed herself in order to save the kingdom. (In an odd side note, the occurrence of spirits of animals, creatures or plants that were helped by men often would assume human form and marry whoever helped them in Japanese mythology). Pietoro thinking everything was his fault runs out into the field where an Ice Knight takes advantage of his weakened state ("An ample chance to slay the Dragon child" as he put it…). Here Narcia tries to save him, but the knight is resistant to magic so she assumes the form of Kai and kicks some but! Pietoro is shocked to see that Narcia is really Kai (I mean he just found out that his mom was a dragon, and now this!!). Unfortunately this transformation made Narcia sick (She can be a sea witch while in the forest.). Guilda explains that Pietoro needs to find the Gnome flower in order to save her. But the Gnome flower only grows once every 100 years and all she has is an old seed. Remembering how the pond fairy turned the old lump of coal into the dragon stone Pietoro headed to the pond north of Takinen village. Here he threw the seed in and the fairy turned it into a gnome flower. He headed back to the castle and gave the flower to Guilda who saved Narcia. (Oh yeah, there's a mini battle with the White Knight and goofy ice monsters on the way back to town.). Now head for the council room (Above the throne room.). Here everyone was discussing what to do about the Ice Demon. Finally after a long argument Paulo agrees to let Pietoro and company lead the charge to the Ice Demon's tower. IMPORTANT: be sure to upgrade all your Gami Gami weapons now before you head out of town. When you're ready head north to the fairy pond, which has been frozen, and keep north form there. In the middle of the huge snow field is a small town. Here you can save and buy stuff. Using it as your base go along the perimeter of the snow field and get three items in chests (NW, East, and SE). One of these(SE I think) is a fully upgraded Dragon sword (just like Pietoro's) which you can have White Knight equip. Be sure to get it! When you're ready head north from the village till you see a cracked path in the ice. Follow this to the Ice Demon's tower. In the tower you'll find a screw, the final Gami weapon piece. Now head up the tower and fight Zoldar. He is easy if you were earning levels while roaming the ice field. Next follow an annoying path of tunnels and teleporters till you reach the top of the ice tower. This is frustrating, but it's also a good way to earn exp. while doing something. At the top you'll ride an elevator. Here you'll fight three waves of monsters. At the top Sanria is being held in a giant egg and having her power drained from her. AT this point (if I may slip back into third person past tense narration) they met Yabu, the leader of the 4 fates. Yabu warned that Pietoro had better not meddle with his important tools (i.e. Giant egg thingy), since he needed Sanria's power to full revive the ice demon. Next they fought Yabu. Yabu uses mainly magic attack so equip high Magic defense items. Have Narcia concentrate on healing and stat boosting with Gami serving as a back up healer (give him lots of heal all potion). Now have Pietoro and WK pound away at Yabu. I was at level 40 and beat him easily… When Yabu lost the battle he used his last strength to let the Ice Demon free. Watch the anime and find out what happens next… Next head home with mom, be sure to stop by the snow village and talk to the kids making the snow man to get it. When you enter the castle you'll hear… I…AM…ICE… DEMON….. I AM THE ICE DEMON Pietoro: "What, I though we killed you!?" I AM NOW IN MY TRUE FORM YOU HAVE NOT DEFEATE MY TRUE SELF HA HA HA Now fight the real Ice demon ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER FIVE: EPILOUGE Go around and see everyone off when you're finished head back to the castle and talk to Paulo saying yes twice. This will end the game. But wait, be sure to explore the monsterless world and chat with everyone! I love this part it reminds me of Treasure Hunter-G (A cool square game for Super Nintendo). Here are some things you can find… 1. The red magic girl in the castle can finally get her spell right. 2. Sapo is happy to really be living life and to teach others about Burionia. 3. The young couple in the house in Popolocrois village are going to have a baby. (They do in PoPoRogue) 4. There is a new play in the Gami Gami department store. Guess what the plot is… 5. In Pasela you can buy souvenirs of Burionia form a man who sells piggy banks. (The dog located close to him will bring them home for you. 2nd option) 6. In Pasela dock you see a sailor talking all cool about the sea till his wife yells at him. 7. Yan is up to no good again! 8. See the White knight off in Pasela as he continues his search for the Sword of Legend. 9. Pietoro and Narcia almost hit it off by the fairy pond. But being too embarrassed Pietoro simply says "Oh I uh… see you around.. yeah..err…" Narcia says "Um..er.. yeah. Come by and visit anytime" 10. Gon and Don have run away from the castle. But where did they go? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE FIND GON AND DON CONTEST If you can tell me where Gon and Don are hiding at the end of the game I will send you a PoPoLo prize from Japan. Simply be the first to write me an e-mail as to where Gon and Don are hiding and I'll send you something! Contest only good until June 2000. Be sure to include "Gon and Don" on the subject line of your e-mail! Aren't I swell. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! END OF WALKTHROUGH. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9. MAGIC & WAZA : Magic and waza (special techniques) play a very important part in the game. After some battles you'll receive "magic exp." or experience points that go towards raising the level of your magic. Check status screen #2 often to see how your magic levels are doing. Waza don't use MP but they all have some sort of rule that dictates their use. For example Narcia is frozen for one turn whenever she uses her waza. Some of Pietoro's waza require a full GUTS meter in order to use them, while most of Gami Gami's waza run on a limited number of charges. All waza should be in the order that they appear in the game. If there is a problem let me know ASAP.! Notes: "SL" refers to spell level; the level of the spell NOT the character. "P" refers to personal magic that can be used out of combat. PIETORO Spell name MP cost Level gained Effects Fireball 2 1 Attack one enemy. Attacks all in a 8 squarerange at SL 11. Heal water(P) 5 2 Heal one character. Cure water 4 5 At SL 1 heals poison . At SL 2 also heals sleep. At SL 3 also heals paralysis. At SL 4 heals status changes Saint Arc 5 8 Lightning for one enemy, can also stun opponents. Heat Blaze 8 15 Raises a character's attack 50%. At SL 2 speed also 50% up. At SL 3 defense also 50% up. At SL 4 magic also 50% up. At SL 5 magic defense also 50% up. Magical Road(P) 1 10 Avoids random encounters with "weak" monsters while it lasts. NOTE: "Magical road" does not appear on the in battle menu commands. Pietoro's Waza Waza Name Level Gained Effects and usage Wind shot 4 Ranged Attack Holy Lightning 20 Attacks all opponents with lightning after a random amount of turns. Digging ?? Creates a hole. Anyone (players too) who falls in dies! Dragon Saber ?? Kills one opponent (not bosses). Only can be used when all characters GUTS full. Magic Hankie ?? Places a magic barrier on the ground making it impossible for enemies to move Dragon Fang 35 Huge attack (you must first move next to enemy manually). Can only be used when GUTS meter is full NOTE: Waza marked with "??" must be found throughout the game read the walkthrough to find out how to get these! NARCIA Spell name MP cost Level gained Effects Heal Rain(P) 8 1 Heal everyone. Wind Sheet 3 1 Attack one opponent. Attacks all enemies at SL 11 Holy Burst 10 5 Attack all enemies Mist Screen 1 3 Protects Narcia from physical attacks. Wind Blaze 8 10 Raises a character's defense 50%. At SL 2 magic also 50% up. At SL 3 speed also 50% up. At SL 4 attack also 50% up. At SL 5 affects all characters! Speed Wind 10 20 Everyone's speed 50% up. Narcia's Waza Waza Name Level Gained Effects and usage Revive 1 Revives KO'ed character Magic Wind 12 Gives Narcia's magic and magic defense statistics to all heroes for 4-7 turns Green Light 15 Shrinks opponents, then they retreat. Can't be used on bosses. Healthy Light 25 Heals everyone's status Attack Wind 30 All enemies take wind damage and are poisoned. Golden Key ?? Transform into Kai NOTE: Upon using waza(except "Golden Key"), Narcia will loose her next turn. An icon that reads "STOP" will appear above her. KAI Spell name MP cost Level gained Effects Angel 4 1 Heals one character Tobikera 3 1 Area effect fire attack Transform 1 1 Turn certain into opponents and attack. Try it and see! Varies depending on monster. Blue Mist 8 18 Heals everyone and heals Paralyzes enemies. Siren 5 21 One character magic up! At SL 2 speed also up! At SL 3 defense also up! At SL 4 Attack also up! Phoenix 30 ?? Raises all KO'ed characters And heals HP. NOTE: For Kai's transform spell to work you must manually move next to a monster and then select the spell. Kai can't use waza… THE WHITE KNIGHT Can't use magic Waza Name Level Gained Effects and usage Toughen Up 1 GUTS meter reaches max when used Taunt 1 Opponents will direct attacks at WK. Jump Slice 10 Jump attack (depletes guts) Spin Cut 18 Attack all adjacent opponents Sword Flame 30 Attacks all opponents with fire, but reduces WK's parameters. Revenger 35 Takes away half the opponents HP. Can Only be used when WK's HP less then half. Can't be used on bosses. GAMI GAMI DEVIL Can't use magic Waza Name Level Gained Effects and usage Gami Missile 1 Ranged attack Gami Cannon * Attacks all Red Devil * Random attack (sometimes hits you!) Devil Slot * Creates one of 16 different effects, some good, some bad all very amusing. Devil's Servant * Charms an enemy. Gami Gas * Confuses all enemies. NOTE: All of Gami Gami's waza must be found, with the exception of the Gami Missile which he starts with. For information on how to get these see the SECRETS section. Also I suggest you play around with the "Devil Slot", most of the effects are hilarious and provide a good break when battles start to get tedious. 10. IMPORTANT ITEMS The following has a list of important potion items and what they do. I'm writing this in romaji so everyone can understand. All item names are written in kana in the game menu selection. Even if you can't read Japanese look at the number and for the words "HP" or "MP" ITEM NAME EFFECTS COST iyashinoha heals 1 character 50HP 10 iyashinoeda heals 1 character 200HP 20 iyashinokajitsu heals 1 character 100HP 90 gamigami monaka heals 1 character 60HP 18 sutamina bentou heals 1 character 100HP 8 shifuudo ranchi heals 1 character 100HP 8 gankinoame heals all characters 100HP 50 meguminoame heals all characters 250HP 150 sukuinoame heals all characters 5000HP 800 bannoyaku heals 1 character's poison status 20 ryunonamida heals 1 character's all status 200 ryunotamashii heals 1 character's status + HP 1000 arigataimizu restores 50MP 350 seinarumizu restores 300 MP 1500 kimyounakusuri does 1 of 8 random things 5 (good and bad) 11. SECRETS THE DRAGON SABER: In order to upgrade Pietoro's sword to it's maximum level you need to collect three "Dragon Stones" found throughout the world. The first is found after beating the monkey king (on the railway between Goldleaf and Pasela). After defeating him, you'll see something glimmering behind his throne area. Investigate it and collect the stone. The next stone is found after winning the tournament in the Monster Village. In order to get into the tournament talk to the monsters in the house to the left of the battle going on. Next talk to the guy standing outside the house he'll ask you if you want to try and fight. The top choice is "yes". Now go up to the log where the monsters were fighting and the battle begins. You have to beat 3 monsters to win. The final stone can be found anytime after you get the first. Simply go to the very very bottom of the cave in Goldleaf. Here you will see a glittering stone next to a miner. Investigate the area and pick up the stone. It turns out the stone is a piece of coal. Now head north of Takinen to the fairy pond. Go to the usual place and the fairy will come out and clean the coal to reveal… A dragon stone! Now the sword is at it's top level. Finally go to the house west of Popolocrois city. Here talk to the grandpa inside the house. Next go into the bedroom and sleep. In the middle of the night he'll awaken you and perform a goofy ceremony that transforms the stones into vegetables (a tomato, potato and a cucumber)! Pietoro eats the vegetables and gains the power of the dragon saber (a waza). GAMI GAMI WEAPONS: In order to make full use of Gami Gami's waza you must first obtain items (parts), and then visit the basement of the shop next to the item shop in Popolocrois city (the top floor is a guy who'll buy your strange items.). This is only accessible after finding the engineer robot in Gami Gami base part 2. Once you find an item go to the robot and choose the second option. Next choose the top option. This will allow access to your new waza. If you find an item called scrap (SUKURAPU) or ZENMAI these will add rounds to your missile and cannon respectively. These items can be found or given as treasure by monsters. The waza can be found at the following places. PART NAME LOCATION Winch Gami Cannon Gami base 2 B5 Floor talk to the robot. Mega-unit Red Devil Gami base 2 along the tracks TC Gears Devil Slot Invisible maze in Gate of the Guardian TC Spring Devil's Servant Outside the destroyed village on the Devil Star TC. Screw Gami Gas 1F of the Ice Tower TC NOTE: "TC" indicates the item is found in a Treasure Chest SOUVENIRS: Also called omiyage in Japanese. There are a total of 14 souvenirs in Popolocrois. You can see your collection by climbing up the ladder in Pietoro's bedroom. Except for decoration they serve no real purpose in the game (Unless you play Poporogue). Still you can't quite have the satisfaction of beating the game without getting them. After buying the items you must have them delivered. If you buy the items talk to someone else near by. You will be given 3 choices choose the middle one to get them delivered. Only a person in the same area as you can deliver the items. For example if you get the Mini Burionia only the dog in Pasela can deliver to your house. You can find em in the following locations…. ITEM LOCATION Pennant Gami Gami city gift shop (400G) Lantern Gami Gami city gift shop (1,480G) Lil' Gami Gami Gami Gami city gift shop (4,980G) Daruma Kanarisha collector's house (1,000G) Kuma Kanarisha collector's house (2,000G) Maneki Neko Kanarisha collector's house (3,000G) Model Yacht Pasela Vendor (4,000G) Mini Burionia Pasela Vendor (10,000G) Baby Palm Tree Guy in the inn on the desert island Hata Hata straw mat Talk to the guys weaving in Hata Hata Village Flying Whale Cat in the Entrance to the dark world (500G) Mr. Cat Cat in the Entrance to the dark world (1,00G) Little Girl Cat in the Entrance to the dark world (2,00G) Mini Snow Man Talk to the kids by the snowman in the white village after defeating Yabu. 12. THE WORLD MAP: Here's a rough picture of it that can be compared with the map on page 4 of the instruction book or the one you see by pressing the start button. ---------------------------------------------------------TOP------------------------------------------------------- snow village Gami Gami Castle Gami Gami City House Fairy's Pond Popolocrois Castle Takinen Town Guilda's Treehouse Popolocrois City ??? Goldleaf Kanarisha Monkey Kingdom New Gami Gami Tower Monster Village Port City of Pasela ------------------------------------------------------BOTTOM-------------------------------------------------- ---- 13. THANKS Wow, writing a FAQ/Walkthrough is tough work and very very long and tiresome (this being my third). I did it slowly over two months so it semmes like forever. First off I'd like to thank the guys who made this game it really is a great game and I enjoyed so much I wrote this big FAQ for it. Probably they will never know the work I've done, oh well. I send many thanks to my sweet and beautiful girlfriend for the occasional quick translation and for helping with things I couldn't find in the dictionary. Also Rei and Donna for being great neighbors and all around swell people. Of course my Kanji dictionary also was a big help… Thank you my friend. Music by the following bands helped when the video game music got to be too much for me… Freebo (thanks to So-kun for all the things he's done for me), Bubble Bus, Common Bill (Thee best Japanese country band), Carmen Maki, Bubble Bus, Apples in Stereo, the Beach Boys, and Thee Michelle Gun Elephant Remember if you have any questions about either Popolocrois or Poporogue e- mail me. The reason I wrote this FAQ is because so many people wrote asking questions about the last one I did. I hope you enjoyed the game and let's hope they come out with another sequel and send it overseas this time (though there is Legend of Mana in-between!!!). If you e-mail me please be polite. I started to write a Legend of Mana FAQ and received so many snotty, whiney, and just plain rude questions that I just stopped doing that FAQ and answering all questions. Also be sure to include Poporogue or Popolocrois in your subject. Of course I also know that Popolo player are much cooler than Square-nerds. ----------------------------------cut--page----here---------------------------------------------------- 14. MENU PRINTOUT PAGE: Wow, ain't I a swell guy. I mean don't you just hate flipping back and forth between the pages of a FAQ whenever you go into a shop or switch to a status screen. The following two pages are what I hope will one day become the standard in all FAQ/Walkthroughs for Japanese games. Print out these handy sheets for quick reference and make your game that much more enjoyable! MAIN COMMAND MENU (Triangle) 1. Personal Magic 2. Items 3. Equip 4. Status 5. Formation EQUIP MENU SCREEN NAME WEAPON HP item here MP ARMOR Attack item here Defense item here Magic POTION Magic Defense item here Speed item here Movement STATUS MENU SCREEN NAME Level HP EXP MP Exp. to next level Attack Weapon equipped Defense Armor equipped Magic Armor equipped Magic Defense Potion equipped Speed Potion equipped Movement STATUS MENU SCREEN 2 (press Circle) Level EXP Exp. for next WAZA LIST SPELL LIST Waza name Spell name Level Exp. SHOP MENU 1. Buy If you choose "Buy" you'll see… 1. Weapons 2. Sell 2. Armor 3. Quit 3. Potions INN MENU 1. Stay 2. Save 3. Quit MAIN BATTLE COMMAND MENU MANUAL AUTO 1. Fight 1. Decide what's best 2. Escape 2. Attack with weapons only 3. Use magic (and waza) 4. Full strength attack! 5. Defend yourself FIGHT MENU (use D-pad to switch between one and two) MENU ONE MENU TWO 1. Attack with weapon 1. Rest (GUTS meter up) 2. Use magic 2. Use item 3. Use waza 3. Escape (single character) 4.Defend (GUTS meter up) MAGIC & WAZA COMMANDS PIETORO | NARCIA MAGIC WAZA | MAGIC WAZA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fireball Wind shot | Heal Rain Revive Cure Water Holy Lightning | Wind Sheet Magic Wind Heal Water Digging | Mist Screen Green Light Saint Arc Dragon Saber | Holy Burst Healthy Light Heat Blaze Magic Hankie | Wind Blaze Attack Wind Magic Road Dragon Fang | Speed Wind Golden Key ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WHITE KNIGHT | GAMI GAMI | KAI WAZA | WAZa | MAGIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Toughen Up | Gami Missile | Angel Taunt | Gami Cannon | Tobikera Jump Slice | Red Devil | Transform Spin Cut | Devil Slot | Blue Mist Sword Flame | Devil's Servant | Siren Revenger | Gami Gas | Phoenix