------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chilren of Mana Guide/Walkthrough by Kassidy (Kassidy (at) gmail (dot) com). This guide has been started, and I am attempting to add more and more detail as I work my way through the game. I'm currently playing through with Tumble. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -Children of Mana --[VERSION] Version control --[THANKS] Thanks --[STORY-INTRO] Storyline (Intro sequence from the game text) --[FAQ] Frequently Asked Questions --[CONTROLS] Controls and Gameplay --[CHAR-MAIN] Characters --[CHAR-2ND] Secondary characters --[STORES] Stores a the Illusia Town Centre --[ITEMS] Available Recovery Items --[WEAPONS] Your arsenal for destruction ---[SWORDS] Swords ---[FLAILS] Flails ---[BOWS] Bow and Arrow ---[HAMMERS] Hammers --[ARMOURS] Armours --[ACCESSORIES] Accessories --[MAGIC] The Eight Elementals --[WALKTHROUGH] The Walkthrough ---[FLICK] The Determination of a Young Warrior ---[TUMBLE] The Kindness of a Young Maiden ---[POP] The Curiosity of a Young Boy ---[WANDERER] The Diligence of a Wandering Niccolo ---[CHAP0] The beginning of our tale ---[CHAP1] The Mana Tower ----[BOSS1] Boss Battle : Xangar ---[CHAP2] Star Lake, Topple ----[BOSS2] Boss Battle : Galem ---[CHAP3] The Fiery Sands of Jadd ----[BOSS3] Boss Battle : Thaydol ---[CHAP4] The Ice Citadel of Lorimar ----[BOSS4] Boss Battle : Landmund ---[CHAP5] The Brightwood forest in Wendal ----[BOSS5] Boss Battle : Mana Storm ---[CHAP6] The Ruins of Illusia Isle ----[BOSS6] Boss Battle : Revenants ---[CHAP7] The Path of Life ----[BOSS7] Boss Battle : The Mana Lord ---[CHAP8] The Cosmic Rift ----[BOSS8-1] Boss Battle : Dopplegangers ----[BOSS8-2] Boss Battle : The Scion of Mana ---[END] The Beginning of a New Legens --[GEMS] Gems --[SUBQUESTS] Subquests --[BENEVODON] The Elemental Knowledge --[OST] The Soundtrack - Breath of Mana ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [VERSION] Version Control 0.82 Moved note on accessing the Haunted House from Chapter 4 to end of Chapter 2. Thanks to KillerRoy70 for confirming this. Added information to the Gems section on how to upgrade the Gem Frame (for quick reference, as it is already in the main walkthrough). Expanded FAQ section. Added Boss Battles to the main menu for easier access. 0.81 Added note on requirements to advance to Chapter 3. 0.80 Completed the walkthrough for the main storyline, as well as added the details for the ending and some other bits and bobs here and there. Upgraded to Complete Walkthrough on GameFAQs now that the main walkthrough section is complete, and all that remains is to flesh out details such as weaponry, the remaining subquest, gems and also character specific details. 0.75 Added more LevelReqs for Flick, thanks to Sheexy. 0.74 A couple of people have pointed out to me that the level requirements for weapons/armour vary from character to character, and since I have only played through so far with Tumble these are the stats I have. I've rearranged the layout to accomodate the new details as I obtain them. Any contributions welcome. :) 0.73 Corrected Flick losing his sister rather than brother. Thanks to WarWizardRichardRahl for this correction. 0.72 Completed information on Tumble's unique subquest, updated gem lists. Preparing for Chapter 8 to be completed. 0.71 Added more detail to the subquests after Chapter 7, amended information about the elemental subquests with regards to their availability at the end of each chapter, as some were available earlier than I had anticipated. 0.70 Completed the Path of Life, may need to revisit and clear up some minor details. Weapons section mostly up to date (again, minor details missing). Added three new subquests now available (need to complete details on these). Added Game-Revolution to list of permitted sites. Refined some details on gems and fusion. Added some details to Soundtrack secion. 0.61 Added FAQ section, since there are questions going around that have been repeatedly answered. Ammended availability of elemental subquests note. Added SuperCheats, GamesRadar, SuperCheats, Cheat Code Central and CheatPlanet to list of permitted sites. 0.60 Chapter 6 completed, preparing for next chapter started. Still need to complete details on the subquests newly available and the level requirements for new equipment. Also ammended some minor notes to the Soundtrack. 0.53 6 Elemental subquests complete, missing Wisp and Shade. Appears one can only do up to 6 at this point in the game. Completed missing details in weapons. 0.52 Added section [BENEVODONS] with information provided by the benevodons on their subquests. 0.51 Completed Recovery Item details (oopsy). Weapons list requires some tweaking, but is up to speed with game (missing required levels on some items). Working on Elemental Subquests next. 0.5 Completed Brightwood and brought gem lists up to speed. Preparation for next chapter pretty mcuh ready. 0.44 Orange and Green Gems list now complete. Subquests now up to date with game progress. Next step is to move on and do Brightwood. 0.43 Added details for each characters game introduction, up to meeting Tess, where all stories converge and follow the same line. 0.42 Added details of the Soundtrack, added gems and fusions to list, added detail for weapons. Need to clarify beginning of the game more. Added more subquests and their respective item rewards' details. 0.41 Chapter 4 added, still working on post mission details. Expanded blue gem list considerably, and brought weapons up to speed. Missing some level requirements, but should have that shortly. More little niggly bits here and there improved. 0.4 Improved detail on the game mechanics and controls. Clarified details in Fiery Sands and added notes on the nature of quests after obtaining the Hammer. Next update to include Chapter 3. 0.3 Chapter 3 added, expanded gem lists, weapons etc up to date, some blanks filled. Added benevodos information to first quests. 0.2 Chapter 2 added, expanded other lists. Submitted to GameFaqs 0.1 Initial layout, chapters 0 and 1, and other lists started. You may copy no part of this guide or the guide in its entirety without my express permission, and currently this information is only to be hosted at the following sites: http://www.seikens.com http://www.gamefaqs.com http://www.neoseeker.com http://www.supercheats.com http://www.gamesradar.com http://www.cheatplanet.comCheat Code Centralhttp://www.supercheats.comHomeIf you want to publish this guide, please contact me at the e-mail address above. Sometimes a take a couple of days to reply, but I do get there. ;) [THANKS] Thanks to Shadow00X for pointing out some information regarding elemental subquest availability times. Thanks to DavidV and Sheexy for providing some of Flick's levels for weapons. Thanks to VGMusicFreak for confirming that Tess' Subquest is a requirement to continue on to Chapter 3. Also, with regards to the Gem Guide, I am using the same ordering as a previous Gem Guide (by eyedunno11), but the information is taken from the game as I go through, not copied from the other guide. However, the numbering is of great help so I can keep a steady order going as I move through the game. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [STORY-INTRO] Storyline (Intro sequence from the game text) 'Tis a tale of long ago, when the Mana Tree was newly born. Illusia Isle loated in the middle of a sea in the center of the world. Above it towered the great Mana Tree. I'm sure you've heard many stories about the Mana Tree and the Sword of Mana. The story you're about to hear tells of the only time the holy sword ever dared to defy Mana. This is how it all began... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [FAQ] Frequently Asked Questions Q. What is this game like? How does it compare to other Seiken Densetsu games? A. It bears little similarity to previous games in that it is more of a dungeon crawler (think Diablo) than an Action RPG. The storyline doesn't feel quite as deep as the previous games either, but there are shimmers of the former games' style in there. Graphically it has quite the feel of Legend of Mana. The ring menus are use quite a lot, but not as much as SoM, and magic is quite similar to Sword of Mana. Q. Does this game have Wifi or multiplayer? A. This game does NOT have Wifi, but does have DS to DS multiplayer to do cooperative play. Each player has to own the game, this is not a download play option. Also multiplayer will allow you to access gems that normal play does not. Q. Is this game difficult? A. No, the game is not all that difficult. You'll find that depending on the character you'll need to adapt to a certain style of play, but overall you'll find that if you keep up to date with levels and weapons, the game is relatively easy. Q. What's the music like? Do any old Seiken Densetsu tunes return? A. The music follows the style of Legend of Mana or Sword of Mana. There is a full list of composers and tracks in the soundtrack section. It sees the return of Rising Sun, the title theme from Final Fantasy Adventure (Seiken Densetsu 1, if you wish). Q. Can I delete save-games? A. No, you can overwrite them with new game data though. Q. How do I change spirits? A. Talk either to Tess, or when she is unavailable talk to Nana in the Silver Mermaid (girl in the green dress). Q. Are there classes in this game like in Seiken Densetsu 3? A. No. Q. I can't access X mission even though I've followed what the guide says. A. If part of the guide states, for example, to talk to someone to access the next mission, and that does not trigger the event, then either e-mail me or post a message on the GameFAQs board, stating what character you are using, and that you have tried what it says in the walkthrough. Also if you find the answer is talking to someone else, say, let me know of that also so I can ammend the necessary notes on the matter. The more background information you provide, the easier it will be for us to make sense of what is happenning. Q. Is the touch-screen used? A. Only for menu navigation, not in the actual gameplay itself. The menu navigation can also be done with the pad, so it is not sctrictly necessary to use the touch screen at all, although for things like the Gem Frame you will find it easier to use the touchscreen. Q. How do I extend my Gem Frame? A. The three expansions are listed in the [GEMS] section. Q. How do I open the Haunted House? A. After Star Lake, go to Moti's house and look for the shining object near the fireplace. Pick it up and take it to Moti. Then use that object to open the door to the Haunted House. Q. Where does this game fit in with the rest of Mana games with regards to timeline? A. The events of Children of Mana occur 10 years after the events of Dawn of Mana (which is yet to be released while writing this FAQ). Q. What are the elemental sidequests for? A. Once you have finished all the sidequests and completed the game, you will be able to access a final sidequest by touching the Mana Stone in the village. The reward for this is the Mystic Blessing gem. See the [SUBQUESTS] section for more details. Q. How do I get past the bails of hay/floating blocks/box obstacle in certain areas that follow my movements? A. There are several ways of doing so. First off, you can bash the heck out of it, though this will take you ages. Secondly you can put an object such as a barrel in its path using the knock-back strike of the sword, the flail, etc. Thirdly, you can use the flail diagonally to pull yourself across just above or just below it. It takes some practice, but the block can't follow you quickly enough when you're pulled by the flail, so you can normally get past it this way. Q. How do I get past the fast-moving quick-sand in Fiery Sands? A. You can either flail yourself across by diagonally aiming and latching on to a wall, which will work pretty much everytime in the subquests but won't get you all the way in the main mission, or you can equip a Virtue of Balance gem to walk on sand and ice normally (check the [GEMS] section with regards to how to obtain said gem). Q. Do you get penalized for dying on a level? A. You are returned to the Mana Village but you do not lose (as far as I have seen) any Lucre, EXP or items. You do lose your progress in the level, of course. While this may not be a pain in the first levels, if you die on the 16th zone of a 17 zone level, you'll be kicking yourself. Q. Do all enemies give the same EXP? A. Pretty much all enemies give 2 EXP, but you will find that certain larger monsters, until you're at a high level, will give you additional EXP. Also you can increase the amount of EXP received using gems like Heart of Progress or Courage to Learn. Q. My question isn't covered here or by the walkthrough / I think there is something wrong in your walkthrough / I have a suggestion to make for your walkthrough / I have some details that are missing from your guide. A. I'm very happy to receive e-mails regarding this guide, and I will endeavour to answer all e-mails received as quickly as possible. I am very grateful for any feedback, and will take suggestions on board. If you have information that is not reflected in this guide (like a subquest I do not have listed, a weapon not listed, etc), please e-mail me as many details as you can, and I will credit you for providing this information when I update the guide. You can find my e-mail address at the top of this guide. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [CONTROLS] Controls and Gameplay The button configuration and menus are well designed when it comes to doing the levels. L - Ring Menu to select item (press Y to assign) R - Ring Menu to select weapons (press button to assign, X or A depending) A and X - Primary and secondary weapons, hold to do charged attack Y - Use Item B - Cancel menu, hold to use magic Start - Bring up option to use Magic Rope to return to the Mana Village. And in town, well, it's the basic Start for menu, use A to talk, B to cancel. As you get hit or hit others, you gain Fury meter. When the Fury meter hits it's max, you can hit SELECT to activate it. Your attack rate is faster until the meter runs down again. You will also gain the effects of any purple gems you have equiped in your gem frame. The main screen is the top one, as can be seen in many screenshots. The bottom screen will display stats while in the town and during levels, but in the levels will also show the following info: - An overhead map of the level, pinpointing the Gleamdrop and Gleampool and live enemies. - Information on where to find the gleamdrop and pool (ie, "in a vase") - Experience points til next level and current level. - Equiped elemental and the magic spells it provides. Also when in the Mana Village, your next step to advance in the game will be displayed below. The touch system is used, so far, only for the menu systems that involve equiping items and gems, dialogue options when talking to people, and if you really want, choosing weapons and items during combat, but this is pointless because you'd do it much faster with the ring system displayed in the main screen. Levels are obtained by killing, simple as. You don't have to level up swords in the way SoM did, just the level of your main character. Each enemy will award a basic 2 EXP points, though there are gems to modify this, and some enemies will give you more EXP (for example the large cockroaches in the Fiery Sands give you 14). Your centre of operations for the game will be the Mana Village on the Illusia Isle. You'll be given missions by Moti to progress along the game, and return here after the mission is complete. You can also obtain subquests to gain items and levels by visiting Dud Services, talking to villagers or talking to elementals. The Dud Services subquests are randomly generated, and the villager and elemental subquests are detailed in the [SUBQUESTS] section. When you visit a site for a mission, you'll go straight in unless you've already completed the main mission previously. If the latter is the case, you'll be given the option to carry out the subquest that you have picked up (you can only do one at a time), or to return to the site via a space-time rupture to redo the level and pick up items you missed, improve your level, beat your previous ranking, etc. Missions are divided up into Zones, and to pass to the next zone you must find the GleamDrop and take it to the GleamPool. This is explained in more detail during your first mission. Also note that your HP is mostly restored between zones, so no need to waste items recoverying at the end of a zone before you move on to the next. Each 4 zones, you will have a chance to re-arrange your equipment, save and review your Status. Another thing to note is that the number of enemies displayed on screen will be limited as it was in previous Mana games, although this time it is not fixed at three enemies. It will start out as such, but as you advance in the game and improve your level things will start getting tougher. This can be used to your advantage in some levels, as you can leave a harmless number of monsters alive while you scout the rest of the level killing off the monsters one at a time, then go back for the remaining swarm. A cowardly tactic, but when you're in a pickle the rules of chivalry not only get thrown out of the window, but are tied to a cannon and propelled out faster than the Black Hole ride at Alton Towers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [CHAR-MAIN] Characters -Flick (J) Ferrik (U) A fifteen-year-old boy who lost his parents and sister in the great disaster. Was saved by a knight and has since been training in the arts of sword fighting. Hes a good all-round character, being quite strong in all areas. "Versatile in offense, defense, and magic. Effective at any distance." Hair colours: Orange, green, blue and silver. -Tumble (J) Tamber (U) A sixteen-year-old girl who lost her parents and little brother Toby in the great disaster. She is mature and seeks truth and justice. Her attack is weak, but she's fast, and is skilled in the use of magic. "A dancer with magical talents. Though not powerful, her attacks are swift." Dress colours: Red, white, pink and blue. -Pop (J) Poppen (U) A fearless nine-year-old boy who lost his mother at birth and was left an orphan during the great disaster after the death of his father. Not a great fighter and weak when it comes to defence, he specializes in offensive magic. "A mage specializing in attack spells. Low defense. Unskilled in close combat." Style colours: Yellow, white, blue, red. -Wanderer (J & U) A traveling merchant and member of the Nikita tribe. A strong fighter, especially at close range, but weak when it comes to magic. "Strong attack and defense. Specializes in close combat. Unskilled in magic." Hat colours: Green, blue, emerald and brown. Note: Whatever colour you choose, the avatar of your character when you are talking to people and in the Status screen will show the default colours always. This only changes the colour of the attribute on the sprite itself. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [CHAR-2ND] Secondary characters. -Granny Hannah. She took care of the main character after their parents died. She was attacked by a beast during the cataclysm ten years ago, and the wounds sometimes still hurt. She will hang around next to Dud Services in the Silver Mermaid. -Tess. A member of the village who conducts research using plants. She offers prayers to the Tree of Mana, giving thanks to the Mana Goddess for all she has done. She can be found sitting in front of the Mana Stone, or in the Haunted House after you have unlocked it. -Grampa Tony. An old man who you can find standing at the entrance of the village. -Moti Moti is the mayor of the town. He lead an expedition to the island, and when the research was over the members of the expedition made the island their home. They asked him to become their mayor. You'll find him in his house at the top right hand corner of the village. -Seamoon Recepcionist for the Silver Mermaid, the town's mall. She can fill you in on anything you need to know about the game. -Millionaire Runs the Golden Goods Store on the island. He lost everything during the catastrophe ten years ago. He'll buy and sell weapons, items and accessories. -Watts Known as the king of the mines. -Bomb Brothers Balbo, Belbo, Bulbo. They've come from Ishe to do research on gems on the Island of Illusia. They run the Bomb Bros. R&D store at the town that sells gems and will perform gem Fusion for you. -Pete and Nana Two villagers who walk around inside the Silver Mermaid. Later in the game Nana will also have the function of changing your accompanying spirit. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [STORES] Stores at the Illusia Town Centre -Golden Goods Run by Millionaire, you can buy and sell weapons, accessories and items. Also he will give you the option to buy a bigger knapsack, which will allow you to hold more of each item. They come at a price though. Basic Knapsack - Holds 12 of each item - 2500L Large Knapsack - Holds 18 of each item - 10000L Jumbo Knapsack - Holds 24 of each item - 30000L Note also, items sell back for a tenth of their price, so don't expect to make a huge amount from items found on your quests. -Bomb Bros R&D Run by the Bomb Brothers, you can buy and sell gems here, and fuse them. For more details on the properties of gems, their types and gem fusion, see the [GEMS] section. Note that gems you sell will obtain a 5th of the price you'd pay to buy them, which is slightly farer than Millionaire's deal (which is why he's a millionaire, I guess). -Dud Services Run by the Dudbears, they collect job requests from all over the world and post them here to find help. You can only take one quest at a time, and have to pay a service fee when you take it. When the request is completed, come back to the store to receive the reward. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ITEMS] Available Recovery Items -Gumdrop - 100L - Recover 30HP -Chocochomp - 200L - Recover 100HP -Magic Walnut - 150L - Recover 80MP -Pep Root - 80L - Cures all ailments but poison and ghost -Stardust Herb - 40L - Cures poison -Angel's Grail - 1000L - Recover all statuses, revive secondary party member in multiplayer games. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [WEAPONS] Your arsenal for destruction You have 4 weapons to choose from, which you gain over the first 4 missions. Sword (charge makes you block 5 attacks), Flail (does a round attack, charge will cast forward to retrieve objects, pull enemies, find hidden objects, or pull towards stuff, like in Zelda), BowArrow (has enemy lock facility at medium distance, charged sends a musical note out to lull enemies into stupour) and Hammer (can break larger obstacles than the sword, launches enemies, charged does a downward motion to hammer in pegs and knock enemies off their feet). Charging only takes a second. Also, charged attacks change when using Fury. So Sword will do a charging attack, chain will do a circular long range attack, arrow will fire three powerful shots at the same time, and hammer will... Hammertime! Spin round several times with the hammer glowing to inflct serious damage, with option to move like a tornado doing so. With the Sword you can do a three hit attack, the third one will knock your enemy back. If it hits another enemy, they take damage too. If they bounce back against you ('cause you can create really bizarre chains of hits), you'll only get knocked disabled for a second. Weapons are aquired randomly from enemies as you go along, and you upgrade your weapon level only in towns, or after every 4 mini-levels within a mission. You need a certain level for a certain sword (so if it's a Lvl22 Sword, and you have Lvl18, yer shagged). Same for armour (only body armour) and accessories (increase magic stats from what I can see). Note that there are also Gems that will modify the attributes of certain weapons, like allow you to do three consecutive spins with the Flail. These are detailed in the Gems section. So when fully equiped, you'll have: 1 Sword 1 Flail 1 Bow and Arrow 1 Hammer 1 Body Armour 1 Accessory Note, the appearance of the character's sprite does not change when equiped with different armour or weapons, aside from the fact that the weapon it is wielding will change depending on what weapon you have selected (Sword, Flail, Bow or Hammer). So any sword you equip, the spite of the sword itself will still be the same. Another difference between this and Secret of Mana. [SWORDS] Swords 1. Short Sword - ATK 32 - Free - A small sword used for practice LevelReq - Flick:1 Tumble:1 Pop:1 Wanderer:1 2. Bronze Sword - ATK 38 - 150L - A common sword wrought of bronze LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:5 Pop: Wanderer: 3. Iron Sword - ATK 47 - 500L - A thin, versatile sword made of iron LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:8 Pop: Wanderer: 4. Broadsword - ATK 53 - 1000L - A sword with an unusually wide blade. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:11 Pop: Wanderer: 5. Long Sword - ATK 59 - 1400L - A sword with an extremely long blade. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:14 Pop: Wanderer: 6. Saber - ATK 66 - - A curved sword wielded in one hand. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:18 Pop: Wanderer: 7. Steel Sword - ATK 72 - 2000L - A simple yet sturdy sword of steel LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:21 Pop: Wanderer: 8. Falchion - ATK 78 - 2300L - A sword able to split a foe in two LevelReq - Flick:23 Tumble:24 Pop: Wanderer: 9. Bastard Sword - ATK 83 - 2500L - A balanced blade with a long handle LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:26 Pop: Wanderer: 10. Estoc - ATK 89 - 3200L - A pointed blade chiefly for thrusting. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:29 Pop: Wanderer: 11. Flamberge - ATK 95 - 4000L - A large sword with a curved blade. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:32 Pop: Wanderer: 12. Muramasa Blade - ATK 100 - GoldRank at Brightwood - A steel sword forged by a master. Only Flick can equip. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:N/A Pop:N/A Wanderer:N/A 13. Winged Sword - ATK 106 - 5000L - A light sword decorated with wings. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:38 Pop: Wanderer: 14. Silver Blade - ATK 114 - 6000L - A sharp sword wrought of fine silver. LevelReq - Flick:40 Tumble:42 Pop: Wanderer: 15. Shamshir - ATK 125 - 7500L - A beautiful sword with a curved blade. LevelReq - Flick:45 Tumble:47 Pop: Wanderer: 16. Balmung - ATK 130 - GoldRank ?? - The favorite sword of a fallen hero. LevelReq - Flick:40 Tumble: Pop: Wanderer: 17. Mythril Sword - ATK 133 - 8500L - A sword wrought of magical mythril. LevelReq - Flick:49 Tumble:51 Pop: Wanderer: 18. Diamond Sword - ATK 144 - 12500L - A sword made with a blade of diamond. LevelReq - Flick:54 Tumble:56 Pop: Wanderer: 19. Dragon Sword - ATK 153 - 25000L - A sword crafter from a dragon's scale. LevelReq - Flick:58 Tumble:60 Pop: Wanderer: 20. Excalibur - ATK 170 - Chest? - A fabled blade only the brave may bear. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:64 Pop: Wanderer: [FLAILS] Flails 1. Light Flail - ATK 49 - Free - A lightweight flail with a small head LevelReq - Flick:1 Tumble:1 Pop:1 Wanderer:1 2. Wood Flail - ATK 60 - 1000L - A flail with a wooden head at the end. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:10 Pop: Wanderer: 3. Spiked Flail - ATK 68 - 1400L - A flail dotted with many sharp thorns. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:15 Pop: Wanderer: 4. Chain Flail - ATK 75 - 1800L - A flail of solid interlocking rings. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:19 Pop: Wanderer: 5. Steel Flail - ATK 82 - 2000L - A flail with a steel head at the end. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:22 Pop: Wanderer: 6. Ball and Chain - ATK 89 - 2300L - A flail with a metal ball at the end. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:25 Pop: Wanderer: 7. Heavy Flail - ATK 94 - 2500L - A flail sporting a heavy metal head. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:27 Pop: Wanderer: 8. Morning Star - ATK 101 - 3200L - A unique flail with a star-shaped head. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble: Pop: Wanderer: 9. Bonecrusher - ATK 110 - 4000L - Amighty flail able to penetrate armor. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:33 Pop: Wanderer: 10. Scorpion - ATK 114 - GoldRank at Brightwood - A flail with a sharp wedged head. - Only Pop can equip LevelReq - Flick:N/A Tumble:N/A Pop: Wanderer:N/A 11. Runic Flail - ATK 120 - 5000L - A flail engraved with strange glyphs. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:39 Pop: Wanderer: 12. Silver Flail - ATK 130 - 6000L - A reliable flail made of finest silver. LevelReq - Flick:41 Tumble:43 Pop: Wanderer: 13. Holy Flail - ATK 142 - 7500L - A flail tempered in holy water. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:48 Pop: Wanderer: 14. Mythril Flail - ATK 151 - 8500L - A flail made of magical mythril silver. LevelReq - Flick:50 Tumble:52 Pop: Wanderer: 15. Diamond Flail - ATK 163 - 12500 - A flail made of mardest diamonds. LevelReq - Flick:55 Tumble:57 Pop: Wanderer: 16. Dragon Flail - ATK 172 - 25000L - A flail formed from a dragon's scale. LevelReq - Flick:59 Tumble:61 Pop: Wanderer: [BOWS] Bow and Arrow 1. Short Bow - ATK 52 - Free - A small bow, light and easy to use. LevelReq - Flick:1 Tumble:1 Pop:1 Wanderer:1 2. Iron Bow - ATK 58 - 1800L - A thin, versatile bow made of iron. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:17 Pop: Wanderer: 3. Steel Bow - ATK 63 - 2000L - A simple yet sturdy bow of steel. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:23 Pop: Wanderer: 4. Ankh Bow - ATK 69 - 2300L - A bow shaped like a hieroglyph. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:26 Pop: Wanderer: 5. Longbow - ATK 72 - 2500L - A tall bow made for powerful arrows. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:28 Pop: Wanderer: 6. Marble Bow - ATK 78 - 3200L - A bow delicately chiseled from marble. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:31 Pop: Wanderer: 7. Great Bow - ATK 83 - 4000L - A master crafted this bow for accuracy. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:34 Pop: Wanderer: 8. Artemis' Bow - ATK 88 - GoldRank at Brightwood - A bow only skilled hunters can use. - Only Tumble (Lv29) can equip. LevelReq - Flick:N/A Tumble:29 Pop:N/A Wanderer:N/A 9. Winged Bow - ATK 92 - 5000L - A bow hailed as a masterpiece. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:40 Pop: Wanderer: 10. Silver Bow - ATK 100 - 6000L - A reliable bow made of finest silver. LevelReq - Flick:42 Tumble:44 Pop: Wanderer: 11. Ivory Bow - ATK 109 - 7500L - A beautiful bow carved from ivory. LevelReq - Flick:48 Tumble:49 Pop: Wanderer: 12. Elven Bow - ATK 112 - Tess Subquest - A bow once owned by an elven knight. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:44 Pop: Wanderer: 13. Mythril Bow - ATK 116 - 8500L - A bow made of magical mythril silver. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:53 Pop: Wanderer: 14. Diamond Bow - ATK 126 - 12500L - A bow made of hardest diamonds. LevelReq - Flick:56 Tumble:58 Pop: Wanderer: 15. Dragon Bow - ATK 133 - 25000L - A bow formed from a dragon's scale. LevelReq - Flick:60 Tumble:62 Pop: Wanderer: [HAMMERS] Hammers 1. Mallet - ATK 82 - Free - A small and versatile hammer. LevelReq - Flick:1 Tumble:1 Pop:1 Wanderer:1 2. Steel Hammer - ATK89 - 2300L - A strong hammer made of steel. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:23 Pop: Wanderer: 3. Smith's Hammer - ATK 94 - 2500L - A large hammer used by blacksmiths. LevelReq - Flick:43 Tumble:29 Pop: Wanderer: 4. Magical Hammer - ATK 101 - 3200L - A mysterious hammer made by a mage. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:32 Pop: Wanderer: 5. War Hammer - ATK 108 - 4000L - This hammer looks ready for battle. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:35 Pop: Wanderer: 6. Viper Hammer - ATK 111 - GoldRank at Brightwood - A hammer adorned with sharp spikes - Only Wanderer can equip LevelReq - Flick:N/A Tumble:N/A Pop:N/A Wanderer: 7. Great Hammer - ATK 115 - 5000L - A huge hammer, powerful and heavy. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:41 Pop: Wanderer: 8. Silver Hammer - ATK 130 - 6000L - A solid hammer made of finest silver. LevelReq - Flick:43 Tumble:45 Pop: Wanderer: 9. Ivory Hammer - ATK 142 - 7500L - A beautiful hammer carved from ivory. LevelReq - Flick:48 Tumble:50 Pop: Wanderer: 10. Mythril Hammer - ATK 151 - 8500L - A hammer of magical mythril silver. LevelReq - Flick:52 Tumble:54 Pop: Wanderer: 11. Diamond Hammer - ATK 163 - 12500L - A hammer made of hardest diamonds. LevelReq - Flick:57 Tumble:59 Pop: Wanderer: 12. Dragon Hammer - ATK 172 - A hammer made from a dragon's scale. LevelReq - Flick:61 Tumble:63 Pop: Wanderer: 13. Altena Hammer - ATK 195 - ?????L - ?Description? LevelReq - Flick:65 Tumble: Pop: Wanderer: [ARMOURS] Armours and Robes Some armours require a certain character to equip them. Flick and Wanderer equip thea heavier armors while Tumble and Pop use the lighter robes. 1. Cotton Kilt - DEF 29 - Free - LevelReq - Tumble:1 Pop:1 2. Felt Robe - DEF 33 - 150L - A robe made of thickly layered felt. LevelReq - Tumble:3 Pop: 3. Leather Armor - DEF 34 - 150L - Armor made of multilayered leather. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 4. Hemp Robe - DEF 39 - 500L - A robe constructed of flax fibers. LevelReq - Tumble:7 Pop: 5. Lamellar Armor - DEF 41 - 500L - Metal armor bound by leather laces. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 6. Silk Robe - DEF 46 - 1000L - A robe sewn with magical silk thread. LevelReq - Tumble:10 Pop: 7. Banded Armor - DEF 49 - 1000L - Armor reinforced by metal strips. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 8. Spark Robe - DEF 53 - 1400L - A robe made of cloth as light as wind. LevelReq - Tumble:13 Pop: 9. Chain Mail - DEF 56 - 1400L - Armor of interlocking metal hoops LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 10. Leather Robe - DEF 60 - 1800L - A robe made of many leather strips. LevelReq - Tumble:16 Pop: 11. Scale Mail - DEF 63 - 1800L - Armor of small layered metal plates. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 12. Shell Robe - DEF 66 - 2000L - A sturdy robe woven with shells. LevelReq - Tumble:19 Pop: 13. Steel Armor - DEF 70 - 2000L - A simple yet sturdy suit of steel. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 14. Scale Robe - DEF 73 - 2300L - A sturdy robe woven with scales. LevelReq - Tumble:22 Pop: 15. Swordman's Vest - DEF 77 - 2300L - Body armor refined by an alchemist. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 16. Ebony Robe - DEF 80 - 2500L - A robe made with ebony tree thread. LevelReq - Tumble:25 Pop: 17. Magic Plate - DEF 84 - 2500L - Plated armour strengthened by magic. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 18. Ash Robe - DEF 86 - 3200L - A robe made with ash tree thread. LevelReq - Tumble:28 Pop: 19. Knight's Armor - DEF 91 - 3200L - Armor worn only by brave knights. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 20. Dion Robe - DEF 93 - 4000L - A robe made with dios tree thread. LevelReq - Tumble:31 Pop: 21. Dark Armor - DEF 98 - 4000L - Magic armor that emits a black aura. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 22. Magical Robe - DEF 104 - 5000L - A robe enhanced by a protective spell. LevelReq - Tumble: Pop: 23. Winged Armor - DEF 110 - 5000L - Armor adorned with winged shoulders. LevelReq - Flick: Wanderer: 24. Silver Robe - DEF 113 - 6000L - A robe sewn with pure silver thread. LevelReq - Tumble:40 Pop: 25. Silver Armor - DEF 119 - 6000L - Effective armor made of finest silver. LevelReq - Flick:40 Wanderer: 26. Bunny Dress - DEF 120 - Subquest - A charming dress with a rabbit's tail. LevelReq - Tumble:44 Pop: 26. Jet Black Robe - DEF 124 - 7500L - An evil robe made of black silk. LevelReq - Tumble:45 Pop: 27. Gold Armor - DEF 131 - 7500L - Armor that gleams with a holy light. LevelReq - Flick:45 Wanderer: 28. Pure White Robe - DEF 133 - 8500L - A robe of white silk and mythril cloth. LevelReq - Tumble:49 Pop: 29. Mani's Plate - DEF 135 - Subquest - Plated mail strengthened by moonlight. LevelReq - Flick:44 Wanderer: 30. Mythril Armor - DEF 140 - 8500L - Armor wrought of magical mythril. LevelReq - Flick:49 Wanderer: 31. Holly Robe - DEF 144 - 12500L - A robe of unsurpassed quality. LevelReq - Tumble: Pop: 32. Diamond Armor - DEF 152 - 12500L - Armor crafted from diamonds. LevelReq - Flick:54 Wanderer: 33. Dragon Robe - DEF 153 - 25000L - A robe sewn from a dragon's hide. LevelReq - Tumble:60 Pop: 34. Dragon Armor - DEF 161 - 25000L - Armor wrought of dragon scales. LevelReq - Flick:60 Wanderer: 35. Crystal Robe - DEF 164 - ?????L - ?Description? LevelReq - Tumble: Pop: 36. Crystal Armor - DEF ??? - ?????L - Armor imbued with mystic power. LevelReq - Flick:66 Wanderer: [ACCESSORIES] Accessories 1. Bead Ring - INT 32 - Free - A child's ring set with a glass bead LevelReq - Flick:1 Tumble:1 Pop:1 Wanderer:1 2. Jeweled Ring - INT 39 - 150L - A ring with a jewel of limited power. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:4 Pop: Wanderer: 3. Sensory Ring - INT 46 - 500L - A ring able to enhance the 5 senses. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:8 Pop: Wanderer: 4. Moonstone Tiara - INT 50 - Subquest - A tiara colored by rays of moonlight. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:4 Pop: Wanderer: 5. Ring of Memory - INT 54 - 1000L - A ring containing a mage's memories. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:11 Pop: Wanderer: 6. Beholder Ring - INT 61 - 1400L - A ring set with a stone like an eye. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:14 Pop: Wanderer: 7. Ring of Radiance - INT 68 - 1800L - A pearl ring that reflects pure light. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:17 Pop: Wanderer: 8. Ring of Gloom - INT 75 - 2000L - A black pearl ring with shady patches. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:20 Pop: Wanderer: 9. Giant's Ring - INT 82 - 2300L - A ring thought to hold a giant's power. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:23 Pop: Wanderer: 10. Demon Ring - INT 89 - 2500L - A creepy ring with monster carvings. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:25 Pop: Wanderer: 11. Ring of the Tree - INT 96 - 3200L - A ring woven from ancient tree vines. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:28 Pop: Wanderer: 12. Dryad's Ring - INT 103 - 4000L - A ring set with a seed from an old tree. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:31 Pop: Wanderer: 13. Ancient Ring - INT 112 - 5000L - A ring engraved with forgotten spells. LevelReq - Flick: Tumble:36 Pop: Wanderer: 14. Shimmering Ring - INT 124 - 6000L - A gold ring that shines brilliantly. LevelReq - Flick:42 Tumble:40 Pop: Wanderer: 15. Soul Ring - INT 134 - 7500L - A ring that reveals its owner's soul. LevelReq - Flick:47 Tumble:45 Pop: Wanderer: 16. Mythril Ring - INT 145 - 8500L - A ring made of magical mythril silver. LevelReq - Flick:51 Tumble:49 Pop: Wanderer: 17. Elemental Ring - INT 159 - 12500L - A rind empowered by spirits' magic. LevelReq - Flick:56 Tumble: Pop: Wanderer: 18. Dragonfang Ring - INT 168 - 25000L - A ring honed from a dragon's tooth. LevelReq - Flick:60 Tumble:58 Pop: Wanderer: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [MAGIC] The Eight Elementals The system for casting is similar to Sword of Mana. Hold down the B button. The elemental will appear. If you walk into it, it grants either the status ailment of X Sword (ie flame, ice, etc) or other status enhancements, or if you let it be, it will blink and then cast it's magic in the nearby space (create a small tornado, fire flames, that sort of thing). You can press B again you'll send the elemental in the direction you're facing until it hits something to cast it's magic there. An Elemental's level can be raised to 2 or 3 by equipping Gems. This will cause status aids to last longer or cure more, and attack magic to have a greater reach. -Salamander - Fire Attack - Explode: A fiery explosion blazes outward from the spirit. Support - Flamestrike: Ibues weapons with the power to set foes ablaze. -Undine - Water Attack - Ice Crush: Ice blasts outward from the spirit on four sides. Support - Froststrike: Imbues weapons with the power to freeze foes in their tracks. -Gnome - Earth Attack - Earth Spikes: Sharp rocks errupt from the earth beneath the spirit. Support - Stonestrike: Imbues weapons with the power to prevent foes from attacking. -Jinn - Air Attack - Cyclone: The spirit summons a tornado that spiral outward counterclockwise. Support - Lighteningstrike: Imbues weapons with the power to paralyze foes. -Dryad - Trees Attack - Thorny Tendrils: Thorny vines lash out from the spirit on four sides. Support - Nature's Aura: Cures an ally's status ailments and gives temporary immunity. -Luna - Moon Attack - Moonbeams: Rays of light emanate diagonally from the spirit Support - Lunar Radiance: Gradually restores an ally's HP. -Wisp - Light Attack - Holy Orb: The spirit summons an orb of light that whirls out clockwise. Support - Healing Light: Restores an ally's HP. -Shade - Dark Attack - Dark Vortex: A vortex of darkness spirals outward from the spirit. Support - Invisibility: Makes an ally invisible to enemies. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [WALKTHROUGH] Now you know all there is to know about how the game work, it's probably time you started. Go to the character section for the character you have chosen to start. [FLICK] [TUMBLE] [POP] [WANDERER] [FLICK] The Determination of a Young Warrior Flick stands before Moti, the leader of the Mana Village, in his home. They have just finished training for the day, but Flick is eager to learn more soon. The fire in his eyes and determination remind Moti of Flick's father, who was a captain in the Holy Infantry of Wendel, and a fearless swordsman. Flik wants to become just like him as soon as possible. Moti goes on to explain that monsters swarmed the land ten years ago during the cataclysm, but times have changed now, there's no rush to get stronger. Flick gives up, and says he'll go visit Tess. Moti comments that she's about to offer prayers, son he mustn't detain her or make her late. Flick doesn't appear to understand just how important the ritual is. Flick agrees to not bother her, but drops by to see her anyway quickly. Goto [CHAP0]. [TUMBLE] The Kindness of a Young Maiden Tumble returns to the town and is greeted by Granny Hannah, who asked her to go into the woods for her to collect some herbs to soothe her old wounds. Tumble explains it is the least she can do for her, after the good care she always receives from Granny. Granny was attacked ten years ago by a beast during the great cataclysm, and the pain still returns at times. Tumble asks Granny to let her know if the pain comes back, as she wants her to live the long life her parents couldn't. Granny offers Tumble to come to her place for tea, but she has to go see Tess. Tess had asked you to collect some plants for her research. You take these to her, sitting in front of the Mana Stone at the top of the village, who feels bad for having you go out to get them. It is also nearly time for her to offer her prayers to the Mana Goddess. Goto [CHAP0]. [POP] The Curiosity of a Young Boy Pop stands before the famous haunted house of the Mana Village. No one is ever seen going in or out of the house, and it is permanently locked. He wonders if the tales really are true. As he approaches, Grampa Tony calls to him from behind and asks him what he's doing. Doesn't he know that the place is haunted? Pop reasons that if the ghosts are people who died in the cataclysm ten years ago, he might be able to talk to his mother, who died in the war. It was so long ago that Pop doesn't remember what she looks like. But Grampa Tony reasures him that only bad ghosts live in the house, and gives him some candy before telling him to run along and forget about the house. Pop decides to go share his candy with Tess, but Grampa Tony warns him not to keep her from her duties of offering up prayers to the Mana Goddess, as it is thanks to maidens like her that we can all live in peace. He goes running up to Tess, who is sitting in front of the Mana Stone at the top of the town, and tells her how Grampa Tony gave him candy and wants her to have some, and also asks what she is researching in front of the Mana Stone. Goto [CHAP0]. [WANDERER] The Diligence of a Wandering Niccolo Wanderer reports back to the Golden Goods store that everything has been taken to the port storage. Millionaire commends him for his hard work, but tells him not to take it lightly: no hard work, no eating. But Wanderer knows well that he has to work, and he is grateful to Millionaire for taking care of him after they both lost everything in the cataclysm ten years ago. Millionaire wonders if maybe it's time for Wanderer to settle down on the island. He likes it here, it makes sense, so he'll give it some thought. Millionaire invites him round for dinner that night, but Wanderer declines, as he has to go see Tess and give her a pretty seashell he found at the port. Millionaire reminds him that Tess will be heading out for her prayers about now, so best not to bother her more than giving her the shell. And don't be late for work tomorrow! Wanderer heads to the Mana Stone at the top of the town, where Tess is sitting doing her research. He gives her the seashell, which she comments on being a lovely gift. Wanderer then asks her about her research. Goto [CHAP0] [CHAP0] The beginning of our tale Lately Tess has noticed something strange happenning with the flora and fauna of the area, as if they're afraid. After explaining this, she gives some Notes to you to take to Moti which she can't take herself lest she be late for prayers at the Mana Tower. Tumble then goes to Moti in the town hall (top right house) and gives him the notes, which relate to some abnormal growth in plants. As you are about to leave, Watts enters the house (who incidently talks like a scot). After some friendly chatter, Watts hands over a geode he's worried about, and is trying to find answers about here in Illucia, where he thinks something strange may be happenning. One of his lads found it. He explains they can alter the essence of any living thing, according to Professor Bomb. This worries Moti, who suspects that the evil spirits, the power of Mavolia, have returned. Ten years ago they were contained when the Mana Goddess herself sealed the gates to Mavolia. An earthquake then strikes and Pete, a villager, runs in exclaiming something has happenned to The Stone. The three rush out to the Mana Stone, a great lapid at the back of the town with an engraving of the Mana Tree and the eight elementals, which is currently glowing, and then cracks, leaving everyone bafflingly philosophical. A girl, Nana, then rushes in crying for help. The Mana Tower has been swallowed by a white light! Nana escaped, but Tess is still inside. You offer to go and rescue her, at which point Watts tell her to take Professor Bomb's latest invention with her: the Gem Frame (see [GEMS] for details). Moti also provides you with the Magic Rope, that will return you to the village should you see yourself in trouble. As you head out of the village, onward toward your first quest, a voice calls to you urging you to stop. The eight elementals appear and offer their services. You can only choose one to take with you, and since you're going to be up against fire, either take Undine or Shade. And now, young traveller, it is time to face the music and dance. Onward to... [CHAP1] The Mana Tower -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a pot Gleamwell: -------- As you approach the Mana Tower you see that it has changed completely. As you enter, the elemental will explain to you that the force engulfing the tower is ripping it's fabric apart, and is bringing monster into the world. You'll then receive an explination from your character that you use A to attack and can perform up to a 3 hit combo. Take out the nearby Rabites and open the chest in this first room to receive a Gumdrop. Break the small jars in the room in case any have any items, and then move on to the next room. Here you'll be confronted by some Chobin Hoods. Pause for another explanation. This time you're reminded that Moti taught you to deflect arrows with your sword by holding down the A button. Give the skill a try, and combine it with your previous knowledge to take out the archers. The next room will prompt another tutorial, this time about the Fury bar. Wen you strike an enemy or are hit, the bar will fill up. When full, use SELECT to release the power. This will make your attacks faster, and holding A will unleash powerful attacks. But that's not all. Now some Slimes will appear, and your elemental will step up to the challenge. They'll explain that to summon them, you must hold and release the B button, and they will blast everyone with magic that's nearby. Alternatively you can touch them and receive their support power (see notes on [MAGIC] for more details on these powers). Personally, I don't use magic much, but I suggest practicing the skill so you have all your options open to you and are well versed in them, so press down B until you hear the sound effect for summon complete, run up to the slimes, and release next to them, then leg it while they do the dirty work for you. Moving on to the fourth room here sees our character startled at the lack of stairs. Cue another tutorial. YOur elemental will explain that due to changes in the fabric of space, stairs are no longer here (trekkies rejoice!). The spirit will feel the Mana Goddess' power coming from nearby, where you will see a glowing spot on the floor. This is the Gleampool, and you'll need to find the Gleamdrop to amplify its power and transport you to the next level. Fight off slimes and break pots until you find, in one pot just below the Gleamwell, the Gleamdrop. Your elemental will explain this is a crystalized form of the Mana Tree's power, and will amplify the light of the Gleamwell enough to let us proceed. Use th A button to pick it up and carry it to the Gleamwell. Press A once you hear asparkly sound effect to move on to the next floor. But remember, while carrying the Gleamdrop you CANNOT attack and are rather susceptible to getting slaughtered, so get all your bottom prodding out of the way first. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a pot Gleamwell: -------- Your instruction isn't over yet. Now you learn about using your items by pressing the Y button. Since you have some Gumdrops, this will be the item in question, which restores 30HP if you have received any damage. Once you have more, you can switch between them using the L button. You can see which is equiped in the top left hand corner of your screen. You'll also learn about selecting Multiplayer from the menu screen when you're in the town if you want to invite a friend to play. That done with, let's get back to business. You're now going to receive a rather swift lesson in recoil. There are barrels lying about the place just before you enter each room and your enemies appear (which now include some nice zombies, by the by). If you hit these with your third combo hit, they'll jump up in the air same way enemies do, and when they land on an enemy will do some considerable damage. Of course, enemies have this property too, so if you're in a narrow passage with lots of enemies, launching the first back toward the others will weaken them for the kill afterwards. But beware, recoil can affect you too, so watch out for falling enemies coming toward you. Work your way through the stage until you reach the end, where are rather nasty floating sword will greet you. He can pack a nasty jab, so don't take him lightly. This is where the barrels will come in handy, as he can't attack through them, so stand behind one and lob it at him a couple of times before working your way round and finishing him off. Now do some bull in a china shop work on those pots to find the Gleamdrop. Don't pick it up yet though, there's a surprise waiting for you next to the Gleampool, and that's 3 more swords a- slashing. You may want to consider using some magic on them if you have any MP left. The reward lies behind them in the form of a Golden Cest, containing a Crystal of Thought. Now head back, and use that Gleamdrop to get to the next zone. -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a pot Gleamwell: -------- First thing you'll see is some treasure chests guarded by an almost indestructable floating block. You can get past it by beating it senseless, but don't bother trying, and least of all attack the barrel. You'll knock it back in to the chests, they'll open, and their contents will disappear before you can say "tie me kangaroo down, skip". So ignore them for now, and deal with the enemies to the left of this room. You should be at level 3 by now, so they shouldn't pose much of a threat. Work your way round the back, dealing with more enemies on the way, and you'll find another barrel, some pots, and the same chests from before. Watch out for the blue ones, they have spiked underneath that will inflict damage on you if you walk over them. Your reward should be two Crystals of Lore. Work your way round to the bottom of the screen where the Gleampool is and prepare for an ambush to the left, comprised of some swords and Chobins. This means close and distance attacks, so you may want to lead the swords out of the archers' reach. You'll be rewarded with both the Gleamdrop under one of the nearby pots, and if you follow round to the left you'll see another chest you couldn't reach before, containing a Bronze Sword. You should get to Level 4 defeating these enemies too, meaning that you'll actually be able to use that sword when you gain your next level. Take the Drop to the Pool and advance to the next zone. -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- The enemies in the centre of this level, four flying swords, have the Drop hidden upon their person, so head on in there and beat the snot out of them. Be aware that on the rebound they tend to hit jars around them, so careful with losing items here. The chest contains anoter Bronze Sword. Once you have the drop, take it round to the Pool and drop it nearby, there is more work to be done. The moving objects that block your path from reaching the bottom of the level can be defeated, but they have 90 hit points, so prepare for some button bashing. Alternatively you can sometimes block them with barrels, but that'll take some practice. Now you have added a Crystal of Strength and 100L to your loot, head back the pool and use the drop on it. -Save point You'll now have the option to save you progress and do some equiping, 'cause it's not over yet (in spite of the really happy music). So Open the Main Menu and get yourself ready, by putting some Crystals in your frame and equiping any armour enemies may have dropped. After this, continue on. - [BOSS1] Boss Battle : Xangar - You find Tess in a clearing, who explains she was praying when suddenly everything lit up and she was transported here, away from the Tower. But really, it IS the tower, but space has been changed. At this point our fiery friend appears and Tess is told to run for cover, leaving us to deal with the nasty little beastie. Don't touh him, he can set you alight! The beast will fly at your horizontally, or attack from the top of the screen, launching small heat seeking flames that dissipate after a while, or if he forms a tornado around him he'll launch a towering flame that circles the centre of the screen a few times, before he then flies downward off the screen. Watch out for these flames, as they set you on fire, and render you rather useless, running around like a lost chicken. If you're feeling confident, use a Parry on these, but remember, you can only deflect 5 times at the moment. Any attacks at this point are utterly and absolutly useless. He has a shield protecting him from harm. You may want to take the opportunity to break jars if you have space for some Gumdrops. You do have to land some blows to him though to continue, so once you've got an idea of how he moves, land a few hits. After a while, your character will realize the futility of this situation. Then suddenly, a sword falls from the sky and sticks itself in the ground near the beast. A light emanates from it and suddenly the protection the beast had is gone. Now the battle will start again, but the odds are looking a bit more promising. He now has some more attacks though, so you're back to square one. He can stay at the top of the screen and launch two shurikens at you (these inflict confusion as well as the damage), or just fly downward in the same way he did horizontally before (which is anounced by a distant squawk). The only way you'll avoid the shurikens is to go right to the bottom of the screen or to deflect them back by parrying with your sword. They move faster than you can, so you can't out-run them once they're launched. Your best bet is going to be waiting 'til he flies by and trying to land a blow then. Once you've weakened him a bit he'll start to fly much faster though, so watch out. Else wait for his tornado attack and get behind him, that'll give you a good chance at hitting him 6 or 9 times. Once you've defeated him you'll receive your mission tally, and receive a reward depending on your ranking. This can be in the form of items, armor, accessories, etc. Once you've chosen your reward, you'll see the beast split in to two essences (Fire and Wind) known as benevodons and vanish. Tess and your character will now head over to the sword and be blinded by a new light from the sword. Tess seems troubled, but says she's alright. But we're not the only ones on the scene. A Man's Voice comes from a distance, intrigued at a human defeating a malevodon. A dark clad man walks on, asking if this sword is the Goddess' solution, and tells them they have no business with it. But the sword will not let him take it. "So, mother goddess, you have some power here. Still, it is of no consequence. The Mana Tree is dormant and powerless to interfere. Now, no one can stand in my way!" He claims a new force is rising, that the lost shall return as the world withers, and will soon cease to exist. Then, as mysteriously as he arrived, he vanishes. An earthquake then strikes, and the two look out over a scene whereby three cities are engulfed by sky-scraping towers of light. The two return to Moti's house, with the Holy Sword now in your posession. They explain the appearance of the sword, the strange man, and how he reveled in all the strange happennings of late. Moti fears the horrors of ten years ago repeating themselves: the gates of Mavolia opening again! It is decided that something has to be done. Watts heads back to Ishe to put togehter an expedition, while Moti contacts other nations to seek aid. Our task, meanwhile, as chosen ones of the sword, is to investigate the towers of light that have appeared in Lorimar, Jadd and Topple. As the ones in Topple seem to be causing the most grief right now, this will be our first stop. To help is on our way, Moti gives us the Light Flail, and explains its various uses to us, as well as now giving us the option to train in his back garden should we want to. When we're ready, he asks us to see him at the upstairs balcony of the Silver Mermaid. Before that, I'd suggest taking a few subquests from the recently opened Dud Services, as well as the subquest you receive from chatting to Tess at the Mana Stone. You will also have available the elemental subquest for Jinn. See the [SUBQUEST] section for details on how to access the elemental subquests. Also make sure you visit the Bomb Brothers to receive a Purple Gem and learn about gem fusion. (Note, Dazareth has told me that he did not receive the gem until he talked to the Bomb Brothers after removing gems from his frame. I have yet to confirm this, but if you're having the same difficulty receiving the gem, try this tip from Dazareth and see if it works.) [CHAP2] Star Lake, Topple When you're finished doing some subquests (I really can't recommend this enough, 'cause not only will you gain levels, but gems, recovery items, armours and weapons from enemies... you'll hardly need to shop, if at all, which at this point is a really good thing because you're probably rather poor at the moment) and stocking up on any material if necessary, head for the upstairs balcony of the Silver Mermaid and talk to Moti there. To get to your next mission, Moti will give you a Spin Drum, which was entrusted to him by the spirits to call upon the guardian spirit Flammie. You take this, go to the balcony, and spin it. One nice FMV sequence later, and you'll be flying around over the Mana Village on top of Flammie. Click on the More button at the bottom of your screen to leave Illusia Isle and head for other lands, then go for the Star Lake on the Isle of Topple. Now we've landed and taken a nice long look at the lovely waterfall, time to enter the cave. -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: -------- Now at this point I'm going to give you a heads up on some new things to do within the level relating to item finding and general navigation. First off, the bushes in Star Lake often hide items and bags of money in them. To reveal them, charge up your flail as if to draw an object near, aim at the bush and see what happens. If there is an item, it will be brought out to you and pickedup. If there isn't, you'll be pulled toward the bush. Also be careful of monsters hiding in the bushes. The second thing is the small pink plants that appear to be substituting the barrels. You can push these around, and they will come in handy for the next type of plant, which is the grabbing grass. This grass will move in the wind, and when you step on it, will tangle you up for a few seconds, making you susceptible to attacks and stopping you from doing ANYTHING about it. You just have to keep running until it lets go. But, they are weak to being cut down when in this state, and also trap enemies and pink plants... So, either lure an enemy in, or push a pink plant on to them, then take one hack with your sword, and you can clear a path through. You will also see some large vines blocking your way often enough, same as the big blue jars in the Mana Tower. These can be broken either by a falling enemy, or you'll have to wait until you get a hammer later on. That done and dusted, on with the level. You'll get to practice all of the above here with little enemy hinderence, so try out your new skills and get used to how this level works. You'll find the GleamDrop in the first chest you encounter to the left of where you start the level, so pick it up after defeating the nearby beasties and drop it further down the level as you go along, and keep doing this, leaving it behind until you've cleared yourself a path. This'll save you going all the way back afterwards. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: -------- Now the fun begins, we see the return of the Mad Mallard. He packs a punch, so watch out. If you followed m advice on the subquests, you should AT LEAST be at level 10 by now. The Drop is in a chest on the far right hand side of the zone, but make sure you drop by the left hand side. There are three chests huddled together across to pits of spikes. To get across, use the Flail to hook on to the bushes in between and pull yourself along. There are also another two chests near the drop, at the bottom of the level. To get to these, push the nearest pick flower you find down and Sword Combo it into them to break them. A gem and money are in store. Another gem is located just above these on an island. Use your Flail to open the chest and pull the gem back. This will be your first encounter with impure gems. If you've read the Gem Guide you'll already know, but just in case, these gems grant powerful boosts but are unstable, and so will reduce other stats. Careful using them. Once you've done some more exploring, take the drop to the pool -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: -------- As if Tonpoles weren't enough nostalgia for you, now you get Snap Dragons too. An they'll gobble you up just like the old days, so proceed with caution. On your left there will be a golden chest behind a pit of spikes, guarded by two fake chests. Take these out with your flail to avoid any trouble from them. At the top of this level there is a grouping of four, yes four, heavily guarded golden chests with some nice rewards in them. To get to them, push one of the pink plants up to the grabbing grass at the top right corner of the zone and hack own the grass, then use the same plant to kill knock down the vines. Do this twice, and prepare to kick some buttock to get at the golden booty. You'll find other passages with the same properties. Same technique applies. If you run out of pink flowers, you can always come back to the level again using the space-time distortion. -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- This one's pretty simple, take out the enemies, and the slithery one will give you the drop. Make sure you check out everything in this room before moving on, you'll be up for a challenge next.. - [BOSS2] Boss Battle : Galem - Now this one is an interesting boss battle, so get your equipment and gems up to speed with what you've found on your way. The beast is a huge bush, basically. You character will use the Holy Sword to strip away it's protective aura. The boss will launch his orbiting mini-bushes, and there is no way of hurting him. To get around this, you have to use a charged flail to pull the bushes away, defeat them, and once you've done them all attack the core. Careful when he glows, he will send out vines that rise from the ground and knock you out temporarily. Once the mini bushes are defeated, start pummeling the centre, but watch out, he'll regenerate the orbiters, and if you're standing right next to him you will die almost imediatly from multiple hits. Give him two or three rounds worth of beating and he should be yours. The boss will again split in to two benevodons (Light and Wood) and disappear. In his place, the face of a tree will float in the air. He will introduce himself as Treant, patriarch of the trees. He explains that the power warping the world is not that of Mavolia, but of Mana. He doesn't know why, but it's surging out of control and may destroy the world. To avoid the world being torn apart, he entrusts you the task of quelling the Mana collumns spurting over the world. To help you, he will give you one of his branches, which will open the way to other places. You then make your way back to Moti's place and give him and Tess the low-down. Moti will now give you a new weapon, the Short Bow. You can now attack enemies at a distance, and charm those nearby by charging and plucking the bowstring. Now go and visit the Bomb Brothers. Balbo has just been given some ore which he'll use to expand your gem frame. Now you have a 4x2 grid, meaning double the gem capacity you had before. Your next course of action will be to talk to the villagers and find out some more details about recent incidents. But first, I'd suggest doing some more subquests to prepare yourself for the upcoming stages, they only get harder. I'd recommend at this point that you get your level up to 19 or 20, and equip the weapons apropriate for said level. Gem-wise, taking in to account that I don't use magic, I've decided to invest in a "Soul of the Gemma" and add that to my "Sword Training" gem. Other combinations you can try are things such as two "Berserking" with as much defense as you can fit in to compensate for the defense loss (if you don't, you're a sitting duck, and I cannot stress this enough, you WILL die VERY quickly). Also beore questing too much, get rid of some of your duplicate items, and maybe even increase your knapsack to hold 12 of each, so you can stuff your bag full of even more goodies to sell later. You can't sell things for much, but to be honest, this game really makes you save up the pennies, so you might as well. Otherwise, you're going to find yourself revealing items that you can't pick up because your inventory is full, which is a waste. I was able to pull together an extra 20000L pretty much this way on top of what I was getting from the quests themselves. You'll also notice in Moti's place, right next to the fireplace, a shining object. It's a Rusty Key. Take it over to Moti and he'll reveal that it is the key to the haunted house, which is in fact where the village stores all its records, studies of the tree. He had intented to give it to you or Tess, but he misplaced it. He tells you to keep it. Now take it to the door of the haunted house, below his, and open the door. You'll go in and have a rummage through the books in there, finally finding what looks like a Journal. It is entitled the Adventurer's Log I. It talks of the adventurers quest into the Star Lake at Topple, and how he heard a dragon's roar. He went to investigate and indeed found a dragon, which enquired whether he had come to be eaten. When he said he came to slay the dragon, it laughed and attacked. The adventurer vanquished the dragon with two slashes of his blade. Astonished you finish reading the tome, and Tess walks in. She reads the journal too, and asks if you're planning on going to Topple. If you say yes you'll take this on as a subquest. Now with this extra money, and seeing as we're going into Jadd, you may want to invest in getting one of the Elemental Friend Gems and fusing it with a Crystal of Thought. This will give you a gem, Virtue of Balance, that will allow you to walk on quicksand as if it were normal ground, and you'll see as we go through that it can prove tremendously useful to access certain chests in the desert. You can of course always revist the level later with the gem if you don't want to invest in it now and would rather hack your way through the first time round. You'll get the low-down of what the chests have ahead, so judge if you want the items or not. [CHAP3] The Fiery Sands of Jadd Go round talking to the villagers, in particular make sure you talk to Nana in the Silver Mermaid, as she will reveal Moti's worry for his homeland of Jadd. (IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have NOT completed Tess' quest to rid the Mana Tower of monsters as suggested at the end of the first chapter, this trigger will not occur, so make sure you do this subquest.) Next head over to Moti's and you'll find that Nana's suspicions are correct, he is troubled by word reaching him that monsters are attacking the desert land of Jadd. Which means that you now have a new mission to head out on: head to Jadd and find out why monsters are inexplicably on the rise. Get your armour, weapons and gems equiped and ready, Save, and call Flammie. Ah that soothing music... Just as before, a new location will show up on the map, the Fiery Sands of Jadd. Your feet firmly on the ground, you'll find that the wind is making it impossible to go any further. Good job we have that branch from Treant to use as a wind-break. The wind will stop, and the level will now start, with some rather funky racy music, I might add, that has my head bopping as I play. Now, some quick notes on new game physics here. New land, new dangers to face. First off, bushes. The red ones are safe as a sausage to cut down, but if you hit a green one, you'll find yourself siled with paralysis, meaning your character will hesitate every now and then and won't be able to move. Also, the enemies are going to start getting really nasty. Bees are very versatile in long and short distance combat, the rolling green armadillos can spin a rock formation toward you causing you to not be able to attack, and the walking skeletons will resist your hits while their shields glow. Aren't you glad you levelled up? Another quick note. This time, barrels are substituted for small round cacti with pink flowers, and these can be used to knock down the rather large cacti. However, unlike previous instances of these items, they will hurt you if you touch them. But they also hurt enemies, which means that some monsters will die simply by insisting to walk into a cactus over and over. Let one do it, 'tis very funny indeed. So how do we move these small cacti ourselves? Have I not taught you the wonders of the Flail? Stand where you want the cacti to be, pretty much, the pull it towards you. Sometimes it will damage you, sometimes it won't, but you stand a better chance of avoiding tooth-rot this way. -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- There's nothing particularily note worthy in this zone. It will get you used to the enemies and dangers of this level, as well as reward you with an impure gem or two along the way, so take your time to study how the enemies move, swarm, and attack. You'll also find that rushing in to things in this level won't get you far, as the maximum number of enemies on screen has now increased, so diving in head first could get you into a LOT of trouble. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- A few new enemies here, but nothing that you can't handle by now. At the topmost left hand corner and the bottom right hand corner of the level you will find two unpassable chasms with a skeletal rat and a chest. Defeat the rat with your Bow and then reap the rewards, including the Gleamdrop which you will get from defeating the rat. You should also receive a Steel Sword and an Impure Gem. -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Now first off, to the right of where you start you will find a chest guarded by snakes (I hate snakes!). This should pose you any problem, so deal with them as you normally would. Now, don't attack the snakes on the other side of the chasms, you don't want one knocking that chest open. Instead, head back to where you started, and go up and then right. They only have Lucre in them, so nothing terribly exciting. Now the chests above, that's something different! To get to these we need to have created a Gem called Virtue of Balance (as mentioned before). The chests contain two impure gems, a yello, and some Lucre, so nothing too special. There are also two trap chests, so watch out. Other than that, this zone has little to offer, so make your way over to the left and defeat the skeletal rat to get the Gleamdrop, right next to the Gleampool. -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Well now, almost a mini-boss, you could say. First off, get some distance, he can't follow you out of the sandpit, so quite calmly collect the Lucre in the chests and when you're ready hit him with a few arrows from outside the running sand Then go in, collect the drop and get to your save point. Now, if you happen to have collected any new items or gems that you're interested in, and have the level to use them, equip as per normal, Save, and get ready to move along. -5th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Again, the rat has the Gleamdrop, and there's nothing terribly exciting in the zone. Hack your way through, collect an impure gem in the golden chest at the top middle, and move along to the next level. You may want to have bow equipped for those bees, and get some practice in. -6th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Same as before, I'm afraid. Lots of monsters, not many goodies, and the rat has swalloed the key. -7th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Same old same old, except we do have some more quick quicksand to deal with. Now, if you have the gem, it's easy. If not, you can at least get two of the chests. The chest on the left you can get by flailing yourself diagonally over the first batch of quicksand, then flailing the chest. Only gets you a Crystal of thought though. So head round to the other, which you can reach easily, for a Saber. You CAN get across the first lot of sand with the Flail, but it'll only get you far enough to set off the trapped chest. The other two remain out of reach. One of them contains an impure gem, the other a piece of armour (this can vary). The drop is right over the far left, and again it seems the rats got to it. -8th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- It's the same cockroach as before, except now there's no chests to keep us happy. Same tactic as before really, and head for the exit. Now, it's your last chance to save and equip before the boss, so make sure you're up to scratch. If you used the gem to stabilize yourself over the quicksand, you may want to switch to something more useful now, although it could still be useful on the boss' quicksand, but personally I don't think you'll need it. - [BOSS3] Boss Battle : Thaydol - Well your character knew what was coming, and I'm sure you did. Yep, it's another big beastie with a barrier that needs some Holy Sword intervention. And doesn't he remin you of something from Seiken Densetsu 3? Anyway, on to the fight, you're on uneasy ground sliding toward the boss all the time, but don't worry about falling into the pit, that's not going to happen. This is probably the easiest boss you'll face in the game! While in his back position, he'll lunge at you with his claws and knock you back. Now, if you stand right in the middle and pummel him with arrows, he doesn't do any damage to you with this side swipe, just knock you back (or at least that's what happenned to me, if you find out otherwise let me know and I shall ammend). When he leans forward, that's a different story altogether. Run like hellfire toward the far right or far left. He'll either set some blue flames ablazing at different parts of the quicksand, or lunge at you with both paws straight down the middle. Either way, if you keep far to either side, you'll miss those. Then just run back and keep hitting him with arrows. I defeated him in around 2 minutes, and that's while writting this, so you can probably do it in much less than that. After your ranking and prize, we see the beast split into two spirits once more (the benevodons of Moon and Shadow), and are now greeted by Gaia as the heir to the holy sword of Mana. He is the face of the earth who has been sleeping for ten years also (holy hibernation, Batman!). He explains that evil forces flowed through the creature turning it into a malevodon, and the sword restored it to its true form, through the rebirth as a benevodon, of which six are already born (the ones corresponding to the beasts you've defeated... all starting to make sense now, eh?). Your sword has the power to restore the world to its proper state. He also states that you must stop the man you saw before at any costs, even if he defies the will of the planet. Gaia then hands over a stone of his being that should break his spell, together with the branch from Treant. With that, he vanishes, leaving you to return and explain it all to Moti. You show the stone to Moti, but he is equally puzzled about who the man is and what his spell is. What Moti can do is to give you another weapon, that Watts crafted himself and sent as a gift: the Mallet! You can knock enemies back with these hammers, and send shock waves through the ground to knock them over or hit pegs into the ground. And, quite importantly, break the big pots, cacti and vines we've been having such a hard time doing so before! Now, this does have a down side to it... Unfortunatly, this now means that in pretty much every quest and zone, the Gleampool is going to be hidden by one of these large objects, which means not only do we have to find the Gleamdrop, but the pool as well, and with the recoil time the hammer has, that makes it a long task. So all I can say is... IT'S HAMMER TIME! Well, not really, it's actually time to save, and do some more subquesting, as well as checking out new stocks at the stores. You may want to revisit some of the levels you've already done as well if there were things you couldn't get before (like the chests guarded by quicksand). Also make sure that you Chat with Balbo of Bomb Brothers to receive their subquest. You will now also have available the elemental subquests for Salamando and Luna. If you want some good levelling, I'd recommend Fiery Sands subquests that mention eliminating all the monsters, specifically those stating "overgrown insects". These large cockroaches award 14 EXP each (as opposed to the rather meager 2 that most enemies are awarding), and when you've got a whole batch of 20 or so of these bugs, that means almost a level in itself. Or half, at least. And if you REALLY want to get the best out of them, you may want to consider investing in a Heart of Progress gem. It'll only increase the gain of EXP by 50%, and it takes up 2x2, but an EXP saved is an EXP earned. Another suggestion is that you take the time at this point to revisit old stages as their original missions, and try to better your ranking to Gold if you didn't manage it first time through. This will give you some rare Purple Gems to increase the level of your focused attacks during Fury, so they're worth getting your grubby mits on. My recommendation level wise is to get your character up to level 30, and kit them out with the best available gear (because at level 30 you'll be able to). Gem-wise you'll probably want to stick with what you know, or if you've aquired some better gems switch them out, but you don't have any more space to put them at the moment, so you can't add more on. You should probably, if you have the money, upgrade your knapsack. I went straight to Jumbo at this point, but you can just go for the next size up, it'll do just fine. Once you feel you're ready, we'll move on to the next chapter. [CHAP4] The Ice Citadel of Lorimar Once you're ready for the next level, go talk to Tess. She'll reveal that monster are attacking the Ice Citadel in Lorimar. No one can get in as it's protected by a strange barrier. But we, of course, have the Stone of Gaia, and this sounds just the situation he was talking about, so we'll reassure Tess that we can handle it (seeing as she's from Lorimar and all) and save the day. Set out from the Village, and once more a new spot will appear in the map, this time on the northwestern isle of Lorimar. Set a course and engage (you may want to read the next couple of paragraphs with regards to gem equipment, but it is not essential). You arrive before the gates of the Citadel, surrounded by a purple barrier. Without hesitation, your character will release the power of the Stone of Gaia and the Branch of Treant, and the barrier will be broken. Time to find out what's going on inside. Before we go on ahead, a quick run-down of the game mechanics for this level. You'll now be facing patches of ice (patches can be read as "huge ice-rink sized stadiums worth" in some zones), which prevent you from turning quickly, if at all, and will have you sliding all over the place. At certain parts, it's important to start walking on these diagonally to catch on to the edge of your turn, but we'll get to those. Note that if you have the Virtue of Balance equiped, this will allow you to talk on ice with no hinderance, same as we did before with the quicksand. Again, this will leave you without 2x2 of your gem frame, so you judge. Personally, I find that I can get along without it just fine. Also you're going to be in danger of getting turned into a snowman on a regular basis. Again, we could use gems to counteract, but hopefully by now you should be used to avoiding danger like the plague, so we'll trust your acquired skills. In any case, if you're having problems, there's always the 4th Zone save-point to rearrange your tackle. Terrain-wise, we now have small and large ice blocks that are destroyed with sword and hammer respectively as in previous levels. Beware of the lighter small icicles, as they will be the ones doing the freezing into a snowman on you and the enemies (don't you just lng for those days in the Mana Tower where all you'd get were spikes, eh?). -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: Hidden by ice This zone is designed to get you quickly used to your new dangers. There's nothing special here, aside from large amounts of blue rabites, and a huge patch of ice (yes, Sanka, ice!) over on the right. The Gleampool is hidden under the top-right-most large block of ice. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: -------- Now we're inside the castle itself, so we're back to pots, but still huge quantities of ice on the floor. You'll also find that you can slow your advance on the ice by pushing the crates that you find alone the way, but this will slow your progress and open you to attack. Another good thing is that you can use your hammer on these and on the enemies to place a nice game of billiards with them, and get them out of the way. Remember though, chances are you'll pot the cue-ball if you're not careful. Take the route round to the left, defeating all your enemies, and move on. -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group of monster Gleamwell: Hidden by ice Back outside, the first thing we'll see is a chest just next to us. Careful, it's a trap! Use the bow on him to try and knock him out. Now head on down and toward the right, getting rid of Chobins and the flying pinyata enemies along the way. The Chobins are the group to defeat in this zone. Now, about half way across the stage you'll see a path leading upwards with a really blue ice-patch. This one is much more slippery than the standard white ice, and as soon as you get into motion, you'll lose control of your character. The way to tackle this is to run at it diagonally (up-right). Now your character will use the wall for friction and stop a few paces to the right. Do it again, and same thing, they'll stop a bit further to the right. A third time will have you catching on the edge of the turn and walking up it. You'll be rewarded with 6 chests, but beware, they are guarded by 6 rather mean wearwolves, so get ready for some pain and gain. Incidentally, this is their first appearance, which coincides nicely with Secret of Mana when you visit Elinee's Castle. Ah, nostalgia how I love thee... When you're done exploring and have the Gleam drop in your hands, go to the top right corner of the stage, and the left block o ice will have the Gleampool. -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Back in the... warm? We'll find ourselves surrounded by vase. Time to do as the bull's do in a China shop. To make quick work of it, put your Flail on, and then when you reach the crates, hammer them. If you nee to stock up on Candy, this is the place to do it. The Gleampool is in the bottom left corner of the room in clear view, so now you just need to get the drop from the Walking Armour up at the top. He shouldn't pose too much of a threat, and you can use the crates to your advantage here. If you're at the suggested level and have the right weapons, you should find he'll go down with 3 or 4 slashes of the sword. Time to save. You shouldn't have anything of particular interest to go equiping, so just move along. -5th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group of monster Gleamwell: Hidden by ice A rather non-eventful zone this one, although we do get a glimpse of a new monster, resembling an ant-eater of sorts. His rolling attack is quite nasty (bit like the Mad Mallard's one) so watch out. And it's exactly these guys we ned to defeat to get the Gleamdrop. So, have at them, cowboy, then take the drop over to the far right. The Gleampool is hidden, quite obviously, under the large ice block surrouded by spikes and more ice. -6th Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: -------- And back inside again. This level sees the return of our good ol friend Shadow Zero. Not quite as friendly as he used to be in days passed, he can inflict blindness on us, which can be a bit of a pain if we're trying to navigate among spikes. Go through the rooms one by one killing off 4 Shadow Zeros at a time, and removing the anteaters from our path down the middle. Once we've gone through the lot, take the drop to the visible pool at the far right, and on we go. -7th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden by ice Now things are getting interesting... Good job we practiced with those wearwolved before, eh? Anyway, you'll find yourself doing quite a bit of switching between the Bow and the Hammer for this level, as some enemies like to keep themselves out of reach. The lower-left section has nothing special. The Gleam Pool is found in the iceblock below and just a bit to the left of the gold chest in the top centre section of the zone. Careful, that gold chest is a trap, while we're at it, as is the second silver one in from the left. The one at the far left corner has the Drop. The right portion of the level has nothing special at all in the bottom, and the top has two more trapped chests (the silver ones) and a bronze chest, so you don't really have to go here at all unless you feel like exploring and getting a Gumdrop. -8th Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: -------- A short level, get the two chests just below you for some meager Lucre, then head for the upper right. Four walking armours await you with eager eyes. You can either brings some crates with you (which I think is a waste of time) or charge in there (which I recommend personally). Best thing to do is knock the vases down, wait for one or two to come out, and hit them with your hammer. This will disperse them so you can pick them off one by one, and they'll be a bit weaker than before. Take them down, get the drop and exit via the Gleampool at the right of the central passage. Save and prepare for battle... We'll run in to a room (on ice) and find the "Man". He'll turn round rather bewildered at the fact you made it in here. But he then remembers Treant and Gaia and all becomes clear. This doesn't rock his confidence, as the next stage of his plan is already underway. But he's not letting on. He tells us of a time when land-dwellers tried to harness the power of Mana in vessels and use them as channeling orbs, but when chaos engulfed the world ten years ago the orbs were buried underground, where they reside now. His plan (oh, so he IS letting on?) is to release all those orbs in one shot and destroy the world, and he puts it down to the will of the Mana Goddess. He then summons Landmund forth to take you down, who happens to be a rather nasty malevodon, with again, a barrier raised. So he's behind the monsters! But this time the sword isn't working... The man tries to taunt you with ideas that maybe you're not the hero you think you are, and the sword has abandoned you. A brilliant light fills the room suddenly, and Tess' voice commands you to focus.. to believe! Finally the barrier gives way, much to the man's dismay, an the time for battle begins. - [BOSS4] Boss Battle : Landmund - This boss is a pice of pie, again so long as you've come prepared. The three attacks he had time to inflict were first to breath indeep diagonally and release three clouds of toxic gas. If you stay near him on the opposite side of his intake, you'll avoid the gases with ease. Take a few shots at him. Second attack, he'll raise his fists and hit the floor, so don't be in front of him. This will knock you to the ground, and icicles will start to fall. They don't do much damage, but you're best to avoid if possible. Just above the boss to the right I found to be a good spot. Third attack, which can catch you easily off guard, is to roll diagonally down in your direction, get to the corner of the screen, head up, then diagonally down to the oposite corner, and back up diagonally to the centre top. After this his pattern will move to the first or second attack. I found that slashing at him full on, he didn't get a chance for another attack, and so should be the case for you if you've been following my level and weapon advice. After receiving your reward, Landmund will split into the two last benevodos (Water and Earth) and disappear, leaving you alone with the man again, who states the eight benevodos are now all born. He's impressed at your ability to call on the sword's power so well, but smirks at your threats to bring him to the sword. As you raise the sword to him the sword leaps from your hands and strikes you down instead. The man explains that the Sword of Mana was created by the Mana Goddess, and cannot be wielded by mortal hands, and answers only to him, the Mana Lord. He then takes posession of the sword, and prepares to move in for the kill. At that moment, Watts enters the scene with Tess by his side. While Tess tends to you, Watts stands his ground firm in the path of the Mana Lord, who comments on Tess' grace from the Mana Goddess. His amusement is short lived, as the earth begins to shake. The time has come, and he smiles. The channeling orbs are rising. A terrible dark whirlpool raises skyward from the Citadel, piercing the clouds with an evil aura. The Mana Lord then bids the children of Mana farewell, and vanishes. Watts and Tess take you back to Moti's. Tess watches over you as you sleep, while Watts and Moti discuss these latest discoveries. Moti ponders the nature of good becoming evil if the wrong hands attain its power, with Mana being no exception. Watts doesn't seem to like all the sitting around philosophyzing, and is eager to do something about this madness. But how? Moti explains that the only thing that can counter Mana's force is the holy sword the Mana Lord now has posession of. The room falls silent in quiet and glum contemplation, until a voice comes claiming they can help. The group turns to see the Stone of Gaia and the Branch of Treant reveal their faces before everyone. Treant prophesies the tempest soon hitting the verdant kingdom of Wendel, a Mana Storm that must be stopped. At the centre of that storm, Gaia explains you must strike with the power of all eight elemental spirits combined. At that moment, when calm sets in, they will suppress the Mana surge. Watts is all for it, but Moti reminds him of the danger of plunging in like that. Danger? Excitement? Who else, but you could be up for the challenge. You rise from bed, and walk over to the group, still wounded, and calim tha you'll go and get things sorted. Tess worries still about your healing not being complete, but the brave hero you are put it down to being a mere scratch... there's work to be done! (Author's Note: it always happens, the heroic music sets in, and suddenly I get all wishy-washy and can't write without going all hell for leather with the "let's save the world" style of writting.) The village... nay, the WORLD is counting on you, and you're not about to let them down. We must head for the storm, and when we're at the centre, call on Gaia, Treant and the spirits to bring this evil scheme to an end! Let's get out there and show them they can't mess with the children of Mana! Our new mission awaits, we must now head to Wendel to subdue the Mana tempest. Or so you think! No, now we've managed to get the heroic streak out of our heads for two seconds, and are lulled into peace once again by the tunes of the Mana Village, it's time to think straight and get our priorities right. First off, we want to get some subquests done and bring our level up to a nice healthy 40 (which shouldn't take long 'cause you're at 30... 'cause you ARE at 30, right?). Consider at this point a Heart of Progress if you haven't already got one. Though remember, this takes up a considerable amount of your gem frame, so make sure you're strong enough for the task (these enemies aren't easy pickings either). You'll find that by doing a couple of the character subquests, a couple of Dud services, and maybe go back and get a Gold Rank on a level or two you'll make it to 40 in no time. You could pass off with just 35, which will give you the capability for the latest weaponry, but at this point you may as well put in that little bit of extra effort, it'll make your life a whole lot easier. The subquest you receive from Watts is particularily good (I think I managed a whole 3 levels). You will also have the elemental subquests for Gnome and Undine available to access now. When you're ready, and have the right level and kitted yourself out, head for Brightwood in Wendal, down at the bottom of the map. It has a large cyclone of darkness hanging over it, you can't miss it. [CHAP5] The Brightwood forest of Wendal A storm rages so violent you find it hard to keep your footing as you gaze over the darkness that has engulfed Brightwood. Now speaking of footing, very regularily in Brightwood you'll see circular pegs on the ground. These can be hammered down using a focused Hammer attack, so keep that equiped most of the time. Hitting them will make bridges appear over the water, so you can advance in the level. Small obstacles are now in the form of mushrooms. Watch out for the green ones, they will inflict poison on you (we're talking 20HP drainage every 2 or 3 seconds, it is NOT nice). Large obstacles are in the form of tree stumps, and you can use a small purple deeleewopper the same way we used barrels before. Again, your hammer will be very useful, because the Gleampool has a hbit of hiding itself under one of these stumps. -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a stump We start off straight away dealing with our friends the Mushbooms, and already we see an example of the bridge-revealing peg. Get your hammer ready, there's more where this one came from. Again, this is another starter-level to get you used to all the mechanics I've described above. You'll find the Gleampool in the bottom-right corner of the zone, under a stump next to a golden chest. The Gleamdrop is in the custody of the purple walking flowers, so take them out (there's not too many of them. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a stump You start off amidst dozens of stumps. Start playing some rather precarious pool with the enemies, including the return of Sonic, I mean, molebears. The Gleampool should be hidden under a stump at the top left hand corner of the level, so reveal that first off, then hack your way through the purple flowers again. -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a stump You can either head to the right or up at the start of this level. My suggestion is upward-bound. Make your way round toward the right, ad you'll find 4 stumps near a bridge off to the right. The left-middle stump has the Gleampool. Head over the bridge and you'll find a dark-whorl generating enemies like no tomorrow. You can use this to gain some EXP, up to you, but I wouldn't hang around right now. The whorl CAN be defeated by brute force, but it has a rather high HP and you only inflict 1HP damage with each hit, so you could be there a while. Head on round the top of the rock formation, defeating the exploding pumpkins on the way. These guys have the Gleamdrop this time. Once you have it, race back round to the pool. You can only go via the top, as the vortex will stop you from going the bottom route (unless you shut it down through sheer barbarian frustration that is). -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: -------- Our friends the walking armour are back, hiding out on the island in the centre of the screen. You have three pegs at the bottom, and each will activate a bridge on either side of the island. I'd suggest activating just one and heading in. The pegs, from left to right, activate the following bridges: top and bottom, left, and right. It is recommended that you weaken them a bit first with some non- aimed arrows from the bottom, and when going in make your first hit one with the hammer to weaken them more. In such close proximity they are not easy to charge head-on, and you could find yourself in for a nasty surprise if you're not careful. Save your game and move on to the next zone. -5th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a stump Something new for us to deal with from here onward are big Xs on the ground. If you step on them, vines will rush out and knock the wind out of you quicker than you can say "Rabites eat my baby". If you walk in between them, and I mean dead-centre, you're fine. Enemies are also affected by these, so for example when you head down from your starting point here, you can get yourself into a heap of trouble because one enemy walks on them, gets knocked toward you, knocks you in to the next lot behind you... Nasty stuff. After you've had your first experience with them, head over to the right. The Gleampool should be under the stump heading straight right from the bridge. The Gleamdrop is held hostage by the pumpkins again. -6th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a stump More of the same now. Defeat all the purple flowers for the drop, and the pool should be under the stump that is to the left of a small pond on the left hand side of the zone. The chests here aren't too interesting, but they do help your score at the end of the level. -7th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a stump Now, for a complex one. You'll find yourself switching back and forth between bow and hammer, or combining the two, as the bees tend to kep their distance over water. Head over the first two bridges, then move up between the Xs to reach the peg you see at the top of the screen from the back (don't approach it from the bottom). Hit that down to activate a bridge over on the right hand side of the screen. Now, head up again, and careful with the golden chest, it's a trap. The silver one is OK. Go down and right and you'll find another vortez generating enemies. Go down via the bridge you just activated, defeat the enemies here, and hit the peg to activate the bridge above the whorl. Move up here and defeat the blue shell creatures to get the Gleamdrop. The Gleampool is under a stump just to the left of the vortex. You can go for extra exploring by defeating the vortex and heading over the bridge on the right if you feel like it. All you'll find there though is a silver chest and three trapped golden ones. You can also reach the chests on the far right island from the top island using the flail. -8th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: -------- There are two ways to do this level. FIrst you can head up, through the mushrooms, get the two chests and hit the peg to open a small bridge to the lower part of the level, or you can tiptoe through the Xs and go for them head- on. There will be 4 Sabertooth Tiger Heads (yes, just the heads) bouncing around and getting themselves hurt by vines. Go down and finish off the job for them, then take the drop to the pool for another save point. You reach the eye of the storm, a quiet place. ALmost too quiet. A glowing orb of darkness (oxymoron?) swirls just above you. You call on Treant and Gaia, but just as you do so, the Mana Lord appears before you. He expected you to get this far. He taunts you with the Mana Sword, asking if it is what you were looking for to save the world. He may have underestimated you, but he fears you hindering him not. You protest. If this keeps up, the world will... indeed, as he interrupts you, cease to exist. Which is exactly what he wants, the destruction of the world froma maelstrom of Mana. Did you think he was trying to take over the world or settle a personal grudge? He then disappears to leave you to try and calm the storm yourself. The vortex speeds up, gaining strength, and prepares for your attacks. - [BOSS5] Boss Battle : Mana Storm - This is an interesting battle with not an awful lot of science to it. The storm will not allow you to get near its core when the vortex is thick. Even arrows can't get in. You can use the glowing orbs by knocking them toward the storm with the Hammer, that'll do some damage. Magic is too slow to do anything whatsoever (the storm will move by the time you've cast it, let alone have the spell take effect). So when you see the storm weaken it's vortex, run toward it, and hammer away at it with your sword. With your current level it should go down with about three bursts of this sort of attack. As you strike your last blow, the core explodes in a brilliant light. You'll be taken to the ranking screen now. The gold ranking for this level will give you the option to a weapon of each type and a purple gem. The weapons can only be equiped one by each character (ie Tumble can only equip the bow). Returning to the scene of events, the Mana Lord reappears after the storm has disolved, and is rather impressed. But how do you attempt to vanquish the Mana Tempest without the sword? He is interrupted by the appearance of Treant and Gaia. The conceed that, as the Mana Lord says, they are no match against Mana by themselves. But they aren't alone. The spirits are with them. The Mana Lord is enraged by their defiance, as he watches the spirits rise through the wood toward the tempest above and dispel it with ease (in full motion video too!). As you celebrate this victory, the Mana Lord summons his powers and strikes down the spirits, Treant and Gaia, in a torment of lightning bolts. He then casts you backward to the ground and approaches you with the Mana Sword to finish you off. Just as he raises his sword, a gem pops out of the ground and hovers in the air near the Mana Lord. A dozen more join it and cling to the Mana Lord, who is stunned and can't move. Using up a lot of his power he casts them away. He can't understand everyone defying him, he is doing what the Mana Goddess wishes and filling the world with Mana. As he regrets not finishing you off at Lorimar, he has an epiphany regarding the Mana Tree's maiden and her powers. He is of course refering to Tess! He then says something about the Seed of Mana, and determined that this is the solution to his dilemma, retreats once more. You return to the Mana Village, with the words of the Mana Lord heavy on your mind. Right now the game will tell you to go talk to Tess, but she is nowhere to be found. At this point, before going any further, my advice is to get doing some subquests from Dud Services and get up to level 45 before even thinking of advancing anymore. Also it is important that you go talk to Balbo and the Bomb Brothers, as they have just found a really pure ore and can make your gem frame even bigger! The grid will now have the form of a cross, with 2, 4, 4, 2 slots. This will make for even more power boosting possibilities you weren't open to before. Take the time to plan out some new gem fusions if you have the money to (you should have stacks of it at the moment... think of all the possibilities about 50000L has to offer), work up a good gem configuration, and prepare for some questing. You will now be able to access the elemental subquest for Dryad. However, seeing as Tess is nowhere to be found, you'd think we're stuck with whatever elemental we already have equiped, right? Wrong! Go talk to Nana in the Mermaid, and she will be able to change spirits for you. (Note: At this point in the game it seems one can only do up to 6 elemental subquests, as Wisp and Shade's involve areas yet to be completed.) So my advice is to start out doing some subquests, get your level up to 45, or if you're feeling up for it, 50, while keeping your weapons up to date and gems in line, and then when you've done this move on to the next chapter. You should have no problem doing subquests in a very short time by this point. Personally, my current gem combination contains Sword Expertise, Sword Training, Soul of the Gemma, Glittering Crystal and Chivalry. Gets through them like butter. [CHAP6] The Ruins of Illusia Isle Now that we're ready for the real deal, it's time to find out where Tess has disappeared to. She's not searchign through the archives, so let's go check up at the Mana Stone. We'll find that there is energy glowing all round the Mana Stone. If you touch it, gems will spring from the ground, surround you, and transport you to a desolate place: the Ruins (this will also appear on the main Flammie map, so if you cancel the mission, you can go back via this route). As you gaze around the surrounding, you get the feeling of having been here before, and that Tess has to be here. So let's set out to find her. There's no really new mechanics for this level, rather it takes everything we've seen up until now, puts a nice calming soundtrack over it, and throws it at us thick and fast. Gleampools are generally hidden by large brown plants. -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant Case in point. Doesn't this remind you of Snow Country from Secret of Mana, and I don't mean just because of the enemies either. Anyway, gleampool is under one of the top plants, normally next to the bridge on the left, and the drop is held custody by the wooly bulls. Also you can access the middle chest by hitting the peg in the top right corner of the level and activating the bridge. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant The pegs will activate the two bridges. Careful, there are 5 or 6 bulls at the end of each bridge waiting for you to charge in. You can knock the stone toward them if you want. The pool will be in the top right corner, next to the golden chest. You must go down to though to eliminate all monsters, so I suggest you do the bottom half of the zone first, then move to the top. -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant The bronze chests on this left side of the main bridge are traps, so don't bother with them. You'll need to push enemies into the grabbing plants at the bottom if you want to get the two chests there. The drop is held by the blue eye in the centre of the bridge. As for the pool, take the drop over to the left side of the bridge, and break down the plant at the top. Also note, the grabby plants will reduce your HP while you're stuck. -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: -------- Get the chests, hack down any of the plants surrounding the skeleton in the centre and have at him, he'll go down in a few strikes of your sword if you're following my advice. Save, and continue onward young warrior. -5th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a flower Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant The drop will be hidden pretty near the bottom right. Careful with the two fountains, as when you hit them, they will generate a field that knocks you backwards. Make your way round the right hand side of the screen, and hit down the two pegs at the top. These will reveal the bridge up the centre of the two fountains, which leads to the plant underwhich the pool is hidden. -6th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant First hit the peg on the right to extend the central brige to the island with the Gleampool and the one above that. Won't need to go there yet, so hit the peg to the left to reveal the long bridge up that side of the zone. This will lead you to the chest with the GleamDrop. You can also then hit the peg on this island to head across to the right and then down to the island with the Gleampool. -7th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant You'll find here that by going up and round to the bottom right, you'll kill off all the pink snake-tails you need to get the drop, and will end up right next to the Gleampool under the last plant in the bottom corner. If you're looking to get some chests, head over the left through the grabby plants ad take the gold chests and the top and bottom-most silver ones. The rest are all traps. -8th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- You'll find yourself surrounded by plants to be knocked down. Best bet is to get to where one of the stones is and play a game of billiards. Make your way to the top right for the pool. If you're interested, there's a golden chest at the top left, but nothing too interesting in there. The pool is guarded by the skeleton with the drop and three mer-men. Another save point, which I suggest you take advantage of. -9th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by flowers Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant This level is longer that previous ones, so we'll be heading in to double figures soon. Anyway, the pool shoul be under the plant next to your starting point, and the drop is to the right of the fountain near the top of the level. Aside from that, nothing to report other than a rather large number of werewolves. -10th Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: Hidden by a plant Beat your way through everyone, take the chests although there's nothing really interesting in them, find the pool under a plant around the middle left of the zone. -11th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant First off, take down some plants in the bottom left corner, and hit the peg to activate the bridge at the top right of the zone. Head up there, across the bridge, and hit that peg to reveal another bridge over the top left. That will lead to 4 chests with items in. There is another peg behind the flowers next to the first bridge we revealed. Cut these down and activate this peg to reveal the final bridge at the bottom right, which will lead the chest with the gleamdrop in it. Two other gold chests surround it which are traps. The pool is under one of the plants in the centre, surrounding the fountain. -12th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: -------- Knock down the bushes and hammer the enemies on either side of you with arrows. You can't get on to the islands with them. You can also speed things up a bit with some magic while you deal with the opposite set. Retrieve the drop with your flail and head for the pool. Note, if you knock the enemy back and the drop ends up on the other side of the island, you'll have to go up and round the other side to retrieve it with your flail, so judge your attack pattern carefully. Save and get ready for our next challenge. The Mana Lord looms over Tess, demanding her she lend him her powers. She doesn't appear to understand what he means, until he asks her o call forth the Seed of Mana. If he uses the powers within the seen, the surge will egulf the world beyond all control. Tess can't believe that he actually wants to destroy the world. He explais that he only wishes to fill it with Mana, and doesn't care what happens to the people. Tess however refuses to call forth the seed, and demands the Mana Lord return the sword and stop this nonsense. As he prepares to take her life into his hands with the sword, you enter the scene and once again, we get a taste of that heroic melody from before. Tess hides behind you. She doesn't know where we are, but has that same feeling that she's been here before. The Mana Lord then explains that this is the Sanctuary of Mana on Illusia in several thousand years to come. Your character doesn't understand, neither does Tess. He explains that in the current chaotic state, Mana distorts time and space, drawing Illusia's future to the present. He then rants on about how destruction is what is to become of everything... although some things return. Darkness surrounds you, and everything disappears. A light appears before you, and shadows with a familiar voice stand ahead. You stand in disbelief as the shadows explain that the surge has brought them back to you... your lost family, who died in the cataclysm. But before you fall completely into the trap, Tess' voice calls you back to your senses. The Mana Lord asks if you heard the voices, and then indicates around you. You see several shadows all around. He explains they are those lost that have returned. He is the collection of them, and the bridge between this world and the afterlife. The shadows then collect together into one form, a hideous beast of darkness covered in eyes and hands and mouths all over the place. In the words of my wife: Eww. - [BOSS6] Boss Battle : Revenants - There are two ways to damage this boss. The first is to shoot it while standing near the central pillar in an attempt to make it jump toward you and land on the pillar, causing it some rather nasty damage. Once it has fallen on the pillar once, the gem at the top will have crumbled and you can move it around and hammer it into the beast. The pillar can also crumble from the beast eating away at it. The other is to look for the spirit that has red eyes when it splits in to several entities, and hammer that with arrows when you can. The other small revenants won't be hurt. Don't let the shadow that appears on the floor catch up with you when he plunges a hand into the ground, as the hand will come out of that shadow and attack you. Once you have dealt it enough damage, it will disappear in a blinding light. Three shadows will remain once you've obtained your ranking, and will call your name once more, leaving you an item (Tumble's is a Hairpin, Flick's a Toy Horse) before vanishing for the last time. As the Mana Lord comments on the futility of it all, you charge and are knocked back. Before the Mana Lor can finish you off, Tess asks him what the sword means to him. He considers itto be a tool to slay those who oppose him. Tess tries to explain it is not just a weapon, but it is useless. The geodes appear to defend you once more, which he disipates in disgust before launching a highly charged energy bolt at the two of you. It doesn't impact though, and instead the Seed of Mana materializes beween you. The Mana Lord takes it for his own and makes off with it. There's no time to lose, you must return to the village and plan your next move. You explain your findings to the others, and Moti reasons that something will cause the Mana Tree to wither and Illusia to fall. Although the Mana Tree looked dead, there was still new life underground waiting for the time to sprout. The Seed must have been that. You all stand wondering where he could have taken the seed, but no answer comes to mind. Tess reasons that the goddess isn't absent as Watts thinks, she surely had a plan when she sent the sword. At that moment Treant and Gaia appear, and tell you that the Mana Lord is at the heart of the Mana surge, where the source of Mana lies. If the Mana Seed were taken there, it could absorb all Mana there and grow out of control. THey then explain that the Mana Lord was born of the goddess, but never understood her will, and only thinks of filling the world with Mana by destroying everything we know and replacing it with Mana. The surge is deep under the roots of the Mana Tree. Which means you now have a new mission: go to the Mana Tree's roots and stop the Mana seed's release. Before we do that though, we'll be saving, checking out new weapons and gems, and doing some more subquests. Namely do the Wisp's elemental subquest and one from Seamoon which will now appear when you Chat to her. We can't do Shade's yet. As for level recommendation, 55 is good, anything between that and 60 is a bonus but not essential. This will mean you can use all your latest weapons (unless of course you've acquired some rather juiy weapons through questing that Millionaire hasn't got his hands on yet). With that, we are ready to move forward. As for equiping an elemental, I found Wisp somwhat useful from time to time on the next chapter, so may as well put that on your list of considerations. Set a course for the Path of Life which will have now appeared on Illusia Isle. [CHAP7] The Path of Life Above us looms the great Mana Tree, wind russling in the leaves, dwarving us as we stand before it, determined to find the Mana Lord below. As we are about to go in, Tess appears claiming this may be the last battle, and she is sure that the Mana Lord knows also. She feels so useless surrounded by others who are putting their lives on the edge all the time. But you remind her of all the times she's bailed you out, that you would never have made it here without her. A glow then comes from within you. It is the object from your family at the Ruins. It floats over to the base of the tree and open a portal to the underground. The time has come to take on the Path of Life. The mechanics here don't vary too much. The rather obnoxiously green plants can be brought down with the hammer, the small purple plants will inflict a random status ailment on you, and the green shells and floating clouds will act as barrels did back in the good old days of the Mana Tower. -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant The group to defeat are the orange ant-eater-like creatures, and the gleampool SHOULD be around where the path splits on the right side of the zone. I recommend taking the right path upward to get the glden chest, then back down the left after going over the spikes. This level also sees the return of the flying tomato men! I'd be more worried about the orange anteaters if I were you though, they can pack a nasty rolling punch. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant The drop is hidden by the red rat, and the gleampool is under the plant right next to it. But before that you'll encounter a very small section of path that is FILLED with monsters to the brim, and they keep coming at you. They should pose too much of a problem, but you have been warned, they can catch you off your guard, especially the hedgehogs, since they can stop you from attacking with weapons. The chests down at the bottom of the screen don't have anything of interest, but you may want to get them anyway if you're aiming for Gold Rank. -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant This zone is REALLY nasty. You'll find little fluffy seeds flying at you slowly, almost harmless, but when they explode can inflict ridiculous amounts of damage (we're talking almost up to the 300 mark on a good night). Keep them at bay with your flail, and make your way upward. Head right first, the drop is in the far right, bottom silver chest. The one just above it is a trap, and the other two should be harmless. There is also a path on the left with more chests. To get this, hack through ONLY the bottom row of bushes, since the top one will keep the floating block from hitting you. Otherwise you're in for a long beating session. Note that this block has spikes on it too! The GleamPool is heading straight up the middle of the zone, under the plant at the end. -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- The tomatomen in the centre of the level are capable of launching those seeds we saw before, so take them out first thing with your bow. Then head over to the right hand side of the screen where we'll see a red walking armour. He can pack one helluva punch, so take extreme caution. If possible, weaken him either with magic or sonic waves before knocking the bush down, as his hits will sending you flying. He'll give you the gleamdrop for the pool just below. Now you've seen what the level has to offer, you may want to consider re- arranging your gems to suit the situation, and save, by all means save. -5th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden under a plant Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant Now we have some stone heads to deal with that spurt out random status ailments at us. They only do so in one direction and at regular intervals, so they are easy to avoid. You can even spin the head a new direction with the hammer if you want. The Gleamdrop will be under a small plant on the left hand side of things, around the middle of the level (there will be a small peninsula, as it were, with plants round all sides and a shell in the middle), and you'll want to take it to the top right peninsula with a plant in the middle and a few red rats and a pumpkin on it. The enemies appear few and far-between on this level, as it appears the stone heads take up one of the max-enemy slots. -6th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant My suggestion for this level is to first head round the bottom of the level, up the left and centre, then lastly head back round the centre to the right, and up the second path from the right. The gleampool should be under the plant there, and the leaving these monsters 'til last (in particular the anteaters who have the drop) will mean the Gleamdrop will be right next to the pool for you. If this pool is in a different location due to random selection, let me know as I'll have to ammend this. I will be playing through this level again soon, but the more I know the better I can inform. ;) -7th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a chest Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant This level is curious in that it forces you to deal with the spiked floating blocks. Make your way down the path on the left, then up the second to find the plant with the gleampool under it. Then head over the centre bridge toward the third path, where there will be a cluster of chests and two spiked blocks guarding them from either entrance. You can get the gleamdop one by using the focused flail in diagonal from below on the bottom silver chest. The rest you can try and get by flailing from the other path on the far right. -8th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: -------- Head for the top of the zone and bash down the plants to get at the red armours. Again, if you can weaken them befre charging in to make your life easier. I was lucky in that I had Wisp equiped, so I was able to send them into a bit of confusion which helped me with my final charge. Again, save your progress and move onward. -9th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant Remember those Xs on the ground we saw in the Ruins? Well they're back here too, except they're a rather conspicuous light blue that blends in well with the ground, so keep a careful eye out for these. As before, vines will pop out and unleash unholy hell on you. The middle of this level is very interesting because it is covered with those Xs, has two ailment heads at top and bottom, and yet you have to fight in this little arena because that is where a lot of the orange wolves you need to defeat will be appearing. Luckily the Gleampool is easily concealed under the plant just below this ring of chaos. -10th Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant Well that's all we needed, another colloseum of madness. This time there are three heads on each side of this square, 2 Xs in the topleft and bottomright corners, and we have to defeat all the monsters available. To make your life a bit easier, I suggest whacking the head that is facing inwards toward its companion so at least you don't have random status ailments giving you grief, and take the chests on the outside while you do this, so you use this as protection from the monsters. Then unleash some heavy fighting in the centre while avoiding those sneaky vines. The gleampool should be toward the top right corner of the ring. -11th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden under a plant There are tons of the ailment heads set up around the paths of this zone, which are fun to try avoiding. You'll also see another two golden chests on the left hand side of the vertical path guarded by a spiked block. You can stop it from getting you by maneuvering a shell in there that should appear toward the top of the path, but I'd make sure you turn the heads the other way, as they can knock you back in there and then your only way out is to fight your way out against the block (which is a pain, trust me). Also watch out for monsters moving the shell out of the way. The drop is infact in one of th chests among the spikes on the right hand side of this same path, a bit further down. Hopefully it is at the beginning, otherwise you have a long job of flailing it back. The Gleampool is hopefully on the horizontal path about mid-top zone. If you're really unlucky, it could go right up the top, which means a long haul avoiding ailments... -12th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: -------- The red armours will start coming at you fast, so move quick. Hammer one of the floating clouds toward them, and hopefully you'll knock them in to an ailment plant that'll stop them in their tracks long enough for you to charge in and finish the job off. Now if you want some extra brownie points, go down and up around the outside of the level, take out the pinochios, and then push a cloud up the path. Knock it upward with your hammer toward the end to take out the plant there, and then flail back the contents of the chests. You'll probably knock yourself back doing this, but you'll be alright, we're almost at a save point, which you should definitely use since things are going to get nastier still. You find the Mana Lord at the end of the Path of Life, the seed glowing before him. He welcomes you and says that the time has come to unleash the power of the seed, and all shall be bathed in a sea of the purest life that is Mana. (insert evil laughter here) He argues with you that there is no such thing as purpose in this world, and that the imposition of humans is meaningless, that your importance is just an illusion. But now it is time for the show, and he's glad you're here to witness it. As he cracks the seed open with the Mana Sword, the Geodes appear once more and halt the new surge of Mana that was about to be unleashed. He can't understand how the geodes managed this... could they be crystals of living memory, thus giving them a will of their own. Could they have come from the future sanctuary? Ludicrous, they can't stop him, he claims. He strikes the seed once again, but it has become immune to the Sword of Mana. A beautiful FMV sequence plays, with Tess standing at the foot of the Mana Tree. "The Sword of Mana is not a mere weapon. Don't you hear the voices of the gems? Life must go on, than that is where one finds true meaning." The Mana Lord now angers, his rage bringing forth the power of thunder around you to announce your imminent demise! Your time has come to face him. - [BOSS7] Boss Battle : The Mana Lord - How on earth did they make this battle this easy... I lost a total of 30HP! His attacks consist of lightning strikes, then he will move in your direction and try to use a sonicwave on you. First off, I found that if I run in his general direction, I'll avoid the lightning strike, get a hit or two with your sword in before he uses his sonicwave, which instead makes him just throw me back in any direction. Lather, rinse and repeat. I defeated him within 30 seconds. Note that if you get hit by lightning once, he'll most likely manage to get another hit in, as it paralyzes you and allows him to aim with another easily. He will admit that you have power, but you are a mere worm against him. You haven't defeated him yet! This time his attacks become more vicious. He will launch lightning balls at you, rush at you landing three or four hit combos, added to the previous attacks he had. But again, the same strategy as before applies, though this time you'll take a bit more damage. But this time he actually went down in 10 seconds flat, and I took 40HP damage. The game registered a total of 38 seconds for this battle. I've since been able to defeat him in 20. Now the battle is over and you have received your ranking, time to see how he reacts to this defeat. He explain the goddes has just descended into this world, and her powers spun out of control as she doesn't know herself yet. This produced an entity that is deliriously intoxicated with its own powers, roaming the planet like an innocent newborn... the force behind the surges is a child: the Scion of Mana. He tells you to give the seed of Mana to the maiden, for she will know what to do with it. He then gives you back the Sword of Mana. When the columns first sprouted, the goddess sent you the sword, she must have wanted you to stop the chaos she could not. She could do no more than that as the Tree was already shackled by the columns. After giving birth to the Lord and the Scion, she struggled to stop them. The Mana Lord knew the will of the goddess to want to stop the columns, but he continued on because that is what he is. That was the reason he was born: to fill the world with Mana. But he now sees that the gems are a fusion of the powers of Mana and the will of the creatures to live, and wonders how far you will get fighting against the Mana that he longed to free. With that he says "I am the Mana Lord! Dear planet, witness my end! Take my life, my child!" and plunges himself into the flows of Mana under the Path of Life. The earth begins to shake, and the powers of Mana grow uncontrollably. You run for it, now in posession of the Sword and Seed of Mana. Mana begins to surge from the foot of the Mana tree and accumulates above the tree to form a portal, revealing the path to another world. The Benevodons then circle the tree and the island, witnessing the rift above the Mana Tree. Back in the village, Moti makes the claim that the Scion of Mana, the source of the chaos, must be on the otherside of the rift. It looks like there's no other option other than to face off against Mana itself. You're not so sure that the Sword will even help, as when you show it to the others, it is covered in black vines... has it forsaken the people? Watts cares not a tait, this is where the real fight begins, when all hope is lost and you can't fall any farther. Moti still has his doubts with the sword in such a state, but Tess assures him that it is blessed with the power to set things right, so as long as our purpose is to set the world right it will lend us its power. Thus, our mission is to enter the rift and stop the chaos, and restore everything to normal... Good game, good game... But before that, it is time to do some maintenance. First off, we want to expand our Gem Frame to the max so time to activate the subquest that will finally allow us to do just that. Chat with the Dudbear at Dud Services. One of their team went to Lorimar to gather info and hasn't come back. He asks if we can go find out what has happenned to him, as he may have had an accident. This will give us the subquest which leads to obtaining an even bigger gem-frame, so you REALLY want to do this! Tess will also give you a new subquest in the Haunted House, and is detailed in the [SUBQUEST] section. You should also at this point complete the last elemental subquest for Shade which will now be available. You will also be able to access a subquest for each individual character. If you are playing with Tumble, talk to Seamoon to access her subquest. For Flick, talk to Watts to access the subquest. Other characters I have yet to find out about. So use these to get your level up above 65, recommended 70. Kit out with the latest gear, and get your gems arranged as you feel fit. The final showdown is ahead. [CHAP8] The Cosmic Rift The final showdown is ahead. We summon Flammie with the drum and fly high above the Mana Tree. He drops us off on what looks like the entrance to a church floating in the sky, and we waste no time in moving forward. Game mechanic-wise, we now have crystals substituting the normal obstacles, large blue orbs substituting the barrels (there are also shinier ones with orbiting smaller orbs that act more like the floating clouds we saw on the Path of Life as they can move over pits). You'll find that purple small crystals will inflict a random status ailment and have spikes underneath so watch out. -1st Zone Gleamdrop: Eliminate all monsters Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal An easy introductory level, hack your way through the monsters and then reveal the Gleampool under the large crystal in the centre of the level. Don't think the level is going to be this easy all the way through though. -2nd Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal Use the blue orbs to the best possible effect to clear a path through the crystals, or you'll be here a long time! There are two silver chests in the top right and bottom left corners. The top right one should have the GleamDrop. The GleamPool should be under a crystal at the middle bottom of the level. Watch out for the flying swords, they're nastier than they used to be. -3rd Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a crystal Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal In my case the GleamPool was under the crystal right next to the starting point, so make sure you uncover that before you go any farther, as this will save you the job of knocking down every other crystal in the level. As for the Gleamdrop it is under the only batch of small crystals I came across around the middle of the level. We also see the return of another old friend, the Chess Knight. If you want extra brownie points, make sure you head up and left from the Gleamdrop, as you'll find a vortex spewing out swords like no tomorrow. Take this down, and head up to receive 3 golden chests. You'll also come across two trapped bronze chests. Defeat these with an arrow. -4th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Now this guy is what I call a monster. Head along the level right until the end, where you'll see the Gleampool guarded by a rather nasty looking armoured man, with a monstruous head on each arm. Shame that he didn't have the time to attack me, he went down in three sowrd strikes. If you're not feeling confident, use the blue orbs to weaken him a bit first, then charge in and finish him off. Take advantage of this save point to check if you've received any beefier weaponry from the monsters in the level, as well as checking that you're happy with the way your gems are arranged now you know the terrain a bit better. -5th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal The enemy to defeat here is the red dragon at the top of the level. Also watch out for sudden appearances of other red dragons when you step on the summoning circles on the ground. For example, just next to where the visible one is. The Gleampool is over to the far top right. We will also see now that there are purple small crystals. These will inflict a random status ailment, as well as reveal spikes. Also if you want to get the far chests, use the floating orbs with the hammer to knock down the crystals (the flying eyes work pretty well too), then flail back the contents. -6th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal The enemies to defeat here are the red Shadow Zero's. The Gleampool is in the top left corner. There is also a golden chest via a passage way full of crystals. To make quick work of this, push the blue orb to the entrance of the passage way and hammer it down there. Otherwise you're going to be in for a long ailment filled hack and slash until you get there. -7th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a crystal Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal The Gleamdrop is under a puple crystal just to the right of where you start, above a silver chest. As for the pool, it should be under the top right corner's crystal, though there are another 4 or 5 along the top that it may vary to. You'll want to get the chests on the isolated islands, as these will increase your chance of a Gold Rank, even though they don't hold anything of great interest to us. Keep the Gleamdrop with you, it's a large level and it is easy to take far too long roaming around afterwards to get the drop to the pool. -8th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- Again our ugly friend is back. We can use the orbs to bash his brains around a bit, or just charge in there, he's a push-over. Take the drop he drops over to the pool on the right and have another well-deserved rest. We'll arrive at a clearing with a pit in the middle, and we'll see three shadows appear around it. They will form into dark clones of the other game characters (so if you're playing as Tumble, they'll form into Flick, Pop and Wanderer). And we get to fight them! By the way, the time you spend looking at them now counts against you, so hit A and have at them. - [BOSS8-1] Boss Battle : Dopplegangers - Each of the characters will adopt a different strategy. Flick will run at you, knock you down, and run away again. Wanderer will try and knock you with his hammer and Pop... well, he just ran away. I don't know Tumbles strategy, but I can give you one for defeating this lot. Best bet is to head for Flick first, as he seems to be the most vicious, then take down Wanderer, and lastly Pop. Wanderer will probably knock you from your feet once, but if you go for him first, you'll find yourself running after Flick once he's hit you once. Time-wise, I had these guys down in under 10 seconds, but the counter on the game counts from the moment you enter the room, so chances are you'll end up with a 1x Bonus no matter what you do. We'll now see an FMV with Tess praying amongst the trees, who will call out our name. Then, as quickly as it started, we're back into the thick of it. -10th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal The pool will be under a crystal near the top middle of the level. As for the drop, there are 4 possible locations, and those are the silver chests guarded by Chess Knights along the passageways in each corner of the level. The most likely is the bottom left, but you want to do all four anyway for the chest bonus. -11th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal The Gleampool is hidden rather obviously under the crystal in the dead centre of the level. The drop is held by the ugly gargoyle creature on the right side of the level. He'll go down pretty quick, though he does have a considerable HP level. There are also another three or four of these guys hidden in the dice- cubes in the centre of the zone, so take them out too. Rememer the golden chest along the top of the level, guarded by two red dragons, even if it is only an impure gem. -12th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden in a chest Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal This zone is long, so you've been warned. Start off going to the bottom right hand corner, then fo the left side to get the Gleamdrop. Also bring with you the floating orb. DON'T use it going up the right hand side of the level around the middle, it's a decoy. Take it up the centre all the time. At the end of the level is where you're going to find both orbs useful. There are some golden chests at the end up passages of crystals, as well as the Gleampool hidden at the end of the far left passage under the big crystal (there's another, so you may have to check that one too). Alternatively, the flail is going to be your best bet. -13th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: -------- Now we are faced with two ugly ducklings, one in the top left, another in the bottom right. To take them out, use the floating orbs to break the crystals guarding them, then pummle them with arrows. The last one to go down will need the drop recovering from him with the flail, so make sure you don't knock him out of your reach (although I don't think this can technically happen, you don't want to risk it anyway). We have arrived once more at a save point. But it's not over yet. -14th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a crystal Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal Ooh, pretty flowers. Don't spend too long looking at them, there's work to do. Anyway, this level is a real pain. The drop is hidden under a crystal that is not too far left of the centre. There are a bunch of dragons in the middle, and you'd think they can't do anything, but they can teleport, so watch out! The Gleampool should be under a large crystal in the top right corner of the zone. -15th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain group Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal Work your way round the outside of the spikes defeating all the purple dragons, as these hold the Gleamdrop, then when you've taken down the last one, make your way into the middle via the crystals on either side and take down the crystal in the centre with the Gleampool. There is also a golden chest to the right that you may want to get, just go down the passage way from the left. Another chest is a silver one on the left hand side of the level, you can get to it by cutting down some flowers. They're harmless so don't worry about using the ball necessarily. -16th Zone Gleamdrop: Hidden by a crystal Gleamwell: Hidden by a crystal The pool is obvious, it is right at the top of the level. The drop on the other hand is a pain to get to. Now, first off you may want to do some exploring over to the right of the level. There are two vortexes producing enemies, which is why you won't encounter many enemies or they'll appear slowly throughout the rest of the level. Behind these are some one or two golden chests. On the far left, there are two chests guarded by large crystals. Use the tomatomen to knock these down by hammering them across. As for the drop, follow a bit further up from these lasts chests and you'll find a whole field of crystals. Again, use enemies to billiard down the crystals and find the drop as quickly as possible, then take it up to the top. -17th Zone Gleamdrop: Defeat a certain monster Gleamwell: -------- You're going to have to walk over some spikes on the left I'm afraid, then use the floating orb to mow down some of the flowers and make a path over to the red dragons and the walking armour holding the drop. Once you've done that, take the drop to the left again, drop it upon hitting the spikes, then flail it back across. Painful, I know, but necessary. This is the quickest method. Otherwise, you could mow down the flowers from this side of the pit, wait for them to approach and use arrows, but this takes far too long. Another save point, use it well. We run out into a clearing, and from beneath the ground plants of all colours begin to sprout, and among them, one last plant with the face of a child that screams out at you. This is the scion of Mana. Another FMV will show us Tess at the foot of the tree once more. "Whose soul wields it decides out fate..." We take up the Mana Sword in hand and ask it to show the weight of our soul, the future of this world. Not that we're going to use it as a weapon itself, but the dramatic gesture had to be there. Thus begins the final battle. - [BOSS8-2] Boss Battle : The Scion of Mana - The beastie has two types of attacks. The first is to make impenetrable bushes sprout in a formation on the ground, leaving us few paths to follow, then it will descend at the top of the level, and try to grab us with vines that come down from above. If these get hold of us, we're paralyzed, and then released with a bang. Not too damaging though. The second attack type is to make mowable flowers sprout, then appear at a certain part of the arena surrounded by various attacking plants, and then disappear shortly afterwards. The strategy? You'll be using your radar a lot. Once the point shows, head for it. If it is at the top, prepare your bow and pummle it with arrows, or use the sword if you get directly beneath it. When the point appears elsewhere, again run toward it, then hack away with your sword as fast as you can before it disappears again. The pattern will generally be 1 2 1 2, so it is easy to follow, just look out for the point on the radar. The beastie went down in 3 minutes on my first attempt while writing this, so you be the judge as to how difficult it is. And now sit back, and relax, watching the ending of the game. [END] The Beginning of a New Legend You hold the sword high above you, and the black vines break free from it, filling the room with the sword's glow. You then dig it into the ground, producing a blinding light that soars toward the heavens and crystalizes. Back in the town Moti comments on its brilliance, while Watts points out that this is how miracles are born. The crystals shatter and begin to rain from the sky, as "Rising Sun" plays once again. At the foot of the Mana Tree, Tess holds the seed which starts to glow mysteriously. The villagers and the spirits celebrate back at the town. Then the cry of a baby... You walk back to the foot of the Mana Tree and join Tess, and finally realize you're back on Illusia. As you celebrate the breaking of the shackles over Illusia, Mana's child appears from the ground, as do a set of Geodes that all become one with the Seed. Treant and Gaia then show up and explain that it is Mana's progeny and shall be entrusted to the daughters of Mana when the Tree falls one day, the descendants of your children's children. The progeny rises skyward and shows the image of the Mana Goddess for a second holding her child, then vanishes. It is then that you realize the Sword of Mana has gone too, and returned to Mana where it belongs. Days later, you find yourself abroad a boat headed away from Illusia. Moti has decreed that Illusia must be sealed off as a sanctuary, for its powers are too great to be handled. The benevodons will keep it out of reach. You look back in sadness as you remember events of the past days... Tess has to stay behind... someone has to do it, and she wants to stay with the Mana Tree. Together they will always watch over you. As you look back, the benevodos form a circle round the island, and then the island disappears. Now it is time to head for Jadd, Moti's homeland, at least for now, with help of the spirits Undine and Jinn. Watts tries to comfort you, as there is a lot to do in the new world. Flick agrees, and Tumble remembers that the Mana Goddess will always watch over them. Wanderer welcomes the dawn of a new world, while Pop says his last goodbye to Tess. And that is how Illusia Isle was sealed off as a sanctuary and sent to a place far beyond the reach of mortals. Even now, maidens attend to the Mana Tree and watch over us all with great affection, that we might enjoy peace and prosperity. Roll Credits! Congratulations, you have completed the main storyline of Children of Mana. Enjoy the music as the names of all those who spent their lives making this game possible fly from the pages of the book. And that is the end of the tale. Did you find it entertaining? What's that? You want to hear more of the tree and the sword? Hohoho... Let this be enough for now. I will gladly tell you another story another day. Now, be a good child and go to sleep. I will pray to the goddess that your dreams be sweet. Fin "Returning to Mana Village." You're now given a new mission... "You may have missed something. Leave no stone unturned as you search." Which means you can play any part of the game again, including the final stage. Also you will now have access to the Final Elemental Subquest, by walking up to the Mana Stone and touching it (assuming that you have completed all other elemental subquests). You will now find also that sometimes standard monsters will appear in certain places and be black instead of their other normal colours. These enemies give you a lot of EXP, so keep an eye out for them. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [GEMS] Gems Gems have the power to alter the escense of living things, and their power can be harnessed by a Gem Frame that is given to you by Watts at the beginning of the game. This frame can be accessed via the "Gems" option in the characters menu. It will show up as a grid in which stones can be placed to make their effects active on your character. The effects of each stone vary, and can both increase your stats and give you additional abilities. The Gem Frame starts off as a 2x2 grid, and can be upgraded 3 times during the game. These are pointed out during the walkthrough, however for quick reference here are the points where you upgrade your Frame. -1st Upgrade (4x2) Talk to Balbo of the Bomb Brothers Store after completing Star Lake of Topple. -2nd Upgrade (cross formation, 2,4,4,2) Talk to Balbo after finishing Brightwood of Wendal. -3rd Upgrade (4x4) After completing the Path of Life, Chat to the Dudbear at Dud Services to access the subquest that will reward you with the Smelting Rock. Give this to the Bomb Brothers so they can make the final expansion. There are 7 types of Gem. -Red Gems - The affect ATK and attack type. There are 42. -Blue Gems - These affect INT, MP, and spell levels. There are 33. -Yellow Gems - These affect MND, DEF and recovery. There are 32. -Purple Gems - These affect Fury and special attacks. There are 15. -Orange Gems - These affect items and EXP gained. There are 7. -Green Gems - These nullify status ailments & spikes. There are 12. -Impure Gems - Impure gems with unstable effects. There are 35. Impure gems will greatly increase some stats or abilities while reducing others. So, for example, they can give you a great boost in strength at a cost of your total HP. There are also two gem complexities as it were. The unrefined gems (for example, those that the Bomb Brothers sell you) and refined gems (which you can get from subquests, for example, and show a much more polished look). You can fuse unrefined gems together at the Bomb Bros store to create new gems with even greater abilities, but you can't fuse refined gems as they are in their most perfect state. You will see in the gem list the gems that can be obtained by fusion, what unrefined gems are needed to make them, and also what price the Bomb Bros will charge for the fusion. Each character also has an extra gem that can only be accessed by them via a subquest (Flick a Red Gem, Pop a Blue, Wanderer a Yellow and Tumble a Purple). Red Gems 01. Crystal of Strength - ATK (weapon attack power) +4 - 1x1 Purchase 750L 02. 03. 04. Feral Soul - ATK +8 - 1x1 Reward from the Bomb Brothers Subquest 05. Steal Hook - Enables theft of items from monsters with a flick of the flail. 1x1 - Purchase 1000L 06. Unstoppable Hook - Enables the flail to penetrate foes with a pull strike. 1x1 - Fusion (3000L, Steal Hook + Crystal of Strength) 07. Light on a Boy - Sword ATK +20, DEF and DEX +10. - 1x1 Flick only subquest. 08. Crystal of Life - Maximum HP +30. - 2x1 Fusion (1000L, 2x Crystal of Strength) 09. Sonic Wave - Cause the third sword slash to unleash a shock wave. - 2x1 Purchase 3000L 10. Multiple swings - Enables up to 3 consecutive swings with the flail. 2x1 Purchase 3000L 11. Triple Shot - Each bow attack fires arros in three directions. 2x1 Purchase 8000L 12. Heavy Swing - Hammer strikes knock monster even farther back. 2x1 Purchase 3000L 13. Double Slash - Deal double damage when striking with a sword. 2x1 Fusion (8000L, Sonic Wave + Crystal of Strength) 14. Double Sonic Wave - Deal double damage with sword. Third strike unleashes shock waves. 2x1 - Fusion (10000L, 2x Sonic Wave) 15. Swift Rotation - Swing your flail faster. 2x1 Fusion (3000L, Multiple swings + Crystal of Strength) 16. Multiple Rotations - Enables up to 3 faster consecutive swings with the flail. 2x1 - Fusion (10000L, 2x Multiple Swings) 17. Strong Arrows - Shots penetrate monsters. 2x1 Fusion (8000L, Triple Shot + Crystal of Strength) 18. Strong Triple Shot - Each bow attack fires penetrating arrows in three directions. 2x1 - Fusion (15000L, 2x Triple Shot) 19. Swift Recovery - Quickes recovery time after hammer swings. 2x1 Fusion (8000L, Heavy Swing + Crystal of Strength) 20. Swift Heavy Swing - Quickens hammer swing recovery time. Knock enemies back. 2x1 - Fusion (4000L, 2x Heavy Swing) 21. Sword Expertise - Sword ATK + 8. Double damage. Third strike unleashes shock waves. 2x1 - Fusion (12000L, Sonic Wave + Mighty Defense) 22. Flail Expertise - Flail ATK +8. Enables up to three flail swings. 2x1 Fusion (12000L, Multiple Swings + Steal Hook) 23. Box Expertise - Bow ATK +8. Fire penetrating arrows in three directions. 2x1 - Fusion (12000L, Triple Shot + String Resonance) 24. Hammer Expertise - Hammer ATK +8. Quickens hammer recovery. Knock enemies back. 2x1 - Fusion (12000L, Heavy Swing + Great Tremor) 25. Soul of the Dragon - ATK +12. 2x1 Subquest "Find the dragon mentioned in the diary" 26. Mighty Defense - Raises maximum number of parries to 10. - 1x2 Purchase 1000L 27. String Resonance - Extends range of bow's music. 1x2 Pruchase 1000L 28. Great Tremor - Extends range of hammer ground strikes. 1x2 Purchase 1000L 29. Total Parry - Nullifies all damage when you parry with your sword. - 1x2 Fusion (5000L, Mighty Defense + Crystal of Strength) 30. Unstoppable Claw - Enables the flail to penetrate foes and steal items with a pull strike. 1x2 - Fusion (4000L, 2x Steal Hook) 31. Lullaby - The bow's music puts enemies to sleep. 1x2 Fusion (6000L, String Resonance + Crystal of Strength) 32. Requiem - Extends range of bow's music and puts foes to sleep. 1x2 Fusion (8000L, 2x String Resonance) 33. Meteor Shock Wave - Hammer ground strikes stun nearby monsters. 1x2 Fusion (6000L, Great Tremor + Crystal of Strength) 34. Sword Training - ATK +10 when striking with a sword. - 1x2 Dud Services job reward 35. Flail Training - ATK +10 when striking with a flail. - 1x2 Dud Services job reward 36. Bow Training - ATK +10 when shooting a bow. - 1x2 Dud Services job reward 37. Hammer Training - ATK +10 when striking with a hammer. - 1x2 Dud Services job reward 38. Fountain of Life - Raises maximum HP by 50. 1x2 Dud Services reward. 39. Flawless Parry - Raises maximum no. of parries to 10. Nullifies all damage.- 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Mighty Defense x2) 40. Wide Shock Wave - Hammer ground strikes gain range and stun nearby foes. 2x2 - Fusion (8000L, 2x Great Tremor) 41. Might of Gemmas - ATK + 20. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Multiple Swings + Sonic Wave, other combinations of red gems) 42. Soul of the Gemma - ATK +25, DEF + 10. 3x2 Fusion (10000L, Multiple Seings + Mighty Defense, other combos of red gems) 43. Pride of Gemmas - ATK +10, DEF +25. 3x2 Fusion (10000L, Steal Hook + Mighty Defence, other red gems combos) Blue Gems 01. Crystal of Lore - INT (spell damage) +4 - 1x1 Purchase 750L 02. 03. 04. 05. Salamander's Favor - Salamander's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 5000L 06. Undine's Favor - Undine's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 5000L 07. Gnome's Favor - Gnome's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 4000L 08. Jinn's Favor - Jinn's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 4000L 09. Pide of the Spirits - All elemental spells reach level 2. 2x1 Fusion (12000L, 2x 4000L Elemental favors) 10. Magic Crystal - Raises max MP by 30 - 1x2 Fusion (1000L, 2x Crystal of Lore 11. Dryad's Favor - Dryad's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 5000L 12. Luna's Favor - Luna's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 5000L 13. Wisp's Favor - Wisp's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 4000L 14. Shade's Favor - Shade's spells reach level 2. - 2x1 Purchase 4000L 15. Might of the Spirits - All elemental sells reach level 2. 2x1 Fusion (12000L, 2x 5000L Elemental Favor) 16. Bond of Salamander - Salamander's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Salamander's Favor) 17. Zeal of Salamander - Salamander's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Salamander's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 18. Bond of Undine - Undine's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Undine's Favor) 19. Zeal of Undine - Undine's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Undine's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 20. Bond of Gnome - Gnome's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Gnome's Favor) 21. Zeal of Gnome - Gnome's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Gnome's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 22. Bond of Jinn - Jinn's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Jinn's Favor) 23. Zeal of Jinn - Jinn's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Jinn's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 24. Bond of Dryad - Dryad's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Dryad's Favor) 25. Zeal of Dryad - Dryad's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Dryad's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 26. Bond of Luna - Luna's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Luna's Favor) 27. Zeal of Luna - Luna's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Luna's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 28. Bond of Wisp - Wisp's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Wisp's Favor) 29. Zeal of Wisp - Wisp's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Wisp's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 30. Bond of Shade - Shade's spells reach level 3. 2x2 Fusion (11000L, 2x Shade's Favor) 31. Zeal of Shade - Shade's spells consume 40% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (8000L, Shade's Favor + Crystal of Lore) 32. Soul of the Spirits - All elemental spells consume 10% less MP. 2x2 Fusion (4000L, a 4000L Elemental favor + a 5000L Elemental favor) 33. Zeal of the Spirits - All elemental spells consume 30% less MP. 2x2 Gold Rank on Path of Life level. 34. Bond of the Spirits - All elemental spell reach level 2. 2x2 Gold Rank on Ruins of Illusia level. Yellow Gems 01. Crystal of Defense - DEF (physical defense) +4 - 1x1 Purchase 750L 02. Crystal of Thought - MND (magic defense) +4 - 1x1 Purchase 750L 03. 04. 05. Millennicite - Restores 2 MP every 3 seconds. 1x1 Subquest "Find the Mysterious Stone for Tess" 06. Herbal Miracle - The effects of pep root aply to all party members. 1x1 Purchase 2000L 07. Stardust Miracle - The effects of stardust herb apply to all party members - 1x1 - Purchase 1000L 08. 09. Lore of Healers - Doubles effects of HP recovery items. 2x1 Purchase 6000L 10. Courage to Endure - Automatically use stardust herb when needed. 2x1 Fusion (3000L, 2x Stardust Miracle) 11. Lore of Mages - Doubles the effects of MP recovery items. 1x2 Purchase 6000L 12. Courage to Fight - Automatically use pep root when needed. 1x2 Fusion (4000L, 2x Herbal Miracle) 13. Lore of Angels - Restores to full HP anyone you revive with an angel's grail. 1x2 - Purchase 12000L 14. Courage to Prevail - Automatically use restorative items when needed. 1x2 Fusion (4000L, Herbal Miracle + Stardust Miracle) 15. Healer's Miracle - The effects of HP recovery items apply to all party members. 1x2 - Fusion (3000L, Lore of Healers + Herbal/Stardust Miracle) 16. Lore of Warlocks - Quintuples the effects of MP recovery items. 1x2 Fusion (5000L, 2x Lore of Mages) 17. Mage's Miracle - The effects of MP recovery ites apply to all party members. 1x2 - Fusion (3000L, Lore of Mages + Herbal/Stardust Miracle) 18. Angel's Miracle - The effects of angel's grail apply to all party members. 1x2 - Fusion (6000L, Lore of Angels + Herbal/Stardust Miracle) 19. Druid's Miracle - Effects of HP and MP recovery items apply to all party members. 1x2 - Fusion (11000L, Stardust Miracle + Crystal of Thought) 20. Cantrip - Restores 2 MP every 3 seconds. 2x2 Fusion (10000L, Lore of Mages + Crystal of Defense) 21. Meditation - Restores 2HP every 3 seconds. 2x2 Fusion (10000L, Lore of Healers + Crystal of Defense) 22. Lore of Alchemists - Quintuples the effects of HP recovery items. 2x2 Fusion (30000L, 2x Lore of Healers) 23. Lore of Druids - Doubles the effect of HP and MP recovery items. 2x2 Fusion (5000L, Lore of Mages + Lore of Healers) 24. Ultimate Miracle - The effects of all recoery items apply to all party members. 2x2 - Fusion (6000L, Stardust Miracle + Crystal of Defense) 25. Deep Meditation - Restores 4 HP every 3 seconds. 3x2 Fusion (17000L, Lore of Healers + Crystal of Thought) 26. Powerful Cantrip - Restores 4 MP every 3 seconds. 2x2 Fusion (10000L, Lore of Mages + Crystal of Thought) 27. Blessing - Restores 3 HP and MP every 3 seconds. 3x2 Fusion (30000L, Lore of Angels + Crystal of Defense) 28. Mystic Blessing - Restores 6 HP and 6 MP every 3 seconds. 3x2 Complete all Elemental Sidequests, the game, and then the final subquest. 29. Courage to Return - Automatically uses an angel's grail when your HP reaches zero. - 3x2 Fusion (5000L, 2x Crystal of Thought, or Thought + Defense) 30. 31. Glorious Blessing - Restores 6 HP and MP every 3 seconds. 3x3 Fusion (30000L, Lore of Angels + Crystal of Thought) 32. Alchemist's Miracle - Doubles the effect of party's HP recovery items. 3x3 Fusion (6000L, Lore of Healers + Lore of Angels) 33. Warlock's Miracle - Doubles the effect of party's MP recovery items. 3x3 Fusion (6000L, Lore of Angels + Lore of Mages) Purple Gems 01. Light on a Maiden - Bow ATK +20, INT +10, and DEX +10. 1x1 Tumble's Subquest from Seamoon after Path of Life. 02. Glittering Crystal - DEX (critical hit probability +10 - 1x1 Fusion (1000L, Crystal of Strength + Crystal of Lore) 03. 04. Cruel Sword - When you are in Fury, your focused sword attacks reach level 2. 1x1 - Gold Rank Reward from Mana Tower 05. Cruel Flail - When you are in Fury, your focused flail attacks reach level 2. 1x1 - Gold Rank Reward from Star Lake 06. Cruel Bow - When you are in Fury, your focused bow attacks reach level 2. 1x1 - Gold Rank Reward from Fiery Sands 07. Cruel Hammer - When you are in Fury, your focused hammer attacks reach level 2. 1x1 - Gold Rank Reward from Ice Citadel 08. Fury Reels - Enables Fury Reels when you enter Fury. - 2x1 Gift from Bomb Brothers after first Mission. 09. Ruthless Sword - When you are in Fury, your focused sword attacks reach level 3. 2x1 - Fusion (4000L, An Elemental Favor + Crystal of Strength or other red gems) 10. Ruthless Flail - When you are in Fury, your focused flail attacks reach level 3. 2x1 - Fusion (4000L, An Elemental Favor + Crystal of Strength or other red gems) 11. Ruthless Bow - When you are in Fury, your focused bow attacks reach level 3. 2x1 - Fusion (4000L, An Elemental Favor + String Resonance or other red gems) 12. Ruthless Hammer - When you are in Fury, your focused hammer attacks reach level 3. 2x1 - Fusion (3000L, An Elemental Favor + Great Tremor/Heavy Swing) 13. Morale Boost - Makes the Fury gauge fill faster. 1x2 Fusion (4000L, Salamander's Favor + some weapon affecting red gems) 14. Spirit of the Hero - Doubles duration of Fury. - 2x2 Fusion (5000L, Mighty Defense + Crystal of Lore) 15. 16. Double Fury - Doubles experience earned while you are in Fury. 3x2 Orange Gems 01. Lore of Thieves - Makes fake treasure chests appear as monsters on radar. 1x1 - Fusion (1000L, Crystal of Defense + Crystal of Strength) 02. Drain Life - Converts 3% of damage inflicted on monsters into HP. 2x1 Fusion (30000L, Lore of Healers + weapon effect Red Gem (ie String Reson.)) 03. Drain Will - Converts 3% of damage inflicted on monsters into MP. 1x2 Fusion (15000L, Lore of Mages + weapon effect red gem (ie Sonic Wave)) 04. Drain Soul - Converts 3% of damage inflicted on monsters into HP and MP. 2x1 - Fusion (35000L, Lore of Angels + weapon effect Red Gem (ie TripShot) 05. Heart of Progress - Inreases experience gain by 50% - 2x2 Fusion (10000L, Crystal of Strength + Crystal of Thought, Mighty Defense + Crystal of Defense or Crystal of Thought) 06. Lore of Niccolos - Adds 10% bonus to lucre gained. 2x2 Fusion (4000L, Stardust Miracle + Mighty Defense) 07. Double Drop - Double the chance that monsters will drop items and lucre. 2x2 - Fusion (5000L, A Miracle gem + Crystal of Strength) Green Gems 01. Flame's Shelter - Prevents you from catching fire. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Salamanders Favor + Stardust Miracle) 02. Water's Shelter - Prevents you from being turned into a snowman. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Undine's Favor + Stardust Miracle) 03. Earth's Shelter - Prevents you from being disarmed. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Gnome's Favor + Stardust Miracle) 04. Wind's Shelter - Prevents you from being paralyzed. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Jinn's Favor + Stardust Miracle) 05. Forest's Shelter - Prevents you from being put to sleep. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Dryad's Favor + Stardust Miracle) 06. Moon's Shelter - Prevents you from being confused. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Luna's Favor + Stardust Miracle) 07. Light's Shelter - Prevents you from being stunned. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Wisp's Favor + Stardust Miracle) 08. Shadow's Shelter - Prevents you from being blinded. 2x1 Fusion (4000L, Shade's Favor + Stardust Miracle) 09. Purity's Shelter - Prevents you from being poisoned - 1x2 Fusion (8000L, Crystal of Defense + Crystal of Lore) 10. Virtue of Balance - Enables steady travel over sand and ice. 2x2 Fusion (6000L, An Elemental Favor + Crystal of Thought) 11. Virtue of Safety - Enables safe travel over spikes. 2x2 Fusion (6000L, An Elemental Favor + Crystal of Defense) 12. Ultimate Protection - Prevents all ailments - 3x2 Fusion (12000L, Crystal of Lore + Crustal of Thought) Impure Gems (note, all are found either in chests, dropped by enemies, Dud Services reward) 01. 02. Mind's Thirst - Converts 3% of damage inflicted on monsters into MP. INT -10. 1x1 03. Soul's Thirst - Converts 3% of damage inflicted into MP and MP. ATK -10, INT -10. 1x1 04. Meager Resistance - Automatically uses stardust herb. Increases risk of ailments. - 1x1 05. Meager Courage - Autmaically use pep root. Increases risk of ailments. 1x1 06. Chivalry - DEF +20, MND -20. 1x1 07. Asceticism - MND +20, DEF -20. 1x1 08. 09. Planted Feet - Enables steady travel over sand and ice. Increases risk of ailments. 2x1 10. Berserking - ATK +15, DEL -10 - 2x1 11. Wizardry - INT +15, MND -10. 2x1 12. Clouded Vivicite - Raises maximum HP by 50. DEF -10. 2x1 13. Clouded Magicite - Raises maximum MP by 30. MND -5. 2x1 14. Evil Spirits' Favor - All elemental spells reach level 2. ATK -10 2x1 15. Cautious Feet - Enables steady travel over spikes. Increases risk of ailments. 1x2 16. Meager Hope - Automatically use angel's grail, but you will catch on fire.1x2 17. Uneasy Meditation - Restores 3 HP every 3 seconds. DEX -5. 2x2 18. Budding Warlock - Doubles effect of MP recovery items. Increases risk of ailments. 2x2 19. Budding Alchemist - Doubles effect of HP recovery items. Increases risk of ailments. 2x2 20. Courage to Learn - Increases experience gain by 75%. DEF -20. 2x2 21. Fire & Water Flaw - Raises risk of burning & freezing. Lowers risk of others. 2x2 22. Earth & Wind Flaw - Raises risk of paralysis & disarmament. Lowers risk of others. 2x2 23. Moon & Wood Flaw - Raises risk of confusion & sleep. Lowers risk of others. 2x2 24. Light & Dark Flaw - Raises risk of stunning & blindness. Lowers risk of others. 2x2 25. Poison Flaw - Raises risk of poison. Lowers risk of all other ailments. 2x2 26. 27. Academia - INT and MND +12. ATK and DEF -5. 2x2 28. Barbarism - ATK and DEF +12. INT and MND -5. 2x2 29. 30. Bond of Demons - All elemental magic reaches level 3. ATK -50. 2x2 31. Zeal of Demons - All elemental spells consume 30% less MP. ATK -50. 2x2 32. 33. 34. 35. Witch's Blessing - Restores 10HP and 10MP every 2 seconds. ATK and INT -50. 3x3. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [SUBQUESTS] Subquests Aside from the Dud Servies subquests, there are a series of subquests which you obtain by either talking to the villagers or one of the 16 elemental spirits (there are eight elementals, two instances of each) at certain points in the game, generally after the area where the subquest is held has been cleared during the game. If you miss any subquests as you go through, don't worry, just talk to the characters later in the game and you can catch up with them. However, in the same way that you can't have more than one Dud Services subquest running, you can't have more than one character subquests running either. If you have one already and are offered another, turn it down, you can always talk to them after you've completed the first and they will offer you the quest again. With regards to elemental subquests, you will find these available after certain chapters. To obtain them, equip the elemental in question, and talk to one of the elemental spirits of that type in the town. So, for example, to visit the Benevodon of Fire, talk to Tess or Nana, equip Salamando, then go to Moti's house and talk to Salamando there. - Rid the Mana Tower of monsters - Client: Talk to Tess after finishing the first mission Area: Mana Tower Zones: 4 Reward: Accessory - Moonstone Tiara Details: Tess is unable to go and pray at the Mana Tower since the light incident, so she asks you to clear out the monsters so she can go pray again. This mission will consist of going through the Mana Tower defeating all monsters (this is the condition for revealing the GleamDrop to advance). - Retrieve the millionaire's watch - Client: Millionaire Area: Mana Tower Zones: 4 Reward: 300L Details: Millionaire's shop was broken into by a Burglar last night and stole all the money from the safe and a watch. He's not worried about the money, but the watch is a different matter! So head for the Mana Tower and fight your way through until the last zone, hich should be full of Shadow Zero's. Take them all down and finally the one that stole the watch will run away after your savepoint, leaving the watch behind. Take it back to Millionaire. It belonged to a friend of his who died in the cataclysm, so even though it's material value is null, the memories are priceless. The reward is a bit of a letdown though. - Find the Stone Beast - Client: The Bomb Brothers Area: Star Lake Zones: 4 Reward: Red Gem - Feral Soul Details: Balbo has a revelation regarding their recent study of gems and thinks that a recently unearthed stone creature at Star Lake could help them make an important discovery. Once retrieved, they will begin their experiment and amake a gem they've never seen before. As a reward, you will receive the gem. - Find Panza - Client: Watts Area: Star Lake Zones: 7 Reward: Armour - Quipao (Tumble) Details: Panza, Watts' assistant, has gone missing, and Watts thinks it might be to do with a scolding that he gave him recently. To find out where he's headed, talk to Granny Hannah in the Mermaid, and she'll tell you he was asking about how to get to Topple. Star Lake it is then! This is a great subquest to level up with (I gained nearly 3 whole levels here alone). You'll find Panza after 7 zones of bonecrunching madness. He didn't run away after all, he came to rake some glowmoss, which only grows here in this cave. It's Watt's favourite dish. As you explain how worried Watt's is he appears and scolds Panza for coming alone. Turns out Panza wanted to give it to Watts as a present. - Find the Dragon mentioned in the Diary - Client: Tess Area: Star Lake Zones: 4 Reward: Dragon Scale -> Red Gem "Soul of the Dragon" Details: After readin the Adventurer's Log I you're compelled to investigate. Tess tell you that if you can't get it out of your head, you'll just have to go. After four zones of rather painstaking monster-bludgeoning, you get to a cave where the dragon's suppossed to be. But none is to be found. You return to the Archives Building and explain to Tess that it was a fake after all. She disagrees, an hands over a Dragon Scale she found after you left, and that Moti would like you to have. It belonged to a friend of his. If you take this scale to the Bomb Brothers they'll make it into the gem "Soul of the Dragon" - Retrieve rare plant - Client: Millionaire Area: Fiery Sands Zones: 7 Reward: 4000L minus 2000L Details: Millionaire has an idea for making lots of cash, so he wants you to go and collect a rare plant that only grows in the Fiery Sands of Jadd. After 7 zones of quicksand madness, you find the plant and take it back to Millionaire. He'll give you 4000L for the plant, but then charges you 2000L for the moneymaking idea. - Find the cockatrice feather with Tess - Client: Tess Area: Fiery Sands Zones: 7 Reward: Misc Item - Traveller's Charm Details: Tess wants a cockatrice feather, and so would like you to take her to Jadd with you. She doesn't let on what the feather is for though, but she'll tell you when you find it. So off you go. Don't worry, you don't have to protect her through the zones from monsters, your alone during gameplay. The last zone will be full of monsters; after eliminating them all, Tess will find a pink cockatrice feather, but still won't tell what it's for. You both head back to the archive house, where Tess turns the feather in to a good-luck charm, in accordance with a book she found on Jaddian traditions and customs, that ensures the safe return of the traveller wearing one half of it. She gives you one half and keeps the counterpart. - Search for the Mysterious Stone - Client: Tess Area: Ice Citadel of Lorimar Zones: 7 Reward: Yellow Gem - Millennicite Details: You find Tess in the archive room with bloodshot eyes from poring over research. She's been reading "A Treatise on Mana, Volume I" that her parents authored, and is the only surviving book of theirs. She came to Illusia to complete their research. One section in particular called "The Stone of Mana" caught her eye, and she wants to find out if the stone they mention was a gem or not. She asks you to find out. The Stone is kept in the castle at Lorimar. After battling through the enemies, we'll find the stone in a chest in a far off room of the castle. The stone looks no different to a gem. We take it back to Tess who explains that shamans once used it to pray for devine intervention. As they did so the stone became imbued with more and more Mana. But Tess won't be doing experiments, so gives you the gem to try. - Toss Away Seamoon's Earring - Client: Seamoon Area: Star Lake of Topple Zones: 9 Reward: Armour - Bunny Dress (Tumble) Details: Seamoon wants you to take a coral earring from her and cast it into the lake deep in Topple. As for why she wants you to do this, she merely says she has a checkered past. After completing the zones you stand before a lake deep in the cave and throw the earring in. A voice says "Farewell". Confused you head back to see Seamoon, who offers to explain her chekered past, but you don't want to pry. You mention the voice saying farewell, which seems to startle Seamoon slightly. After you leave, Seamoon says "Goodbye, love..." - Find the Missing Dudbear - Client: Dudbear of Dud Services (Chat after Path of Life) Area: Ice Citadel of Lorimar Zones: 10 Reward: Shiney Rock, Duddish Dictionary Details: A dudbear has gone missing in Lorimar, at the Ice Citadel, and they are worried that he's had an accident. Time to go find him. After 10 painstaking levels in the Ice Citadel, you arrive at a room with a shovel in the middle. It must belong to a dudbear. You decide to take the Shovel back to Dud Services and report your findings. It turns out the clumsy dudbear has already returned by himself. The Formerly Missing Dudbear apologizes for making you worry and the trouble you had to go to, and mentiones he lost his shovel, which you return, much to his delight. He gives you a Shiny Rock and a Duddish Dictionary. If you now take the Shiny Rock to the Bomb Brothers, they'll recognize it as the legendary Smelting Rock, with which they can increase your gem frame to 4x4! As if you weren't unstoppable already, now you get to be even more so! - Find the Mysterious Flowers - Client: Tess (Chat after Path of Life) Area: Fiery Sands of Jadd Zones: 10 Reward: Weapon - Elven Bow (Tumble) Details: Tess hasn't found anything useful about the current issue at hand but she has found a new and interesting journal by the same person who wrote the one about the Dragon at Topple. The Journal explains that he was returning to Jadd to tend unfinished business, and saw some multicoloured flowers that only grow on the far side of Jadd after a long jounrey through the desert. You offer to go and pick some for Tess, as they may still be in bloom. You head for Jadd, fight your way through the desert, but find no flowers at the end of it all. Just as you are about to give up, you see something shining on the ground. They are seeds! You go back and explain to Tess you didn't find anything, and she hands over another Journal she found just after you left. The traveller returned to look for the flowers, but none remained after the cataclysm. He made it his quest to form an investigative team to head for Illusia and research the Mana Tree, and his friend from Ishe supports the idea. After reading it you suspect that the journal's author is Mayor Moti, so go and Chat to him. He says that the flowers sparkled with all the hues of the rainbow. You give him the seeds you found, and he exclaims that these must be the seeds for those flowers, and that if these take root the desert could bear the flowers once more, so he'll keep them and have Professor Bomb overlook their growth. As a reward you receive a weapon from Moti for your efforts. -- Character Specific Subquests -- - Flick says goodbye - Client: Watts (after the Path of Life, Flick only) Area: Brightwood of Wendal Zones: 10 Reward: Red Gem - Light on a Boy Details: You talk to Watts about your family, and reflect on how your sister and father would always make fun of you , and you would go crying to your mother. Flick feels sad anout being such a crybaby when he was little, but Watts comforst him by reminding him of what a hero he has turned in to now, and how that is what is important. Flick feels however that he should say goodbye to his family in Brightwood. You arrive at a clearing in Brightwood and call out to your family. The Toy Horse begins to glow and the voices of your family tell you how proud they are of you for all you are doing. The Toy Horse then gathers their wills together and embodies them in a new Red Gem. You thank them and leave. - Tumble says goodbye - Client: Seamoon (after the Path of Life, Tumble only) Area: Star Lake of Topple Zones: 10 Reward: Purple Gem - Light on a Maiden Details: You ask Seamoon if she knew Tumble's mother, which she did, and they practically grew up together. You hand her the hairpin that you obtained from the Shadows at the end of the Ruins Chapter and ask her to have a look at it. It was Tumble's mother's favourite hairpin, which you thought to be lost in the fire ten years ago. So it really was her shadow... Tumble says this hairpin was handed down to her on her fifth birthday, and she always wanted to become a dancer, but her father didn't approve. She kept persisting and improving trying to become like her mother. Seamoon comments that you must be tired, running away into the memories of the past. It's ten years since Seamoon brought Tumble to Illusia, she knows what you're thinking, trying to please everyone around you. For a second, Tumble thinks she can hear her mother calling, and she decides to go and say goodbye over in Topple. You arrive at a clearing in Topple, and call out to your family, saying you can't look back anymore. You ask to hear them just one more time. The hairpin emerges from your pocket, and fills the cave with light. The voice of your father comments on how you've grown, and you make him proud. You mother reminds you that you must take the world down its proper path. Toby says goodbye, and tells you to take care. With that the hairpin gather together the will of your family and embodies it in a new purple gem. You thank your family and leave. -- Benevodon Elemental Subquests -- - The Benevodon of Fire - Client: Salamando (in Moti's house after Chapter 3) Area: Fiery Sands of Jadd Zones: 7 Reward: Flammalex Details: Salamando suggests that you visit Xan Bie, the benevodon of fire, to learn more about how to quell the collumns of Mana. After 6 zones, you encounter a rather large ogre in the middle of a quicksand pit, menacingly and precariously flinging about a mace. You should be able to take him out with relative ease. Then you'll encounter Xan Bie, hovering over the pit where you defeated the enemy that contained him previously. You ask him about what is happenning to the world. You have three choices as to what to ask him about. These are detailed in the [BENEVODON] section. After the explanation, he will leave you Flammalex and fly off again. - The Benevodon of Water - Client: Undine (nearest the Mana Stone after Chapter 4) Area: Star Lake Zones: 7 Reward: Aqualex Details: Undine thinks that Fiegmund the Great, the benevodon of water, could help you clear up some details on what's going on with the world. Again, the 7th zone is guarded this time by a cyclops. Fiegmund will then appear and you will enquire again about a subject detailed in [BENEVODON]. After the explanation, you will be left with Aqualex, and return to the Mana Village. - The Benevodon of Earth - Client: Gnome (near town entrance after Chapter 4) Area: Ice Citadel of Lorimar Zones: 7 Reward: Terralex Details: Gnome suggests asking Land Umber the Unyielding for information. You'll find him at Lorimar, after another 6 painstaking zones and a cyclops. Land Umber will appear in what is so far the most stately room in the citadel to give us another tidbit of information. He will then leave behind Terralex for you to take back to the Mana Village. - The Benevodon of Wind - Client: Jinn (Silver Mermaid balcony after Chapter 1) Area: Ice Citadel of Lorimar Zones: 4 Reward: Ventilex Details: Jinn recommends you talk to Dangaard the Lofty, benevodon of wind, who dwells inside the Mana Tower. This subquest is shorter than other ones, and you encounter the cyclops on the 4th zone. You reach the top of the Mana Tower and Dangaard appears to you. After some chitchat, Ventilex is yours. - The Benevodon of Wood - Client: Dryad (to the right of Moti's door after Chapter 5) Area: Brightwood of Wendel. Zones: 7 Reward: Arborelex Details: Dryad thinks Mispolm the Ageless, the benevodon of wood, could help you on your quest. You'll find him in Brightwood, after 6 zones of sheer frustration (I hate Brightwood for subquests), 4 walking trees and a cyclops. Learn some more and add Arborelex to your collection. - The Benevodon of Moon - Client: Luna (in Moti's house after Chapter 3) Area: Mana Tower Zones: 7 Reward: Lunalex Details: Luna suggests talking to Dolan the Celestial in the Mana Tower for some advice on how to stop the surges. 7 zones later, and you'll know, and you'll receive Lunalex. - The Benevodon of Light - Client: Wisp (to the left of the Mana Stone after Chapter 6) Area: Ruins Zones: 10 Reward: Lustrilex Details: Wisp suggests talking to Lightgazer the Luminous at the Ruins of Illusia. After 9 painful levels, you reach another ogre who's asking for a beating. Then you will meet Lightgazer, a big floating eye. After learning more from him, you will receive Lustrilex and return to the village. - The Benevodon of Shadow - Client: Shade (to the right of the Mana Stone after Chapter 7) Area: Path of Life Zones: 10 Reward: Umbralex Details: As the final battle is at hand, Shade reflects that maybe Zable Fahr the Nebulous. And after 10 REALLY painful zones through the Path of Life you finally reach him. And I thought that the subquests in Brightwood were a pain... You are rewarded with Umbralex, and return to the village. - Final Elemental Subquest - Client: Mana Stone (after completing the game's main storyline) Area: Cosmic Rift Zones: 17 Reward: Yellow Gem - Mystic Blessing Details: You approach the Mana Stone and notice a light emanating from it. You decide to have a look and check whether it is another anomaly, and are immediately transported to the Cosmic Rift. Now, if you thought that fighting one ogre at the end of a level was nifty, wait 'til you see this. The five last zones are literally FILLED with DOZENS of cyclops! And they all give you lots of EXP, so if you have the chance to put in a Heart of Progress, by all means do so! You'll reach an inner chamber within the cosmic rift, where all the Benevodos are united and flying around. They say you have come far, and you wield power unlike any other. And so they shall reward you. With that they hand you a Yellow Gem. They bid you farewell, and will remember you. With that you are transported back to the Mana Village. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [BENEVODON] The Elemental Knowledge At the end of each Benevodon subquest, you will have a chance to talk to the Benevodon in question. You will be offered three choices as to what to ask the Benevodon about. The information provided for each of these is detailed below. Note, you will start with the initial three, and these will then be substituted for new choices as you complete more subquests. "The Sword of Mana" The Sword of Mana was created by the Mana Goddess and has the power to turn right all that went wrong. But you cannot wield its power yet, you need the help of another. "Gems" They are new to the benevodos, and they don't know what they are. What they do know is that the surge may have brought them forth, adn they are not just containers of Mana powers. They appear to have a powerful will, containing the wishes of mankind. Perhaps they have some connection with people long lost. "The Cataclysm" The cataclysm rose from the desires of mortals bringing destruction. Then one was chosen to receive the Sword and he delivered the world from the brink of peril. That was then, now the world faces a new menace. "The Mana Goddess" Where is she? To that not even he knows the answer. Perhaps her power is weak, perhaps chaos veils her, it can't be told. "The Mana Lord" He was born of the goddess' will and is consumed with the desire to fill the world with Mana. All mortal life to him is meaningless. You must stop chaos before all is lost. "The Mana Surge" Sadly, they don't know how to stop it, or they woul have rushed to do so, for the benevodons are the wardens of the world. You may be closer to finding the answer. "Space-Time Distortion" The surging mana has torn time from space bringing forth the future. A thousand years from now the tree will wither and the sanctuary will fall. But the future is not yet set. You may yet escape by changing your path. "The Family's Shadows" The dead return to Mana, but the surge stirred them from their sleep. The restless dead lost their home and wandered aimlessly, and the Mana Lord devised a way to control them. But it was not him who found your family, the dead are drawn toward those who long for them. (COMPLETE)"The Scion of Mana" Unknown, as you can only ask a total of 8 items. This one was left unasked by me, so I have to wait until I get through again to complete. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [OST] The Soundtrack - Breath of Mana The soundtrack for Children of Mana is available for purchase from the japanese iTunes Store. The tracklist follows, with the name of the composers for each track, and also a description of where in the game you'll hear the tune. CD1 1. Breath of MANA-for the Glory - Kenji Ito This track plays during the introductory full motion video of the game. 2. Rising Sun - Kenji Ito This is Kenji Ito's signature Mana tune, which has carried down all the way from Final Fantasy Adventure, the first Seiken Densetsu game (this was not present in 2 and 3 as the composer for those games was Hiroki Kikuta). This song plays on the Press Start screen. 3. The Ensemble of Children - Masaharu Iwata This tune plays during the savegame selection screen, and character selection screens. 4. Tale of the Distant Sun - Kenji Ito This tune plays upon starting a new game, during the story introduction. 5. Longing - Kenji Ito Probably the song you will hear the most of during the game, this is the theme that plays when you are in the Mana Village on Illusia Isle. 6. Creeping Pulsation - Masaharu Iwata When the forces of evl are afoot, and you are deciding what to do with your fellow villagers, this theme will play. 7. Emergency - Takayuki Aihara Action needs to be taken now, things are going seriously pear shaped (for example, Nana brings the news of the Mana Tower being overtaken by light and Tess is inside). 8. Beyond the Blue Sky - Kenji Ito The overworld theme when travelling from the village, or riding upn the back of Flammie. 9. Tower of the Flickering Prayer - Masaharu Iwata The theme played at the Mana Tower during missions and subquests. 10. Peaceful Underground Lake - Masaharu Iwata The theme played at the Star Lake in Topple during missions and subquests. 11. Storm of the Red Sand - Masaharu Iwata The theme played at the Fiery Sands of Jadd during missions and subquests. 12. Frozen Majesty - Masaharu Iwata The theme played at the Ice Citadel of Lorimar during missions and subquests. 13. Monster of the Forest - Takayuki Aihara The theme played at the Brightwood forest of Wendal during missions and subquests. (COMPLETE)14. The Wind Sings Loudly - Takayuki Aihara 15. King of Chaos - Takayuki Aihara The Mana Lord's theme, plays when he confronts the players with new revelations of his plan and defiances. 16. The Blocking Menace - Kenji Ito The theme that plays when a boss appears and has its barrier raised, ready for battle. 17. Evil Beast - Masaharu Iwata The battle theme when fighting against a Malevodon. 18. Triumphant Return - Kenji Ito The theme that plays when you complete 4 zone of a mission and are saving/equiping, or you complete a mission or subquest in its totality. 19. The Desire Vanishes - Kenji Ito The theme that plays should you perish during a mission or subquest. CD2 1. Together With Comrade-in-Arms - Takayuki Aihara Theme played in the menus for MultiPlayer. 2. Singing Voice of Light - Masaharu Iwata The theme that plays when a malevodon is reborn as two benevodos, or Treant and Gaia appear. 3. Challenge - Kenji Ito The theme that plays when a heroic gesture in the storyline is made, and the odds are overcome to fight forth and vanquish evil. 4. The Ruined Ground - Takayuki Aihara The theme played during missions and subquests for the area Ruins, on Isle Illusia. 5. Fate - Takayuki Aihara The theme played during missions and subquests for the Path of Life. 6. Rut of the Crystal - Takayuki Aihara Theme that plays during missions and subquests for the Cosmic Rift. 7. The Shaking Earth - Masaharu Iwata Theme that plays when the pillars of Mana reveal themselves. 8. The Sky's Lamentation - Takayuki Aihara Theme when the forces of evil gain a step in their favour. 9. Grasslands of Eternity - Kenji Ito 10. Trial - Takayuki Aihara Major Boss Battle theme against one of the Mana Lord's non-Malevodon creatures. 11. The Thunder Emperor's Aloofness - Kenji Ito Boss Battle against the Mana Lord. 12. Infant of Mana - Kenji Ito Final Battle against the Scion of Mana. 13. The Desire Not Forgotten - Kenji Ito Plays at the end of the Ruins stage when shadows of the past appear before the player. 14. The Beginning of a New Legend - Kenji Ito The Ending Theme for the game, plays as the credits roll.
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