~B
for the Sony Playstation by
Zhou Tai An (kain@pacific.net.sg)
Version 1.0
******
As always, this document is to be used for nothing besides non-profit.
This FAQ is on "probational status" - I haven't decided whether I like the
game enough to put in a lot of effort in it, but no one else has written one
yet. So things are fluid. Of course, mail (or lack of it) is as always a main
determinant of the eventual status of any given FAQ I write. ^_^
And yes - I suggest you use WordPad to view this FAQ.
Last note : Like all my other FAQs with translations, I'm using a basic
narrative-summary format for this one, BUT because I have yet to decide how much
I like the game, expect a few errors here and there and some skimpiness on my
part. I'm currently doing a fast job, so there's no help for it. :(
******
Game Basics and Such :
1. This game uses the BOF3 system of things for the most part - dig up an FAQ on
that (I recommend Henry LaPierre's) and chances are that you'll be up and about
in no time. I will point out stuff that's unique to 4, though.
2. Unlike BOF3, you don't Examine to learn new enemy skills - simply defending
is enough.
3. Any party member occupying a "Back" position in battle automatically
regenerates AP the end of a round. With this is mind, a simple and effective
(but cheap ^_^) strategy is to kill all enemies and leave one weak one remaining
- and then sit on your butt and gain AP like there's no tomorrow. Of course, if
you have a healer character, this also ensures a near unlimited supply of
healing...
Note, though, like that in most Capcom fighting games, you can only recover AP
points up till the amount you had when entering the battle. (The bar in blue.)
Because of this, try to enter battle before healing.
4. Several ? regions on the world map have their items in exactly the same
places. Try to memorize them for easy procuring of basic goods.
******
Meun Options :
(all of these will be from top to bottom)
Item (second option is to Rearrange, third to Discard, and then Treasure)
Specials (second is to Rearrange)
Equipment (second is to equip Strongest, third is De-equip)
Status
Order Change (second option is for battle order)
Settings
Save
---
Settings Menu :
Vibration - ON/OFF
Dash - Manual/Auto
Camera - Normal/Reverse
Direction Key - Left 45 degrees/Zero degrees/Right 45 degrees
Sound - Stereo/Monoaural
BGM
SE
on the left side
Game Settings
Button Settings
Screen Adjust
Defaults
---
Menu Options in Battle :
Attack
Specials (Left and Right buttons shift from Magic to Skills)
Items
Defense
pressing the L1 and R1 buttons during a fight results in the Attack and Run
options being presented.
******
Walkthrough Section :
The game starts out with Clay and Nina on board a sandship sailing over a
desert looking for their older sister. Their travel plans are rudely
interrupted by the appearance of a large dragon which derails their ship,
forcing Nina to go to a nearby town by herself to obtain supplies for repair.
(Clay has to stay with the ship to prevent bandits from making off with it.)
Before she leaves, Clay gives his younger sister the Royal Sword, telling her
it'll come in useful.
Nina (or rather you) then starts off on her travels - her first stop is a
sand pit where, promptly after seeing a travelling merchant try hard to
escape from, she falls in. After a hair-raising encounter with an invisible
monster, Nina then meets up with a naked (to her chargrin ^_^) Ryu, who
doesn't know who he is or where he's bound. Nina, being a nice sort of person,
introduces herself and takes him along with her.
You'll then be able to control the two of them. The first area is simple
enough, and the enemies should pose no problem. Once you get to the cliff area,
Nina will explain the use of the Jump function (don't worry, you can't fall off)
and after two short hops, she will end up falling instead. (Do you sense a trend
here?) Since Nina can fly and Ryu can't, he ends up taking a nasty bump to the
head. A repentant Nina apologies and the two search for a place to spend the
night.
The scene then switches to Fou, a mysterious white-haired warrior who appears to
be a prince of some kind...judging from his dialogue with his steed. He tells it
to protect his resting place and then sets out on a journey. Now you get to
control him! The very first thing you'll probably realize about Fou is that he's
inordinately powerful; Level 64 to be exact. So the occasional random encounter
shouldn't be too hard to deal with - simply attack. Walk out of the temple-like
structure and into a forest - again, this shouldn't prove too hard to nagivate.
Fou will meet two soldiers after a while; he asks their intentions, and then
after ascertaining that they are here on order of the king to destroy an evil
dragon, makes a nice-sounding speech about humans and dragons and proceeds to
toast them. Continue on...
...and eventually, Fou will meet Yom (though you don't learn his name just yet)
one of the four generals of the Empire. Though initially, the small creature
tries to trick the prince, the latter sees through it's ruse immediately and a
fight ensues. Just use Fou's Trance ability and the Eraser (first option) and
you'll win in no time. Once you've won, Fou escapes from Yom's prepared ambush,
only to have the general order his men to set fire to
the forest to flush the prince out.
Run around till you get to a bridge, when Fou is cornered - he asks for Yom's
name and is pushed down into the ravine when he gets it. It's then back to Ryu
and Nina, who are back at the cliffs. Search around for a Revive Seed and then
make your way to the nearby town of Sarai. (you might want to stop at a few ?
stops to pick up items, though) Nina says that she's
off by herself to get parts for the ship...unfortunately, Ryu's stop at the
town hasn't jogged any memories loose. Answer Nina's question any way you
want (it doesn't matter) and you'll be free to explore the town.
What you have to do here is talk to the information man in front of the inn -
he'll offer to sell you the info on where to get the parts you need, but first
you need to play an appraisal game. Just select how much you think the info is
worth; you get four tries. I'm not sure how much it actually is, but it can't be
more than 200 zenny...anyway, once that's done, go east from the town until you
reach a ? spot with a merchant. (You might need to visit a few.) Talk to him
until he gives you the password.
After that, you can go back to town and talk to the bartender at the bar to
reach a secret shop which sells parts - but first, talk to the old man at the
bar to play another mini-game. This one's simple as well; feed the guy alternate
amounts of food and drink so you can get his Satisfaction meter to max out
without causing either Too Full or Drunk status. Once that's done, he gives you
a All-Purpose Medicine and you're off to the shop. (You can also buy a trading
treasure from a fishman at the bar.) Unfortunately for Nina, sandships have been
considered weapons of war by the Empire and anyone having parts for them is
immediately suspect - your visit is not in vain, though, because he sends Ryu
and Nina off to a ship graveyard of sorts where they can find the parts they
need.
This area is simple enough. The only enemies to watch out for are the scorpions
(use Shizar, Nina's first spell on them) and the Mage Gummies (which you can
learn Bam from). Take the wooden bar up to the next slope and adjust the wheel
so you can grab a 200 zenny chest and then open the path. Once inside the ship,
use the winch control there to let Nina and Ryu up into another area (don't
forget to go up on top of the ship for a Steel Band, though) where you'll meet
an old man - choose the second option to get both the scoop and the dog which
you'll need for - you guessed it - another mini-game. Without the dog, you'll be
digging in the dark, but with the help of this faithful canine, you'll be able
to see where to dig. (If you really want to save cash, the parts are right in
the middle of the sand pit.) Try and pick up a few extra items (you can pay
money to play the game again) and then leave and return to town. Make sure
Nina's HP and MP are maxed out in Camp before you do !
!
so, though.
Back in town, return to the bar to find a bunch of soldiers demanding the
location of a fearsome monster from a merchant. Displeased with his lack of
cooperation, the commander blasts him away in a flash of lightning. Nina (who,
as I said, is a nice sort of person) can't abide this and tries to stop the man,
saying that the war's over. He disagrees and stresses that a temporary ceasefire
is VERY different...after that, he makes a cryptic comment about Nina's older
sister and summons an Iron Demon to capture her.
This is your first boss fight and you'll be only using Nina here. (Probably
because it'd be too easy with Ryu's dragon form to assist her.) It's also pretty
simple if you're Level 7-8 (which you should be) - simply cast Shizar to attack,
Relief when you're injured, and Defend when you see some text appear. (The boss
is charging up for a big attack next turn when that happens.) It only has about
1000-1200 HP.
Ryu then charges in - the commander makes some sarcastic comment about that
being the act of a knight in shining armor before he is rudely dumped on his
behind by Ryu's sword swing. This allows Nina and Ryu to make their escape, but
also reduces the Royal Sword to the Broken Royal Sword, which necessitates the
search for a better weapon. For now, though, the two run off.
Trying to get back to Clay from the east side will result in a scene in which
Ryu and Nina hide from pursuing soldiers. They might have evaded capture, but
with the soldiers roaming about, how will they get back? The answer lies with
the merchant from before in the bar - in repayment for the help they rendered
him back there, he tells them about an alternate route they can take through
Chembar, a town to the north. Nina thanks him and you're on your own again.
Once in Chenbar, pop in the first building you see for a Diamond Armband, then
go talk to the old man with the bottles. (You can go buy stuff first, too.)
He'll tell you that most of the town is cursed from the war and that you'll need
to wait if you have business there - his story is confirmed by a bunch of mask-
wearing people (the rest of the townsfolk, actually) who have returned from
their daily de-cursing activity. (The curse strikes me as a form of pollution,
actually, judging by how the people talk about it.)
Go to the largest house in town and select the second option twice to elect to
wait and talk to the leader. He'll tell you that no one is allowed into the
cursed section of town without a guide and the special anti-curse armor. Walk
around town and you'll discover that no one wants to be your guide - go back to
the leader to find out he can't lend you the armor either. While Nina and Ryu
consider options, an ominous presence approaches from cursed side of town...it's
MASTER, the dome-headed robot from hell! While not exactly the most original
character in an RPG, this little R2D2 lookalike is damn funny - just check out
it's fighting pose. ^_^ Anyway, the little critter will argue with the town
leader on your behalf, eventually making him capitulating into letting you use
Master for your guide with a constant repetition of "if Master says it's okay,
it's okay." After thanking itself for helping you (I told you this thing was
hilarious) you can then enter the cursed area.
Go back out and buy some stuff before entering the area - a Bowie Knife for Ryu
is a must to replace the Broken Royal Sword. The enemies here are slightly
tougher than what you've encounter before - the heads with gas are no threat
(they'll poison themselves and take 3 turns to attack you) but be careful of the
Puchi Ghost (coffin enemy - kill them before they wake up) and Abare Zombie.
(will attack each other, but are powerful) Get the two chests in the area and
head up to a small puzzle.
After listening to Master's explanation, this is what you do :
1) Since only Master can enter the cursed area safely, send Ryu and Nina to over
the girder to raise the boxes near the signpost. Send Master down to get the
chests there and head over to the side where there's a lever.
2) After that, have Ryu and Nina get off the boxes they're on, then send Master
over the boxes he went under before. This lets him take Ryu and Nina's place
while they go over to activate the second lever.
Once that's done with, continue on and Nina will mention that she hears a
strange noise. Master says that's normal considering where they are. Go a bit
further and a ghostly fish will appear, causing Nina to become a bit worried.
More funny dialogue with Master (he laughs at the monster, then, after talking
to Nina, agrees that they actually should be running) and then the fish comes
after you. Press and hold the Circle button to get away...but I failed and sent
Ryu into the drink. Whichever way to do it, it's a boss fight! (Ryu will be
poisoned if he went down.)
The Skull Fish is easy if you remember NOT to heal the condition caused by it's
Poison Breath - it'll just use it again. Have Ryu change to dragon form and cast
Fire until it goes down. You might be able to learn a skill from it, but since
it uses Poison Breath so damn much it's probably not worth it. After that,
you'll be out in the open again, where Nina thanks Master and it thanks itself.
^_^ However, it seems Master wants to accompany Ryu, so it tags along as you
head to rendezvous with Clay.
Clay is glad to have his sister back - he was worried - and thanks Ryu and
Master, while blaming himself for letting her go off alone. During the night,
Nina has a dream in which she, Ryu and Clay are in a castle searching for Elina,
her older sister. They get to a room which they are almost spotted and escape by
running behind the curtain. Upon waking up, it turns out that (surprise!) they
all had the same dream, a phenomenom Master calls the Dragon's Eye. Clay puts
the two and two together and reasons that if they were to take Ryu along that
they might come to place where they could rescue Elina.
But first, you need to go past Kurok Valley, where you'll find Ralf, your first
Master. (Not, not THAT Master. ^_^) Apprentice Nina to him when he asks. (You
might want to apprentice Ryu as well, since being his apprentice bestows a mark
on you which automatically lets you attack first.) That's it for now; you can
come back to him when you've done a Combo greater than 5.
Travel east to the dam. There, ask around until you find a fellow who will tell
you how to get past the water gate. First, you've got to find Rob (the guy with
inflatable), who'll give you the key to open water gate and get the Short Sword
from the chest at the other side. There, you'll meet a cute little raccoon girl
who needs your help to operate the Fly Wheel, a device which opens the next
water gate. It works like this - rotate the directional buttons in a 360 degree
motion to rotate the Wheel, and then press the Circle button to start it up.
(You can turn the Wheel in either direction.) The trick here is to start the
Wheel up slow and then increase speed with more vigorous rotations. (think doing
Spinning Piledrivers) Get the chest at the other end, then continue on (pulling
the lever to release the plank near the mud) and back to get the Crank from the
foreman to fix the now-broken gate. Push the button as fast as you can to lower
the lift in time for your party to get o!
!
n.
As for the enemies here...well, you'll need to get Clay up a level so he can
cast Buurei on the slime monsters, and watch out for the white gels, but that's
about it. No problems, really.
Head north to Kiria Village. At the ! point, your party members will meet the
dragon that destroyed the dam as well as an old sea geezer who tell you that the
dragon didn't destroy for fun...it seems to be directed by someone. He then asks
for money for a song (I paid a 100 - don't know what 10 does.) and says that
when the dragons move, so does the world.
The village is a strange one - they're traps scattered all around the place!
Apparently the village elder thinks this is a good idea...anyway, since you
can't into his place via the door (there's a cage trap there) you'll have to
look around a bit more. (You can also fight an insect monster at the side of the
house - it has good skills you can learn, but it's tough.) At the back of the
first house, there are also three chests, the last of which you'll need to beat
with magic - you get a Northern Glove for your pains. (Actually, I suspect
whichever chest you attack last determines your item; I got the middle one.)
Chat with one of the two men standing together for an item, then fall down the
hole next to the little boy and climb up the ladder to finally get inside the
house.
The parrots in the house are, if it's possible, even weirder than the town -
they constantly speak in katakana-written Kansai accents. If that's doesn't mean
anything to you, just trust me that it's bad. Pick the second option twice, then
the third, and then the fourth. This will unlock the forest to the west.
At the forest, run around and grab what chests you can find, then go back to the
tree stump right at the beginning. Place the apple the forester gave you there -
it will lure out the monster the chief of the village has been chasing. Follow
it's (you've got to be quick here!) footsteps till you reach the boss monster.
Another pretty easy boss. Only has about 2000+ HP...anyway, use the same
strategy as the previous boss on it, stopping only to have Clay boost the
defense of your party members. Once beaten, (it'll yield a weapon for Master) go
back to the village with the chief - he lets you use the secret passage to the
town of Senesta (closed after the war) because you saved him and you don't look
like you came from the Empire.
After being dropped into the cave below the village, climb out and use Clay to
move the barrels blocking your way. Then save, heal up and enter the tunnels
above the village. This is a big area - it's easy to get lost, so bring along
some healing items. You can learn the Goodnight skill from the tadpole enemies
here, and Master's new weapon works very well on the zombies.
You'll eventually emerge from the town well in Senesta. Head to the first door
you see to reach the orphanage, where Elina turns out to have visited and was
remembered well as she was such a kind person. Exit and help the young nun catch
Chino (the dog-boy), then return to have Nina and Clay ask about their sister's
whereabouts. It turns out that Chino knows, but he'll only tell you if you can
catch him and his buddies in hide-and-seek. So off you go all around the city to
find the little buggers. Nina's flying ability comes in very useful here, as you
might expect.
Here's a list :
1) Near the lady smoking a pipe.
2) Outer balcony of the city - follow it all the way through.
3) At the city gate.
4) Upstairs in the house with the save record. (Next to the market.)
5) One of the upwards leading stairs near the side of the city. This one is
REALLY easy to miss...you can walk up the stairs without bumping into her!
And now I am stuck. I can't find the last one, and until I do, no more updates.
:(
