The 13th Entity's Guide to: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.hack//~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~MUTATION~~~~~~~~~~~~~ version 1.0 The author can be contacted at <duerkargenti@yahoo.com> but, please no spam. \^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^/ < Itenuary (aka. Table of Contents): > < > < I. FAQ Info > < II. Controls > < III. Entity's Corner (Storyline in my words) > < IV. Walkthrough > < ______A. Encountering Misleading Deceit > < ______1. Back for Seconds > < ______2. Bigfoot? No, It's a Big Step > < ______3. Without End > < ______4. Waves Unseen > < ______B. Seeking Greatest Wisdom > < ______1. Other Core Issues > < ______2. Friends, Foes, and Fools > < ______3. Tracks of the Past > < ______4. Tests of the Present > < ______5. Tune of a New Plan > < ______C. Facing Cursed Preservation > < ______1. Detour Before Paradise > < ______2. Leaves Come Blowing In > < ______3. The Mutation Breaks Out > < V. Perfect Game Checklist > < ______1. Book of 1000 > < ______2. The Checklist > < VI. Items And Moves > < VII. Q&A > < VIII. Legal Stuff > < IX. Many Thanks > /vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv\ To use this guide, you can use ctrl+F (or Command+F on a Mac) to search for the section titles as provided above. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I. FAQ Info ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ July 17, 2009 Project .hack continues in more ways than one. The four-part series known as .hack//I.M.O.Q. is being covered by yours truly in its entirety. I mean for this to be a consistent and fully detailed enough where you can follow all four volumes from start to finish. //Mutation is the second volume of this quadrilogy (let's pretend that's a real word). Just like how I wrote the guides for the G.U. trilogy, this guide will assume you have followed my guidance through the previous volume (//Infection) and are using the Convert option on the Clear Data. If not, then no worries. The gameplay shouldn't change too much until I call for using Gardenia or Sanjuro since they're extra characters from Volume 1. I aim to make this game as easy for you as possible, but feel free to add as much difficulty as you would prefer. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ II. Controls ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Please read the manual if you've a copy of it. Otherwise: -------------Terms------------- GP - Game currency. You need this to buy stuff. Exp - Experience. It takes 1000 experience to get from one level to the next. The higher you get, the less Exp a monster will be worth until either you hit max level or until the monster you're comparing is worth 1 EXP a kill. Lv - Level. The max is 99, though we'll see as high as 50-52 by the end of the second volume. Maybe higher if you're patient enough. Party - You play mainly as Kite. As you gain Member Addresses, you can invite up to two more people at a time if they are available. Desktop - This game has two modes. One is the main where you walk around and interact with other characters in a simulated MMORPG called The World. The other is the desktop, which is like a big menu full of options for you to explore. This provides a number of things to help play the game. Affection - Capped at 500 in Volume 2, this measures how much a character will like Kite. However, unlike in G.U., this will only affect the Ryu Books instead of leading to a big event in the end. Of course, it affects the email chains you get from Kite's friends as well. Higher affection will allow for newer messages to appear as long as there are messages to be received. HP - The health your characters have. It's Game Over if everyone is dead. SP - Skill Points. The more you have, the more often you can use skills. Attack - Your attacks' damage is based on this. Defense - Your ability to resist attacks is based on this. Accuracy - Your ability to hit the target, obviously. Evade - Raising this increases your chance to be missed by an enemy's attack. * Attack, Defense, Accuracy, and Evade each have two listings. The first is the Physical, and the second is the Magical. So, if you have 99 Physical Defense but like 1 Magical Defense, and a spell comes your way, then you can count on it doing damage to you big time. That is, unless your stat for that spell's Element is high enough. Element - Fire, Water, Earth, Wood, Thunder, Darkness, Spirit, and Body. The six excluding Body and Spirit are how efficient your attacks and defenses are in those elements. This will come in VERY handy this game. Body and Spirit will reduce your chances of being inflicted with status effects, but will not make you immune. The said effects (below) are split between physical and mind based, and thus call for one of two items typically. Curse - Depletes HP gradually; calls for Restorative Poison - Depletes HP over time; Calls for Antidote Sleep - Immobilizes you; calls for Restorative Paralysis - Immobilizes you; calls for Antidote Charm - Attack allies for a time; calls for Restorative Confusion - Attack allies for a time; calls for Restorative Speed Down - Slows your movement; calls for Antidote or waiting a few seconds. The other stats have their own versions of this as well. Physical stats can be cured with Antidote or beaten with a boost of the same stat. The Magic stats call for Restorative or the temp stat boost. Areas - Almost all areas in these four games are made up of a field and dungeon together. Depending on the server and the three words put in, you can choose the element and average level of monsters you encounter. The areas to do with story are pre-chosen, and I'll add some to help with finding items and monsters. Server - This series' idea of a server is one of five roots to the many areas. In //Mutation, we have Delta, Theta, and Lambda servers. Save/Load - Through Data Manager or a Save Shop in a town, you can save a file of your progress on a memory card. Use this file to load and continue your progress. Convert - As of Mutation, when you turn on the game, you will see an option for converting data from the previous volume. This allows for all characters, levels, and items to be transferred over. As I said before, this guide will assume that you converted the Clear Data from //Infection. -------------Movement and Interaction------------- Walk/Run - Use the left analog stick. Tilting it lightly causes slow motion. Examining/Selecting - X button. This only works if something to examine is within range, or if there is a choice to be made. Don't ask why you can't talk to an NPC on the other side of town when you aren't moving. Trapped Chests - These are the blue chests with random effects if you just open them. You don't get the better item that way. Carry Fortune Wires for a few of these, though it won't be TOTALLY necessary until an event at the end of QUARANTINE. Target Toggling - When multiple targets are in range use the digital pad to switch from target to target. Cancel - Circle button. You do this to exit out of menus and such. Camera Angles - L1 turns to look left, R1 turns to look right. The R3 (right analog stick) can zoom in or out. R2 resets the camera to default, and L2 toggles between 3rd person and 1st person views. This is important. If you never adjust the view, then you won't be able to target a monster just because it's not on the screen (mainly with skills). -------------Menus and Such------------- Open a Menu - Triangle button. This works as long as you are walking around in a town, a field, a dungeon, or in a battle (not when you're being flung around or doing an attack). If you're in a menu, this won't work, so do not ask why you can't open the main menu while in the middle of a trade. Item Info - When you are highlighted over an item, press the Square button to receive info about that item. Store Menu - Talk to the NPC or character running the store, press X, and then select to view their wares. You will see price amounts. If you have the money to pay for the item you want, then press X while highlighting that same item. Item/Option Highlighting - Move either the left analog stick or the digital pad in the direction it takes to get from option to option. Chat Command Menu - When in an area, press Square. It's through this menu you can select specific skills and strategies from your party members. Chaos Gate Menu - While in a town, examine the Chaos gate. Select Warp Menu to see a bunch of options. If you already have an area bookmarked from the boards, emails, or story events, you can select the area from the Word List. Warp History lists all areas manually or randomly visited in order from the most recent on earlier without repeating any areas. Random will pull randomly from your pool of keywords. New Keyword allows you to do what Random does, but manually. There are three pools: -1st Word -2nd Word -3rd Word * The server you're on comes into play as well as these will alter the range of levels your Word pool is likely to play with. This will not be absolute, but it's the general rule. Gate Hacking - When it comes to areas to do with the story progression, there will be SOME instances where you will require Virus Cores to unlock the area. Some Data Bugs as bosses will provide what you need, and sometimes you'll receive a Virus Core through Email or someone handing one to you. Virus Cores A through L have to be gained through Data Draining enemies other than the predetermined bosses. * A-C: Delta/Theta * D-F: Lambda at lv. 31+ * G-I: See Outbreak * J-L: See Quarantine As for the Gate Hacking process . . . You will see a big screen with a cross on the left side and a list of the Virus Cores you got on the right. You can turn the cross clockwise by tapping left on your d-pad, and you can turn it the other way by tapping right. When a side of the cross is pointing down that has holes in it, you will see a letter (the type of Virus Core needed) and a number next to it (the number needed). You add the Virus Cores by tapping up on the d-pad until the holes are filled. They can be subtracted as well, but that's kinda useless. Once all the holes are filled, you can press X to permanently open the area. * During each walkthrough, I will suggest how many Virus Cores to try and get AT MINIMUM while you are fighting the monsters regularly. While this might slow the Exp. growth just a little, it will help in the long run to have what you need before you need it. You don't want to be level 80 or higher and trying to get Virus Cores A-C. You also don't want to drop your game progression to find more Virus Cores. * Over the course of Volume 2, I suggest getting a minimum of 6 Virus Core D's, 15 E's, and 9 F's. Extras will carry on and likely be used in one of the following volumes. In fact, if you converted your clear data from //Infection, then you should have enough A's, B's, and C's. * If you're using a cheat device to always have Virus Cores, then only use Cores A-L unless the game has given you the other ones you'll need. For those of you who don't: kudos. The cheat won't be needed. Trade - Talk to a character either walking around or that is in your party. Gift - You can select Trade with your party members. This has no Trade window, but you do see your own list of items as to what you wish to give. This helps in the affection level just a bit. Don't try giving multiple items at once, because it'll just be counted as one item. Rarity - Items are marked for their rarity. Most of the time, you will just want to put these in storage. I'll note when they have their use. Equipment - Weapon, head armor, body armor, wrist guards, and shoes. You can only equip a weapon specific to your class, and any defensive piece as long your class isn't excluded. Map - In the top-right corner of the screen, you can see the map of where you stand. In town, a dungeon block, or a grove, you will have the option of having the map up when you are not in battle, or you can toggle it off by pressing Select. In fields other than groves, there's a little more to the map. You see, other than the typical field, you have just the one map size. With the fields, however, you can toggle between Default Map, no map, and Overall Map. Overall Map is good for seeing where the portals, dungeon, and Spring of Myst can be found, whereas the Default Map lets you see the formations where you could find Symbols or grunty food. -------------About Battles------------- Yay, they're not random. The battles are in set places, though you COULD be attacked by wandering monsters on the field. In a dungeon, you cannot leave a room with any monsters in it still alive because the doors stay closed until you are victorious. * TIP: Sometimes, on a field, you will see two portals too close together for comfort. The way around this is to get close enough to one to activate it, and then run away from it just far enough to separate enemy party from additional opposition. I hope this helps you. Attack - Press X like you're interacting with an object or a character. You attack with Twin Blades, and can keep doing so repeatedly. Game Over - When you run out of health, you have to start over from the last place you saved. Game Over also occurs if your Infection from Data Drain reaches 100%. Items/Spells - To use these in battle, you must open the main menu and select what you want to use from there. The skills and spells are all separated into different tabs, with the last being for your Data Drain. Items also are separated into tabs. When in battle, you'll likely be using them from the first two tabs. Beyond that, you'd have to go into Equipment to fix whatever weapon you have equipped depending on what a battle's strategy may call for. But, I will cover this when it comes up. Strategy - This one is a little more complex than it needs to be, and it could get you into trouble if you leave it alone. First, you have to set the battle formation, which will very likely switch between Wonder Battle and Union Battle most of the time. Second, DURING combat you can shout to one party member to do first aid through the fight or to do a designated skill one time. You can also have that specific character change equipment as long they are carrying alternative stuff, which YOU have to give them. Data Drain Infection - As you Data Drain enemies, your infection level will rise. The higher in level you are compared to the monster, the less you will get infected from one use. As you gain other forms of Data Drain, you should note that the original Data Drain infects Kite less than the others. An email from Helba claims that the less infected you are, the easier it will be to get a Virus Core from most monsters, but I have yet to confirm this. To bring DOWN infection, Kite must physically attack some monsters and DEAL THE KILLING BLOW. The way you can check the level of infection is the silhouette image that appears next to the skill tab for the Data Drain skills. You won't see the exact percent of infection, but you will see colors in that silhouette to give an idea of where you are. They are as follows: * White - 0% to 24% * Blue - 25% to 49% * Green - 50% to 74% * Yellow - 75% to 98% * Orange - 99% * Red - 100%; GAME OVER * Maybe it's my screen, but I've never been able to see a difference between the white and blue levels. Either that, or the blue looks green ONLY on the Infection Status Window. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ III. Entity's Corner ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It started with a woman who decided to write an epic poem, but she never got to finish it. A programmer who knew her decided to make a virtual world to depict this poem, and FRAGMENT was born with a hidden purpose within it. Soon after, FRAGMENT was revised to The World, and all was well in the public eye. But, some individuals found out differently, and two heroes of a major event dared to investigate. One dared as well to invite a real life friend to play this game with him. This was Kite. In their first trip together, Orca did teach Kite how to play his favorite game just before things went wrong. Orca's player fell into a coma in the living world, and Kite's true adventure began. BlackRose, a middle school girl in a search for answers to why her own brother fell into a coma, teamed up with Kite as they both met many people . . . some knowing something is wrong, and some ignorant of it all. Finally, Kite had a showdown with the monster responsible for Orca's coma, but the monster's defeat was just the beginning. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IV. Walkthrough ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * For the purpose of this guide (A) will be Delta, and (8) will be Theta. (^) will stand for Lambda. Please do not confuse it for Delta's (A). These are to help you know which server we're on. * Also, I will provide SOME maps. Here's the key for most of them: = Pathway between east and west I Pathway between north and south, or else a weird wall M Magic Portal (monster or chest spawn point) B Boss c Treasure Chest; CAPS for 2+ T Gott Statue and main chest of dungeon k Destructible items (ie., skeletons, boxes, etc.,); CAPS for 2+ P Random buff Symbol found in dungeon map g Grunty Food; CAPS for 2+ u Way up in dungeons d Way down in dungeons (or into dungeons in groves) @ Spring of Myst in a grove ^ Space, nothingness, or even a special boss when noted as such -------------Encountering Misleading Deceit------------- ~~Part 1: Back for Seconds~~ If you wan to, you can skip the first couple scenes by pressing start during each one. Either way, you will appear on the desktop. For those of you just now joining in on .hack, this is the game's simulation of real world activity. Here, you can read up on News, read and reply to Emails, play with features you gain via Ryu Books and other events, Save your game, or load up The World--the online game that .hack's story takes place--to either read messages at a forum or "Log In" to the main game. You catch all that? News: You don't really gain anything here, but there will be an article about a professor claiming game-inflicted comas are impossible. Email: BlackRose - Reply with "I hope so" regardless if you played the last volume or not. Natsume - If you followed my Volume 1 guide, then you brought her with you to the battle against Skeith. This isn't part of the email chain, and this isn't limited to Natsume, only to whoever you brought with to the Skeith fight. Answer with the better of the responses you are given to choose from. For Natsume, I'm quite sure that is, "Let's try our best" CC Corporation sends two messages regarding Grunty races. I'll cover this soon enough. Just be sure to collect food like crazy so you can get all the needed grunties on Theta and Lambda. No, that doesn't mean we have access to Lambda just yet. Of course, one of these messages comes to you if you already have all three grunties on one server (Theta). Board: If you're like me, you would select and back out of every message so this would no longer read as having anything new. But, I do advise reading in "ALTIMIT" about the reference to Pluto's Kiss. Log in. You SHOULD be in the Theta server already. Dun Loireag-- BlackRose is waiting for Kite. She's wanting to go back to the place that the monster Skeith was fought. You should have enough items on you. Use your menu in town to invite BlackRose. Everyone else is unavailable right now. Examine the Chaos Gate, select Word List, and then select the destination. (8) Chosen Hopeless Nothingness-- # of Field Portals: 16 # of Dungeon Portals: 0 # of Symbols: 2 Spring of Myst: n/a Monsters: Mantis, Metal Goblin, Cursed Blades Coming from the previous volume, your levels will be 33-34, and you should have the weapons Bom-Ba-Ye and Sakabatou equipped. That makes the field easy enough to clear all the magic portals. The Exp won't be much, but feel free whether or not to clear it. Enter the dungeon when you are ready. It's where the red arrow is on the map. ___ B1 | | | | ___ | | ___ | d | | | |CKC| "I" "I" "I" ___ ___ ___ |c | |g | | | | |___ ___| |___ ___| | | |=| |=|c | """"""" """| |""" """"""" | | "I" ___ | u | """ Go ahead and cast Ap Do since Kite should have the Time Sandals equipped. Kite is the only one who'll need it right now. As you can see from my maps, the monsters are all gone. The treasures and grunty foods, however, are not. You can use storage rooms, or those like in the northeast corner of Block 1, to break those boxes and barrels to restock on some items. You can find Well Water in this area. Start saving up. ___ | d | B2 "I" ___ | | ___ ___ ___| |___ ___ ___ |k |=| k|=| |=|c k|=|c k| "I" """ """| |""" """ "I" _____ | | _____ | | "I" | | ""| | ___ ""| | | | | u | | | __| | """ __| | |c | |g | """"" """"" BlackRose will state as I said about the monsters being gone. Head straight a couple rooms unless you want to pick up some items. ___ _______ _______ ___ |CKK|=| | | g|=| d| """ """| | | |""" """ | g| | | "I" "I" ___ ___ | | |c | | |___ ___|"""|___ ___| | B3 | |=| |=| | | |""" """|___|""" """| | | | | | "I" "I" ___________ ___________ ___________ | g k | | c k | | | | | | | | ##### | | |=| | | ##### | | | | | | # c # | | k g | | k | | | """"""""""" """""I""""" """"""""""" ___ | d | """ BlackRose is curious if Skeith is still around. Kite says it would not be possible to win against Skeith if it were still there. I do suggest grabbing the Golden Egg near the storage room to the northwest. You'll need a bunch of them not too far from now. ___ | d | "I" ___________ ___________ | c | | c k | | | _________ | | | |=| |=| | | | """"""""" | | | c | | k c | """""I""""" """""I""""" ___________ ___________ | c k | | k | | | _________ | | | |=|c |=| | | | """"""""" | | | k g | | k | """"""""""" """""I""""" ___________ B4 | k c | ___ _________ | | |u |=|g |=| | """ """"""""" | | | c k | """"""""""" BlackRose and Kite share a moment of being afraid, but they can't back out now. Make your way through this block to the stairs heading down. Go north a room for a slightly comical scene. It gets more serious as Kite asks BlackRose why she's doing this. Balmung shows up. He leaves wondering why things get worse with you around. Continue forward a room to see another short scene. The smoking doorway is now just gated off. you'll leave the area automatically. "Explain my ass!" --BlackRose Dun Loireag-- An admin in the form of a shop keep will show up. He wants to switch out the item you got in Volume 1 for the correct one. It still doesn't seem to work. So you know now, it's not what the admins claim it to be either. BlackRose even asks what the Power Up Campaign is since she never heard of it. Alright, you are done here. Log out. Email: Oh, look, a scrambled message from Aura. I can translate MOST of it for you: "Skeith has divided me into segments. To limit me. I must merge to be born. Find the stored segment. Please. You are the only one I can count on." Just how does she still send you messages when scattered into three places? An anonymous contact summons you to (8) Soaring Sky Bounded Abyss. Dun Loireag-- There's no need to do anything else. (8) Soaring Sky Bounded Abyss-- Enjoy the big scene. BlackRose is there as well. Helba will save Kite and BlackRose from deletion by Lios, and she'll refer to the items Book of Law and Book of Absolution, which were previous attempts to have Kite deleted. She'll refer also to the Epitaph of Twilight before suggesting that Lios watches Kite and BlackRose for a time. Dun Loireag-- Log out. ~~Part 2: Bigfoot? No, It's a Big Step~~ The news is worth a laugh, sometimes. Email: Lios will explain about the five servers, and Lambda will be unlocked for use. He also will summon you to a shop to talk to him. Everyone whose affection is 250 or higher, except for Mia or Elk, will begin their email chains for Volume 2. I'll detail the responses later in this guide. (See: "Tracks of the Past") Dun Loireag-- Access the Chaos Gate to switch to the new server. Carmina Gadelica-- Nice place, huh? Feel free to walk around and talk to the people who are also running around town. Talk to the Weapon Shop NPC to contact Lios. He will try to make you his errand boy who just investigates stuff. You'll get a Virus Core P which the admins managed to extract from a data bug. Time to log out. Email: Helba explains how to get Virus Cores D, E, and F. The monsters must be on Lambda and over level 30. Gardenia graces us with an invite. (^) Quiet Oblivious Cabbage Board: "Let's Play Tag Take 2" begins this volume's round of tag matches. The keywords to the area for match #1 are (^) Detestable Vengeful Sunny Demon "Nuke Usagimaru Show" invites everyone to come alone to see him put on a show at (^) Lightless Distant Dead Lands "Trading Convention" gives us (^) Collapsed Pagan Remains. "Is This an Event Character?" has our next story area at (^) Dolorous Evil Eyed Widow Nuke and Rachel are both side characters introduced by this volume just like Gardenia was in //Infection. They both have a tendency to run bad shows, and yet they hook up in seven years to make a successful show outside The World. Go figure. Carmina Gadelica-- You are greeted by Elk and a broken Mia. Her ability to talk has been acting weird ever since we beat up Skeith. Mia and Elk were on their way as well to the protected area from the board. Before we invite them, let's do some stuff. The first thing I always like to knock out is the Golden Goblin challenge when one is listed. So, with your Time Sandals equipped (otherwise bring a Speed Charm), bring yourself Hunter Bloods and Warrior Bloods before going to this game of tag. Also be sure to have a Bom-Ba-Ye equipped; it can be Data Drained from a Mu Guardian if you don't have one. We must do these next two areas with no party. (^) Detestable Vengeful Sunny Demon-- Stehoney awaits your arrival. ***Stehoney R*** HP: 750 P.Res/M.Res: None Element: Earth Rec.Lvl: 34 Pop those blood items, use Ap Do, and start running. It may help to zoom out. When you go after Stehoney, try to predict where he'll be as he turns. Once you are close, hit him once or twice. Unlike the last game, he won't stay still for the duration of skills. Lather, rinse, and repeat until Stehoney's HP hits 0. You should only need to use the blood items once each, but be ready for a second dose just in case. You will get a Goblin Cap A. That goes into storage when we return to town. ***End of Battle*** As you noticed from running around, there are lots of Oh No Melons and quite a few Symbols--small flames that provide random buffs when activated--on this field. I highly recommend gathering some of these grunty foods when the battle is over. Gate out when you're done. Carmina Gadelica-- Before we do the next area, I suggest raising a grunty at the ranch in the southwest corner of town. Unlike in Theta server, Lambda's grunties require a size of 40 points to reach an adult. Hopefully, you have a bunch of food left over from //Infection, or else I suggest going back to pick up a bunch. Just 20 Eggs or 40 of anything else will do the job in getting you a Noble Grunty. With the Noble Grunty ready on Lambda, save your game. Remember, no party. Bring plenty of Healing Potions and both Earth and Wood spell scrolls, too. (^) Lightless Distant Dead Lands-- # of Field Portals: 15 # of Dungeon Portals: 9 # of Symbols: Spring of Myst: n/a Monsters: Mystery Rock, Mu Guardian, Tetra Armor, Phoenix Queen (D) Pumpkin King (B) The Grunty Flute is your friend in getting to the dungeon without being nailed by these monsters, even IF they're a few levels lower than you. If you want to collect the Grunt Mints, then that's up to you. ___ ___ ___ | d | |cKc| |KcK| B1 "I" "I" "I" ___________ ___ ___________ | k | |c | | k c | ___ | | ___| |___ | | ___ |KcK|=| M |=| M |=| M |=|KcK| """ | | """| |""" | | """ | g k | | | | c k | """"""""""" "I" """"""""""" ___________ | | | | | |* | | | | """""I""""" ___ | u | """ From the start, cast Ap Do on Kite, and then run north to get a scene. Nuke is trying to be a comedian, but everyone leaves except for Kite. Nuke runs off saying the show's to continue on the third block. Go after him. You will have to fight on the way. Mu Guardians are weak to Wood, so bring them down first with those spell scrolls. Keep yourself healed, and take out the Mystery Rocks with your attacks. If you didn't do it before, Data Drain them for a Phoenix Wing for Mia, but do keep your infection level down. If you want to clear the dungeon, then you'll have to take out the portal to the east. If not, go to the stairs to the northwest. * Your first Data Drain or two in this volume should give you the ability Drain Arc. It'll be rare that you can even use it, so don't worry too much about it. * Use the storage rooms to fill up on Healing Potions and Burning Oils. You will need the latter for trade. ___ ___________ | d | ___________ | c | "I" | c | | M | ___________ | M | | | | | | | | M | | | | M | | | | | | | """""I""""" | | """""I""""" ___ ___ | | ___ ___ |KgK|=|Kck| """""I""""" | |=| | """ "I" ___ "I" """ B2 ___________ |KcK| ___________ | k | "I" | | | | ___ | | | M |=|kck|=| M | | | """ | | | k c | | | """""I""""" """""I""""" Phoenix Queens like to evade your physical attacks. Use Earth spell scrolls on them to make this go easy enough on yourself. If you're just passing through, like I recommend since Kite is going solo, then there is only one portal you have to deal with on this block. The rooms with two portals each can be a bit of a doozy. Your choice. In the second last room, you will spot Moonstone right before he warps out. To my understanding, the Moonstone sightings are necessary to unlock him. The third block has only the boss for the monster. Also, the only forks on the way to the northernmost room are all short and lead to treasure. Get to the end to find Nuke. He'll be fighting the boss. We have to help him. ***Pumpkin King*** HP: 1610 P.Res/M.Res: None Element: Darkness Rec.Lvl: 34 Like many bosses in this series, this will be a normal monster soon enough. Use Thunder Coil to bring this thing down fast. One or two uses should do it. ***End of Battle*** Nuke will call this show a success and hand you his Member Address. You will leave automatically. Carmina Gadelica-- For the next couple areas, let's invite Gardenia and Mistral. Sell your junk, and stock up on healing items. (^) Collapsed Pagan Remains-- # of Field Portals: 16 # of Dungeon Portals: 13 # of Symbols: 1 Spring of Myst: n/a Monsters: Smiley Ray, Hysteria, Death Crane, Bone Army (D), Specter (D), Grand Cold (D) Now that we have a full party, let's be sure to clear both the field and the dungeon. The monsters shouldn't be hard this way, even if they're all new. Smiley Rays are big enough to Data Drain a Virus Core F from them. They are also weak to Fire. So, only Data Drain once every two or three battles, and be sure Kite gets in the killing blow using a physical attack. Hysteria like to cast spells on you. Try getting some Virus Core D's from them. The Virus Core hunt will begin to get a little painful when you're getting every possible item EXCEPT the Virus Core through Data Drain. Still, try to gather what you can. The extra items can be sold or used for trade. Death Crane, like a Phoenix Queen, likes to evade your physical attacks, so save them for when the other enemies are down. You can get Virus Core D's from them as well. * Root Vegetables can be found here as well. Or, at least one can be. ___ ___ ___ |KcK| | d | |CgK| B1 "I" "I" "I" ___ ___ ___ ___________ |KcK| |KcK|=| cK| ___________ | k c | "I" """ "I" | k c | | | ___ ___ ___ | | | M M |=|kck|=|kgk|=|kck|=| M M | | | """ "I" """ | | | c k | ___________ | c k | """"""""""" | | """"""""""" | | | | | | | | """""I""""" ___ | u | """ In the first big room, you will see what this is about. Rachel is trying to arrange for trades between a larger number of people who each wants something the next person has. Unfortunately, we're one item short, and it should be in the dungeon. TO THE GOTT STATUE! But, first, let's take out the magic portals in the west room and the east. From the east room, go west, north, west again, and then north to find the stairs. Don't forget about the storage rooms to get Well Waters stored up. Bone Army, by the way, is easy. Use Thunder Coil to bring them down fast. They hit very hard, and you can die very fast from them. ___ | d | "I" ___ | | | | B2 | | | | ___________ | | ___________ | k c | "I" | k g | | | ___ ___ ___ | | | M M |=|KcK| |KcK|=|kck|=| M M | | | "I" """ "I" | | | c k | ___ ___ ___ | k | """"""""""" |KgK|=|k k|=|KcK| """"""""""" """ "I" """ ___ | u | """ Specters are another monster weak to Thunder. You can Data Drain a Virus Core E from one of them. In these rooms with two portals each, kill the monsters fast before you even think about using Data Drain. Take note that this dungeon is a great source for Golden Eggs. In the last room before the stairs, you can encounter Moonstone. It doesn't matter what order his appearances come, but they must all happen. * Specters also hit hard. Be careful, and make sure everyone has plenty of Resurrects just in case. ___ | c | | M | B3 | | | | "I" ___________ ___ | k g | |g | | | ___| |___ ____ | M M |=| M |=| T| | | """| |""" """" | c k | | | """"""""""" "I" ___________ | c k | | | | M | | | | k c | """""I""""" ___ | u | """ Grand Cold is a fast moving magic caster. They're weak to Fire. Don't worry about Data Draining them. This being your first Gott Statue (east room) of the second volume, save it for last. Kill the monsters before going to open that last chest. It has a couple Treasure items and the key item Love Archery. Back in that room with the traders, talk to the blue guy Dick, to trade the Love Archery for the Paper Cloak; the other blue person Anne to exchange the Paper Cloak for the Basin Shield; the wavemaster Catherine's Mad Opener gained by giving the Basin Shield; hand Bate the Mad Opener to receive the Plastic Sword. When that's all done, Rachel hands you her Member Address. You will leave here automatically. * Yes, you have to talk to Rachel after you get the Plastic Sword. * Everyone in this party should be level 35 by now. Carmina Gadelica-- This is a long chapter, I know. There's just so much to do before moving on with the story. With Gardenia and Mistral still in your party, let's do just one more side area before we move on. Be sure you're well stocked on Healing Potions, Antidotes, and Resurrects. Bring some The Hanged Man. (^) Quiet Oblivious Cabbage-- # of Field Portals: 16 # of Dungeon Portals: 6 # of Symbols: 5 Spring of Myst: n/a Monsters: Skate Rat Ark, Armor Evil, Specter, Green Wyrm (D), IronBall Mania (D), Hackberry King (D) Clear the field. You will want the Exp. Don't forget about using Data Drain every once in a while so we can get some Virus Cores. Skate Rat Arks like to Paralyze you, so be ready with some Antidotes. They're weak to Water. Specter reappears here. They and Armor Evil both hit hard, so set Mistral to heal when each fight starts. Worry first about getting leveled to 36 before acquiring the Virus Cores. You can probably get a couple E's here. * If you see more than one Skate Rat Ark, then Data Drain them to get around their resurrections. The grave-looking Skate Rat Arks take first priority. Have Mistral kill them with her strongest Water spells, and be ready to heal her and Gardenia both. Specter takes second with Kite's Thunder Coil. If you see more than one Armor Evil at once, or even one together with Skate Rat Arks, then use The Hanged Man on one to paralyze it. The last thing you need is to die or be paralyzed while just a second from winning a fight. * There are a quite a few Grunt Mints here, too. Pick up all you find. ___ ___ |KcK| | d | "I" ___ "I" ___________ |K K| ___________ | c | "I" | k | | | ___ ___ ___ | | | M |=|KcK|=| c |=|KgK|=| M | | | """ "I" """ | | | g | ___ | c k | """"""""""" |c | """"""""""" | | | M | B1 | | | | "I" ___ | u | """ Clear the dungeon. Green Wyrm is weak to Earth, and can be Data Drained for a Virus Core F. Don't forget to use the storage rooms for Healing Potions and Boiling Oils. This floor is an easy one. Don't forget the Invisible Eggs. ___ | d | "I" B2 ___ | | | | ___ | | ___ |cKg| | | |KKc| "I" | | "I" ___ "I" ___ |KcK| ___ |KgK| "I" |c | "I" ___ ___| |___ ___ |KgK|=| M |=|KgK| """ """| |""" """ | | "I" ___ | u | """ Kite will ask if Gardenia likes flowers. She doesn't want to explain herself. IronBall Mania appears here. If you have a Wood elemental attack (like from Gardenia's Million$ Spear), then use it. They can be Data Drained for a Virus Core F as well. The third Moonstone sighting is in the last room before the stairs. That is, you should have seen him all three times as of now. ___ | | | | | B | | | | | B3 "I" ___ | | | |___ ____ | M |=| T| | |""" """" | c| "I" ___ |c | | | | M | | | | | "I" ___ | u | """ This floor is very direct. And, because of that, you will need to watch out for the fork going east so you can get the Gott Statue BEFORE you go to fight the boss. Hackberry Kings are weak to Earth. They can heal themselves, but not resurrect. Kill one fast with the help of any Earth spells Mistral might have on her. Inside the Gott Statue's chest is a Golden Helm plus a couple treasure items. I won't even bother to cover the "boss" since it's just one Skate Rat Ark. Mistral could potentially kill it in one spell. When the boss is dead, you are returned to town automatically. You WILL get a Crystal Stone upon the enemy's defeat, though. Carmina Gadelica-- Sell and restock. Use Ryu Book V to find out who among your friends still has an affection rating below 250. Volume 1 characters (minus Mia, Elk, and Orca) should be first to get to 250. Give them the Gott Statue treasure items one- by-one until this is accomplished. Save some remaining treasure items for Nuke and Rachel, and again for Piros since they're unavailable at the moment. * Leave the Ice Bar in your storage if you have it until you see Panta in town. Trade it with him for a Key Axe, and store the axe. * You can use items bought from the store to trade with both Noble Grunties for more treasure items. These items reappear in their inventory after returning from an area or another server. Use this to pick up loads of Silver Scarabs for 8 Healing Potions a piece. * In case you haven't been already, carry 13+ Fortune Wires every time you go to an area that is level 10 or higher. This little investment can go a long way in selling stuff you don't need. * There's even more side stuff we could do now, but let's finally go forward in the main game. Invite Elk and Mia. Save your game. Be sure you have access to Earth spells.