""""" `##; ""'###''. '@@ `'#@"@,;; """""". @#@' O""" OO '@#@ `#''''O @;; .O;;; OO' '@"@ ^ OO 'OO ;;;. O"@@O OO" ""; ;O OO O; O;O OOO Sony Entertainment of America .´;@`. @O"';OOO OO .OO OOOoO.@ `OO´ OOO ;' 'O @O´´O" OOO OO. Presents... OO; `OO. ;OOO'OO @@ OO 'OOO "OOO OO. "OO ;' o .OO ."O OO`. OOO "OO; @OOOooO ;" 'OO O@. OO ;OOO "OOO . ´´' ;O´```` O;;"OOO .OO; ; `". . ,OO ´'''` ''';" """""##·. ;;;.`.@#@ `. .""'.. `##"#··'". @@@;`. @@' ;@@. ;; `.`@" "##" ##;' '@@@; @@@@ ´;;;@ ;@"@" `..` ;@. .OO' ##; '@;;. @@@@ OOO'; .@@@@; .OOOOO. ';@;' "" @#; .@@@; """"' @@O O `"O" .O'´ 'O. @O' OO @@" "&&@# .OOO; OOO' OO' .@@`` @@. OO; ;@@ @@O OOOO" 'OOOOo .··. OO´ .OO'· . 'OO. "" @@ ·´OOO`· "@@@. OOO O .´OOO.`OO..´OOO @O` OOO`.OO . @@ `OOO´ .@OO@" "OOOO ;OO ´ ``OO··`.OO; `.´ ;OO.´ OO @@ @@O .OOO' OOOO' ;OO; O; .@@ @@. .@@" "O OOO OOO; OOOO' .'@; '; .O'. .O" @@; .@O OOO .OO; OOO" .´O@@ "" "OOO"O .OO. .';OO' OOO OOO OOO"O;O' "".···..· OO,OO'."". .OOO. .OO.' .;OOO`.`OO´ .;OOOOOOO@" ™ for Playstation®2 The Ultimate Unofficial Dark Cloud Strategy Guide Written by AdrenalineSL & Azaroth Version 2.0: Released August 14, 2002 Visit: http://www.azaroth.com The very latest versions and updates can be found at GameFAQs: http://www.gamefaqs.com _____________________________________________________________________________ This is currently [Version 2.0] of Adrenaline's and Azaroth's Dark Cloud Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. THIS COMPLETE DARK CLOUD FAQ/WALKTHROUGH EXPLICITLY INCLUDES: * Complete know-it-all basics section for dummies * A full walkthrough that can lead you from point A to Z * Georama help when you are stumped with that 89% * Help on how to fulfill requests of all the villagers and getting 100% in all categories * Story and character information * Everything, and I mean everything about weapons * Weapon stats, weapon abilities, you name it * Complete Bestiary with battle strategies * Complete Item lists and their uses * "Fool-proof" boss strategies for all bosses * Extra random stuff about Dark Cloud COME BUY IT NOW! Available at most retail stores that sell wads of printed guides from the internet. Suckers. I will hunt you down and kill you 'til you die. -------------------- --- WHAT'S NEW --- -------------------- Version 2.0 | August 14, 2002 After some contemplation, I just don't want to add my *NEW* e-mail address in this guide. All the help I can offer is found here. If you can't get the help you need, then consult the message board, PLEASE! No need to try my old addy. I don't use it anymore. Well, hardly. For those of you that have endlessly tried to contact Azaroth--he hasn't been online for months!! Anyway, I just kinda fiddled around with the format. I didn't add anything, but I did take out some things. The old updates have been deleted and stuff. There's nothing more I can really add, so I hope I don't need to update anymore. Good day, good night and good game. [Old updates deleted] _____________________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents ------------------ 01. Controls & Gameplay Controls Dark Cloud Concepts Exploration Mode Battle Mode Fishing 02. Dark Story Characters 03. Walkthrough Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Demon Shaft 04. Rebuilding The Villages Norune Village Matataki Village Queens Muska Lacka Moon Factory Gallery of Time 05. All Things Weapons Weapon Stats Weapon Evolutions Weapon Flowcharts Weapon Abilities Secret Weapons Attachments Weapon-Building Hints 06. Bestiary 07. Boss Strategies 08. Item List 09. Miscellaneous Tips & Tricks Frequently Asked Questions 10. Outro Special Thanks Contributor Credits Legal Junk Shameless Self-Promotion ___ _________________________________________________________________________ \ \\___ ___________________________________________________________ ___/ | | | | | | | | | | 01. C O N T R O L S & G A M E P L A Y | | | |____| |___________________________________________________________| |___ /___________________________________________________________________________\ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Controls ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Left Analog Stick - Run/Walk *Climb ladders *Move cursor on the menu screen Right Analog Stick - Adjust camera angle Triangle Button - Open Menu *Buy/Sell items Cross Button - Main Action button *Confirm selections Square Button - Use active item *Use menu ("!") Circle Button - Close menus *Cancel selections L1 Button - Select weapons/items/Switch Target L2 Button - Adjust camera angle R1 Button - Block attacks R2 Button - Adjust Camera/First-person view Start Button - Confirm selections Direction Buttons - Move character/cursor ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dark Cloud Concepts ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- I will be comparing Dark Cloud with many games, but mostly the Final Fantasy series and Zelda. If you are offended in some way (I don't know how), then don't read my guide. Don't laugh; some people are paranoid like that. Mostly those Square fanboys though. DUNGEONS --------- Dungeons are typical segments found in many games. Without dungeons, you will have to slog through a repetitive pattern of "Explore" -> "Talk" -> "Save People" -> "Get the girl". Sounds a little humdrum, no? Well, it is! Having dungeons in a game is indispensable for players such as me. I'd be dying of boredom, otherwise. So it appears that the Dark Genie has transformed once peaceful environments into vast dungeons congested with monsters looking for a buffoon to accidentally stumble onto them, unarmed. Dungeons are especially essential to Dark Cloud since they contain the valuable Atla. Don't know what an Atla is? Read below. ATLA ----- These things are round, magical spheres that behold the ever-so important pieces of your homeland. In the split second of total destruction of Toan's home, the Spirit King safely tucks them away in these spheres. If you're sharp, you will have known that they are called Atla. Each Atla contains a piece of the lost Western Continent, which you will need to diligently find to restore order back into the world. Atla can contain people missing from villages and foundation parts such as trees, fences, roads, bridges, rivers, etc. Of course, you can't just walk and pick up these Atlas. You'd need a special device to not only let you obtain the Atla, but also help you find it. Well, this item is given to you by the man himself so I won't delve into that. THE ("!") ALERT ----------------- This neat thing was undoubtedly culled from Final Fantasy IX's ("!") action thing. Maybe this is one of the features that have been added into this version (don't send hate mail if it ain't). Well anyway, it works generally the same as the one in FFIX; assuming, you've played it. :/ Uh, ok, for those of you who haven't the slightest idea what it is, think of it as a treasure detector. When Toan is in front of a treasure (or whatever), the ("!") will appear. This hints that Toan has hit the motherload and should be prompted to hit the X button. Upon doing so, Toan will dish out the treasure and add it into his inventory. This also works with the Atla. Sometimes, when the ("!") icon appears, it either means you've found treasure OR Toan has to do a task or use an item to trigger the next event. ALLIES ------- In Dark Cloud, you will make new friends and have them join your party. But the downside to this is that only one character may appear on the screen at once. No worries though, you will be able to switch characters in and out of action. Your allies have special skills that can help you progress in your epic quest to save the world, so it's essential for you to use all your allies to get the real gist of the game. You can switch allies by holding the Directional Left pad and Select simultaneously. TIME ------ This feature was definitely borrowed from Zelda: Majora's Mask. It's arguably the same thing. Dark Cloud's world DOES gradually change to reflect the time of the day. As you lounge around, time flies by and before you know it, it may be nightfall. People interact differently at certain times of the day, like in Zelda:MM. Talk to them at a certain time of the day, they might give you presents, or just talk to you. It is dependant on the time of the day. I repeat, the time of the day. The tough part is to now figure out how the heck you're going to know how the people will interact with you the way you want them to during what part of the day. Morning? Noon? Night? Never? That is the true meaning of exploration. PERSON LEFT ARROW ------------------- If I haven't mentioned this before, I will mention this again: Dark Cloud and Zelda:MM are rather akin to each other. This Person Left Arrow concept was also present in the Zelda game. The blue arrows are used to indicate there is a person in the distance that can be spoken to. As you approach the person, the alert changes to the name of the person. If you find this annoying, you can turn it off via the Options menu. GEORAMA MODE ------------- This is pretty simple and doesn't need a long explanation. There are in-game tutorials if you really need help. The only thing you'd need help on is how you'll want to place the houses and stuff so everyone would be happy. Anyway, to open the Georama window, press the SELECT button to toggle Georama mode first then press the (/\) button to open the menu. You can use this mode once you have collected enough Atla in dungeons to rebuild _something_. Pop into the Georama menu, and start assembling pieces of the world. When assembling villages, make sure you have the proper foundations for such tasks. Select the object you would like to plant into the ground. Press the (X) button for bird's eye view of the land. Experiment with the buttons. If you mess up, you can always level the villages and rebuild them. :) Remember to keep everyone happy. Tip: Wander through town chatting with everyone to find out what they want in their house, their landmark, and everything else you need to know about their ideal house. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Exploration Mode ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- CHESTS ------- Chests can be found in various places and may appear at random. Most chests can be seen on the casual screen. When you've found one, simply walk up to it and open it using the X button. However, some chests are "trick" chests. They contain harmful traps, kinda like Vagrant Story's trap floor panels. It's not possible to watch out for them until you're caught in one. KEYS ------ Most doors in town are unlocked, but some require special keys to open them. Where do you find these keys? Monsters will usually drop them upon defeat, and you may sometimes obtain them through friendly conversations with the locals. Keys can also be found in chests. You can usually tell if a door is locked when they can't be opened with the X button. =P WATER ------- Believe it or not, this is the first game I've seen that requires Toan and co. to keep their bodies properly hydrated with water. Water, in this game, can replenish your health, water meter, and stuff...So a good thing to keep in mind is when you come across a spring, drink up and call upon your other party members to drink their fill as well. Don't be a water hog! If there're no springs or water-related things around, just pray that you've remembered to bring along an available water flask. If your character becomes dehydrated his HP will gradually decrease, and like humans, they become weaker in combat and other actions. MAP ----- The map, like any map, lays out the current area for you. Voids will fill as Toan explores the area and discovers new areas and such. Sometimes you can find map fragments in chests. Map fragments help patch up the holes and disclose other areas of the dungeon, or whatever. It immediately gets added to the map information displayed. When reading maps, you may find many icons and color-coded shapes. You can obtain these "location" information by finding the Magical Crystal on each floor. Once found, the symbols will instantly be displayed on the map. These shapes and icons are meaningful if you know how to read the map properly. These are what those symbols mean: "Pink arrow" – Toan's current location on the dungeon floor "Green dots" – locations of Atla "Green squares" – Floor entrances "Yellow square" – Floor exits "Red dots" - Symbolize monsters. When they begin to move, they're coming for you. Beware. "Yellow dots" - chests and objects that can be accessible "Blue Circles" - Water sources where you can quench your thirst "Small Circles" – Mystery circles. These cause either good or bad status effects. "Pink ("?")" - designate entrances to the secret areas ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Battle Mode ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- LIFE METER ------------ Naturally, your life meter is the most essential stat to watch for. Always remain vigilant to this meter. The life meter is marked by a heart and is the top meter of all meters in position. It represents how much damage Toan or some other ally can sustain. Technically, the higher the better chances for survival. Of course, each ally has their own life meter, meaning it may come in different lengths. If the meter depletes to 0, the character is K.O.ed and cannot perform any further actions. Life can be restored using curative items or by nice, refreshing water from a local gutter. WEAPON HIT POINTS (WHP) ------------------------- The duration of your weapon is dependant on how you maintain it. Weapons have feelings too, you know. You should never overwork your weapon, or it will not only break, it also means that you've wasted your effort in trying to strengthen the darned thing. As you strike with a weapon, be it a slingshot or some huge club, it will begin to lose its efficiency and its WHP will decrease. If, or when all WHP is gone, the weapon breaks and disappears from your inventory. However, the character's default weapon will remain no matter how badly you abuse it. :) The Weapon Hit Point meter is marked by a sword. With the use of the Repair option, only then can you help maintain its edge. You will need to have some Repair Powder handy first to be able to use the Repair option. So the tip of the day is to have Repair Powder in abundance! Doesn't hurt to have extras of everything. ABSORTION METER (ABS) ---------------------- The ABS meter is vital to upgrading your weapon (if you want it upgraded). As you continue using the same weapon (without wearing it out), the ABS meter will increase. Once it reaches the heightened point of the meter, you can upgrade your current weapon by selecting the UPGRADE option in the weapon menu. Cool. THRIST METER -------------- In Dark Cloud, not only do you need to worry about your HP, but you have also got to watch your Thirst Meter. Both these meters are pretty systematic and they pretty much work in the same way. However, the depletion of the thirst meter does affect your HP meter. If your warrior is dehydrated, his HP will start to decrease. The thirst meter is represented by a line of water droplets. As Toan, or other allies, grow more parched, the droplets will begin to fade away. When this happens and you are near the end of your water supply make excursions to a nearby river, stream, gutter, puddle, etc., or hunt for one. Like normal human beings, water is a vital ingredient to life. Period. ACTIVE ITEM SLOTS ------------------- Active Item Slots are those three squares at the top of the screen. You can set up your items here for instant use, without having to open your inventory menu. You can quickly use these items by pressing the [] button. Use the Direction buttons to move between the items. Items can range from offensive items to auxiliary items. Go figure. SPEED ------- The speed meter does not determine how fast your character can react, but rather how quickly he can swing the sword, or weapon. The greater the speed, the more combos he can pull off. And we all know how devastating combos can be if used correctly. If the speed meter is empty, you must wait patiently for the meter to slowly refill again. Speed increases as you allocate certain attachments to a weapon. The speed meter is displayed at the lower left corner of the screen. Speed also changes dramatically as your weapon grows stronger. Stronger is better. DAMAGE -------- Depending on your recklessness, you can either receive little (or no damage), or major wallops. Each time you or the monster receives its share of pain, the "damage" will be distinctly identified in a red light and the amount of HP lost will be displayed. CHARGED ATTACKS ---------------- In contrary to primary attacks, which do moderate damage to your foes, each character can execute special attacks called charge attacks. Though, it does not hold a catchy name, it's exceptionally powerful, mind you. To properly deliver these deathblows, press and hold the (X) button until the character basks in red light; then release the button. This should have the character go on a frenzy of attacks. For each character, he or she will perform their own signature moves, or different types of charge attacks: _____________________________________________ | Toan | Jump Slash and Windmill Slash | | Goro | Spin Smash | | Ungaga | Tornado Spin | | Ruby | Charge Magic Bolt | | Xiao | Power Shot (Hold button down) | |___________|_________________________________| THROWING ---------- Like the Throw command in the Final Fantasy games, throwing items at enemies in Dark Cloud can be beneficial, or sometimes rueful. To prepare an item for throwing, place it in one of the Active Item Slots for convenient purposes. Only throw items if you have surplus quantities of that item, unless it's a useless item then uh, use it. To "auto-throw" an item at an enemy, you must first have your ideal enmity locked-on target. Next, select the item you'd like to pelt your foe with, and press the ([]) button to throw. To manually, aim and throw is a bit trickier. Select an item from the Active Item Slots or whatever, then press and hold the ([]) button. A cross-hair will appear to help you aim your shot. When you've got your victim down, release the ([]) button and watch 'er go! A nice thing about throwing items is the exchange between the monster and you. It might drop attachments that will aid you in defeating monsters of the same attribute later. SWITCHING ALLIES ------------------ Team work is what everyone needs to get through grueling tasks. With a one- man party it's impossible. Be a team player! Anyway, to switch your allies in and out of the role, press the SELECT button and a circle of all your party members will appear. Use the Directional buttons to choose between members, and press the (X) button to confirm your selection. However, in some areas, you are prohibited to use any other ally. These such areas are called Limited Zones. The hell are these Limited Zones? LIMITED ZONES --------------- Limited Zones are randomly placed in floors of dungeons. These place morbid restrictions on the player such as using a weapon can reduce ABS instead of the other way around and getting thirsty quicker. These are silly examples of Limited Zones. Simply put: They aren't fun. DUELS ------- Throughout the game, enemies you encounter will challenge you into a simple Duel. During Duels, the player does not have complete control over the character. It doesn't take brute force and strategy to win these battles, but rather it takes a precision of timed buttons. Kinda like Squall's Renzokuken in Final Fantasy VIII. When a duel is about to commence, a ("!") icon will appear overhead. At the start of the duel, a blue bar appears at the bottom, and scrolling white block will appear on the left side of the screen. As we digest this, controller button replicas start to appear on the right side and work their way to the left side. As the buttons overlap the white block, press the buttons according to the buttons displayed on screen. It takes a little practice to master it. Winning Duels award you with nice items. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fishing ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Upon popular demand, I've created and opened this section for those players who are having trouble learning the ways of the fishermen. First, look for a decent fishing pond and spot. Examine the fishing sign, and select Fish. Now, Toan will hold the fishing rod. Choose a spot you'd like to fish. An options box will appear with the options: (X)Cast, ([])Change Bait, and (_)Quit. The last option just tells you what you have as your current bait. Look into the pond; you can vaguely tell that there are fish in there. Attach the bait on to the hook first, then cast the line into the spot with the most fish. Move around a little bit to attract the fish. Hold on to the rod until you feel a nibble (you can also see it on the screen, or even feel it). Now that you know a fish is interested in your bait, stay neutral a bit until you're sure the fish is hooked to your bait. Rotate the camera a bit for a better view. Now, attempt to reel in the line and the fish should grab on to it. Mash the (X) button to successfully catch it. Your points will be evaluated depending upon how big the fish is. Remember that you can lose the bait if you let it dawdle for too long. Also, to be a good fisherman, keep in mind that it is better to fish at night and in the morning. That's when the fishies get hungry. Toan's first fishing experience will be in Norune when you rebuild the pond. Prickly bait works well there. Give it a try and master it. ------------------------ Yadda, yadda. I'm getting restless with these game basics. Let's get on with the meat of the game. If you really don't understand Dark Cloud's elements, it's best advised you keep playing to get used to it, or you return the game and get your darned money back. ___ _________________________________________________________________________ \ \\___ ___________________________________________________________ ___/ | | | | | | | | | | 02. D A R K S T O R Y | | | |____| |___________________________________________________________| |___ /___________________________________________________________________________\ The following is the story written with my own words with absolutely no embellishments. Honest. You really can't blame me for trying. Ok, so the milieu of the story takes place on an unspecified world, with two moons and magical creatures you'd usually find in fairy tales; it's much different from ours, that's for sure. While it resembles a plot clipped out of Aladdin, the world of Dark Cloud is actually much more than turban attire and oversized flying dogs. Now I won't blame the people who translated Dark Cloud for trying, but they did a poor job on the story. Actually, I'm one to talk, aren't I? Well anyway, it appears that this king 400 years ago, could not bear to watch his kingdom in ashes. His anguish was great enough to bring forth a dark power that can grant one's wish. Of course, the king wished for the safety of his kingdom and that is what he had gotten. The king breathes a sigh of relief and starts to kick back upon a fortunate victory. Blessed with the retentive memory of his easy-earned victory, it was a only a matter of time before his kingdom was once again engulfed in flames. From this, we learn that with one's selfish and greedy desire comes consequences. Now, we all know this is a foreshadowing sentence. Someone 400 years later is going to come along and stumble across this urn in which this Dark Genie is concealed in, and release it to bring forth his most lustrous desires. Argh. The clock fast forwards to the present. In the rural village of Norune, the villagers gather to celebrate the Harvest Festival. As you probably would have guessed, the Harvest Festival is a time of rejoice and other cheesy stuff--a time to thank the gods for another successful year of copious crops. It is here, in this village, where all the troubles begin to play out--where it all starts. The player is introduced to his game companion, Toan, a young audacious boy who wears spandex. Elsewhere, in a secluded area where the Dark Shrine bear its ominous shadows, a wave of a more sodden mood is given off. Not the mirth atmosphere like the one in Norune Village, but a more sullen and creepy aura fills the warm air. An army of what seem to be armored mages pray and perform rituals for the figure at the foot of the urn. Who is he? Only but the most ridiculous name a video game character has ever been bestowed, Colonel Flag. Apparently, they have all gathered to perform a ceremonial resurrection of a dark god known as the Dark Genie (this shows how talented Level 5 is with their naming skills). After what seems to be hours, the seal on the urn begins to wear off, and the evil-being slowly emerges from the urn, as if in a trance. Moments later, the plump genie overshadows the entire room. In trepidation, the Colonel plucks up enough courage to squeak a few words. A few words that can mean the total destruction of the world. The Dark Genie recognizes him as its master, and in a blink of an eye, devours an unfortunate priest. Being encapsulated in a bottle for 400 years helps work up a voracious appetite, no? :) Meanwhile, back in Norune, Toan searches for Paige in a village teeming with dancers and jostling people. Suddenly, the shadow of the incoming Dark Genie covers the night sky and fills the land with complete darkness until...BOOM! A sinister ballet of destruction follows. Toan's village suddenly leaps up in flames, as the Dark Genie continues to twirl and spin around, pitching destructive bolts toward the village. Everything is in chaos. People screaming for their lives and chickens clucking, trying to find their pens. In all the carnage, Toan makes a heroic dive to save Paige from an early death, but to no avail. Everything dies out. Toan awakens to find himself in a strange place with an elderly man standing before him. And who might he be? The almighty Spirit King to say the least. He has apparently saved Toan's hide from hell and recognized his heroic actions to save his loved ones. You ask yourself, _Why me? Why am I the only survivor?_ Surprise! You're not. You're not that special. Apparently, the Spirit King made last minute efforts to save the village and other parts of the world, encapsulating them in balls (that resemble dragonballs). Encased in these balls are your fellow cronies and parts of villages--trees, bridges, cats, fences, people, rivers, the works. Your assignment is about to be foretold. The Spirit King bestows you the power to rehabilitate your world. You must now venture to different dungeons and seek out these balls called Atla. Though, it's not just a picnic in the park, you'll meet much stiff resistance. By showing true gallantry, only then can you survive and restore Toan's homeland back to its pristine state. ____________----------------------------------------------------_____________ \ Characters / /___________----------------------------------------------------____________\ Toan ----- Weapons: Swords Favorite Food: Fluffy Doughnut Toan is the main protagonist of the game. The big, not-so-beefy tyke that's going to save the world from the sinister of evil. He's been granted with the power to recreate the world from these little teeny balls called Atla. Encased in these Atla are pieces of the lost world Toan must restore. With the Atlamillia, only Toan can capture these lost fragments and overcome the dangers of perilous dungeons they have been stashed away in. Let's see now, Toan has a wimpy-build, looks too young to assume he has even gone through puberty yet, wears oversized shoes and gloves, and plus he has a flair for that silly turban on his head. Not the greatest image of a hero, huh? Well, if the Spirit King decides to instill the fate of the world on this boy, then I guess it doesn't hurt to believe in him. After all, we'll be controlling him. Eh, eh? Xiao ----- Weapons: Slingshots Favorite Food: Fish Candy Xiao is, or rather, was a stray cat found by Toan while exploring the Divine Beast Cave. Xiao takes an immediate liking to Toan after he rescued her. Xiao follows him home to his village and gets turned into a cat warrior. Being a half-cat, half-human creature, she packs quite a wallop. She flings her slingshot like nobody's business. She is not, however, fighting material, so it's best advised not to rely on her too much. She may lack in the looks department but she sure is cute sometimes. Having two fluffy ears, claws and a tail does make her act in a cute demeanor. My impression anyway. Goro ----- Weapons: Hammers/Axes Favorite Food: Grass Cake Goro's a chunky looking feller who can maul things like a hot knife in butter. He is just another one of those strong, but brainless companions you'd find in any game. His attacks are devastating and can easily wipe out fairly strong monsters. Because of Goro's bulky built, he can be a nuisance to control. He lives in what seems to be a cozy tree house adjacent the main portion of Matataki Village. At first, he does not join Toan on his quest, but rather he wants to challenge him. Looks like making friends isn't that easy after all. Goro wields a ridiculously huge, wooden hammer and wears a bearskin over his head. Talk about a fashion statement. He has, like about a hundred rolls on his arms, legs and his beer belly. But he's an all around good fighter uh, minus the speed and intelligence. Ruby ----- Weapons: Rings/Armlets Favorite food: Witch Parfait Ruby is a luscious babe Toan had summoned from a lamp. Don't be so fooled by her appearance, as she will be your most useful character in the game. Time to throw a party, ya'll! She wears powerful magic rings that can really toast some bad guys! Who wouldn't want a beautiful gal on their team? She'll really blows you and your mother's mind away (her attacks and stuff, dummy). Do not leave home without her. :) Ungaga ------- Weapons: Spears/Staves Favorite food: Scorpion Jerky Ungaga is a warrior of the desert people whom you first encounter on your arrival at the Sun & Moon Temple. He has lost his courage and belief in his own abilities as a warrior after he could do nothing to stop the destruction of his village at the hands of the Dark Genie. Ungaga will join you after you activate the event at the 3 Sisters House in Muska Lacka. He will regain his courage and will to fight, joining with Toan to continue his quest to rebuild Muska Lacka and defeat the Dark Genie. He's a good short range fighter with better reach than either Toan or Goro but he starts out rather weak. You should use him sparingly until you complete Muska Lacka and get the Mirage which can be built up into both of his Ultimate Weapons. Osmond ------- Weapons: Machine Guns/Spell Shooters Favorite food: Carrot Cookie Osmond is the boss of the moon people in Yellow Drops and is trying to win the Sun Gem in the games at the Coliseum. You will find him on the eighth level of the Moon Sea, and he will immediately join up with you on the quest to defeat the Dark Genie. He starts out with a relatively weak weapon so you might want to build him up a little bit before you reach the limited level on the Moon Sea where you're forced to use him exclusively. I would recommend that you hold off building up his weapons too much for the time being; you should be able to acquire a Hexa Blaster in the Gallery of Time which can be built up to his most powerful weapon, the Supernova. ___ _________________________________________________________________________ \ \\___ ___________________________________________________________ ___/ | | | | | | | | | | 03. W A L K T H R O U G H | | | |____| |___________________________________________________________| |___ /___________________________________________________________________________\ The opening movie is based on the story foretold in the manual (or by me, if you've read "Dark Story"). Name your character "Toan", or name him some other appropriate name. His name could be "Sweat Socks" for all I care. The movie opens out at the Dark Shrine, where an army of dancing who knows what, is performing some kind of resurrecting ritual. It's pretty long, so you can stop killing your controller now. Let's skip ahead, as you can watch it without by guidance, or do you...? Anyway, meet Toan (I will be using the default names, thank you very much) and his mom, although the game doesn't state her name. Toan's gotta hurry up and finish his meal, or he's gonna miss the opening ceremony. Just as Toan starts to bathe in the joyous atmosphere, ready for a good time, the Dark Genie appears and lurks about in the sky. Mass destruction ensues. Dancing and prancing about while hurtling destructive beams from his body parts. The star symbolizing Toan's destiny has moved. This bodes for a promising future for our hero. The time has come for his destiny to be known. ============================================================================= CHAPTER ONE - NORUNE VILLAGE ============================================================================= When you regain control of Toan, you'll find the land completely devoid of life. Run forward and the Village Chief's house will loom into view. It has miraculously escaped the mass annihilation of all things. Er, anyway, speak to the Village Chief. He will immediately instill the duty of having you go to the Divine Beast Cave to check up on good ol' Dran. He gives you the Cave Key which you will need to unlock the huge stone doors. And for being great Survival buddies, he fills your item bag with useful items you'll need during the excursion to Dran. Afterwards, check the closet behind the chief to find a Prickly. Leave his house. Note: You can come back anytime to have your bag refilled with useful items. Head northeast towards the entrance of the Divine Beast Cave. Use the Cave Key the village chief gave you and press on. Know that I will not be able to guide you step by step through the dungeons. You're going to have to pull through this yourself since the dungeons are randomized. Meaning, every time you enter the cave, you'll be at different parts of the floor. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- DIVINE BEAST CAVE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- When you first enter, the only accessible floor at this time is, of course, the first floor. So we'll start here and work your way up and stuff. Don't worry too much about dying. The first time you get KOed, the Fairy King will come to your aid and impart Georama knowledge into your pea brain with the help of a Manual. So, every time you die, you'll get transported outside with some items lost. Floor B1: ^^^^^^^^^ There are a total of eight Atla to collect here, some of which include Macho and his house. You can choose to start building his house if you'd like. Start hunting for that Dran's Crest and pick up the nice items along the way. Don't forget to fill up on your water supply. Just look for a blue stain on the map and that should be your water source. Be sure to pick up the Tram Oil for "back room" purposes. The question mark on the map denotes the location of the backroom entrances. In this case, it's a Tram. It should be located on every floor and you can only use it when you've found Tram Oil. Floor B2: ^^^^^^^^^ Toan will find a wandering cat on this level, but runs away at the sight of him. Another eight Atla to gather here to add to the ever growing collection. Be sure to plunder all the chests for weapons and stuff. Since the dungeons are so randomized, it's kinda hard to tell what you'll get and stuff. Floor B3: ^^^^^^^^^ After snagging the six Atlas here, you should have a total of 22 fragments of your village. Hey, you're getting there! If you're getting restless, you may go back to the empty lot and start rebuilding your town with what you have. I would. You might encounter Statues on this floor (from here onwards). They're pretty tough to handle; that is, if you don't have the Stone Breaker placed on your swords. You can stick in an Undead Killer, as well. You can find these attachments in the chests, as you empty the chests. A good reason to explore the dungeons more than once. Floor B4: ^^^^^^^^^ On this floor, you'll encounter the first duel with a skeleton. First you're Going to have to fend off a trio of Skeleton Soldiers. Simple enough isn't it? Probably not for the first time. To pull this off in succession, follow the scrolling buttons and hit them as they pass through the white line on the left. It ends pretty quickly. This mini-game takes precision timing and may need a little practice. Don't fret if you've lost. The game will allow you to redo it again and again. Floor B5: ^^^^^^^^^ You might want to build up your weapon on this floor, as it proves to be a nice battle ground. Don't forget to search for those Atla. There're a total of five on this level. Floor B6: ^^^^^^^^^ Collect seven scattered Atla on this floor and just fight your way to F7. You might catch a glimpse of a kitty cat. Floor B7: ^^^^^^^^^ The 7th floor is the first to expose you to these Limited Zones. This one causes ABS to reduce as you strike with your weapon. So a good idea is to put it away and avoid any battles. Oh, the Dran's Crest. This is going to be tough, especially since you want to upgrade your weapons. Just blindly pick out a few victims and hope that it will drop the Dran's Crest. There are also eight Atla to find on this level. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~ ~* *~ AVOID THE ABS HANDICAP TIP SUBMITTED BY: Dorothy Hall ~* *~ ~* *~ On B7 where your weapon loses abs, I have found if you go down with ~* *~ a recently powered up weapon, you don't lose anything. That is to say, ~* *~ if you are at 0 abs, you do not go into negative abs. ~* *~ ~* *~ It may seem too obvious, but it might be an idea to include. Just a ~* *~ thought. Thanks again for a great FAQ -- I look forward to seeing the ~* *~ updates as and when you get around to them. ~* *~ ~* *~ Thanks very much to Dorothy Hall for such a wonderful tip. :) ~* *~ ~* ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Floor B8: ^^^^^^^^^ On this level, you'll run into a mysterious young man. He'll challenge you to a duel. This is a dud, as you can't win. Toan will just fall and be at the mercy of the white-haired guy's blade. What's this? Toan fell deliberately to protect a poor cute cat from danger. Before the mysterious man leaves, he tosses some Changing Potion to you. Is this out of kindness, or is it filled with poison to suck the life force out of you? Oops, Toan isn't supposed to drink it. At this point, you may want to return to the village and trigger Toan's event with the stray cat. Use the Changing Potion on the little gal. It'll join you afterwards. From here onwards, things will be much easier for you to handle. Use Xiao to jump over that chasm. Floor B9: ^^^^^^^^^ As usual, just collect the Atla on this level. There's nothing exciting or unusual to take note of. Floor B10: ^^^^^^^^^^ Fight. Collect Atla. Progress. Same old, same old. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. Is that simple enough for you to follow? Floor B11: ^^^^^^^^^^ Encounter yet another Limited Zone. Only this time, Xiao can only be used on this level. Therefore, if you haven't recruited her, yet. Now is a good time to do so. This is pretty hard, since Xiao is physically weaker than Toan and cannot sustain too much damage. Your number one priority is to find a Dran's Crest and move on. This is based on luck, I guess. I personally, had a hard time with this level. You might want to consider emptying the chests first, then move onto finding the Crest. If you're still having trouble, upgrade her weapon and come back later. Floor B12: ^^^^^^^^^^ Same old, customary routine. Collect the Atla and move onto the next level. Floor B13: ^^^^^^^^^^ Collect Atla and grab some goodies from chests. Then move onto the next level if nothing else. Floor B14: ^^^^^^^^^^ One floor left before facing the big guy. If you're weapon isn't at LEAST a Dagger+5, you're in bad shape. So, if you haven't been diligently training your weapons, you'd better start now. Also, try to stock up on Repair Powder and the sorts. Gather the remaining Atla and move to the final floor of this dungeon. But first, you'll need the Horned Key. To get that you must rebuild Dran's Windmill. By now, you should have ALL the Atla, if not, enough, to build Dran's Windmill. Rebuild the entire thing until you trigger the event and inside the windmill should be a chest containing the Horned Key. Whew! You might want to save. Before heading down to the final floor to square off with the boss, you should explore those backrooms. Back Rooms: ^^^^^^^^^^^ The enemies in the back rooms are generally tougher than the ones on the actual dungeon. However, the plus side to this detour is to attain very nice items and attachments. To access the back room in this dungeon, you must first find the Tram Oil situated in one of the chests on any floor. Now, find a red hook on your map if you can find it and head in that direction. When you get there, look for an old rusted tram. Lubricate it with the Tram Oil and use it to gain entrance to the back room. From there, you're on your own. Good luck. Before heading off the square off with the guardian of the village, make sure you have a defense of at least 15 for both Toan and Xiao. To raise their DEF, find some Fluffy Doughnuts and Fish Candy. Those food items can raise defense considerably. You can find those items in dungeon chests, or chests outside of the newly rebuilt homes. Floor B15: ^^^^^^^^^^ Meet Dran, a lively, cheerful guy...that's about to tear your body apart! Get it together and fight! _____________________________________________________________________________ BOSS FIGHT: Dran For the first boss, he is tough if you don't know what to do. If you do, that is wonderful. To make this puppy prowl, use Xiao to fling a slingshot at him in the face. He'll get irritated and drop on the ground. Switch to Toan and let him have it with a few pokes in the butt. Giving it to him in the leg can prevent any damage to you. Remember to back up when you've landed a few hits, or he'll knock you to the ground. Having item Dran's Feather could somewhat help you in the fight. Wouldn't use it though. Just remember to keep Xiao a good distance away from him to avoid any damage to her. Repeat this method several times over and the possessed Dran will finally give in. Use Repair Powder if you need to. _____________________________________________________________________________ Upon defeat, Dran will finally knock out of his trance and become apologetic. Mention the Dark Genie and he'll start to tell you about a similar being he calls the "Black Demon." Long ago, this Black Demon brought mass destruction to the world, much like what the Dark Genie had done now. It was massacre and blood after massacre...and blood. This powerful magic tribe called the Moon People were sickened by the Black Demon's reign, they sealed the demon in a giant urn. People commemorate the day the Moon People saved the world from the evil, but now that it has been released from its entrapment, it's up to Toan to restore peace through the land. Now that Dran's done telling his side story, he'll offer to help you in your quest to rebuild the world and save it from the Dark Genie's grasp. Toan hitches a ride on Dran's back to return to the village. There, Dran gives him give the World Map, except this map is "magical". Great. He also adds that when you reach Matataki Village, you should seek help from the Great Treant. Now it's time to completely rebuild the village and fill in the patches. Make any last preparations. Be sure to get the fishing pole from Alnet when you've refurnished her home. She will gladly hand it over as recompense, but don't tell Pike! See the Rebuilding Help section for details. When you've done everything there is to do in the village, go visit Dran and he will bestow you with your first charge attack: WindMill Slash. It'll come in handy (to get this attack, you must have 100% in all three categories in the Georama Analysis menu.). Now that you've taken the first step to a whole new world, it's time to migrate to the next village that is Matataki Village! ============================================================================= CHAPTER TWO - MATATAKI VILLAGE ============================================================================= Watch the rather short cut-scene. You will find Matataki Village as decimated as Norune Village had started out with. There's still the waterfall and a few broken bridges and the dried up trenches. Toan turns to find a chunky-looking guy staring back at him; the guy runs off to the back. When you can control Toan again, pursue the man that had just run away. You'll come to a clearing, and in the middle is a massive treehouse. Approach the ladder and the fat man will plummet to the ground. He attacks you and a duel commences. This is easy as long as you watch for a "rotation" button. \-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\ [TIP] Submitted by TooCoolSmurf Just intentionally miss one of the sequences and you can get all the items in Goro's treehouse right now, rather than waiting to level 9. Just Let Goro beat you and he'll insult you and hop back up to his treehouse. Follow him and you can enter his treehouse now! If you talk to Goro while up there he