Arc The Lad: End Of Darkness: FAQ/Walkthrough by CSoriano (aka paulstreet) Version 1.1 (March 2008) =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ARC THE LAD: END OF DARKNESS -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Arc The Lad: End Of Darkness Walkthrough version 1 For Playstation 2(tm) (US version) By: paulstreet First Submitted: Dec 2007 E-mail me at: cpps90@yahoo.com =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= THIS IS NOT A SPOILER-FREE WALKTHROUGH -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= INTRODUCTION =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- This is a Walkthrough for the Arc The Lad: End Of Darkness video game. The version I use was purchased in the United States for the Sony Playstation 2 console. I am not familiar with the Japanese version which is known as "Generation," so I can't tell you if there are any differences. To find a specific section in the Walkthrough, please do a search on the identifier shown in "[]" in the CONTENTS. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= CONTENTS =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- I. Progress/Updates/Revisions....................[PROG01] II. Game Information..............................[GAME01] a. Game Controls..............................[GAMECT] b. Abbreviations..............................[ABBREV] c. Online Game................................[ONLN01] d. Game Basics................................[GAMEBA] 1. Start a new game.......................[START1] 2. Quick Facts............................[QUICK1] 3. Battle System..........................[BATTL1] 4. Targeting..............................[TARG01] 5. Cards..................................[CARD01] 6. Card Synthesis.........................[CARDSY] 7. Soft Reboot............................[SOFT01] 8. Pausing................................[PAUS01] 9. Saving your game.......................[SAVE01] 10. Gameplay...............................[GAMEPL] 11. Leveling Up............................[LVL001] 12. Counter Tasks..........................[COUNT1] 13. Notice Board Tasks.....................[NOTC01] 14. Capturing..............................[CAPT01] 15. Exorcism...............................[EXOR01] 16. Hunter Ranks...........................[HRANKS] 17. Hunter Exams...........................[HEXAMS] 18. Cutscenes..............................[CUTSC1] 19. What should I get?.....................[GET001] 20. Exploring..............................[EXPL01] 21. Zoning.................................[ZONE01] 22. Mini-map...............................[MINI01] 23. Gimmicks...............................[GIMM01] 24. The Lottery.and Mystery Cards..........[LOTT01] 25. The Lottery Minigames..................[LOTTMG] 26. List of Place Names....................[PLACE1] III. Character Information.........................[CHAR01] a. Edda.......................................[EDDA01] b. Other Characters...........................[OTHER1] c. Special Characters.........................[SPEC01] IV. Walkthrough...................................[WALK01] a. Introduction...............................[INTR01] b. Milmarna...................................[MILM01] c. Trainee....................................[TRAN01] 1. Counter Tasks...........................[TRANCT] i. Clear the Hay Bundles!...............[TRANC1] 2. Notice Board Tasks......................[TRANNT] ii. Retraining At Lamda Temple..........[TRANN1] 3. Hunter Exam.............................[TRANHE] d. Rookie.....................................[ROOK01] 1. LANCER SPIRIT...........................[ROOKLS] 2. Counter Tasks...........................[ROOKCT] 3. CURE....................................[ROOKCR] 4. Need Money?.............................[ROOKMO] 5. Notice Board Tasks......................[ROOKNT] i. Find the Missing Person!............[ROOKN1] ii. Find My Husband Demill!.............[ROOKN2] 6. Hunter Exam.............................[ROOKHE] e. Apprentice.................................[APPR01] 1. HEALING CARD......................... ..[APPRHC] 2. BATTLE ARMBAND (STR+60).................[APPRBA] 3. IRON FANG (STR+82)......................[APPRIF] 4. HERMIT'S ROBE (DEF+50)..................[APPRRA] 5. Shockwaver..............................[APPRSW] 6. Counter Tasks...........................[APPRCT] 7. Notice Board Tasks......................[APPRNT] i. Take Over Guard Duty................[APPRN1] ii. Find Our Teacher!...................[APPRN2] 8. Hunter Exam.............................[APPRHE] f. Expert.....................................[EXPR01] 1. EXORCIST'S SHAFT........................[EXPRSH] 2. HEALING PYGMY...........................[EXPRHP] 3. Counter Tasks...........................[EXPRCT] 4. Notice Board Tasks......................[EXPRNT] i. Urgent Manhunt!....................[EXPRN1] ii. Help My Father!....................[EXPRN2] iii. Help My Father! - Leeza card.......[EXPRN3] 5. Hunter Exam.............................[EXPRHE] g. Veteran....................................[VETR01] 1. LIZARD GUARD (DEF+100, SPD+10)..........[VETRLG] 2. Counter Tasks...........................[VETRCT] 3. Notice Board Tasks......................[VETRNT] i. Wanted: Exorcist!...................[VETRN1] ii. A Favor To Ask......................[VETRN2] 4. Hunter Exam.............................[VETRHE] h. Master.....................................[MSTR01] 1. Thunder Storm II........................[MSTRTS] 2. Violet Racer (SPD+25)...................[MSTRVR] 3. Counter Tasks...........................[MSTRCT] 4. Notice Board Tasks......................[MSTRNT] i. To Anyone Who'll Believe Me........[MSTRN1] ii. To Anyone Who'll Believe Me.- Lalyuk ........................................[MSTRN2] iii. Wanted: Master Hunter!.............[MSTRN3] 5. Hunter Exam.............................[MSTRHE] i. Hero.......................................[HERO01] 1. Cathena Lab.............................[HEROCL] 2. Yggdrasill..............................[HEROYG] i. Introduction.......................[HEROY1] ii. What Didn't Work For Me............[HEROY2] iii. Strategy...........................[HEROY3] 3. Nidhogg.................................[HEROND] i. Introduction.......................[HERON1] ii. Strategy...........................[HERON2] 4. After Nidhogg - Very Important!!........[HEROAN] j. Post-Game Activities.......................[HEROPG] k. Volk.......................................[VOLK01] 1. Aldrow..................................[VOLK02] 2. Volk....................................[VOLK03] l. Rueloon....................................[RUELON] m. General....................................[GENL01] 1. Counter Tasks...........................[GENLCT] 2. Hunter Exam.............................[GENLHE] n. Legend.....................................[LEGD01] 1. Counter Tasks...........................[LEGDCT] 2. Hunter Exam.............................[LEGDHE] o. Arc........................................[ARCX01] 1. Counter Tasks...........................[ARCXCT] 2. Hunter Exam.............................[ARCXNT] V. The End.......................................[END001] VI. Selected Counter Tasks........................[SELEC1] a. Rank D.....................................[DXXXXX] 1. Destroy the Snake-Eating Rhokes!........[D00001] 2. Guide the Sheep to Safety!..............[D00002] b. Rank C.....................................[CXXXXX] 1. Rank C Tasks Suitable For Rookie Level..[C00001] 2. Capture the xxxx!.......................[C00002] 3. Capture the Elementals!.................[C00003] 4. Collect Seabed Gravity Stones!..........[C00004] 5. Eliminate the Flies' Nest!..............[C00005] 6. Old-Generation Parts Hunt...............[C00006] 7. Wipe Out the Elementals!................[C00007] 8. Wipe Out the Giant Slime!...............[C00008] c. Rank B.....................................[BXXXXX] 1. Rank B Tasks Suitable For Apprentice Level [B00001] 2. Protect the Priest's Pilgrimage!........[B00002] 3. Protect the Truck Installation!.........[B00003] 4. Rescue the Coleopt Kids.................[B00004] d. Rank A.....................................[AXXXXX] 1. Arrest the Evil Swordmaster!............[A00003] 1. The "Pyramid Stone" Tasks (6)...........[A00001] 2. Deliver The Cobra Anti-Venom!...........[A00002] e. Rank S.....................................[SXXXXX] 1. Collect a Magical Warlocus!.............[S00001] 2. Destroy the Darkness Bones!.............[S00002] 3. Destroy the Driven Cliff Gigant!........[S00003] 4. Eliminate the Legendary Altima!.........[S00004] 5. Kill the Deimos-Striking Ghosts!........[S00005] 6. Locate the Cup Organizer!...............[S00006] 7. Romariah's Silver Cup...................[S00007] 8. Romariah's Gold Cup.....................[S00008] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= PROGRESS/UPDATES/REVISIONS [PROG01] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-= ****Version 1.1: Mar 2008 a. Corrected errors regarding THUNDER STORM II and EXORCIST'S SHAFT b. Added content for HEALING PYGMY, HERMIT'S ROBE, Cathena Lab, and post-game events c. Reworked Character Information for Edda d. Reworked information for the three post-game Hunter Exams e. Corrected several typos ****Version 1.0: Dec 2007 First version -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= GAME INFORMATION [GAME01] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ================ GAME CONTROLS [GAMECT] ================ (X) - Attack, Confirm selection, Continue (cutscene) Circle - Back, Cancel, Exorcism attack Square - Kick an object (combined with pressing the Left Analog stick in a certain direction) Triangle - Character configuration menu L1 and R1 - Evade (character will move a quarter circle around the enemy), used to scroll through Counter Tasks. L2 - Target a foe Left Analog - character movement Directional pad ("D-pad") - character movement, scrolling through lists R2 + Circle - cast magic, Numbing Ball (Entrapment set) R2 + (X) - cast magic, Paralyzer (Entrapment set) R2 + Square - cast magic, Paralyzing Bomb (Entrapment set) R2 + Triangle - cast magic, Net (Entrapment set) L1+ L2 + R1 + R2 + Start + Select - Soft Reboot There is no Pause function or Camera control in EoD. =============== ABBREVIATIONS [ABBREV] =============== ALD - Wristband worn by hunters to use magic. Pronounced "ay-el-dee," not "ald." The device was named after Dr Sarak's home country of Aldrow. The individual letters don't stand for anything. CP - Card Points (used to cast magic) DEF - Defense EoD - (Arc the Lad:) End of Darkness EXP - Experience points G - god (money) MAG - Magic RPG - Role-playing game SP - Spiritual Points SPD - Speed STR - Strength TEC - Technics NOTE: The words "mission" and "task" are used interchangeably throughout EoD to mean the same thing. In the Guild office,the menus say "Take on a Task" and "Settle A Task". But when you finish a task, you see the message "Mission Accomplished". ============ ONLINE GAME [ONLN01] ============ This walkthrough does not contain information about online play. At the time of this writing (Dec 2007), the EoD servers were still down, so I have never done online play. ============ GAME BASICS [GAMEBA] ============ 1. Start a new Game [START1] ---------------------- After inserting the disc, you will get the introductory screen. Select the Start option by highlighting it with the D-pad, then pressing X. You will get a screen to set the name of the main character. The default name is EDDA. To select EDDA, press Triangle, then press X. If you want to give Edda a different name, use the alphabet and edit buttons below, then press Triangle --> X. 2. Quick Facts [QUICK1] ----------------- a. Developer: Cattle Call b. Distributor: Namco c. Release date: Nov 3, 2004 (Japan: "Generation"), June 14, 2005 (US) d. Known as "Arc the Lad: Generation" in Japan e. There is no Pause and no camera controls in EoD f. Yes, the music is taken from the "Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits" g. You cannot explore in EoD h. EoD is not a long game. You can finish it in around 20 hours or less. i. The 24 special characters come from previous Arc the Lad games, and can only be used in Counter Tasks and online. You cannot use them in Notice Board Tasks or during Hunter Exams. 3. Battle System [BATTL1] ----------------- EoD is an RPG. Battle is in "real time," not turn-based. You move Edda toward a foe, then attack. You can use either melee attacks or magic attacks. Melee attacks can be done two ways. You can target then hit (L2 -> X), or just hit without targeting (press X only). Most of the time, you want to target first because otherwise Edda is swinging against empty air. But htting L2 also causes the camera to zoom in on the target. This can be a problem if you need to keep an eye out for other foes that are nearby. If this causes trouble for you, then just don't use L2. To use magic spells, you must first assign spells to the face buttons which is done by pressing Triangle, and then using the Character Configuration screen. To cast a magic spell, hold down R2, then press one of the face keys (X, Square, Circle, Triangle). During Capture tasks, the spells that you assigned to the face keys will be replaced temporarily by the Entrapment Set spells. You will not be able to access any other magic/gimmick spells except those. When the Capture task is over, the original spells will be restored. 4. Targeting [TARG01] ----------------- Press L2 once to target a foe. The foe that is closest to you will be the one that gets targeted. It is not required to target a foe before attacking, but it is recommended to insure that your attacks actually hit your target. When the foe is defeated, the game automatically targets the next nearest foe (if any). This is normally very handy when you want to defeat all the foes in front of you. But if you are trying to reach a particular target, this automated retargeting can really get in the way. Releasing targeting is a bit tricky. If you press L2 again, the game just targets the next nearest foe. Sometimes the only way to cancel all the targeting is to just retreat from the battle. You can only target one foe at a time. But your attacks will automatically strike any other foes that are standing close to the targeted foe. 5. Cards [CARD01] ------------ Weapons, armor, items, spells, and special characters are all represented by cards. You obtain these cards through monster drops, purchases at a card shop, playing the Lottery, or through card synthesis. Character cards are only obtained during missions (with the exception of Elc) and the Lottery. 6. Card Synthesis [CARDSY] -------------------- While many cards can be purchased at Card Shops, the more advanced cards must be synthesized. Card Synthesis involves combining two existing spells and/or items to create something new. This process is only possible at two Card Shops: Yewbell (Ragnoth) and Sulfas (Epistia). To synthesize a new card, visit the card shop in either Yewbell or Sulfas. Go up to the counter worker, and press X to get his/her attention. When the menu comes up, select "Synthesize Card". Select a Cardist, then select the two cards you want to combine. Then press "Go". If you get "Good Combo", you're done. If you get "Bad Combo," just reboot (L1 + L2 + R1 + R2 + Start + Select) and try again. After you synthesize a new card, the original cards are lost and cannot be reused to make something else. You have to obtain the original cards again. There are six Cardists in the game: 1. Philon - appears at Rookie level, specializes in Gimmick cards 2. Zerote - appears at Rookie level, specializes in Defense Parts cards 3. Sorcie - appears at Rookie level, specializes in Magic cards 4. Sarhua - appears at Apprentice level, specializes in Special Parts cards 5. Masakane - appears at Expert level, specializes in Attack Parts cards 6. Louis - appears at Veteran level, specializes in Special Skills cards NOTE: Not all six Cardists are available at the start of the game. Bad Combo cards appear when you combine two legitimate ingredients but choose a Cardist who does not specialize in the kind of card you want to synthesize. For example, if you want to synthesize Cure II, you need Cure and Magical Stone. But if you pick a Cardist other than Sorcie, you may end up with one of the Bad Combo cards instead of Cure II. There are 8 possible Bad Combo cards: 1. Mystery Card (100% probability) 2. Cure (15% probability) 3. Healing Rain (15% probability) 4. Healing Rod (10% probability) 5. PROTECTION (10% probability) 6. Shockwaver (10% probability) 7. STRIKE POWER (10% probability) 8. Romantic Drop (5% probability) As you can see, the Bad Combo cards aren't "bad" at all! In fact, PROTECTION and STRIKE POWER are two of the most valuable cards you can have! So if you want one of the Bad Combo cards, keep using an innapropriate Cardist. With these favorable probabilities, it won't take long to get what you want. If you don't want to keep the Bad Combo card, just reboot and try again. If you keep it, you will lose the original two cards. 7. Soft Reboot [SOFT01] -------------------- To soft reboot, press the following keys simultaneously: L1 + L2 + R1 + R2 + Start + Select If you fail a mission, DON'T SAVE YOUR GAME. You will lose all the cards that you equipped!. Instead, do a soft rebooot and either try the mission again or exit the game without saving. Soft reboot can also be used at the Lottery. You need ten Mystery Cards to play the Lottery. But if you don't get what you want, soft reboot. That way, you can reuse the same ten Mystery Cards again. 8. Pausing [PAUS01] ----------- ****YOU CANNOT PAUSE in EoD.**** If you are in the middle of a long mission, and you need to get a snack or a drink of water, there is no way to put the game on pause. Luckily, most missions are either fairly short or broken up into pieces. So while you cannot pause, you will still have plenty of save points. 9. Saving your Game [SAVE01] --------------------- You save your game at any of the Guild offices. To save a game, go to the Guild office in any town. You will find a small lighted contraption on the floor. Approach it, then press X, and then "Record". Saving your game will refill your HP but not your CP. To refill your CP, you must select "Recover". A small fee will be automatically deducted from your money, and your CP will be completely refilled. After you recover your CP, save your game. You cannot save in the middle of a mission no matter how long it is. You must wait until you are between missions before you can save a game. Every time you save, your old save file is automatically overwritten. You cannot save different points of the game individually on the same memory card. Also, if you insert a memory card and open a game, and then replace it with another memory card, the game will NOT allow you to save the old game to the new memory card. 10. Gameplay [GAMEPL] -------------- While EoD has a storyline, you basically spend your time performing missions ("Tasks") and taking Hunter Exams. Passing a Hunter Exam promotes you to the next higher Hunter Rank. Getting promoted is how you "level up" in EoD. To get promoted, you need to accomplish both Counter Tasks and Notice Board Tasks (see paragraphs below). You will be given the necessary instructions for each task, and then you must go to the appropriate area and perform it. Before you can take a Hunter Exam, you must acquire: a. 10 EXP Points (required for main-game and post-game ranks) b. 10 Dignity Points (required for main-game ranks but NOT post-game ranks) ****EXP Points are gained by doing Counter Tasks.**** ****Dignity Points are gained by doing Notice Board Tasks.**** Getting promoted to a higher Hunter Rank only increases CP (Card Points, used to cast magic). You have to buy special equipment and accessories to increase other stats like STR, MAG, and TEC. In this Walkthrough, I will be discussing the equipment and accessories that helped me the most, and how to get them. In EoD, battle is real-time, not turn-based. This is a change from earlier Arc the Lad games. In the battle area, you will get a mini-map (upper right corner). But there is no "area map" in EoD. By "area map," I mean a map that shows the entire zone rather than just the immediate area. Thus you will be forced to wander around blind in order to find exits, foes, and other targets. The words "Mission" and "Task" are used interchangeably in EoD to mean the same thing. 11. Leveling Up [LVL001] ---------------- You "level up" Edda by promoting him to higher Hunter ranks. The storyline levels (Hunter ranks) are: 1. Trainee (lowest) 2. Rookie 3. Apprentice 4. Expert 5. Veteran 6. Master 7. Hero (highest) NOTE: To get a promotion, you must complete Counter Tasks, Notice Board Tasks, and pass the Hunter Exam in Rueloon. Three additional levels become available after completing the storyline (after defeating Chalice): 1. General 2. Legend 3. Arc NOTE: There are no Notice Board Tasks for the post-game ranks. But you still need to complete Counter Tasks and the Exam. Leveling up only increases CP (Card Points, used for casting magic). You need to buy special equipment and accessories to increase stats like STR, DEF, and TEC. Don't bother trying to increase Edda's HP stat. Edda starts the game with 600 HP. And while that seems very low, that is all he really needs. There are some (rather expensive) accessories that can increase HP (e.g., Angel Statuette, Goddess Statuette). But equipping them prevents the use of much more valuable accessories like the HEALING CARD and HEALING PYGMY. The Healing accessories are far more important than HP boosts. Special characters like Arc and Elc are leveled up using the SP (Spirit Points) that Edda earned when exorcising malademons. To level up a special character, press the Triangle button and use the character configuration screen (the same one used to equip Edda) to transfer SP to the special character that you want to level up. 12. Counter Tasks [COUNT1] -------------------- Counter Tasks are small tasks that the Hunter Guild needs performed by its members. They are also used to accumulate EXP points and money (Gods). To sign up for a Counter Task, visit any Guild office. Approach the man at the counter (all the Guild counter workers are male). Press X to get his attention. Sometimes the man will directly ask what you want, while other times he will talk about something else, and then ask you. Keep pressing X until you get the menu. Select "Take on a Task". The Counter Tasks are ranked according to difficulty: S, A, B, C, D with S being the most difficult and D being the easiest. Rank S tasks are not available until after you complete the main game (after you defeat Chalice). You need a minimum of 10 EXP points before you can take a Hunter Exam. After you pass the Hunter Exam, you will lose all your EXP points, and you will have to gain 10 more EXP to take the next exam. Higher ranking tasks are worth more EXP. Gaining 10 EXP would require ten Rank D tasks (1 EXP each) but only two Rank S (5 EXP each). Higher ranking tasks are also worth more money. So even after you gain the required 10 EXP, doing more tasks will still get you more money. NOTE: If you fail a Counter Task, DO NOT SAVE YOUR GAME. If you do, you will permanently LOSE the skills card that you equipped for the task! Instead, soft reboot (L1+L2+R1+R2+Start+Select) and try the task again. You can try a task as many times as you want. If you are still unable to complete a task, return to any Guild office, and select "Quit Task". You will be penalized for the amount of EXP that the task was worth. But that is not a big problem, since earning EXP is not that difficult. Targets that must be CAPTURED or KILLED will be identified with a RED arrow hovering over them. Targets that are supposed to be FOUND or RESCUED will have a GREEN arrow. You do not gain additional EXP by killing lots of foes. This is different from other RPG games that allow you to gain EXP and level up by defeating lots of enemies. EoD is not like that. While you are a Rookie, it is recommended that you stick with Rank D tasks because your character does not have much CP and does not have access to a lot of spells or items. As a Rookie, you will be almost completely dependent on cudgel attacks. After completing a Counter Task, go to any Guild office. Go up to the counter worker, press X, then select "Settle A Task". This lets you get the money and the EXP. Save your game right after you do this. If you are in the middle of Notice Board Task, you will not be allowed to sign up for any Counter Tasks. You must complete the entire Notice Board Task before you can take on another Counter Task. 13. Notice Board Tasks [NOTC01] ----------------------- Notice Board Tasks are submitted by townspeople who need the help of a hunter. Notice Board Tasks earn you Dignity Points but not money or EXP. You must gain 10 Dignity Points to take the Hunter Exam. To sign up for a Notice Board Task, you must go to the town where the notice has been posted. You cannot get them by just going to any Guild office. Notice Board Tasks take longer to do than Counter Tasks because they often involve long dungeon crawls. Luckily, most Notice Board Tasks are split into parts. At the end of each part, you can save your game at any Guild office. You can go shopping or use the Lottery. However you cannot take on any new tasks until you complete the Notice Board Task. You will receive your Dignity Points from the one of the characters in the Notice Board Task when you finish. Each Notice Board Task is worth 5 Dignity Points (with the exception of the first one which is worth 10). So you will have to do both Notice Board Tasks to obtain the 10 Dignity Points required to take the Hunter Exam. In EoD, Notice Board Tasks serve the additional task of advancing the story; most of the cutscenes in EoD occur during Notice Board Tasks. 14. Capturing [CAPT01] -------------- Capturing is a task that involves catching (rather than killing) a particular monster or foe. Capture tasks are found in Counter Tasks and Hunter Exams. During a Capture Task, all the spells and gimmicks that you assigned to your face keys are replaced with the Entrapment Set, a set of capture-specific spells: The Entrapment Set: R2 + Circle - Numbing Ball R2 + (X) - Paralyzer R2 + Square - Paralyzing Bomb R2 + Triangle - Net You will NOT be able to use Special Skills or magic spells. However, any accessories like IRON FANG, HEALING CARD, and EXORCIST'S SHAFT will remain equipped. And of course, you will still be able to use your cudgel. NOTE: Healing accessories are very important during Capture tasks because you can't use healing spells. To capture a foe, use your cudgel or any of the attack spells (Square, Circle, X) in the Entrapment Set to stun the foe. When the foe is stunned, you will see stars circling his head. When you see the stars, quickly hold down R2 and press Triangle. This causes a white net to be cast over the stunned foe. You must cast the net quickly because the foe will not stay stunned very long. I hardly ever used the Numbing Ball or the Paralyzer. The cudgel and the Paralyzing Bomb seemed to work best for me. 15. Exorcism [EXOR01] ------------- Edda is the world's last surviving exorcist. He is the only one who can defeat malademons. Malademons (aka "Darmyst" on Cragh Island) are demon-possessed versions of the original monsters. When a monster is a malademon, he is stronger and harder to defeat. You can recognize a malademon by the dark misty clouds hovering around it. To exorcise a malademon, attack it like a normal foe. When it reaches 1/4 HP, switch to cudgel attacks to wipe out its remaining HP. If you use a magic spell, the foe will regenerate back to 1/4 HP. You must use cudgel attacks to reach 0 HP. At 0 HP, the foe will stand still. Now, press Circle (do not press R2, just press Circle by itself). A bright light will shoot out of Edda's cudgel, and the foe will disappear in a big flash. Exorcisms are most easily done when the malademon is all by itself. Exorcisms can be very difficult when there other foes swarming all over you because the exorcism spell can often wind up hitting the wrong target. Defeating a malademon awards you Spiritual Points (SP). SP is used to level up the special characters. Exorcisms are the only way to gain SP. But don't worry if you sometimes miss a chance to exorcise. As long as you take on lots of missions, you will have plenty of chances. In my experience, gaining SP got a LOT easier as I moved up the Hunter Ranks. 16. Hunter Ranks [HRANKS] ----------------- In EoD, "leveling up" means getting promoted to higher Hunter levels. There are seven levels (Hunter ranks) available in the main story: 1. Trainee (lowest) 2. Rookie 3. Apprentice 4. Expert 5. Veteran 6. Master 7. Hero (highest) Three additional levels become available after completing the main story (after defeating Chalice): 1. General 2. Legend 3. Arc Since EoD is not a very long game, most people continue after the main story to achieve the additional ranks. The post-game ranks have more CP, but require higher fees for CP Recovery. 17. Hunter Exams [HEXAMS] ----------------- Passing the Hunter Exam is the final step needed to get promoted to the next higher Hunter rank. Hunter Exams only take a few minutes to complete. I generally found them a lot easier than the Notice Board Tasks. You must have 10 EXP (minimum) and 10 Dignity Points before you can take any Exam up through "Hero" rank. The post-game Hunter Exams require 10 EXP but no Dignity Points. EXP is gained through completing Counter Tasks, Dignity Points through Notice Board Tasks. To take a Hunter Exam, go to Rueloon and walk up to the man (Denik) at the entrance of the Hunter Exam Center. Press X, then answer all his questions, and he will let you enter. The Hunter Exam Center is a simple square fighting area that fits on a single screen. The entire exam takes place on this square area. The exam has two or more parts. The last part is always a mini-boss fight. The exams are essentially fighting exercises, although occasionally you will be asked to do a capture or guard duty task. Just approach the exams the same way as any regular fight. Use whatever magic or melee attacks you want. NOTE: You cannot save your progress in the middle of an exam. If you fail an exam, just soft reboot and try again. You can try as many times as you like. If you still can't pass, reboot and then try shopping for better equipment/spells that might help you, and then come back again. 18. Cutscenes [CUTSC1] --------------- Most of the cutscenes in EoD occur during the Notice Board Tasks. There is no voice acting, and all the dialog is presented either as subtitles or dialogue bubbles (like a comic book). Cutscenes do not proceed on their own. You have to keep pressing "X" to make the next line of dialogue appear. NOTE: YOU CANNOT SKIP CUTSCENES in EoD. You can speed up the cutscene a little bit by pressing X while the line of dialogue is still being spawned. This causes the entire line of text to appear at once. If you fail a task that involves cutscenes and you repeat the task, you will have to go through the cutscenes again. 19. What should I get? [GET001] ----------------------- Like many RPGs, EoD offers hundreds of accessories and spells that you can buy/synthesize. Here are the items and spells that helped me the MOST: 1. LANCER SPIRIT - Edda's first special skill (you can get it free) 2. BATTLE ARMBAND, IRON FANG - big STR boosts. Very handy in the early Hunter exams. Use these while waiting to get the EXORCIST'S SHAFT. 3. HEALING CARD, HEALING PYGMY - continuous healing without CP 4. EXORCIST'S SHAFT - Edda's ultimate accessory. Boosts STR, MAG, and TEC; reduces casting cost of Special Skills by 20% 5. THUNDER STORM II - the best attack spell in the game by far. Only available for Master hunters and higher. Beats Yggdrasill and Nidhogg as well as Lalyuk, Cliff Gigant, and Altima. My weapon of choice for all the Rank S Tasks and the three post-game Hunter exams. 6. METEOR FALL - valuable in "Help My Father!" Notice Board task 7. HEALING RAIN - recovers HP for you and allies in range; casts quickly 8. STRIKE POWER - temporarily increases damage inflicted by 1.5; Only available for Veteran hunters and higher. 9. PROTECTION - temporarily decreases damage sustained by half; very handy against high-damage attacks, and when dodging hordes of foes. Only available for Veteran hunters and higher. 10. SHOCKWAVER - throws every foe around you out of the way; handy if you are trying to work your way through a crowd. 11. HERMIT'S ROBE - MAG+20, DEF+50, reduces casting cost for magic by 24%. 12. LIZARD GUARD - DEF+100, SPD+10. This is card that got me through the post-game Hunter Exams. There are three Special Skills available to Edda: a. LANCER SPIRIT b. EARTH SPIRIT c. CRAGH SPIRIT These are no different than magic spells and are synthesized just like other spells. LANCER SPIRIT uses the least amount of CP of the three, and therefore is the quickest to cast. CRAGH SPIRIT consumes the most CP of the three, and is slow to cast. LANCER SPIRIT was useful in the early parts of the game, especially in the Notice Board Tasks. But I stopped using it after getting THUNDER STORM II which was far more powerful. And I never even bothered with EARTH SPIRIT and CRAGH SPIRIT; I tried them, and didn't think they were that powerful. 20. Exploring [EXPL01] --------------- You cannot explore in EoD. In many RPGs, you can explore the area on your own whenever you want. Not in EoD. Once you finish a task, all the areas are locked except for the main towns. 21. Zoning [ZONE01] -------------- Like many RPGs, EoD battle areas are divided into zones. The exits are depicted as flashing yellow arrows on the ground, and as green rectangles on the mini-map. Finding the exits of a zone can be difficult. There is no area map that will show the entire area for you. You just have to wander around until you see an exit show up on the mini-map. This can be a bit dicey if you are trying to flee. In general, if you are being targeted by a foe, you will NOT be able to exit the zone until AFTER you defeat him. The reason I say "in general" is because sometimes you can exit just by standing near the exit a little longer. But you shouldn't depend on that. 22. Mini-map [MINI01] -------------- The mini-map appears in the upper right corner of your screen, and remains there throughout a battle. It takes a bit of getting used to because the dots are really small. The red dots represent foes. The green dots represent Edda and allies. The green dots also represent objects that you can smash to get HP/CP boosts, cards, and other items. These objects include tree trunks, piles of rocks, piles of bones, wood boxes, and metal storage cans. Just follow the green dots on the mini-map to find them. 23. Gimmicks [GIMM01] -------------- "Gimmicks" are mostly objects that you throw, like knives, stones, and bombs. Gimmicks are assigned to face keys and cast with R2 just like magic spells. Using a Gimmick during a battle will consume the same CP needed for magic spells, so be aware of that when using Gimmicks. Overall, I found the Gimmicks much less useful compared to magic and the cudgel. The only Gimmick I ever used with any frequency was Shockwaver. 24. The Lottery and Mystery Cards [LOTT01] ----------------------------------- The Lottery is located in Dilzweld. Look for the door with the bright yellow sign above it. The Lottery is used to obtain Special Character cards and many accessories and items. Through the Lottery, you can get ingredients to make powerful spells and accessories like the EXORCIST'S SHAFT. To play the Lottery, you need 10 Mystery Cards. There are three sources for Mystery Cards: a. Completion of Hunter Exams b. Drops from defeating foes (rare) c. Lottery minigames (difficult unless you have VIOLET RACER) With your Mystery Cards in hand, go up to the lady at the counter. Select a card, then watch a little animation to see what you won. If you do not like what you got, do a soft reboot and try again. Using a soft reboot lets you use the same 10 Mystery Cards over and over until you get something you want. 24. The Lottery Minigames [LOTTMG] --------------------------- There are three minigames on the upper floor of the Lottery. All three games involve defeating a specific number of foes within a very short time limit. The prizes for all the games are Mystery Cards. Equip VIOLET RACER to obtain the speed needed to complete these games. The foes run away from you, and without the VIOLET RACER, you won't be able to keep up. You don't need; no one attacks you in any of these games. 25. List of Place Names [PLACE1] ------------------------ *****Countries***** Adenade Aldrow (open only after main story) East Halshine Epistia Ragnoth West Halshine *****Towns & Places***** Cave of Truth (Cragh Island) Chaos Forest (Ragnoth) Cragh Island Dilzweld (West Halshinne) Dragon Bone Valley (Ragnoth) Dragon Cave (Ragnoth) Elzark Plain (Adenade) Garagne Graveyard (Ragnoth) Gazula Wasteland (West Halshinne) Greylia Plains (Epistia) Ice Gallery (East Halshinne) Isulo Forest (Ragnoth) Kanara Desert (West Halshinne) Kassim Highway (Epistia) Lamda Temple (East Halshinne) Lusah Forest (East Halshinne) Malgar Mountains (East Halshinne) Maluise Tower (West Halshinne) Megist Jump Spot (West Halshinne) Milmarna (East Halshinne) Mt. Lamda (East Halshinne) Mt. Quina Fort (Epistia) Mt. Sion (Epistia) Mulmoth Meadows (Aldrow) Ngai Plain (Adenade) Nien Forest (East Halshinne) Nithblem Barrens (Adenade) Orcoth (Aldrow) Parenz Ruins (Epistia) Plumb Canyon (Ragnoth) Pyramid Ruins (West Halshinne) Rodion's Castle (West Halshinne) Romariah Tunnel (Ragnoth) Romastle Plain (East Halshinne) Routh Forest (Epistia) Rueloon (Adenade) Sara Woods (Adenade) Scrappe Plateau (Ragnoth) Seabed Oil Field (East Halshinne) Shrine Ruins (Ragnoth) Sulfas (Epistia) Tindalos Woods (Aldrow) Torey Hill (Epistia) Tsatuga Plateau (Truth Sword base) (Adenade) Tuptsee Desert (Adenade) Varam Barrens (Aldrow) Viorav Remains (Epistia) Water Shrine (Adenade) Western Fortress (West Halshinne) Yewbell (Ragnoth) Zedora Abyss (Aldrow) *****Card Shops/Guild Offices***** Dilzweld (West Halshinne) Milmarna (East Halshinne) Orcoth (Aldrow) Rueloon (Adenade) Sulfas (Epistia) Yewbell (Ragnoth) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- CHARACTER INFORMATION [CHAR01] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ========= EDDA [EDDA01] ========= Edda is the main character in EoD. Edda (no last name given) is a 16 year old boy, born in Rishalt (in Rueloon, where the Hunter Exam center is). He is the only son of Kaysu (a cane/cudgel master) and Maila (an exorcist). When war engulfed Rishalt (in Rueloon), the family fled and ended up on Cragh Island. Shortly after their arrival, both parents died of sickness. Edda doesn't remember much about his parents other than they were "strict but kind". It was his father Kaysu who taught him how to use a cudgel. The game never mentions who took care of Edda after he became an orphan. With his bowl-shaped hairstyle, wide shoulders, and dark complexion, Edda is exceptionally good-looking. One game reviewer jokingly referred to Edda as the president of the Tidus Fan Club (Tidus is the photogenic lead character of Final Fantasy X.) The comparison is not so farfetched. Edda has a handsome, athletic appearance. Unlike Tidus, however, Edda's build is more slender, like that of a distance runner. Edda is muscular: his upper arms and shoulders appear particularly buffed in some of the cutscenes. The boy's shoulders are so wide that his dangling arms don't even touch his sides. Edda's deeply tanned look creates a great visual contrast with other characters in EoD. A man in Yewbell admits he doesn't have the "brawn" to be a hunter like Edda. Edda is often described as "tough". In one scene, Paulette asks Edda point-blank how strong he is, and Hemo immediately describes the boy "mega-strong". Hemo's description is actually not that far from the truth. Edda is, in fact, exceptionally strong for his size. Although not "superhuman" in the strict sense, he is nevertheless able to fight multiple enemies at once, and defeat monstrous creatures many times his size. Bare armed and bare legged, Edda seems better outfitted for a beach trip than a hunting expedition. Unlike the other hunters, Edda does not use protective armor. Instead, he hunts in his old Cragh Island gear: orange vest, white beater, and brown shorts cut well above the knees. Edda's clothing is so minimal, even his shoulder cups aren't big enough to cover his shoulders. Yet the sight of the unprotected boy makes his fighting victories all the more impressive. (The bright color of his clothing caused the Dilzweld Guild worker to ask if his clothing was a bit "showy" for a hunter, and even feared that the boy's colorful outfit might make him an easy target for animal attacks.) Underaged, untrained, and unprotected - it is hardly surprising that many petitioners are reluctant to entrust their hunting tasks to him. Yet Edda consistently exceeds their expectations by triumphing where all other hunters have failed. But despite his excellence as a hunter, Edda remains modest and kind, almost to a fault. After performing heroically during a mission, he will predictably wave off the inevitable compliments, and give all the credit to someone else. He is sometimes criticized for being overly concerned for the welfare of others at the risk of ignoring the dangers to himself. www.gameinformer.com describes him as "sexually ambiguous," "Tidus, eat your heart out" There are two persistent misunderstandings about Edda that need to be clarified. Myth 1: Edda leads a "boring island life" Descriptions of the video game always say this. But if you pay attention to the dialogue, you will never hear Edda complain about his life on Cragh Island. He never even uses the phrase "boring island life." His Slothian friend Hemo (who is always mouthing off without thinking) thought Edda wanted to leave the island for good. But Edda replies that he just wants to develop his exorcism skills, and thought that traveling would give him more opportunities. Myth 2: Edda decided to become a hunter on a whim Edda became a hunter because he was stuck in Milmarna. Because of the malademon threat outside the town, only hunters were being allowed to leave. Edda became a hunter because it was the only way he could get out of Milmarna and continue his exorcism trip. ================= OTHER CHARACTERS [OTHER1] ================= 1. Boris - a reporter 2. Chamalla - a Canidae child, daughter of Leggon 3. Clemmie - Demill's newlywed wife 4. Deimos - a general term for any non-human character 5. Delma - chief of Orcoth village 6. Demill - engineer working in the Seabed Oil Field; recently married to Clemmie 7. Denik - the man at the entrance to the Hunter Exam Center in Rueloon 8. Dr Gena Matryoshka - teacher of both Dr Sarak and Ursula; originated the phrase "Truth Sword" 9. Dr Sarak - renowned energy researcher, inventor of the ALD, father of Ursula 10 Dr. Saraksa - studies historical buildings; no relation to Dr Sarak 11. Duncan - Yewbell Defense Corps chief, Guild Master in Yewbell 12. Dunsany - Chief Engineer of the production plant in Sulfas, Epistia; father of Sion 13. Foh - Lady Foh, Queen of Milmarna 14. Ganz - a former Hero, chief magistrate ("Chairman") of Rueloon 15. General Spencer - chief of Sulfas; distrustful of hunters 16. Hemo - a Slothian child, Edda's companion 17. Heroes - ten individuals who had rescued the world from a calamitous danger five years back; according to Ganz, half of them were children. 18. Hunter Guild - a worldwide group of highly skilled hunters who have recently been supplementing the government in the areas of security, search & rescue, and law enforcement 19. Jungk - a monk in training at Lamda Temple, a renowned martial arts school 20. Kharg - a former Hero, former commander of the Yewbell Defense Corps 21. Kirika - a mysterious girl that Edda meets on Cragh Island 22. Lady Foh - Queen of Milmarna 23. Leggon - the representative of the wolf-like Canidae race, father of Chamalla 24. Luberus - a hunter who is searching for a thief on Cragh Island 25. Maru (aka Prince Yumalnoh) - a former Hero, Prince of Milmarna, Guild Master in Milmarna 26. Mel - a lady in Milmarna who is taking care of Edda 27. Mill and Moll - Mel's two younger brothers 28. Morth - member of the Yewbell Defense Corps and tour guide 29. Neil - a soldier who now works at the Card Shop in Dilzweld; husband to Sion 30. Orcons - inhabitants of Orcoth (Aldrow) 31. Pao - Penant's infant daughter 32. Paulette - a former Hero, a candidate for the Yewbell Defense Corps Commander's position recently vacated by Kharg 33. Penant - a Deimos who resents the condescending attitude of humans; father of Pao 34. Prince Yumalnoh - Maru 35. Rosanna - member of Milmarna royal household 36. Rodion - a wealthy trade businessman, father of Sonya 37. Sarak - Dr Sarak 38. Saraksa - Dr Saraksa 39. Savina - member of Milmarna royal household 40. Sion - Dunsany's daughter, living in Dilzweld with her husband Neil. She had recently quit her job working for Dr Sarak. 41. Sonya - Rodion's daughter 42. Span - works at the Counter at the Guild office in Milmarna 43. Spencer - General Spencer 44. Tatjana - a former Hero, former member of the imperial army, schoolteacher in Dilzweld 45. Truth Sword - a terrorist group 46. Ursula - Sarak's missing daughter 47. Volk - former chief of Orcoth village; succeeded by Delma 48. Zeeman - a terrorist leader =================== SPECIAL CHARACTERS [SPEC01] =================== There are 24 Special Characters in EoD. Most of them were taken from previous Arc the Lad games. To use a Special Character, follow these steps: 1. Get the character card (during a mission or at the Lottery; get Elc from the Mofly in Milmarna; get Volk by defeating him in Orcoth) 2. Activate the character by going to any merchant and using the "Materialize" option (this costs a small fee) 3. Use SP to level them up (press Triangle and use the configuration screen). You can level a character all the way up to Arc level. Special characters can only be used in Counter Tasks and online play. They are not allowed in Notice Board Tasks or in Hunter Exams. You may not form a team with Edda to do Counter Tasks. The 24 Special Characters available in EoD are: 1. Alec 2. Arc 3. Bebedora 4. Camellia 5. Cheryl 6. Choco 7. Darc 8. Delma 9. Diekbeck 10. Elc 11. Ganz 12. Iga 13. Kharg 14. Kukuru 15. Leeza 16. Lilia 17. Lutz 18. Maru 19. Paulette 20. Shu 21. Tatjana 22. Theo 23. Tosh 24. Volk Ganz, Maru, Tatjana, Paulette, Delma, and Volk appear during the storyline. Lutz, Cheryl, Iga, Tosh, Alec, Elc, and Arc appear as Hunter Exam bosses. Kharg is mentioned during the story, but he never actually appears himself. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= WALKTHROUGH [WALK01] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =================== INTRODUCTION [INTR01] =================== Arc the Lad: End of Darkness begins with an unidentified voice (actually written dialogue) of someone looking through a mysterious book. The scene changes to a seashore where a boy is seen working on a raft, and wondering where Hemo is. Hemo comes rushing up to the boy and shows him the mysterious book. From here the story of Edda begins. After more introductory scenes, you will finally gain control of Edda. Have him talk to the people on the beach (be sure to talk to the elder standing near the water) until another character arrives and says that the Island Elder needs to see Edda. The Island Elder can be found by moving toward the left side of the screen, up a path and toward a sheltered building. The Island Elder wants Edda to accompany Luberus, a hunter who is visiting Cragh Island in search of a thief. Luberus, however, curtly turns down the offer of help and leaves. The Island Elder, however, asks Edda to follow him anyway and gives him a cudgel that used to belong to Edda's father. The scene changes to the Cave of Truth where Edda is greeted with a gruesome sight. Here comes your first fight. Press L1 to target one of the mushroom foes, then press X to wallop it with the cudgel. Take out all the mushroom foes that are scattered all over the cave. NOTE: One of the mushroom foes may be a malademon (it will be surrounded by black mist). After beating it with the cudgel, press Circle to exorcise it. One mushroom is a malademon. After you club it a few times to reduce its HP to 0, press Circle to exorcise it. Another cutscene follows, and then comes your first boss fight (and your second exorcism even though Hemo says otherwise): Rognas Gorman. Start clubbing Rognas Gorman with your cudgel. The foe is a tough one, and may regenerate to 1/4 HP when it approaches zero. Just keep clubbing it, then press the Circle button to exorcise it. ------------------- MILMARNA [MILM01] ------------------- After the fight with Rognas Gorman, Edda awakens in a strange bed in a strange town. Go through the following cutscene. When you regain control, go to the Guild office (orange sign with a black dragon-like shape on it) in the northeast direction. Inside, save your game by walking up to the contraption on the floor and pressing X. When the menu appears, select "Record." After saving your game, go to the palace (head southeast, then northeast to find it). Find Princess Foh and speak to her. Another cutscene will take place. When that is over, begin speaking with ALL the people in Milmarna. Don't forget the worker in the Card Shop (building with an "X" sign beside it) and the guard at the exit up the hill. The last person you should see is Span, the Guild office worker. He tells you about Hemo pestering him about something. Leave the Guild office and find Hemo with two kids, Mill and Moll. NOTE: If you can't find Hemo, it means you didn't talk to everyone. Hemo says that Span has agreed to help Edda become a hunter. Go back to the Guild office and speak to Span again. He will say he promised no such thing. He advises you to see Prince Yumalnoh, the Guild Master for Milmarna about becoming a hunter. Go to the palace. As you approach the right-most entrance, Hemo points out the Mofly hole. Agree to let him explore it. Another cutscene takes place during which you get your first Character card: Elc. After Hemo comes out of the Mofly hole, go to the Prince's chamber. He is being pestered by two ladies and welcomes your "interruption". In the cutscene, the Prince asks you to meet him at the Guild office. Return to the Guild office. There, Prince Yumalnoh (who prefers the name Maru) convinces Span to help Edda become a hunter. Span reluctantly agrees. This is a good time to save your game again. From here on, the gameplay follows a regular pattern of Counter Tasks, Notice Board Tasks, and Hunter Exams. The storyline is advanced by doing the Notice Board Tasks. =================== TRAINEE [TRAN01] =================== As a Hunter Trainee, you will be required to perform one Counter Task and one Notice Board Task. These two jobs will give you the 10 EXP and 10 Dignity Points required to take the first Hunter Exam. -------------- COUNTER TASKS [TRANCT] -------------- "Clear The Hay Bundles!" - [TRANC1] --------------------------- Use your cudgel to destroy the hay bundles. Attack any Suskle squirrels that try to get in your way. When you complete the task, return to the Milmarna Guild office. There, settle the task and save your work. You are now ready for your first Notice Board Task! ------------------- NOTICE BOARD TASKS [TRANNT] ------------------- "Retraining At Lamda Temple" - [TRANN1] ------------------------------- Use cudgel attacks to take out the two monks. After completing this task, save your game at any Guild office. Then go to Rueloon (Adenade) to take your first Hunter Exam. ------------------- HUNTER EXAM [TRANHE] ------------------- Your first Hunter Exam is in two parts. Part 1: Use your cudgel to take out the squirrels. Part 2: You must fight Ganz. Use your 4-hit combos (hit "X" four times) and retreat to avoid his tough attacks. He has a lot of HP, but you can take him out with enough blows from your cudgel. After Ganz is defeated, the Exam is over. You are automatically promoted to Rookie rank. Save your work. There is a save station in the Rueloon Guild office (it looks like a tent). Congratulations! You have been promoted to Rookie rank! =================== ROOKIE [ROOK01] =================== You have passed your first Hunter Exam! And while the promotion feels good, you have an even bigger reason to celebrate. -------------- LANCER SPIRIT [ROOKLS] -------------- As a Rookie, you can now acquire Edda's first Special Attack, LANCER SPIRIT. A Rookie Hunter has limited CP, so you may not be able to use it much at first. But it's still good to know that you have it if you need it. Begin by going to Dilzweld, in West Halshinne. To reach Dilzweld, exit Rueloon (if you're still there). After you're out of the city, press Circle to bring up the World Map. Use the D-pad buttons to highlight West Halshinne, and press X, and then select Yes to enter Dilzweld. You are looking for the Mofly Hole in Dilzweld. As you walk into the city, look for the descending stairs not far from the entrance to the city. Go all the way down the stairs, and you will enter an open patio-like space. The Mofly Hole is in the wall next to you. Bring Edda close to the Mofly Hole, and press X. When Hemo enters the Mofly Hole, the Mofly will start talking about card synthesis. He will give Hemo LANCER SPIRIT. Once you regain control, equip Edda with his new ability (press Triangle and assign LANCER SPIRIT to any of the face buttons). LANCER SPIRIT is a very handy spell and will definitely serve you well. It will become especially powerful when you get the EXORCIST'S SHAFT which greatly reduces the CP to cast it, allowing you to cast LANCER SPIRIT more frequently. -------------- COUNTER TASKS [ROOKCT] -------------- It is recommended that you try to complete as many of the Rank D tasks as possible. They are only worth 1 EXP each, so you will need to do several tasks to earn the minimum 10 EXP points. -------------- CURE [ROOKCR] -------------- The minute you earn 400G, go to a Card Shop and buy CURE. You will need it during the Notice Board Task. ------------------ NEED MONEY?? [ROOKMO] ------------------ Rank D tasks are only worth 100G each, making it a bit laborious to earn money for spells and equipment. Rank C tasks are worth 500G each. Just doing one of them will greatly increase your pocket change. If you would like to take on a Rank C task, make sure you have the Cure spell equipped. Then see "Rank C Tasks Suitable For Rookie Level" for a list of recommendations. If you are having trouble beating a task, you can quit the task by returning to any Save station and selecting "Quit task". ------------------- NOTICE BOARD TASKS [ROOKNT] ------------------- Did you buy Cure?? Trust me, you WILL need it to get through the long Notice Board Tasks. "Find the Missing Person!" - [ROOKN1] ---------------------------- This is your first long dungeon haul in EoD. Work your way up snowy Mt Sion, dodging foes as much as you can. Whenever you come to a fork, bear right. Find Dunsany and escort him back down the mountain, again dodging foes. Coming back down, remember that Dunsany's HP will refilled every time you enter a new zone. Get through each zone as quickly as you can, even if you have to run off on your own to reach the exit. Don't worry about Dunsany keeping up. The moment Edda enters a new zone, Dunsany will reappear right behind him. In the second zone after the place you found Dunsany, you can get the Kukuru card. It is in a wood box guarded by a flock of Rhokes. These birds can be really tough. Use LANCER SPIRIT over and over to make this fight a lot easier. "Find My Husband Demill!" - [ROOKN2] --------------------------- The Seabed Oil Field is a long chain of corridors filled with dangerous foes. As in "Find the Missing Person!", dodge foes as much as you can to conserve your CP. However, you should try to kill the Gunmechs because they are VERY hostile. Target them the moment you see them, and bash them to pieces with the cudgel. NOTE: Gunmechs are floating guns. Try to battle them as much as you can. Gunmechs drop Light Metal, and you need two for Edda's ultimate accessory, the EXORCIST'S SHAFT. While coming back with Demill, the foe situation is a bit easier. Go ahead and take out some foes, but don't overdo it. Also, if you come to a large cross-shaped area with a box in the center, smash the box. It may have the Maru card in it. ------------------- HUNTER EXAM [ROOKHE] ------------------- Part 1: Use your cudgel to take down the 3 Bandits. Retreat if their attacks get too much for you. They will not chase you if you run away. Part 2: Use cudgel combos to defeat the knife-throwing Lutz. If he says, "Blade Rain!", move around him to avoid this attack. Congratulations! You have been promoted to Apprentice rank! =================== APPRENTICE [APPR01] =================== As an Apprentice, my first objective was to synthesize the HEALING CARD the BATTLE ARMBAND/IRON FANG. and HERMIT'S ROBE. The HEALING CARD continuously restores 10HP every 3 seconds without using CP! (NOTE: If you can get a Universal Cloth, you can covert the Healing Card into a HEALING PYGMY which recovers 10HP every 2 seconds.) The BATTLE ARMBAND gives Edda a big STR+60 boost. The IRON FANG does even better: STR+82, almost doubling his base strength. These items carry a penalty of increasing CP usage for Special Attacks. But the added strength is invaluable in both regular fights and Hunter Exams. The HERMIT'S ROBE is a Defense Parts Card, but it actually does a lot more than just defense. In addition to giving you a very respectable DEF+50, it gives you a MAG+20 boost, and reduces CP usage for magic spells by a whopping 24%. This means less recovery time between spell casts. Together, these new accessories will increase Edda's fighting capability by an order of magnitude in a single swoop. As an Apprentice, a number of the synthesis ingredients are now available in shops. These include Power Stone, Traveler's Robe, and Magical Stones. ------------------- HEALING CARD [APPRHC] ------------------- 1. Buy another Cure spell (400G) and Magical Stone x4 2. Use the following formulas to synthesize the HEALING CARD: a. Cure + Magical Stone -----> Cure II (Cardist: Sorcie) b. Cure II + Magical Stone -----> Cure III (Cardist: Sorcie) c. Cure III + Cure III -----> HEALING CARD (Cardist: Sarhua) ------------------------ BATTLE ARMBAND (STR+60) [APPRBA] ------------------------ 1. Buy the Wristband (60G), the Leather Wristband (360G), and Power Stone x2 (200G each) 2. Use the following formulas to synthesize the BATTLE ARMBAND (an ingredient for IRON FANG): a. Wristband + Leather Wristband --> Power Wristband (Cardist: Zerote) b. Power Wristband + Power Stone --> Muscle Wristband (Cardist: Zerote) c. Muscle Wristband + Power Stone --> BATTLE ARMBAND (Cardist: Zerote) The BATTLE ARMBAND slows down the ability to use Special Skills like LANCER SPIRIT, but won't affect regular magic spells. It's much more important to gain the extra strength, because you'll need powerful cudgel attacks if you want to conserve CP during long dungeon hauls. ------------------- IRON FANG (STR+82) [APPRIF] ------------------- BATTLE ARMBAND + Hard Metal ----> IRON FANG (Cardist: Zerote) To synthesize the IRON FANG, you will need a Hard Metal. This item cannot be purchased. It is a drop from SA-100s (20%). NOTE: SA-100s are robots with arms that spin in circles. They are encountered in the Rank B Counter Tasks "Help the Mine Worker!" (an easy task) and "Eradicate the Land Mines!" The IRON FANG will slow down use of Special Skills even more than BATTLE ARMBAND. But the extra strength and availability of other magic spells more than makes up for the problem. ----------------------- HERMIT'S ROBE (DEF+50) [APPRRA] ----------------------- The HERMIT'S ROBE boosts DEF and MAG (DEF+50, MAG+20), and reduces CP consumption for magic spells by 24%. It is the Defense Parts Card that helped me beat the final boss, Nidhogg. Use the following information to synthesize the HERMIT'S ROBE: 1. Ingredients: Traveler's Robe x1, Magical Stone x2 Traveler's Robe and Magical Stones can be purchased in Milmarna when you reach Apprentice rank. 2. Synthesis formulas: Traveler's Robe + Magical Stone -> Magic Robe (Cardist: Zerote) Magic Robe + Magical Stone -> HERMIT'S ROBE (Cardist: Zerote) ------------------- SHOCKWAVER [APPRSW] ------------------- Shockwaver is a Gimmick Card that sends out a blast that throws back all the enemies around you. It is fast and quite powerful. Equip it the same way you would equip a magic spell. I used the "Bad Combo" process to get Shockwaver. First, pick any two compatible synthesis ingredients. I used the ingredients for FLAMING ARROW II (FLAMING ARROW and Magical Stone) because they are cheap to buy. Go to the Card Shop in either Sulfas or Dilzweld, and select Synthesize. As an Apprentice, you only have access to four Synthesizers: Philon, Zerote, Sorcie, Sarhua. You want to pick someone is does NOT specialize in Gimmick Cards because you are trying to achieve a Bad Combo. In this case, select either Zerote, Sorcie, Sarhua. Now perform the synthesis as normal. You want a Bad Combo (ie, something other than FLAMING ARROW II). There is a 10% chance of getting SHOCKWAVER. So it shouldn't take too many tries until you get it. NOTE: You can also use the "Bad Combo" method to get STRIKE POWER (increases damage inflicted by 50%) and PROTECTION (reduces damage recieved by 50%). However, you will not be allowed to equip either one until you achieve VETERAN rank or higher. But it's probably not a bad idea to get it early so it's ready when the time comes. -------------- COUNTER TASKS [APPRCT] -------------- Rank C Counter Tasks are worth a respectable 500G each, but Rank B Tasks are worth 1,000G each! If you have taken the time to buff your character, there are several Rank B Tasks that can be undertaken as an Apprentice! You can build yourself a major bank account while still just an Apprentice! (see the list of Rank B Tasks suitable for Apprentices under "Selected Counter Tasks") As an Apprentice, a lot of new spells and equipment become available in the Card Shops. You can use them as is, or as ingredients to synthesize other valuable abilities. If you have synthesized and equipped the BATTLE ARMBAND (or IRON FANG) and HEALING CARD before starting the Counter Tasks, your job will be a lot easier. If you haven't, or if you prefer to buff up in a different way, by all means take care of that now before taking on more tasks. NOTE: If you still need a Hard Metal for the IRON FANG, equip the BATTLE ARMBAND and do the Rank B Counter Task "Help the Mine Worker!" (an easy task). The SA-100 robots drop Hard Metal (20%). If you don't get one the first time, try rebooting and doing the task again. ------------------- NOTICE BOARD TASKS [APPRNT] ------------------- "Take Over Guard Duty" - [APPRN1] ------------------------ This is a two-part mission. Part 1 is not difficult: Edda fights off foes while doing guard duty. Part 2 involves taking out a gang of Truth Sword terrorists. If they gang up on you, you're dead. However, if you go up the little stair ramp and move close enough to get one of them moving out on his own after you, then run back down, you can attract them down to the floor one at a time. When I played, I got the guy almost to the exit (ie, really far from the others). Fighting them one at a time is a cinch. Take your time, and pull each one down the stairs to make this an easy fight. "Find Our Teacher!" - [APPRN2] --------------------- This is actually not that hard of a mission. The mission begins in Dilzweld. Go down the descending stairs near the Lottery. When you reach the first landing, take a sharp left. Enter the National Science School door and speak to the little girl on the stairs inside. Go back out and go to the Pub. There, you will see a cutscene involving Boris the reporter and three school kids. Head to the Pyramid Ruins. When Edda first enters the Pyramid Ruins, he hears a voice coming from behind a wall directly in front of him. After the cutscene is over, go up the steep steps on the right, then turn right at the top of the stairs. Keep going straight until you get to the Mofly Hole. There, Hemo is directed to press a lever to open up a passage. After Hemo rejoins Edda, go through the passage that just opened up in the wall. Dodge foes during the long dungeon haul to conserve your CP. (NOTE: The Mummys drop Universal Cloth (20%), an ingredient for the HEALING PYGMY. This is one of the few chances to get this ingredient early.) The path to take is: east-north-east-east-north-north-north-west then keep going west for a couple of rooms until you reach a room with several boxes and an invisible floor. This is the Box Puzzle room where you get the Theo character card. To solve the Box Puzzle, break one box, then step onto the empty spot, then move to the next box. Smash it, then step onto the empty spot, then move to the next box, and so forth. The order to break the boxes is: Exit 4 << 3 ^ 4 ^ ^ 5 << ^ 1 >> 2 ^ ^ Enter (NOTE: There are two boxes at position 4.) This game is a little picky. You may wind up falling into the pit even when you think you've done it right. However, you can try as many times as you want until you succeed. After you solve the Box Puzzle and get the Theo card, the invisible floor becomes a solid floor. Go back one room, then go north one room to meet the Giant Tarantula. The Giant Tarantula is not too difficult. Ignore the little spiders and go straight for the boss. Use attacks like Big Bang and LANCER SPIRIT to take her out quickly. The Giant Tarantula is the last monster of this task, so don't be afraid to use up your CP. When the Giant Tarantula falls, exit the zone in the north (you'll have to smash through a wood box to reach the exit). The rest of the mission is monster-free. You now enter a new area where you must locate the two switches that will free the trapped girl. To find the first switch, go left, then go out the side exit. (Don't go down any stairs.) You will find yourself outside on the ledge. Walk around the building along the ledge to find the switch. Activate the switch, then walk back. When you get back inside, walk past the point where you first entered and just keep walking straight, passing through about three zones, until you find yourself outside again on another ledge. Walk around the building like you did before to find the second switch. ------------------- HUNTER EXAM [APPRHE] ------------------- Part 1: Use the Paralyzing Bomb (R2 + Square) to stun the Armored Insects quickly. Part 2: Use cudgel attacks on the dogs. Part 3: Cheryl's gun shots sound worse than they really are. Just keep swatting her with your cudgel (you'll enjoy hearing her squeal in pain!). Close-up cudgel attacks are very effective in interrupting her gun attacks. Congratulations! You have been promoted to Expert rank! =================== EXPERT [EXPR01] =================== The extra CP will be a welcome addition for Edda! While most fights have been doable with melee attacks alone, you will be encountering more and more situations that require the high-damage potential of magic spells. This would be a good time to upgrade your spells. I would recommend HEALING RAIN, FLAMING ARROW II, THUNDER STORM, GOLEM HAND, and METEOR FALL. You can do some extra Counter Tasks if you are short on cash. ----------------- EXORCIST'S SHAFT [EXPRSH] ----------------- The EXORCIST'S SHAFT is Edda's ultimate accessory. With one item, he receives STR+80, MAG+40, TEC+40, and a 20% reduction in casting cost for Special Skills! Equipping this will go a long way to strengthening Edda for the tough battles ahead. To synthesize the EXORCIST'S SHAFT, you need these ingredients: a. Lusah Cane x1 b. Light Metal x2 c. Mysterious Ore x3 I was able to obtain the ingredients while an EXPERT. I got the Lusah Cane and two Mysterious Ores through the Lottery. The third Mysterious Ore came from the Notice Board Task "Urgent Manhunt!" from the Evil Eyes. The Light Metals came from earlier battles with Gunmechs. Use the following formulas to synthesize the EXORCIST'S SHAFT: a. Light Metal + Mysterious Ore --> Silver Rosary (Cardist: Masakane) b. Silver Rosary + Mysterious Ore --> Gold Rosary (Cardist: Masakane) c. Silver Rosary + Gold Rosary --> Lark Coat of Arms (Cardist: Sarhua) d. Lusah Cane + Lark Coat of Arms --> EXORCIST'S SHAFT (Cardist: Masakane) ------------------- HEALING PYGMY [EXPRHP] ------------------- The HEALING PYGMY is like the HEALING CARD except it recovers 10HP every 2 seconds rather than every 3 seconds. You need Univeral Cloth to synthesize it. Universal Cloth is acquired from battles with Monk (20%) and Mummy (20%). If you managed to pick one up during the "Find Our Teacher!" mission, you're in luck. If not, and you still want to try to get it early, you may want to try the Lottery (if you have any Mystery Cards left). Otherwise, you will probably have to wait until you become a Veteran Hunter, when numerous Monk battles open up in the Rank B Counter tasks. Healing Card + Univeral Cloth -----> HEALING PYGMY (Cardist: Sarhua) -------------- COUNTER TASKS [EXPRCT] -------------- As an Expert, you should have little trouble completing any Rank D, C, and B tasks that you didn't get to. You should be able to quickly obtain the 10 EXP points needed for the next Hunter Exam. I did not attempt any Rank A as an Expert, but you can probably do the six Pyramid Stone Tasks without much trouble (see discussion of Rank A tasks under "Selected Counter Tasks"). ------------------- NOTICE BOARD TASKS [EXPRNT] ------------------- NOTE: I suggest doing "Urgent Manhunt!" before "Help My Father!" If you are still trying to get more Mysterious Ores for the EXORCIST'S SHAFT, there's a good chance you will be able to get it during "Urgent Manhunt!" The EXORCIST'S SHAFT will be a great help if you plan to get the Leeza card during "Help My Father!" "Urgent Manhunt!" - [EXPRN1] ------------------- This is a two-part mission. Part 1 takes place in Yewbell (Ragnoth). Paulette joins you for this mission. Before starting Part 2, be sure to equip GOLEM HAND and FLAMING ARROW II. In Part 2, dodge foes until you reach the final zone that has the three Green Dragons. Defeat them and you obtain the Darc character card. GOLEM HAND is very helpful against the Green Dragons. NOTE: The Evil Eyes drop Mysterious Ores (2%), an ingredient for the EXORCIST'S SHAFT. Fight them with caution because their attacks are vicious. Take the time to heal before going to the next zone. For the Silver Dragon, two or three casts of FLAMING ARROW II make this a VERY simple fight. In fact, you will be very surprised how quickly this big guy goes down! Paulette helps a lot with the Silver Dragon, but unfortunately she is not much help anywhere else; she is not that powerful. Move through each zone quickly to keep her in one piece. "Help My Father!" - [EXPRN2] ------------------- This is a three-part task that can be really rough if you don't choose your battles wisely. Part 1 starts in Dilzweld. Go all the way down the descending stairs that are near the Lottery entrance and look for Sonya. In Part 2, Edda must battle six very vicious foes at the same time. This is a tough fight because you are being swarmed. Use plenty of magic to attack several foes at the same time. Some guides say to hide behind the big blue box, but it's not really helpful because a foe can easily reach you there. Basically, spam magic spells, and only use the cudgel if your CP gauge is still recovering. You will get a chance to save your game and refill your CP before the next part of the mission, so don't be afraid to use up your CP. Part 3 is long and tough. The basic rule is to avoid fights whenever possible. The foes in Rodion's Castle are extremely well-armed and vicious, and can take a long time to take out, even with magic. You want to conserve your CP for the end. Be sure to equip METEOR FALL. You will need it for the final battle against the tanks. In the first room, you will meet three powerful fighters. Try to dodge them and exit safely. The next room looks like a big swimming pool. This is the easiest room of all. Just stay close to the wall and make your way to the exit at the opposite end of the room. You won't meet any foes that way. The room after that is very dangerous. The soldiers can attack you from afar with their stun bombs and leave you totally vulnerable. But even here, try to keep the fighting to the absolute minimum until you can escape. In the final room, you are up against two Tanks as well as some shooters. Now is the time to fight. These are the last foes of the mission, so don't be afraid to use up your CP to win. Around the room are three sets of metal boxes. Unlike Part 2, these boxes provide complete protection from the guns and the tanks. In addition, the tanks don't move around much and the shooters don't use any stun bombs. None of your foes are very fast either. Edda can actually run from one set of boxes to another without getting hit. Now that you are fully protected, your job is to use METEOR FALL to wipe out both tanks. METEOR FALL does lots of great damage. And because it's a first level spell, you can cast it more often and recover more quickly. Unfortunately, the tanks will eventually get wise and move out of range. This is where you need a bit of luck. Obviously, you can't move out to get closer to them; you will be killed. Remember, there are TWO tanks firing at you as well as the shooters. What you can do, however, is move behind another set of metal boxes, cast METEOR FALL again, and hope that the tanks haven't moved too far. What's tough here is that because EoD has no camera controls, it's hard to tell if METEOR FALL even hit them. Sure, you see a health bar, but there's no way to tell who it belongs to. Take it slow. Keep an eye on your CP, and keep casting METEOR FALL. Remember, they cannot hurt you as long as you stay behind the boxes. Eventually, the tank shells will stop coming because your attacks have finally killed the tanks. It always surprises me when that happens because there's no way to tell if I'm even hitting them half the time. When the tanks are finally toast, move out with cudgel flailing. By now, you've probably used up all your CP, so cudgel attacks are all you have left to defeat the surviving shooters. If you've been staying behind the metal boxes, your HP should be full, and your Healing Card is still working. That will give you the edge. "Help My Father!" - Leeza card [EXPRN3] ------------------------------- There is a Leeza character card available in Part 3 of this task. However, it involves a long detour that will expose you to numerous foes. Be sure you are well-equipped so you won't run out of CP before the main battle. What helped me the most was SHOCKWAVER and LANCER SPIRIT. I also had the EXORCIST'S SHAFT which reduces CP used in LANCER SPIRIT. From the first room, instead of going north, zone three times to the east and then work your way south. Use SHOCKWAVER to knock foes out of the way and avoid fights. The Leeza card is being protected by a group of Bandits in a rather confined room where foes can more easily reach you. Don't bother killing them. Instead, use SHOCKWAVER to knock them away, then grab the card and flee. After you get the card, start working your way north and you will eventually reach the end of the dungeon. ------------------- HUNTER EXAM [EXPRHE] ------------------- After surviving "Help My Father!", this 3-part test is a piece of cake. You can pass the entire test using cudgel attacks alone. In part 3, you go up against Iga, a powerful fist fighter. Magic spells work on him, but you can also beat him with a cudgel as long as you stay away from his special attacks. Be ready to retreat and heal if you need to. Congratulations! You have been promoted to Veteran rank! =================== VETERAN [VETR01] =================== As a Veteran, you can now purchase STRIKE POWER and PROTECTION. You can also get them through "Bad Combo" card synthesis (see the paragraph on "Card Synthesis" above). STRIKE POWER increases damage done by 1.5. PROTECTION cuts damage sustained by 50%. These valuable spells will serve you well for the rest of the game. ------------------------------- LIZARD GUARD (DEF+100, SPD+10) [VETRLG] ------------------------------- This Defense Card made a huge difference for me in the post-game tests. As a Veteran, you will be able to synthesize it. Use the following formulas to synthesize it: a. Battle Armor + Magical Stone ------> Rune Armor (Cardist: Zerote) b. Rune Armor + Lizard Hide ----------> LIZARD GUARD (Cardist: Zerote) Battle Armor and Magical Stone are available in shops. Lizard Hide drops from Hell Kite (20%) and Wyvern (20%) Lizard Hides are not hard to get; there are so many dragons in this game, that by now you probably already have some. To check, press Triangle to bring up the Configuration screen. Then select the bottom circle button on the left ("Display cards found"), then go to the Parts tab. Hell Kites and Wyverns are dragon monsters, and can be found in several Counter Tasks: Rank C Task - "Rescue Four Miners!" Rank B Tasks - "Destroy the Brutal Hell Kites!" "Collect a Wyvern Scale!" "Catch the Armored Tortoise!" "Collect an Armored Insect Shell!" "Defeat the Red Dragon!" "Defeat the Green Dragon!" Any task in Chaos Forest. -------------- COUNTER TASKS [VETRCT] -------------- Since Rank A tasks are best done at the Master level, you can continue to do Rank B tasks. The Bradygames guide lists 50 Rank B tasks available, but they don't all show up at once. So go back and check to see if there's anything new. NOTE: If you need a Universal Cloth for the HEALING PYGMY, take on any Rank B Counter Task in the Garagne Graveyard. These tasks contain lots of fights with Monks who drop Univeral Cloth (20%). Universal Cloth is not hard to get. I wound up with 10 of them. ------------------- NOTICE BOARD TASKS [VETRNT] ------------------- "Wanted: Exorcist!" - [VETRN1] --------------------- Sikles needs your help to defeat Selkis, a demon who wants to rule the world. Go straight to the Water Shrine, and enter. To get the Bebedora card, keep zoning forward. At the end, use the teleporter that is second from the right. That takes you to a room with the Reecher (looks like the Grim Reaper) and lots of Ghouls. When you get the Bebedora card, you must exit south. Be sure you killed the Reecher first or else you won't be able to exit. For Selkis, be sure you have the HEALING CARD equipped. You want to save your CP for attack magic. I did the Selkis battle twice and saw two totally different scenarios. Scenario #1 - This is what you're supposed to see. The two Coleopts come after you while Selkis just sits and watches. You whack the Coleopts, then they go running back to Selkis for healing. To put a stop to this, use THUNDER STORM to defeat the two Coleopts quickly. That brings Selkis down, but it also brings the Coleopts back! Scenario #2 - The two Coleopts never showed up, and I was standing around whacking Coleopt Larvae right and left, while Selkis just sat there and never moved. I got tired of waiting, so I just walked right up to her and whacked her. That finally brought her down to the floor. Run circles around Selkis and her minions to avoid their attacks and attack with THUNDER STORM. As long as you're running around, no one can attack you. This also gives your HEALING CARD a chance to heal you. THUNDER STORM will easily whittle down Selkis' HP. Then use the cudgel to finish her off and exorcise her (Circle). It only takes a few cudgel blows to knock out her last 1/4 HP. And the two Coleopts don't really bother you much. Exorcising Selkis gets you 164 SP! "A Favor To Ask" - [VETRN2] ------------------- In Rueloon, Denik tells Edda that Ganz is missing and wants his help to find him. Go to Tsatuga Plateau and enter the building with the wide open entrance. You can get the Ganz character card here. After you first enter the hideout, turn right. You will see a group of red barrels. Trigger one of them to explode by hitting it few times with the cudgel. This starts a chain reaction that causes all the other barrels to explode. The Ganz card will appear after all of them explode. To locate the Steingraf, be sure to go DOWN a ramp some time during your long trek. If you keep using the ascending ramps, you'll never find Steingraf. Steingraf is a huge monster cannon, armed with missiles and cannon shot. You can actually beat the Steingraf with just cudgel attacks and LANCER SPIRIT. The missile and turret attacks actually don't hurt Edda that much - you can keep up with the damage. Avoiding its attacks is not too hard: when it starts rotating around its base, just jog along with it. Be sure to kill at least one of the Kiesels for the Monster Book. ------------------- HUNTER EXAM [VETRHE] ------------------- This is the first exam that has 4 parts, but it's not that difficult. Be sure to equip your HEALING CARD, IRON FANG or BATTLE ARMBAND (or EXORCIST'S SHAFT if available), and a healing spell. In Parts 1 and 2, use cudgel attacks to take out your foes. In Part 3, use the Paralyzing Bomb (hold R2 --> Square) until the Red Dragon is stunned, then capture him with the net (R2 + Triangle). You'll take some damage, but you'll survive if your HEALING CARD is equipped. In Part 4, you fight Tosh, a swordsman who uses lots of Fire magic. Pound him with cudgel combos, run around to heal up, then hit him some more. Congratulations! You have been promoted to Master rank! =================== MASTER [MSTR01] =================== ------------------ THUNDER STORM II [MSTRTS] ------------------ The first thing you should do after reaching Master rank is to equip Edda with THUNDER STORM II. This spell is only available to Master Hunters and up. For me, THUNDER STORM II turned out to be one of the most effective spells in the game. In the rest of this Walkthrough, you will see that I use this spell extensively in several tough fights, including Lalyuk, Yggdrasill and Nidhogg. This spell is also very helpful when you are swarmed by enemies like Cobras, bees, and spiders. THUNDER STORM II is synthesized as follows: Thunder Storm + Magical Stone --> THUNDER STORM II (Cardist: Sorcie) Yewbell and Milmarna sell Magical Stones if you need some. ---------------------- VIOLET RACER (SPD+25) [MSTRVR] ---------------------- The Violet Racer is a Special Parts Card that boosts Edda's speed by a whopping 25. I don't use it for fighting though. I mainly use it to get Mystery Cards at the Lottery minigames. With Mystery Cards, you can use the Lottery to get ingredients for card synthesis. The Violet Racer is synthesized as follows: a. Silver Rosary + Shell --> Violet Racer (Cardist: Sarhua) b. Light Metal + Mysterious Ore --> Silver Rosary (Cardist: Masakane) You can obtain the Shell as a drop from the Sand Worms in the "Deliver The Cobra Anti-Venom!" Rank A Counter task. In this task, you can zone out then re-enter and the Sand Worms will respawn. So keep fighting the Sand Worms until they drop a Shell. As a Master you should already have several Light Metals and probably one or two Mysterious Ores. If not, use the Lottery to get what you need. -------------- COUNTER TASKS [MSTRCT] -------------- The Rank A tasks contain lots of easy jobs. You should be able to rack up 10 EXP in no time. You can also look through the Rank B lists again. There are more tasks in Rank B than in any other rank, so there's a good chance you will find some new ones to try out. Remember, doing lots of tasks means more Spirit Points, more loot, and more entries in the Monster Book (for the Choco character card). ------------------- NOTICE BOARD TASKS [MSTRNT] ------------------- "To Anyone Who'll Believe Me..." - [MSTRN1] ----------------------------------- This Notice Board Task has five parts. Be sure to save your game often. NOTE: THUNDER STORM II will help you a lot throughout this mission. The mission begins in Yewbell. Stand with your back to the Guild office, then turn right to get to the castle ruins. Go past the kids playing and bear right to find Morth in the northern corner of the area. He's a little hard to see. In Scrappe Plateau, look around the place thoroughly. There are no monsters here, but you have to ask about everything you see. In Chaos Forest, THUNDER STORM II is a great opening move in the battle with Gur Apis. Finish it off with cudgel attacks so you can exorcise it. Gur Apis is worth 26 SP, so if you miss the chance to exorcise it, consider restarting. You don't get a lot of chances to fight a malademon when they are all alone. The three Hell Kites in Plumb Canyon are all malademons, but don't even consider exorcising any of them unless it is safe. Two of them will immediately gang up on you from the start, and can easily kill you. Run back up the stairs out of their range, then blast them with THUNDER STORM II. The dragons are VERY weak to this spell: a single cast can kill one and seriously injure the second. Use your cudgel to finish off the survivor. Try to exorcise it if you can. Similarly, use THUNDER STORM II and the cudgel on the third Hell Kite for a quick victory. During the trip to Leaping Lake, try not to get bogged down in battles. This mission is long enough as it is, and other than SP from exorcisms, you're really not gaining anything from battles here. After you go down the manhole, you enter Romariah Tunnel. More than ever, you need to conserve your CP for the final boss fight (Lalyuk). Work your way through the long passage, dodging foes as much as you can. If junk piles block your way, try smashing them apart. Otherwise, just detour around them by using other paths. The Paulette card is hidden inside a big box guarded by several Dark Dwellers. Use THUNDER STORM II to make easy work out of them. Look for the left side exit (it's close to where the Paulette card is). Go in and work your way up the steps while dodging foes. Exit the zone in the northwest and continue up the corridor with the wall on your right. Now look for a right side exit. It's not far away, but you'll have to look hard to see it because the corridor is poorly lit. Once you find it, enter to find Lalyuk. "To Anyone Who'll Believe Me..." - Lalyuk [MSTRN2] ------------------------------------------ Equip: EXORCIST'S SHAFT HERMIT'S ROBE HEALING CARD HEALING RAIN THUNDER STORM II PROTECTION STRIKE POWER Lalyuk is a malademon. You will use magic to knock out lots of its HP, but you will need to switch to the cudgel eventually so you can exorcise it. The battle begins right after the cutscene ends. IMMEDIATELY run right up to the boss and cast THUNDER STORM II. Lalyuk is VERY vulnerable to this spell! It should also knock out any Dark Dwellers that are guarding the boss. As soon as you can, cast THUNDER STORM II again. It is very important to get in two casts. That will severely reduce Lalyuk's HP, making it much easier to finish him off with the cudgel. Lalyuk sometimes attacks with a whirlpool. That didn't happen when I used the above approach. But if it does, don't let that stop you from casting THUNDER STORM II twice. After casting the second THUNDER STORM II, run to the SOUTHEAST (lower right) corner of the perimeter and heal up. Here you will be safe from Lalyuk's Light Bullet Shower as well as from the Dark Dwellers and the falling garbage. Go ahead and use HEALING RAIN to speed up the process. You won't be using any more attack spells, so don't worry about conserving CP. And you want to resume your attacks as soon as possible before he tries something else. Lalyuk will be casting his area attack, Light Bullet Shower. Once all the lights disappear, run up to Lalyuk and hit him with the cudgel. Immediately run back to your corner and heal. Then repeat. You will be stunned a lot but don't give up. As long as you were able to cast THUNDER STORM II twice, you will make it. Don't use LANCER SPIRIT; that will cause Lalyuk to regenerate to 1/4 HP. It should not take long to reduce his HP to zero even though you are just using the cudgel. For some reason, when malademons regenerate to 1/4 HP, it is not as difficult to damage them again. Lalyuk is no exception. You need to finish off Lalyuk before he starts using Light Bullet Spike. It is worse than Light Bullet Shower because it can reach you even when you are on the perimeter. And once he starts hitting you, he will spam it over and over and hit you every time. You are as good as dead then. While Lalyuk has a ton of HP (800!), this battle should only take a few minutes. If it seems to be dragging on for a long time, consider restarting and trying again. You'll have to go through the tunnel all over again, but it'll be worth it to have an easier battle. Throughout this battle, look for opportunities to make use of STRIKE POWER and PROTECTION. Defeating Lalyuk will earn you a whopping 460 SP! "Wanted: Master Hunter!" - [MSTRN3] --------------------------- After Lalyuk, this mission is a piece of cake. Go to Milmarna to sign up for the mission. At the library, when you take control of Hemo, go north until you meet the boy at the counter. After Hemo talks to him, head north again until you can't zone any more and read the note on the wall. Go back to get Edda's help. To get the two gems, be sure to stay north of the moving head so it doesn't watch you taking the two gems. Once you get the two gems, head back to the north wall and the note. The RED gem goes on the LEFT. The BLUE gem goes on the RIGHT. In Part 3, you need to keep Boris alive while going through the cave. When fighting the Cerberus, use spells like THUNDER STORM II and LANCER SPIRIT. Magic attacks will help you defeat the Cerberus quickly before he can hurt Boris too much. Boris isn't that fragile, but you don't want to take chances. Congratulations! You have completed the final Notice Board Task of the game! ------------------- HUNTER EXAM [MSTRHE] ------------------- THUNDER STORM II helped me a LOT in this exam. At the Master level, you have CP = 12 which is more than you'll ever need for this test. So don't feel shy about spamming magic. In Part 1, the 3 Dark Knights are very dangerous because they attack you from all sides. Use a few shots of THUNDER STORM II and some cudgel attacks to wipe them out quickly. In Part 2, use THUNDER STORM II and LANCER SPIRIT to pound the two Cerberus foes into submission while sustaining little damage. Be careful if you want to use the cudgel and close-up attacks, as these monsters can really damage you a lot. In Part 3, I used cudgel attacks rather than the Entrapment Set to stun the La Apis. Every time I used the Pulverizing Bomb (R2 + Square), the bomb would sit for a second before going off, long enough for the monster to walk out of range. The cudgel worked a lot better for me. In Part 4, I used a combination of LANCER SPIRIT, THUNDER STORM II, and regular cudgel attacks against Ganz. Running circles around him is a great way to avoid his attacks. Congratulations! You have been promoted to Hero rank! ------------------- HERO [HERO01] ------------------- ------------------- CATHENA LAB [HEROCL] ------------------- Equip: HEALING PYGMY HERMIT'S ROBE EXORCIST'S SHAFT THUNDER STORM II HEALING RAIN STRIKE POWER PROTECTION When you attain Hero rank, the country of Aldrow is opened. This is the location of the main game's final boss battle. After you pass the Hero exam, go straight to Cathena in Aldrow. You do not have to do any Counter Tasks or Notice Board Tasks to do this. When you first arrive, you are standing outside with Hemo. After the cutscene, head northwest toward the Cathena Lab and go in. Inside, turn right and go down the elevator to Dr Sarak's lab. After you get off the elevator, there is a short cutscene with Hemo. When that finishes, leave toward the northeast through the two automatic doors. You will enter a room with Cannon Traps (guns on wheels) and Dainn A's (look like artichokes). Dodge the enemies and head northeast to exit. The next zone is a bit longer. Keep heading northeast. Ignore the exit to your right (it's a deadend), and instead use the exit further up. The next zone is Sarak's office. Walk up to the desk and agree to read Sarak's diary. (You cannot continue the game until you read it.) This is followed by a cutscene with Kirika. When she runs out of the room, follow her. After the cutscene, you will be back in Sarak's office. Head southeast and exit. In the next zone, bear close to the right edge to avoid the gun attacks. The exit is just around the corner. In the next zone, go straight and exit at the other end. In the next zone, take the first left, dodge the Dainns, and exit. In the next zone, make your way around all the equipment, dealing with the Dainns any way you want. Right in front of the exit are three Dainn A malademons and a Tin Golem. You can defeat them all with four or five casts of THUNDER STORM II (it's a good idea to retreat to some safe spot after each cast to protect yourself from their attacks). When they are gone, pick up the Kharg Card and exit. In the next zone, walk up to the computer terminal. After the cutscene finishes, exit toward the southwest end. In the next zone, you will find four Dainn A's. If you are at anything less than full health/CP, you should fight the Dainn A's for the health/CP boosts. Exit toward the southwest. One final cutscene with Kirika will now take place, and then the battle with Yggdrasill will begin. ------------------- YGGDRASILL [HEROYG] ------------------- Introduction: [HEROY1] --------------- Equip (for both Yggdrasill and Nidhogg): HEALING PYGMY HERMIT'S ROBE EXORCIST'S SHAFT THUNDER STORM II HEALING RAIN STRIKE POWER PROTECTION Chalice is Light-weak, and THUNDER STORM II is one of the most powerful Light-attacks you have. This setup will allow you to cast it numerous times without excessive recovery delay or CP consumption. Having both the HEALING PYGMY and HEALING RAIN is very important. You want to be constantly healing. But if the HEALING PYGMY can't keep up (or if Kirika is in trouble), HEALING RAIN will provide a quick health boost for you and Kirika in one shot. I did not use Healing Rain II because of its long recovery, and you need to be able to heal quickly. HERMIT'S ROBE boosts your MAG and DEF stats while reducing the CP cost of magic (very important). EXORCIST'S SHAFT also boosts MAG as well as STR and TEC. What Didn't Work For Me: [HEROY2] ------------------------- I am including this information because I tried out several strategies for beating this final boss fight. It may save some grief to hear about other approaches. These comments apply to both Yggdrasill and Nidhogg. a. Devil Armband, Iron Fang, and other STR boosters - There are lots of accessories that boost STR more than the EXORCIST'S SHAFT. But the Yggdrasill fight is much more a magic fight than a strength fight. Magic is the only way to keep up with the hordes of foes that swarm all over you. Stick with the EXORCIST'S SHAFT. b. Shining Cross - This item provides a huge MAG+100 boost. But it also increases casting cost by a whopping 50% which slows down recovery a lot. This is VERY dangerous in the Yggdrasill fight because you are often swarmed by foes and you need to kill them quickly. The accessories that I have recommended will boost MAG by 60 without causing any additional recovery delay. It will also speed up recovery when using Special Skills like LANCER SPIRIT. c. Violet Racer - The SPD + 25 increase is not worth the loss of the HEALING PYGMY. You need continuous healing to get through this fight. Strategy: [HEROY3] ---------- STRIKE POWER will make this battle go much faster. Be sure Edda has it equipped! The battle begins after Edda says, "Prepare yourself, Chalice!" Immediately cast STRIKE POWER, then move forward toward Yggdrasil and cast THUNDER STORM II. Keep casting it until the boss stands up (with STRIKE POWER, you may accomplish this with a single cast). If you can, wait until the bees (Dovalin) appear before casting THUNDER STORM II. That way, you can take them out and damage the boss at the same time. The bees are only 50 HP each, but they swarm you and their stings interfere with your ability to attack. One cast of THUNDER STORM II will kill all of them at once. When Yggdrasill stands up, you will not be able to attack it. Yggdrasill will now spawn more bees and Dainn A's. The roaming Dainn A's are your biggest threat. Wait about a second for all the monsters to appear. Now, just stand near one of the stationary Dainns and WAIT for one or two of the roaming Dainns to get close to you. When they are close, cast THUNDER STORM II. You can kill two or even three Dainns with a single cast! Kill the remaining roaming Dainn A's with the same approach. The Dainns at the feet of the boss just sit there and won't attack even when you hit them. Save your CP and just pound them with the cudgel. The Dainn A's at the feet of the boss drop big HP and CP boosts; try especially to get the CP boosts before the boss drops back to the ground. If the roots get in your way, circle around to the outside to reach the drops. About the laser beams: when the charging sound stops, you know that the boss is about to launch a laser attack. To avoid the laser beams, stop whatever you're doing and run to the CENTER of the battle area and start running circles (run to the right) like a merry-go-round. The beams are moving in a circle, too, and you are trying to outrun them. To be honest, I was never very good at dodging the laser beams. Strangely enough, this is the one time that having Violet Racer comes in handy, since it gives you all the speed you need to outrun them. Luckily, the continuous healing of Healing Pygmy and the power of THUNDER STORM II helped get me through before the laser attacks damaged me too much. When all the Dainn A's are gone, the boss will drop back down on the ground. Immediately cast THUNDER STORM II again. You might get knocked over by its big tongue if you get too close, but just get back up and cast it. The boss will stand up again, and all the monsters will reappear. Attack them exactly like before. You will have to go through a couple cycles before the boss is defeated. If you can cast STRIKE POWER again, that will speed up the process. The Nidhogg battle won't need nearly as much CP as Yggdrasill. Conserve CP as best you can, but even if you end up with CP=6, that should be enough for Nidhogg. ------------------- NIDHOGG [HEROND] ------------------- Introduction: [HERON1] --------------- This is not a long battle (maybe around three minutes), but it is tricky to win. Up until now, PROTECTION was just a nice-to-have spell. But with Nidhogg, it became a must. Nidhogg's attacks cause a lot more damage than Yggadrasill's. A little extra protection can be all it takes to turn defeat into victory. The Nidhogg battle won't need nearly as much CP as Yggdrasill. If you have CP=6, that should be enough. The challenge with Nidhogg is staying alive long enough to win. The Bradygames Guide says that Nidhogg has 999 HP, but it didn't seem that high. I could see his Health gauge going down with just cudgel attacks, and Nidhogg isn't even weak to Strike-type attacks. Unlike Yggdrasill, Nidhogg fights all by himself; there are no other monsters or minions around to harass you. Nidhogg is not that fast on the ground but he can jump into the air to avoid your attacks. So while he is on the ground, hit him with magic spells and cudgel combos. In this battle, Kirika is helping out by stunning the boss with her gun (Stark Dispeller). You have to keep Kirika alive, but don't worry. Kirika is REALLY good at staying out of harm's way. Most of the time, Nidhogg follows Edda the minute Edda hits him. In addition, Nidhogg doesn't use any area of effect spells that could hit both Edda and Kirika. As long as Edda fights Nidhogg on one side of the battlefield, Kirika will never be touched. Unlike practically all the other monsters in EoD, Nidhogg doesn't become temporarily "invulnerable" after you inflict a 4-hit combo. So you can literally spam 4-hit combos over and over and do damage with every hit. I preferred single hits, however, because that made it easier to move Edda around a bit more. Strategy: [HERON2] ---------- The battle begins right after Edda says to Kirika, "Don't do anything stupid." Immediately, cast STRIKE POWER, then move torward Nidhogg (try to avoid the claws) and cast THUNDER STORM II. STRIKE POWER allows you to cause a lot more damage with your first attack. Start moving away from Kirika, and try to cast THUNDER STORM II again. Basically, you want to keep casting THUNDER STORM II over and over. After only a few casts of THUNDER STORM II, you will be amazed how much HP Nidhogg has lost. Like I said, this is not a long battle. Once the boss' HP is very low, start hitting Nidhogg with the cudgel. This is an exorcism fight, so you need to avoid magic in the end or else the boss will regenerate to 1/4 HP. Watch Nidhogg's health gauge, then press Circle as soon as his HP is gone. Nidhogg will not just sit there, of course. It will jump in the air and drip acid drops on you, and finally land on top of you for massive damage. Sometimes you can avoid this by moving around, but often you can't. Once the drops hit you, you are paralyzed and you get hit with the full attack. Use HEALING RAIN after an acid attack if your HP is really low. But if not, try to cast THUNDER STORM II again. When moving around to avoid the acid drops, try to run toward one of the transformers. If Nidhogg lands on top of them, they may release some big HP/CP recovery items. Nidhogg's other attacks are throwing white balls at you and hitting you with his claws if you get too close. But his acid drop attack is the one he uses the most, and is the most dangerous. Keeping Kirika safe is easy. You will have plenty of space to move around to avoid Nidhogg's attacks and still stay far from Kirika. If you stay on the perimeter of the fight area, Kirika will move herself out of the way. When Nidhogg's HP gets really low, his attacks may start causing more damage. If you die, you will have to repeat the entire dungeon crawl through Cathena as well as the Yggdrasill fight. What to do? Cast PROTECTION the first chance you get. PROTECTION cuts damage in half. The recovery from casting this is not long, so you will be able to cast magic again. Kirika's gun can potentially regenerate Nidhogg to 1/4 HP if she hits it when its HP is very low. For some reason, that didn't cause a problem for me. But if it happens, you may want to cast PROTECTION again, and then smack it with a couple of cudgel blows again. The second time I did Nidhogg, I was able to cast PROTECTION a little more often. That wound up shortening the battle even more. --------------------------------- AFTER NIDHOGG - VERY IMPORTANT!! [HEROAN] --------------------------------- Congratulations on beating Nidhogg!! After Nidhogg goes down, you will see a long cutscene, and then the final credits will roll. DO NOT TURN YOUR GAME OFF YET, OR YOU WILL LOSE YOUR WORK!! Right after the credits finish, you will see ANOTHER long cutscene. After that, the game will allow you to save. Do it! You must save your game one more time if you want to continue to the post-game activities! --------------------------------- POST-GAME ACTIVITIES [HEROPG] --------------------------------- You have already begun the post-game activities if you watched the cutscene that follows the final credits and then saved your game. After saving your game, you will automatically be taken back to Milmarna. Edda will wake up in the same bed in Mel's house that he was in at the beginning of the game. When you are outside, go to the palace. Go to Maru's chamber and go through all the cutscenes. Back outside, go through another cutscene with Hemo. When that finishes, go to the Hunters Guild and save your game. Be sure to recover your CP if you need to. At this point, you have a few options: a. Go to Aldrow for a new story involving Kirika and Volk b. Go to Rueloon for a cutscene involving the Truth Sword leader c. Take on a new Counter Task and start earning the 10 EXP for the next Hunter Exam You can do any of these three. You don't have to do them in any order. ========= VOLK [VOLK01] ========= After beating Nidhogg, a new country called Aldrow opens up. You will find several Counter Tasks that take place here. However, when you first enter the town of Orcoth (location of the Hunter Guild), you will get involved with a story involving Kirika, Delma, and Volk. -------- ALDROW [VOLK02] -------- First let's get the terminology straight. You are in the town of Orcoth in the country of Aldrow. The people who live in Orcoth are Deimos called Orcons. Many of the Orcons don't like humans. But Orcoth is going through economic trouble, and the current Orcon leader, Delma, has decided to foster closer ties with the humans by opening a Hunter Guild. Aldrow is a bit confusing. When you first arrive, turn toward the northeast, then do a sharp 180 degree turn to Edda's right and go down the steps. The Guild office is in the southwest. Go there to save. Next, go down the stairs behind the two pink Orcon women. There you will find out why Delma is locking Kirika up in jail. After that, go back up the stairs and find Delma in the place just east of the white crystal sculpture. A long cutscene takes place between Edda, Delma, and Volk. Volk wants nothing to do with humans, and decides to challenge Edda to a fight as a way to force Delma to shut down the Guild. Edda agrees, but makes Volk promise to free Kirika if Edda wins. -------- VOLK [VOLK03] -------- After Nidhogg, Volk is really easy. Cast STRIKE POWER or PROTECTION and cudgel him. You don't even need magic spells. He has healing spells and other attack spells, but your cudgel will knock him out long before he can do much damage. The whole battle should take about a minute. You will receive the Volk Character card. ---------- RUELOON [RUELON] ---------- The first time you go to Rueloon post-game, you will see a cutscene where Ganz asks Edda what punishment should be given to Zeeman, the captured Truth Sword leader. There is no fighting to do. ------------- GENERAL [GENL01] ------------- -------------- COUNTER TASKS [GENLCT] -------------- You need to earn 10 EXP points to qualify for the General Exam. There is no requirement for Dignity Points. ---------------------- HUNTER EXAM [GENLHE] ---------------------- Equip: ------- HEALING PYGMY LIZARD GUARD - very important!! EXORCIST'S SHAFT THUNDER STORM II HEALING RAIN STRIKE POWER PROTECTION High DEF is the key to passing this exam. I first tried this with the HERMIT'S ROBE (which was very helpful against Nidhogg), and couldn't pass after numerous attempts. I was even struggling through the Cerberus fight. But the moment I equipped LIZARD GUARD, I passed the first time. Part 1 - Defeat 5 Dark Knights (5 minutes) Cast STRIKE POWER, then spam THUNDER STORM II to take them out quickly. THUNDER STORM II will take out a group of them in one shot if they are close together. Part 2 - Arrest 3 Cerberus (5 minutes) Cast STRIKE POWER, then attack each Cerberus one at a time using a combination of THUNDER STORM II and cudgel attacks. The bombson the ground are a pain, because they spawn out of thin air, so you can't dodge them. But the LIZARD GUARD will get you through it. You can also cast PROTECTION if you can. Part 3 - Capture 3 La Apis (3 minutes) The La Apis move quickly and you don't have much time. The La Apis always move along the edges of the battle area. To catch up with them, run across the area to cut them off. Once you catch up with one of them, attack it with the cudgel. Only attack one La Apis at a time. Their attacks are vicious, and if two attack you at once, you are as good as dead. The La Apis will easily attack you in between every blow; there's nothing you can do about it. Throw the net (R2+Triangle) when the La Apis is paralyzed (you see stars over his head). If you accidentally hit the La Apis again while he is stunned, he will recover and resume attacking you. This happened to me a lot because I was using too many combos. (One way to minimize that from happening is to switch to single cudgel blows after about two combos. The La Apis will hit you between every blow, however, so watch your health.) Just hit him one more time to stun him, then throw the net. Part 4 - Guard the Whip Lady (5 minutes) Cast STRIKE POWER, then attack each beast with THUNDER STORM II or just cudgel blows. The test ends when the lady arrives at the opposite (right) side of the test area. Part 5 - Defeat Alec Two things to know about Alec: he is very fast, and he spams powerful magic that will literally cut you to pieces in no time. NOTE: The LIZARD GUARD made this fight a lot easier for me. When the battle begins, Alec will immediately hit you with a powerful magic spell that will knock you over. Your LIZARD GUARD, however, will do a lot to minimize the damage. Get back up and and start attacking him, alternating between cudgel combos and THUNDER STORM II. He is very fast, so keep up the attacks constantly. Right after casting THUNDER STORM II, use the cudgel until the CP gauge is ready for another cast of THUNDER STORM II. It shouldn't take that long to take him down. When I first tried Alec without the LIZARD GUARD, he was spamming magic like crazy, making it very hard just to get close to him. But with the LIZARD GUARD, he was using a lot less magic. Also, Edda's cudgel blows were able to interfere with many of his attempts to use magic, and also stunned him a lot. Congratulations! You have been promoted to General rank! ------------- LEGEND [LEGD01] ------------- -------------- COUNTER TASKS [LEGDCT] -------------- You need to earn 10 EXP points to qualify for the Legend Exam. There is no requirement for Dignity Points. ---------------------- HUNTER EXAM [LEGDHE] ---------------------- Equip: ------- HEALING PYGMY HERMIT'S ROBE EXORCIST'S SHAFT THUNDER STORM II HEALING RAIN STRIKE POWER I switched from LIZARD GUARD to HERMIT'S ROBE because Part 4 was giving me trouble. For some reason, the dragons seemed a little harder to take out than in the General Exam. You need to be able to take out the dragons in a single hit because the Young Man is constantly walking right up to the dragon and getting himself killed. HERMIT'S ROBE gives THUNDER STORM II just enough extra power to do that. Unlike Alec, Elc can be beaten without the added defense of LIZARD GUARD. Part 1 - Defeat 7 Dark Knights (5 minutes) Cast STRIKE POWER and spam THUNDER STORM II. If you're lucky, they will bunch up, and you will be able to take several down with a single cast. Part 2 - Arrest 4 Cerberus (5 minutes) As in the General Exam, cast STRIKE POWER, then attack the Cerberus with cudgel blows and THUNDER STORM II. They may attack you in pairs, so be ready for that. Part 3 - Capture 4 La Apis (5 minutes) As in the General exam, use cudgel blows to stun the La Apis. You can't avoid their attacks, so just take them on one at a time. If they pair up, move away. Part 4 - Guard the Young Man (5 minutes) Your charge is a lot weaker, and he likes to run out in front of the dragons, so you have to act fast. Cast STRIKE POWER. You will be able to knock out each dragon with a single hit of THUNDER STORM II. Part 5 - Defeat Elc I thought Elc was a lot easier to beat than Alec. Stay close to Elc the entire time and keep knocking him around with the cudgel! The cudgel blows keep him from casting magic spells, forcing him to use his fists. He has a healing spell, so hit him occasionally with THUNDER STORM II to speed up the fight. Congratulations! You have been promoted to Legend rank! ------------- ARC [ARCX01] ------------- -------------- COUNTER TASKS [ARCXCT] -------------- You need to earn 10 EXP points to qualify for the Arc Exam. There is no requirement for Dignity Points. ------------------- HUNTER EXAM [ARCXNT] ------------------- Again, equip HERMIT'S ROBE to give added power to your THUNDER STORM II attacks. Equip: ------- HEALING PYGMY HERMIT'S ROBE EXORCIST'S SHAFT THUNDER STORM II HEALING RAIN STRIKE POWER Part 1 - Defeat 10 Dark Knights (5 minutes) Cast STRIKE POWER and spam THUNDER STORM II for one-hit knockouts. They bunch up rather nicely, so you can hit a lot of them at once with each spell. I thought this was probably the easiest Dark Knight battle out of all three post-game exams. Part 2 - Arrest 5 Cerberus (5 minutes) Cast STRIKE POWER and spam THUNDER STORM II. You can hit two or more at a time, but they have a lot of HP, so you won't be able to take them down with a single cast, even with STRIKE POWER. Use the cudgel if the beast only has a little HP remaining. Part 3 - Capture 5 La Apis (5 minutes) Like before, use the cudgel and attack them one at a time. If they try to attack you in a pair, move away. You cannot avoid their attacks, that's why you must only attack them one at a time. If you get low in health, pause a few moments to give your HEALING PYGMY time to restore some health. Part 4 - Guard the Young Man (5 minutes) Like before, cast STRIKE POWER and knock out each monster with a single cast of THUNDER STORM II. You should be able to complete this part of the exam very quickly. Part 5 - Defeat Arc Arc is not that hard. He has a Total Healing spell which he tries to use a lot, but you can interfere with it. His attack spells are similar to Elc's and can cause a lot of damage. He can also go invulnerable (he raises his arm in front of him) but it's only temporary. At the beginning of the battle, Arc instantly hits you with a big magic attack. You can't avoid it. When it's over, cast STRIKE POWER, and move up to him. Stay close to Arc and attack him with SINGLE cudgel blows. Single cudgel blows will do damage and also keep him from doing magic, especially the Total Healing spell. Cudgel combos, however, will knock him away from you, and that's when he can use Total Healing and hurl magic spells at you. So try to avoid combos if you can. When Arc goes invulnerable, just keep hitting him. It's only temporary. If Arc manages to cast Total Healing, follow up with THUNDER STORM II for major damage. After Arc goes down, a cutscene follows where Edda gets a big welcome by Ganz, Maru, Paulette, and Tatjana. (If you completed the story in Orcoth before taking the Arc Exam, you will see Delma and Volk in the group, too.) According to Ganz, Edda is the first hunter to ever attain Arc rank. Kirika shows up later to congratulate Edda personally. Congratulations! You have been promoted to Arc rank! ------------------- THE END [END001] ------------------- Once you have passed the Arc Exam, you have finished the game. You can now spend time developing other characters in the game, or taking on any Counter Tasks that you haven't done. Try to complete the Monster Book (located in the Mofly Hole in Rueloon). You can also use the Dilzweld Lottery to obtain other characters and items. ------------------------- SELECTED COUNTER TASKS [SELEC1] ------------------------- This section will discuss some of the Counter Tasks that are tricky to do or need some clarification. NOTE: The Bradygames guide describes several Counter Tasks which I have not been able to find during actual gameplay. For example, Bradygames lists 12 "Rank S" Counter Tasks, but I have only been able to see eight. If anyone knows the reason for this, feel free to e-mail me at cpps90@yahoo.com -------------- RANK D [DXXXXX] -------------- Most of the Rank D Tasks are fairly straightforward. You basically use your cudgel attacks against an assortment of enemies. Two of them, however, are a little tricky. "Destroy the Snake-Eating Rhokes!" - [D00001] ----------------------------------- You need to take out 3 Rhokes. They are blue birds, and marked with a floating red arrow. The Rhokes are easy to take out. The problem is getting to them. You will find yourself surrounded by acid-spewing rocks, snakes, and worst of all, huge bees. These bees will be harrassing you throughout the task. They have high evade, making them hard to hit. They also attack in groups, allowing them to attack you from all sides. The best advice is try to dodge all foes as best you can and concentrate on finding the Rhokes. Some of the bees are malademons, and you will unfortunately miss some chances to gain SP. But with your limited HP/CP, your character will have a tough time dealing with so many foes. Luckily, this task can be repeated, so you can come back later after you have leveled up a bit. When the third Rhoke is dead, the mission is complete. "Guide the Sheep to Safety!" - [D00002] ----------------------------- Your job is to bring some sheep back to their pen. Start by eliminating all the Wild Dogs. They are easy to beat, but are scattered all over the scene, so be sure not to miss any. To handle the sheep, you must push the bundle of hay that they are munching on toward the pen. To move the hay, hold the left analog stick in the direction you want to go, then press Square once. Edda will kick the bundle of hay. Keep doing this to move the hay toward the pen. Once at the pen, the sheep may still not go inside. If that happens, try walking into the pen yourself so the sheep follows you. -------------- RANK C [CXXXXX] -------------- Rank C Tasks Suitable For Rookie Level - [C00001] ------------------------------------------- The following Rack C Tasks are fairly easy and can be done at the Rookie Level: 1. "Capture an Alraune!" 2. "Wipe Out the Mushroom Monsters!" 3. "Junk Equipment Hunt" 4. "Capture the Lakelta!" 5. "Capture the Orcon!" 6. "Capture the Canidae!" Rank C Tasks are worth 500G each. Use this opportunity to earn extra cash and buy better accessories early. "Capture the xxxx!" - [C00002] ---------------------- There are LOTS of capture tasks in Rank C. Most of them are quick and simple, even for a Rookie. Do lots of Capture tasks, and you will earn lots of EXP and money fast! When capturing, remember that you must stun the foe first (stars circling its head). With Rank C, a lot of the foes can be stunned with just cudgel blows. "Capture the Elementals!" - [C00003] ---------------------------- Equip the HEALING CARD. This is a Capture task, and you will not be able to use healing spells while going through the long Seabed Oil Field. Also, equip the BATTLE ARMBAND (or even the IRON FANG if you have it). The added strength will be invaluable in taking out foes before they kill you. The monsters are pretty much the same as the ones you encountered in "Find My Husband Demill!" Dodge foes when you can. You can even try to dodge the Gunmechs, although you may want to fight a few of them if you still need Hard Metal (for IRON FANG). The Elementals can be found in the third cross-shaped room. "Collect Seabed Gravity Stones!" - [C00004] ---------------------------------- This is another trek through Seabed Oil Field. Again, equip the HEALING CARD and the BATTLE ARMBAND or IRON FANG. The object of this task is to find crystal-shaped formations and smash them to reveal the Gravity Stones. These crystals are mostly found in the cross-shaped rooms. In order to smash them in peace, you should try to defeat all the guns wandering around. If you have buffed up your character, this task will not be hard, but it will still be long. Try to dodge foes and confine your battles to the monsters in the cross-shaped rooms. By the way, if you haven't gotten your Hard Metal (for IRON FANG), you're going to get it now. "Eliminate the Flies' Nest!" - [C00005] ------------------------------ Dodge the flies and go straight for the nest. Get as close as you can to the nest, then beat it to pieces with the cudgel. DO NOT PRESS L2, or else your cudgel may hit a fly instead of the nest. There's no point in trying to kill flies because they will just respawn. The moment the nest is gone, the task is completed. "Old-Generation Parts Hunt" - [C00006] ----------------------------- This is a tough hunt! Dodge the hordes of Ninja foes. Beat them away if necessary, but don't try to kill them: you will die if you do! Even the HEALING CARD will have a tough time keeping up with their attacks. Keep your eyes out for the scrap heaps. Don't be surprised if you're barely alive when you're done. "Wipe Out the Elementals!" - [C00007] ---------------------------- Get through the Gunmechs and head up the stairs. Dodge the big Elementals; they will just respawn if you kill them. Instead, go for the "baby" Elemental at the top of the stairs in back of the room. The big Elementals will be bashing you from all sides, but keep whacking away at the baby Elemental, and the mission will be complete. "Wipe Out the Giant Slime!" - [C00008] ----------------------------- To locate the Giant Slime, zone east, then south. Dodge the little Slimes and go straight for the Giant Slime. Expect to be stunned a lot by the Giant Slime's attacks. I killed it with LANCER SPIRIT x4 followed by cudgel blows. -------------- RANK B [BXXXXX] -------------- Rank B Tasks Suitable For Apprentice Level - [B00001] ---------------------------------------------- Most Rank B Tasks are best handled by an Expert or Veteran Hunter. But if you equip the IRON FANG, HEALING CARD, and Ring Armor, you can handle several Rank B Tasks at the Apprentice level. The following Rank B Tasks can be accomplished as an Apprentice with a buffed-up Edda (IRON FANG, HEALING CARD, Ring Armor): 1. "Annihilate the Mafia Gang!" - Dodge the Ninja hordes and go straight for the Ninja Master (marked with a red arrow). 2. "Annihilate the Orcon!" - Edda is helped out by a group of Lakelta hunters, making this an easy task 3. "Catch the Armored Tortoise!" - An easy capture task. The Paralyzing Bomb (R2 + Square) is very effective. 4. "Collect an Armored Insect Shell!" - The Armored Insects can be a pain because they become invulnerable when they hide in their shells. When that happens, try standing in back of it. It will immediately come out, turn around and try to attack you again. But the moment it sticks its head out, cast attack magic. GOLEM HAND is a good spell to use. 5. "Defeat the Red Dragon!" - You can almost stand there and let the other soldiers do the work! Easy task. 6. "Defeat the Green Dragon!" - You get a lot of help from the four soldiers. Easy task. 7. "Destroy the Brutal Hell Kites!" - The Hell Kites are dragons. None of the beasts in this task are very hard. 8. "Destroy the Giant Ooze!" - The Toxic Oozes will stun you a lot. But you can finish this task quickly by dodging foes and going directly to the Giant Ooze. Use magic like Big Bang and Tornado for a fast kill. 9. "Discipline the Grave Robbers!" - The Garagne Graveyard is an open air, well-lit grassy area where the foes are widely scattered. Cudgel blows take out the Robbers easily. (NOTE: The Monks drop Universal Cloth (20%), an ingredient for the HEALING PYGMY. If you don't get one, try rebooting and trying again.) 10. "Eradicate the Land Mines!" - Set off the land mines by casting magic. 11. "Get Back the Scroll!" - Ninjas are always difficult, but you might be able to handle this one. Dodge the foes along the way and go straight for the High Ninja. His attacks are tough, so use magic spells to defeat him quickly. 12. "Find the Prized Ring/Stolen Gloves/Stolen Purse" - These three tasks all take place in Chaos Forest which is not a difficult area for a buffed-up character. You can dodge most of the monsters and go straight for the lost object. 13. "Get Some Man-eater Leaves!" - There are dragons and other foes along the way, but they are not hard to beat. The cartoonish looking Man-eater is an easy foe; cudgel attacks will finish it off. 14. "Help the Mine Worker!" - You need to rescue a mine worker who has been kidnapped by terrorists. There are lots of foes, the hardest being the SA-100. But they are all spread out, so you can defeat them all with just cudgel attacks if you want. By the way, SA-100s drop Hard Metal if you need one. 15. "Rescue the Twin Girls!" - There are lots of soldiers and swordsmen; use magic spells to take them out quickly. They won't swarm all over you either, so that will help you to keep up with their attacks. 16. "Rid the Mine of Thieves!" - This is one of the easier Ninja tasks. Use your favorite magic spell on your opponents or just cudgel them to death. "Protect the Priest's Pilgrimage!" - [B00002] ------------------------------------ The best way to do this task is to run through each zone quickly while dodging foes, and exit as fast as you can. The entire area is swarming with monsters. If you spend too much time fighting, the Priest will get attacked, and he's not very powerful. Avoid fights except when a foe is blocking an exit. Don't worry about the Priest keeping up with you. The moment you enter a new zone, the Priest will reappear right behind you with his HP completely refilled. "Protect the Truck Installation!" - [B00003] ----------------------------------- This is a tough protection task. You should probably wait on this task until you're a Master when you can get THUNDER STORM II because you need to be able to do one-hit knockouts to get through this. The moment the battle begins, cast STRIKE POWER. You will be immediately surrounded by foes. The Evil Eyes are very quick and dangerous; it only takes two of their Dark Sphere attacks to destroy the delicate truck installation. The Stun Smogs stun you a lot. Stay close to the truck installation and cast THUNDER STORM II. It should knock out the Evil Eye with one hit if you're close enough. Try not to rely too much on the cudgel except when your CP gauge is still recovering. The cudgel is too weak to keep up with all the attacks. Keep using THUNDER STORM II when a new batch of foes arrives. You need to keep the foes away for two minutes. Rescue the Coleopt Kids - [B00004] ------------------------- This can be a frustrating task because the Coleopts are constantly wandering around no matter how slowly you walk. Also, there doesn't seem to be a way to quickly take out the Tortoises. That's bad news because you only have three minutes, and you don't want to waste precious time. You start off on the left side of the screen. You need to get the kids to the right side of the area where the parents are. The first thing to do is smash the big blue box that is blocking the way to the Coleopt furthest north. Then attack the nearest Tortoise with THUNDER STORM II. You won't be able to kill it with one hit. Instead it will hide in its shell and become invulnerable, so don't bother attacking it again. Use the time to gather any other nearby Coleopts. Eventually you'll kill the Tortoise, and you can advance toward the right side of the screen. Don't step on any teleporters or you will have to start all over. The Coleopts are airborne, so you don't have to worry about them stepping on teleporters. You will encounter two more Tortoises. Hit them with THUNDER STORM II but don't bother trying to kill them. They will remain hiding whenever you get close. The Coleopts like to wander around even when you stand next to them. Just work your way to the right side of the screen and hope the rest of the Coleopts follow you. If a Tortoise approaches, just take a few steps toward him, and he will hide in his shell again. -------------- RANK A [AXXXXX] -------------- The Pyramid Stone Tasks (6) - [A00001] ----------------------------- The Pyramid Stone tasks all take place in the Pyramid Ruins. The mission is the same for all of them: work your way through the Pyramid Ruins and put a piece of a tablet into a pedestal. These tasks are not very hard. The main difficulty is knowing where to go. Here are the paths you need. (NOTE: Some have the same directions as others. That is not an error.) a. "Get The Pyramid's Stone Tablet!" west-west-north-north-east-east-north-west-west-west-north b. "Recover The Ancient Artifact!" north-north-north-east-east-north-east-east-south-east-north c. "Return The Table To Its Home!" north-north-north-east-east-north-east-east-south-east-north d. "Another Stone Tablet Mission!" est-west-north-north-east-east-east-north-east-north e. "Return The Stone Tablet Again!" west-west-north-north-east-east-north-west-west-west-north f. "Recover The Ancient Table!" west-west-north-north-east-east-east-north-east-north The fastest way to complete each task is to dodge foes and just concentrate on getting through all the areas until you reach the end. When all six pieces are in place, the tablet will be complete, and you will receive a special prize. "Arrest the Evil Swordmaster!" - [A00003] --------------------------------- The path to the Evil Swordmaster (his name is Billy!) is: northeast-southeast-northeast-northeast-northwest-northeast This area is swarming with dragons and skeletons, so don't get lost. Dodge foes as much as you can. The Evil Swordmaster is easy; two shots of THUNDER STORM II will take him out. "Deliver The Cobra Anti-Venom!" - [A00002] --------------------------------- You need to deliver an antidote to a Poisoned Traveler in the desert. The path to the Poisoned Traveler is: northeast-southeast-southeast-northeast-northeast (the first Sand Worms)- southeast-northeast-southeast Don't get lost or you may find yourself in a losing battle against Cobras. Cobras are extremely dangerous: they move fast and their bite hurts a lot. They often swarm you. Try casting PROTECTION when you enter a new zone during the first four zones. This will cut any Cobra damage in half. After the fourth zone, the Cobras drop off fast. Dodge the Cobras and go straight for the Sand Worms. The Sand Worms are easily taken down with cudgel combos. One irritant in this mission is that the boundaries of each zone are impossible to see. All you see is sand around you. You may suddenly run into a "wall" that's not even visible. Just be aware of this especially when you're trying to dodge the Cobras. By the way, zoning out and re-entering will respawn the Sand Worms. Use this as your opportunity to gain the Shell (for VIOLET RACER). -------------- RANK S [SXXXXX] -------------- The Rank S tasks can be done at any time after completing the main story (defeating Chalice). I waited until after I passed the Arc exam. "Collect a Magical Warlocus!" - [S00001] ------------------------------- This is not a hard task. The path to the Warlock is: southeast-northeast-southeast-northeast Smash through any icicles that block your way. You can dodge the Slime and the La Apis, but you will need to knock out the two Cerberus monsters blocking one of the exits. Cudgel blows work fine on them. Their triple-fireball attacks will knock you down, but you can still keep up with them. When you find the Warlock, use THUNDER STORM II for a quick, easy fight. "Destroy the Darkness Bones!" - [S00002] ------------------------------- You need to destroy three piles of Darkness Bones. They are identified by red arrows. Just run through the area, dodge the monsters, and look for piles of black bones. A single cast of THUNDER STORM II will easily destroy the pile as well as any monsters nearby. It doesn't take that long to find the three piles. There are Skull Warriors and Skeletons all over the place, but they are easy to dodge. If you want to kill some for the Monster Book, THUNDER STORM II easily does the job, but don't overdo it. Skull Warriors immediately respawn after being killed. "Destroy the Driven Cliff Gigant!" - [S00003] ------------------------------------- This mission is not that difficult as long as you know where to go. Equip: HEALING PYGMY HERMIT'S ROBE EXORCIST'S SHAFT THUNDER STORM II HEALING RAIN STRIKE POWER PROTECTION The path to the Cliff Gigant is: southeast-northeast-southeast-northeast-northwest- northwest-southwest-northwest-northeast Smash your way through any icicles that block your way. Try to dodge the La Apis and Poison Slime; you've killed plenty of these by now, so fighting them is a waste of time. You need to fight any Cerberus monsters that are blocking the exits. For Cerberus, I used STRIKE POWER and cudgel blows to minimize CP use. There are four Warlocks surrounding the Cliff Gigant. Attacking the Gigant directly is really not very productive because the Warlocks keep healing it. However, the Gigant will automatically die when all the Warlocks are gone, so attack the Warlocks instead. Kill one Warlock, then retreat and heal. Kill another, then retreat and heal again. For the Warlocks, I just used STRIKE POWER and cudgel blows. The Gigant is hurling magic attacks at you while you are beating up the Warlock, but you can kill the Warlock before Gigant can kill you. The other Warlocks are not attacking you, so killing a single Warlock is not too hard. There are no other monsters here except for the Gigant and the Warlocks. If you need to retreat, no one will chase you as long as you stand far away. "Eliminate the Legendary Altima!" - [S00004] ----------------------------------- Altima is just another dragon. He turned out easier than I expected. Equip: HEALING PYGMY HERMIT'S ROBE EXORCIST'S SHAFT THUNDER STORM II HEALING RAIN STRIKE POWER Work your way up Mt. Sion, dodging the hordes of dragons as much as you can. Whenever you come to a fork, bear right. When you reach the boss, cast STRIKE POWER, then use THUNDER STORM II and cudgel blows. Run circles around Altima to avoid his physical attacks and give yourself time to heal. The boss uses its special attacks, Altima Breath and Altima Force, when its HP gets low. They actually don't hurt that much but they will interfere when you try to cast magic. Use the cudgel when that happens. As long as you are inflicting damage, you will eventually win. Don't worry about recasting STRIKE POWER after it wears out. As long as you inflicted some solid damage when it was on, you should be okay. Take time to heal. Altima isn't really that hard as long as you take your time. "Kill the Deimos-Striking Ghosts!" - [S00005] ------------------------------------ There are about six ghosts in a single small area. Their sword attacks hurt a lot, so consider casting PROTECTION before you begin this fight. The ghosts tend to come at you in groups. THUNDER STORM II will hit several at once and take them out quickly. "Locate the Cup Organizer!" - [S00006] ----------------------------- This is not a hard task. In Romariah Tunnel, make your way down the corridor, keeping the wall to your left. Skip the first side exit (it's a dead end) and go into the second side exit. You can dodge most of the foes as you work your way through. If your way is blocked by a pile of trash that you can't clear away, just circle around it using the other paths After going through the second side exit, move two zones toward the north. The Cup Organizer will be found toward the west end. "Romariah's Silver Cup" - [S00007] ------------------------- The main challenge is finding the Silver Dragon in the first place. In Romariah Tunnel, head southeast, keeping the wall to your left. The monsters along the way are mainly guns and Hunters. You can dodge them if you want. If you are blocked by a pile of trash and can't smash your way through it, just take a detour around it by using other paths. Skip the first side exit (it's a dead end) and enter the second side exit. Go through two zones, exiting each zone in the north end. This will take you to the same corridor that led to Lalyuk. Walk northwest; the Silver Dragon will appear on your left. The Silver Dragon is very easy to beat: STRIKE POWER followed by two casts of THUNDER STORM II will do it. Its white breath attack can knock you down but won't hurt that much. You have 25 minutes, lots of time. "Romariah's Gold Cup" - [S00008] ----------------------- This task appears after completing "Romariah's Silver Cup," and is actually very similar to it. You are in Romariah Tunnel again, but instead of Hunters, you will encounter Tin Golems which are difficult to avoid, so expect to use a little bit more magic this time. You will also run into La Apis and Le Apis. Dodge them if you can. The path to the Gold Dragon is the same as "Romariah's Silver Cup": skip the first side exit and enter the second side exit, then go through two zones. The Gold Dragon is easy to beat: STRIKE POWER followed by two casts of THUNDER STORM II, plus a few cudgel blows will finish it off. Its fire breath attack can knock you down, but like the Silver Dragon's white breath, it won't hurt very much. You have 30 minutes, plenty of time. According to the post-mission information, the winner of the Romariah Gold Cup is the top hunter in the world, and is awarded 1 million G's. Unfortunately,you only get 5000 G's. =========================================================== Playstation 2(TM) and its accessories are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment America The Arc the Lad: End of Darkness Walkthrough Copyright 2007 (v1.0), 2008 (v1.1) paulstreet