NINJA GAIDEN Platform: Xbox Game: Ninja Gaiden Release: March 2004 Genre: Action/Adventure Rating: 9.6/10 Rated: Mature Guide made by: MasterGamer00 Email: no.match@gmail.com Update 1.1: Revisions/Grammatical corrections. Update 1.2: Revisions/re-wording. ----------------- Table of Contents ----------------- 1. Introduction 2. Notation 3. Essence Pools a. Chapter 1 - The Way of the Ninja b. Chapter 2 - The Hayabusa Ninja Village c. Chapter 3 - Skies of Vengeance d. Chapter 4 - Imperial City Infiltration e. Chapter 5 - The City of Fiends f. Chapter 6 - The Monastery g. Chapter 7 - Hidden Underground h. Chapter 8 - Tairon Under Alert i. Chapter 9 - The Military Supply Base j. Chapter 10 - The Aqueduct k. Chapter 11 - The Path to Zarkhan l. Chapter 12 - The Caverns m. Chapter 13 - The Fiendish Awakening n. Chapter 14 - Vengeful Spirit o. Chapter 15 - The Core p. Chapter 16 - The Dark Dragon Blade 4. Copyright ~ 1. Introduction ~ -------------------- Thanks for looking here. Here will be basic information for the Advance gamers that are looking for some money (Essence currency). The organization of this guide is in just ordinary chronological chapter order. I tried dividing the types of Essence Farming but it just didn't work, and this is way much easier to navigate. Essence Pools also known as (Re-spawn pools) basically give you essence in mass amounts depending on how much you fight the infinitely spawning enemies. Also the amounts of essence you receive depend on the combo or let's say the number of "hits" your combo consists. This also gives it the name Spawning Pool as well. This method is used to gather Essence quickly to upgrade weapons, buy items, and just to look cool. Throughout the game there are many, many Essence Pools. And this FAQ will show you where they are and give you some sort of technique to gather Essence quickly. This FAQ is one big spoiler so if you are a person that does not like to read ahead, use with caution. I also assume you have a pretty good idea where everything is relatively located. Please, also e-mail me if you have found essence pools that could be used in this FAQ. Thanks in advance. ---------------- ~ 2. Notation ~ ---------------- I might use abbreviations in this FAQ so here I will tell you what I will use. DS = Dragon Sword (TDS = True DS) UF = Unlabored Flawlessness VF = Vigoorian Flail EP = Essence Pool SP = Spawning Pool UA = Ultimate Attack NOTE - If you would like even more essence then use the ultimate attacks that you can do. With that more essence will be created because of your combos, actually just because it is an UA, it'll give you more. --------------------- ~ 3. Essence Pools ~ --------------------- a. Chapter 1 - The Way of the Ninja Location: Right after the dojo fight. (Room with trap door and sliding panels) Well here is the first spawning pool you will encounter in the game. Here you will have had to cut through the wall and you are now in another room only with gliding hidden panels which enemies come out. You should be able to beat them. You will also encounter white ninjas, a new enemy type. They are a bit stronger than your brown ones. You should be able to kill them all. Again repeat as many times as you want by exited by cutting through the wall or going back. Use (Highly recommend you save) Location: Right after you have beaten the room with sliding panels. This is where you first see bats. There will be like 5 in there, but they will still give you essence. There are two paths, one to the right and one to the left, both containing bats on the ceiling. Just kill them with your shurikens and collect their remaining essence. Repeat as many times as you wish. b. Chapter 2 - The Hayabusa Ninja Village Location: Right after you get out of the Murasama's building. Here is not an enemy spawning pool but an archery range. There will be a plank of wood lying down on the ground somewhere. And there will be some targets across from that. You must be behind the plank to shoot and get essence. You can do this as many times as you wish. There is also a dead ninja that gives you infinite amounts of arrows northeast of where the plank is sitting. The left target gives you blue essence, bottom right gives you red essence, and the top right gives you your "money" essence. c. Chapter 3 - Skies of Vengeance None (as of now, if I find some, I will post) d. Chapter 4 - Imperial City Infiltration Location: Around Murasama's shop. Here you will have to run around in doors and get away from a spot. There is no specific spot so I recommend you just go through a door available and just re-enter. But if you enter and exit the shop no enemies will appear (that you already killed). Just re-enter like I said before and then just kill them and do it as many times as you wish. (NOTE: Might not always work depending on your completion status.) Location: Han's Bar after you get the ticket. After you get that guy to say that you can't come in, go to the sign and read it and then go back to Muramasa's shop to get the ticket, but you must purchase something there. Come back and you will see a brief cut scene with a Gallas (Red reptile fiend) and a chick, Rachel a new character. This now is going to be a new spawning pool. Even though you are on top of the building just go down through the obvious one way hallways and out you go. There is a save point nearby and also that "secret weapon" up on the balcony. There is also the Xbox logo that gives you health. So when you do exit enemies will appear, kill them, then enter the Han's Bar and then exit again. Repeat as many times as you wish. *This is one of the most useful essence pools to get weapons upgraded and other helpful items early on in this game.* e. Chapter 5 - The City of Fiends Location: Right outside the Monastery. This area is in Dworku, just outside the Monastery after you have unlocked it or if you didn't. But if you have unlocked it, it is much easier to gather essence. This area is met with three passages coming directly in front of the doors to the Monastery and on from the left and right. Here you will have to fight around 5 yellow fiends. These fiends don't leave a whole mess load of essence but if you use your UA on them after killing 2 of them you can gather much more. Again if you have unlocked the Monastery doors then just go through and go out of them and they will re-spawn. But if you don't have them unlocked then you will have to go through one of those passages out and back in. Location: Left passage of the Monastery doors. Here will be your left if you face the Monastery doors. Here you will be facing up to 3 black ninjas (spider clan), one of the hardest enemies in the game for beginners. But they do drop good amounts of essence so that is good. Just kill them and gather with an UA and your good to go. You could use this as a combo with the EP above because once you kill these guys you can go right ahead and kill the yellow dudes. Repeat as many times as you wish by exiting the area and entering. f. Chapter 6 - The Monastery Location: After or before you beat the Dino Boss. There is a room where you have to do multiple jumps to get to the top to the save point. You should save. Again bats are key. In that room I believe there is a scarab which you must bird flip up to it to get it. Anyways in that room are many bats. Do the technique I mentioned above: kill 2, absorb them with the tornado UA = high essence. Location: In the Ritual Room where you fight the 100 Skeleton Fiends. Here you will fight 100 Skeleton Fiends. You can fight them all and rack up essence or you can just fight 99, exit then simply re-enter. Or instead just defeat them all and you can enter and they re-appear. They will be limited but they do re-spawn. Repeat as many times as desired. Location: The Archive. After you have beaten the boss. This is, I believe the first 100 Fiend Challenge you will come up against. (Correct me if I am wrong, I am tired) It is a mix between flying scythe fiends and wolverines. Use many UA. You can either kill them all or kill just 99 and leave and re-enter, again they should just re-appear. g. Chapter 7 - Hidden Underground Location: Suspension Bridge room. If you try to go over the bridge, you will fall because a dumb skeleton hammers it down. You will fight a couple sewer fiends and a decent about of Skelies. Kill the sewer fiends first, they are annoying. Then just kill the skeletons, not all, because if you do, they will not spawn ever again. This is a part similar to a 100 Fiend Challenge because if you kill all they disappear forever. So don't kill them all, there are like 19 kills in total, or something in the 20 area. Kill a couple, enter a door on either side then re-enter where you just had fought. Skelies are extremely slow, so just flying swallow them and their heads pop off, then do the Blade of the Dragon's tail move like 3 times facing their backs. Make sure both of there heads are off. Then kill two and absorb for a UA and they will drop 2 large hunks of essence. Then just repeat, absorb them 2 and so on. h. Chapter 8 - Tairon Under Alert Location: Around Han's Bar (again) If you read it before then you know what to do. (Go to 2.4) Location: Around Murasama's Shop (again) If you read it before then you know what to do. (Go to 2.4) Location: Outside The Monastery's main entrance. (again) If you read it before then you know what to do. (Go to 2.4) i. Chapter 9 - The Military Supply Base Location - Where you get the card key after you beat the bosses. There should be 3 army guys that launch rockets in a room at you. Just kill them. Most likely you won't get the card key right away. So you must go down and check the door that is locked, in needing of the card key of course. Just go back and kill them again, repeat. Again not a whole lot of essence here but it's the only EP in the chapter so far. j. Chapter 10 - The Aqueduct Location: Right before you enter the Aqueduct. There is another save point right before you do this trick just like above. Hopefully you read the above Essence trick and understand it because this is going to be similar. This trick also has bats to deal with. Kill 2 bats then absorb with that same Essence attack like before. (spin joystick and hold Y) Ryu will spin up in a tornado and then kill them leaving huge amounts of essence to be gathered. Location: Right when you enter that door from the foyer with the bats. (Game should start loading) You will have to fight more annoying sewer fiends, very, very easy. Just kill 2 and instant charge with a UA. And repeat as many times as you want. Location: The hallway with the entrance to the "Door with an Insect Symbol". Here more sewer fiends. Kill 2 and charge with instant charging with a UA. There are about 16 of these fiends. And for faster gameplay, just use the UF and counter with X. It should just decapitate them. Then UA them. Location: Stair-step cave. Here are even more annoying sewer fiends. By now you should know what to do. If you are a beginner and still haven't gotten the "good" part of the fighting down, the steps might be a little trip to adjust to. Location: The "Nameless" Room with the stone elevator. This is another 100 Fiend Challenge. Just kill them all, using a lot of UA, and you can't exit. You can get loads of essence with this. Location: The Peristyle Passage. This is a 100 Fiend Challenge. Either just kill them all, of course using you UA frequently. Or kill 99 or whatever exit then re-enter; they should just come back. If you do kill all 100 then when you exit and enter the passage, which ever way you choose, a couple more of these fiends will pop up. Just kill, UA, and then repeat. k. Chapter 11 - The Path to Zarkhan Location: Everywhere where there is fish. Kill them, go somewhere else and then re-enter, and kill them again, and repeat. Location: The second save point you encounter. (Near Murasama's Shop) There are a couple bats, you know what to do. Location: The Stairway of the Imperial Palace. Another darn 100 Fiend Challenge. A mix of wolves and sewers, very easy. Just decapitate them with the UF. You can either kill them all and rack up essence, or kill 99 run away until it disappears and them come back to kill them again. Location: After you kill Doku, anywhere before you enter the Caverns. Another freakin' 100 Fiend Challenge. This time 100 Red Dragons. Have fun. The UF, I found was the easiest method. The XXY is good when your health is low and the UF is glowing in joy. The Red Dragons drop a ton of blue essence so if absorbed with a UA and it attacks, they will drop a ton of yellow essence. You could leave 99 and restart or just kill them all. Most likely sometime they will bite you and "somehow accidentally" throw you out of the arena, making you start over again. Again, have fun. l. Chapter 12 - The Caverns Location: Right before entering the Caverns. By now you should have a level 3 Dragon Sword, and also be able to do a couple moves. After you save,(highly recommended) you see a lake on one side, just run over to the other side. Then you drop to a hole. Here are bats, mans best friend. Before you drop do a flying swallow or just jump and slash and kill at least 2 and then gather their essence with Annihilating Gleam (360 analog, charge Y). With the two gathered Ryu will spin up in a tornado and kill the bats. And of course they will give off awesome amounts of essence. The bats do come in waves one after another until you kill them all. Then you CAN climb right back up; Ryu just barely can make it. Then go up at least to where the waterfall is and then just go back. And repeat. Location: Right by the save point before the entrance to the Caverns. There will be a save point will a rather large unimportant area. There will be a log on one side just jump over it, you will be by the Stairway to the Imperial Palace. There will be re-spawning enemies, mix between wolves and sewers. It must be a glitch in the game, because it doesn't add to your Karma. Just get out of the area and then repeat. m. Chapter 13 - The Fiendish Awakening Location: Any room with beetles. Any room with Beetles can get you tons and tons of essence. Anywhere, just kill them and they drop huge amounts of essences. n. Chapter 14 - Vengeful Spirit Location: Anywhere where there are Ghost Fish. Just equip the VF or DS and A...X, A...X, A...X (jump, hit X) or just slash away with anything, weapons and Ninpo except projectiles. The move I mentioned before is just a jump basic hit, repeat etc. If you get a 20 or more combo they will give you more essence. Location: When you first encounter the Clawed Fiends. There are Ghost Fish to deal with and there is a fat dude that distracts you so be careful. Take the GF out first then the Claw dudes. They drop decent amounts of essence. o. Chapter 15 - The Core Location: Anywhere and anything I mentioned above. So basically everything is unlocked for you to explore. p. Chapter 16 - The Dark Dragon Blade (None) ----------------- ~ 4. Copyright ~ ----------------- I composed everything I have on this and is copyrighted by law by MasterGamer00. Updates with other information coming from other people will be credited. This is only for personal use and may print for individual use. END