- Green text on this page indicates that it is exclusive to the Remakes.
Remakes only - Personality questionnaire[edit | edit source]
Before the game starts, you'll have to answer a series of questions that will determine your Personality. This will affect the stats of your hero. Most importantly, HP and MP are greatly affected by your choice of personalities, due to the way the game calculates it's stats. Every point in Vitality/Resilience or Intelligence gives +2 points to those respective stats. HP is the only thing separating you from death, and MP is helpful too. Hence, you will want a high Vitality/Resilience personality that doesn't sacrifice too much of your Intelligence. Said personalities are...
| Name | STR | AGL | VIT | INT | LUCK | Sum | Items |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tough | 115% | 90% | 140% | 80% | 70% | -5% | Power belt |
| Solitary | 100% | 110% | 120% | 110% | 70% | +10% |  Punk ring
|
| Timid | 110% | 60% | 120% | 110% | 90% | -10% |
The Hero is naturally slow regardless of his personality, Luck will always grow slowly relatively to your other stats, and all of these have good strength. For these reasons, the Tough/Tough Cookie, Solitary/Lone Wolf, or Timid/Shrinking Violet personalities are the ones most recommended for beginners. Tough gives you the greatest degree of safety throughout the game, Solitary allows you to outspeed some enemies you otherwise wouldn't, and Timid gives you the highest overall combination of Strength, Vitality, and Intelligence.
As for gaining these personalities, these are the paths you want to take...
Tough/Tough Cookie: Say Yes to every question except "do you believe in God?". Then push 40 boulders for the old man (takes about 15 minutes)
Solitary/Lone Wolf: Say "No" to every single question. Then talk to the young man, talk to the dancer when he asks you to, then tell him the truth.
Timid/Shrinking Violet: Say Yes to every question except "If your opinion differs from someone else's, would you rather not argue about it?". Say No to "Do you enjoy physical activity?", then say Yes to the rest of the questions. Leave town without getting the purse.
Note that if you are aiming to slay Divinegon in 15 Turns or less, you may also consider this personality:
| Name | STR | AGL | VIT | INT | LUCK | Sum | Items |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valiant | 140% | 70% | 100% | 80% | 70% | -40% | Hero ring
|
This is because the most surefire way of doing so (without excessive grinding) is to drive the Hero's Attack up as high as possible via the Flail of Destruction + STR Seeds + Valiant/Paragon personality, before having two Sages Transform into him with Falcon Swords equipped. Getting Bikill on those transformed members (and then the Hero if you can help it) will get you the damage output needed to slay Divinegon/Xenlon under the 15 Turn limit.
So to get that personality for the Hero, do the following:
Valiant/Paragon: Say Yes to every question, then leave the village while sparing everyone but the warrior who accosts you.
However, this method not only results in less HP through the whole game (especially compared to Tough), but also requires more grinding than simply getting three Mages to learn Blazemost (a less consistent but still doable approach). So, you'll want to consider whether a more reliable Divinegon fight is worth making the rest of the game harder.
Beginning the game[edit | edit source]
| Monsters outside |
|---|
The kingdom of Aliahan lies in the southern region of a small round unnamed continent. The neighboring town of Reeve lies to the north. Two caves and a tower dot the continent's landscape. Your adventure will begin in Aliahan, but you will learn about the key to leaving the continent in Reeve. After receiving your assignment from the king of Aliahan, your first quest will be to reclaim the Thief Key, which will grant you the ability to open doors and explore what lies beyond them. This will take you through a cave to the Najimi Tower/Tower of Najima located on a small island west of Aliahan.
The continent features a variety of terrain, from plains to forests, from hills to impassable mountains. Its remote location means that the monsters which roam this territory are rather weak, especially around the kingdom, and make excellent combat training for brand new parties. Take care not to venture too far away from safety. Rather than paying a fee for a night's stay at the inn, you and your companions are welcome to return home and recover there for free any time you like.
Meeting the king of Aliahan[edit | edit source]
The game will begin on the day of your sixteenth birthday. Your mom will wake you up in your home in the town of Aliahan and tell you that the day has finally come to speak with the king. Check the dresser in your bedroom for a 
STRSeed / 
Strength Seed. Leave the room and head downstairs. Your mom will guide you to the front door of the house, and along the path through town to the entrance of Aliahan castle. There, you will part ways as you enter the castle and visit the king. The king's throne room is straight ahead and up the stairs.
The King will assign to you the task which was assigned to your late father Ortega: to rid the world of the great Archfiend Baramos. He will then give you 50 gold. You will also receive 
Traveler 
/ 
Traveler Clothes, 
2x Clubs 
, and a Stick / Cypress Stick. The king will instruct you to hire companions at Luisa's place, which can be found to the north of your home. Before you exit the castle, however, it's a good idea to take your time and explore it.
In the left room next to the throne room there is a LUCKSeed / Luck Seed in the left dresser. Return to the first floor and search through the two barrels. There are two items: a 
TinyMedal / 
Small Medal and an 
Antidote / 
Antidote Herb.
Although unnecessary, to get your bearings you should talk to as many people as you can, including all of the attendants in the throne room, to learn more about the world around you. You will hear about a thief named Bakor, and the key that he possessed. You can even visit Bakor in the castle prison by stepping out through the north gate of the castle and exploring the passage to the right. It will lead to a set of stairs that lead down to the prison. You can speak to Bakor through the door to his cell on the left. He will complain about losing the key to a man in the Tower of Najima/Najimi Tower.
When you have finished exploring the castle, head outside to return to town.
Exploring Aliahan[edit | edit source]
| Equipment shop | |
|---|---|
| Cypress Stick Stick
|
5G |
| Club Club
|
30G |
| Copper Sword Copper 
|
100G |
| Clothes Cloth
|
10G |
| Wayfarer's Clothes Traveler Traveler Clothes |
70G |
| Leather Armor Leather 
|
150G |
| Leather Shield Leather 
|
90G |
| Tool shop | |
| Medical Herb Herb |
8G |
| Antidote Herb Antidote |
10G |
| Wing of Wyvern WarpWing |
25G |
| PotLid Pot Lid Shield |
50G |
| Services | |
|---|---|
| Inn | Healing |
| 2 G/person | Yes |
The town of Aliahan contains several features that are common to many towns throughout the world which you will want to familiarize yourself with.
Starting with the path to the castle and going clockwise, there is a chapel where members of your party can be taken to be cured of poison, remove curses, or to bring someone back from the dead. Below that is a house which you can't enter… yet. The occupant standing at the door informs you that if you walk long enough (outside of a city or dungeon), day will turn into night. It is at night that the occupant returns inside and you can visit the interior. Inside and upstairs you will find the second TinyMedal / Small Medal hidden inside the right cupboard.
You can easily turn day into night by taking a few steps outside Aliahan, then re-entering, then repeating until night falls. That will guarantee no random encounters (though you may wish to fight them anyway, for experience & gold).
A man standing below the house by a well will inform you that the tower you see on a small island to the west is in fact the Tower of Najima. A basic equipment shop lies to the left of the well, and an inn can be found beyond that. Next door to the inn is your home, while above it you can find a simple item shop.
The item shop also sells PotLid / 
Pot Lid Shield. In your home, check the lower barrel for a Herb / Medical Herb and go upstairs and retrieve 5 gold from the cupboard in the left room. You will also find a STRSeed / Strength Seed in the room on the right if you didn't grab it when you were first there.
Luisa's place[edit | edit source]
- For more details on creating characters, see Player classes, Parties.
North of your home is where Luisa's place can be found. Check the top barrel for 25 gold before entering. This is a very important location because this is where you can create new characters and add them to your party. It is also where you can find the Vault (Bank in GBC/SNES), a service that lets you store items and gold (gold only for GBC/SNES) for safe keeping. You only possess a limited amount of space to carry items. Even with a complete party of four, you can only hold 32 items, and much of that space will be occupied by armor and weapons. The vault allows you to store as many items as necessary at no cost, but they charge 10% of the item's value to retrieve it from the vault. You may also store as much gold as you like, in multiples of 1,000, and retrieve it at no cost. This is valuable if you find your party getting wiped out in battle, as you return to life stripped of half of your gold. Money placed in the Vault/Bank remains untouched.
Above the Vault is the desk where you can add and remove registered characters from your party. A Soldier, Pilgrim, and Wizard (Warrior, Cleric, and Mage) have already been created for you, and may be immediately added to your party if that is the configuration you prefer.
However, you need a Merchant for a mandatory story event later on, and the default companions don't have the Tough personality, so you'll need to head upstairs and speak with the person at the desk to create new characters. There, you may choose whichever class you desire your new character to be (except, of course, a Sage), as well as their name and gender.
You will also be given 5 stat seeds to give your created characters, in the Remakes. You'll want to give them all Vitality Seeds, and keep trying until you get the Tough personality (it is likely you will get that if your character's Vitality is high, but it's not guaranteed).
After you have generated enough companions, return to the table downstairs to add them to your party. The composition of your party will have a great impact on the experience you have when exploring the world. Though there are no right or wrong combinations, some parties are much easier to proceed with than others. Make sure that you have a good understanding of each class' strengths and weaknesses, and how they contribute to the overall effectiveness of the party that you create.
Remember to also equip what the King gave you, if applicable.
Outside of Aliahan[edit | edit source]
As soon as you set foot outside of Aliahan, you become vulnerable to attack by the monsters which roam the countryside. Slimes and Black Ravens/Raven are quite common around the castle. Horned Rabbits/Horny Hare may also appear, especially as you travel farther from home. Remember that monsters get more aggressive in the evening. It is important to train around the castle long enough to raise your party's level of experience. A good rule of thumb is to wait until everyone reaches level 3 before wandering far from town. When one of your characters has taken too much damage, return immediately to your home, and stay overnight to heal from your wounds. If anyone perishes, visit the chapel at the far end of town to revive them.
As you gain experience points and rise in levels you will also be earning gold from battle, so think about saving up. When you feel that your party is ready to risk a bit of a trip, it would be wise to visit Reeve before you go anywhere else. To get there, follow the plains north to a bridge. Cross the bridge, and continue following the plains as they extend north. The town of Reeve will come into view.
Reeve[edit | edit source]
| Equipment shop | |
|---|---|
| Magic Knife Bronze  Bronze Knife |
200G 80G |
| Thorn Whip Copper Copper Sword |
320G 100G |
| Chain Sickle Sickle
|
550G 320G |
| Training Suit Training
|
80G |
| Leather Armor Leather
|
150G |
| Leather Shield Turtle Turtle Shell |
90G 330G |
| Leather Helmet Leather  Leather Hat |
80G |
| Tool shop | |
| Medical Herb Herb |
8G |
| Antidote Herb Antidote |
10G |
| Wing of Wyvern WarpWing |
25G |
| Fairy Water Repellent Holy Water |
20G |
| Turban Turban
|
160G |
| Services | |
|---|---|
| Inn | Healing |
| 2G/person | Yes |
Compared to Aliahan, Reeve is quite small. Never the less, it has better equipment, though you'll want to consider how much of them you'll want to buy. The Chain Sickle, for example, is a worthy purchase with lasting value; but most of the armors become quickly outdated. You'll want the former some time after completing Najima, but give the latter a miss.
You should also pay attention to the shop keeper if he informs you when the item that you are about to purchase can't be used by the person who is requesting it.
Finally, you should consider which classes are even worth purchasing weapons for. For example, Magic Knives (Bronze Knives) will make your Wizards (Mages) only a little more capable in combat, and they already have spells--so buying those for them would not be wise.
Talk to everyone that you can to learn more about the tower, and how the cave to the south connects to it. Equally important, do not forget to visit the king from time to time so that he can record your deeds so that you don't lose any of your progress. When your party becomes a more capable team of warriors, it will be time to visit the cave and find your way into the tower. Even if you have companions who are capable of healing, it's not a bad idea to purchase some Medical & Antidote Herbs just in case you run into trouble. You will also want a Warpwing for once you're done, or need to make an emergency escape.
Move the stone in the Southeast area of Reeve and search the spot where the stone was for a TinyMedal / Small Medal. Now enter the House right of the item shop and search the bookshelf for a 
Muscle 
/
Muscle Guidebook which can be used to change the Personality of one person to Jock.
Forest near Reeve[edit | edit source]
There is a spot below Reeve that has a locked building and the stairs leads directly to Najimi Tower/Tower of Najima. The Travel Door inside the building will bring you to the Lighthouse near Portoga, but you can only open it if you have the Final Key.
At this point you can choose to begin your journey through the Najimi Tower/Tower of Najima, or collect the minor treasure (~60-110 gold depending on the version) in the Cave on the Promontory first.
Optional: Cave on the Promontory[edit | edit source]
| Monsters in Cave |
|---|
To reach the cave, leave Aliahan and cross the bridge. Then continue left and follow the coast south. The cave entrance is tucked away in the southern tip of the forest. Just as with the outdoors, you always run the risk of encountering monsters while you explore. Keep your party in good shape so that no one is ever one hit away from dying. When you enter the cave, you'll arrive in a small room with a set of stairs leading deeper into the dungeon below.
Take the stairs down and follow the path to the right as it opens up. Soon you will have the choice to explore north or east. The east path leads to a small room with a treasure chest that contains a Herb / Medical Herb. Collect it and follow the north path. It will bend to the right and lead you to another treasure chest and more choices. The Wayfarer's Clothes ( Traveler / Traveler Clothes) in the chest will probably not be very useful to you, but it can be sold at an item shop for some gold. There are three paths to choose from, but the north path and the lower east path connect in a loop. It's worth exploring the north path to find a third treasure chest, this time containing a small amount of 16 gold (56 gold). The exit from the cave can be found through the upper east path. Climb up the stairs that you find in the very small alcove of the dungeon.
Najimi Tower/Tower of Najima[edit | edit source]
| Monsters in Tower |
|---|
Unique enemy targeting comes into play here, for the first time. Most enemies are more likely to hit the front half of your party, instead of the back... However, there are exceptions.
The Froggores are completely random in who they target in all versions; plus the Babbles will always concentrate their attacks on one person.
Speaking of, Babbles are also the first enemy who can poison you. If they do, this status ailment will sap your strength on the overworld, if not cured with an Antidote Herb or spell. You may wish to use Expel on them, if your Hero or Priest have learned it.
The Trick Moths, also, can cast Surround on your party, which drastically reduces the accuracy of your Attack command. Consider using Blaze with your Hero or Mage, as spells are unaffected...or simply run from them, if you fight a swarm of them.
Finally, the Sting Wasps have a chance of summoning more of themselves if there's empty space in the enemy party. Consider slaying them first, so they have less opportunity to do so.
As for the dungeon itself, climbing up the steps from the cave will actually place you in a basement level below the tower, at the bottom left corner of the floor. If you entered from the forest near Reeve, you will be placed at the top right corner. The floor that you arrive on contains quite a number of staircases which each lead somewhere different:
- The staircase at the bottom center leads to the first floor of the Najimi Tower/Tower of Najima.
- The staircase at the bottom right actually takes you to a room connected with the Aliahan prison. However, without a key, you won't be able to make use of the shortcut just yet.
- The staircase at the top right corner leads to a small clearing the middle of the forest. Stepping outside of that clearing places you just a few steps south of Reeve. Along the passage that runs from the bottom center to the top right you will find a room off to the left side that contains a a treasure chest containing 32 gold. Two more treasure chests lie along the path to Reeve, but they are locked behind a door.
Use this floor as a way to travel about the early locations of interest. When you are ready to brave the tower itself, head to the center stairwell at the bottom and climb up.
- First floor
The first floor of the tower contains a vertical central corridor that divides the floor into a left section and a right section, with four rooms on each side. However, only one room on each side contains anything of interest. The third room from the bottom on the left side contains a stairwell that leads back downstairs. In a very rare instance of fortune, you will find an inn right inside the tower that only costs 8G per night. You can visit this inn any time you like to recharge your party, rather than having to find one elsewhere. If you're high up on the tower, you can even drop off the side to land harmlessly on the ground and re-enter the tower on the first floor. The only other feature of interest on the first floor lies directly across the way on the right side: a staircase that leads up to the second floor.
-
Floor 1
-
Floor 2
-
Floor 3
-
Floor 4
- Second floor
The second floor gets a little more interesting, but the monsters will also get a bit tougher, so you shouldn't wander around aimlessly unless you are fairly strong and well equipped. From your arrival point, you can head left or down. Visit the sections to the left first to find some of the tower's treasures. A room in the upper left corner contains a chest with 40 gold, while the room in the upper right corner has a staircase leading up. Follow the staircase up to an isolated room in the third floor, where you will find another chest containing a Leather Helmet ( TinyMedal / Small Medal). In the NES version, assuming you have not purchased any helmets yet, give it to the character who could use a small increase in defense and equip it. Then return to the second floor.
Head back to where you originally arrive on the second floor, and follow the lower path to the bottom edge of the tower. The first room you pass is empty, but the second room will contain another staircase that will let you explore the rest of floor 3, so climb up the stairs.
- Third floor
Walk up along the left edge until you have the choice to continue walking right, or explore a room to the north. The north path merely skirts around the isolated room that you already explored, so stick to the middle of the floor. Continue walking right, and hold off on visiting the room below you momentarily. Instead, continue on to the next room, and explore it to find a chest with a (
WarpWing / Wing of Wyvern in it. Then return to the room that you skipped and climb the stairs that await you there.
- Fourth floor
This will lead you to the interior of a small chamber at the top of the tower. Check the left bookshelf for Tomboy / Tomboy Book. A man at the top is waiting for you, and he will simply present you with the 
Thief Key, which is now yours to take. With the key acquired, your mission in the tower is complete. From here, there are a couple of ways of returning to the ground floor, including going back the way you came. A faster method is to open the door below you with your new key, and walk over any edge of the tower. (The other set of stairs that you pass lead back down to another section of the third floor.)
Once on the bottom floor, you may wish to visit the inn inside the tower if you are in bad shape. Otherwise, return to the basement and explore the room below the stairs which lead to the forest clearing. Inside, you will find two chests containing an AGLseed / Agility Seed and a Medical Herb (
Wooden / 
Wooden Hat). Give the Agility Seed to any player who you feel needs some speeding up in combat, and have them use it. Then head through the stairs to the forest clearing, or use the shortcut that leads back to Aliahan Castle through the locked door in the prison.
Preparing to travel[edit | edit source]
Obtaining the key was merely one part of a larger objective in leaving your home continent so that you may explore the larger world around you. There are four doors in the castle that you can now open and speak with the occupants on the other side. Check the cupboard in the Northwest room for a TinyMedal / Small Medal. You will hear quite a bit about a Travel Door behind a wall, and how Magic Balls can be used to blow up walls, and how you might find such a Magic Bomb / Magic Ball in Reeve.
It just so happens that there is a small house in the upper right corner of Reeve with a locked door. Now that you have the key, you are free to open the door and explore it. Check the right pot for INTseed / Wisdom Seed. Climb the steps inside and you will find a man who very plainly explains that he knows your story, and gives you a 
MagicBomb / 
Magic Ball. Before exiting, check the cupboard for Antidote / Antidote Herb.
You may not have explored to region to the east of Reeve, but now is the time to do so. Purchase a Chain Sickle, along with some more Herbs (if needed), follow the east plains around to the hills that lead south, and beware the Magicians. They can cast Blaze on your party, and are also completely random in who they target, so your more fragile members are at risk against swarms of them.
Fight your way through until you see a small shrine. Enter the shrine and the man behind the door will ask if you've obtained the Magic Ball/Magic Bomb. If you say no, he'll instruct you to return to Reeve, but if you say yes, he will urge you to visit the Tempt Cave/Cave of Enticement, which is just a short distance northeast within the mountains. Check the left and right pots for WarpWing / Wing of Wyvern and TinyMedal / Small Medal. The bookcase on the right describes how whips hit all enemies of one type and boomerangs hit all enemies. Visit the forest around the small patch of water to find the entrance.
Tempt Cave/Cave of Enticement[edit | edit source]
Walk around the small body of water to locate a hole in the ground in the back. Drop down and you will enter the first room of the Cave of Enticement, known as Traveler's Gate. Follow this underground path to the left. An old man will inform you that the stairway to the rest of the cave is blocked off by a wall. Walk up to the wall, standing anywhere between the two statues, and use the Magic Ball/Magic Bomb in your inventory. An explosion will follow and when it's complete, a hole will appear in the wall, allowing you to walk to the stairs beyond. Get the 
Magic Map from the chest before going down. With 
you can now view a map of the world that shows where you are and which areas have been explored or not.
| Monsters in Cave |
|---|
The main basement level of the cave is quite a labyrinth, with many sections of hallway obscured from your vision, and two new deadly monsters.
The Spiked Hare/Almiraj introduces the Sleep spell, which completely incapacitates anyone it hits for a random number of turns. They are also relatively bulky, so you may wish to Flee from swarms of them.
The Demon Anteater/Antbear/Echidna also concentrate their attacks, just like the Babbles do. If on NES, you'll wish to Defend with everyone to see whom they attack, and then have that person Defend for the rest of the fight (the Remakes just have them pick a different person to bully each round).
You will arrive at the staircase in the center of the floor. There are a lot of cracks in the floor which prevent you from crossing over to explore the other side directly, requiring you to find another route to reach them. If you happen to fall through one, you will drop down to a level below that contains nothing but a staircase that leads back up to the main basement… and a lot of monsters with a very high encounter rate. Making it to the staircase can be a chore when nearly every step you take triggers a battle.
To make it through this labyrinth, walk up from the arrival stairs, and either take the second left path, or the third right path. Either one will lead you to the highest path on the floor. Just watch out for the small pit along the left route. Once you reach the top, explore the path to the left first, and search the chest to find an Antidote / Antidote Herb. Then return to the right, and continue walking right until you are forced to walk down. Follow the path all the way to the bottom of the basement, and then back to the left (again, watch out for a small pit in the floor). When you return to the central corridor, walk up and take the first left. You'll find a Magic Knife (
Knife / 
Sacred Knife) inside of a chest. Then return to the right, walk up one more section, and follow the next left path to a set of stairs that lead down to the floor below.
When you arrive, you will be presented with the choice of three paths to follow. Two paths lead to dead-ends while the third leads to the Travel Door and to the world beyond. With no foresight into the choice, it's a guessing game until you find the right path. It happens to be the left path which leads to the Travel Door. Unlock the left door and battle your way down to the bottom. Step on to the Travel Door, and the screen will begin to wave about. Space will distort and you will arrive in a completely different location. Open the door on your right, climb the steps, and exit the clearing… and you will be standing on the southern tip of Romaly kingdom.