Trying to read mana.txt was giving me a headache, so I spend
some time and reformatted the whole document. I thought others may
find this version easier on the eyes, so here it is:
Secret of Mana FAQ
Version 0.2
dated January 6, 1994
Q: What am I supposed to do in the forest in the Upper Land? Why can't
I trigger the Crystal Switch in the forest in the Upper Land? I freed
the Moogle Village, and they tell me to 'Walk the seasons from Spring
to Winter and back to Spring again.' What am I supposed to do?
A: I'll answer all three questions. Stop reading when you reach the
part you wanted to know. First, you need to free the Moogle Village.
Go east from the area with pink foilage on the trees, and then look
for an exit on the *western* side of the north 'wall'. This leads to
the Moogle Village. Kill the three things you find there, and then
try to leave. The Moogles will return, and they'll tell you to 'Walk
the seasons from Spring to Winter and back to Spring again'. They're
referring to the color of the foilage on the trees. The pink ones are
Spring. East from those is Summer, north from Summer is Autumn, and
west from there is Winter. South from Winter is Spring again. Walk
in a circle, from Spring counter-clockwise through Summer, Autumn, and
Winter, and then back to Spring again (still going counter-clockwise
-- don't turn around and go back to Spring in a clockwise direction).
You don't need to kill the monsters along the way. You'll hear a
noise when you enter Spring, and you'll realize it came from the east.
There is now a northern exit over to the east of the original one. It
leads to the Sprite Child's Village. Head north, fight a boss, and
then you'll come to the Wind Palace, where you will gain Sylphid's
powers. This will enable you to trigger the Crystal Switch and move
on.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Q: Where is Salamando?
Why can't I trigger the Crystal Switch in the Fire Palace?
Why can't I get anywhere in the Fire Palace?
A: You need to find Salamando in order to trigger the Crystal Switch
and open a path to the rest of the Fire Palace. Go to the Ice Country
and look for him. (See the section on 'Locations of the Elementals'
for more specific information.)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Q: How do I reach the Moon Palace?
A: After you've gone through the Gold Tower, fly Flammie over to the
Moon Palace and try to land in the gap in the mountains to the
southwest of it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Q: Why can't I get into the Tree Palace?
A: Go prove yourself to Sage Joch first, over by the Darkness Palace.
If he's not home when you get there, go to wherever his follower tells
you he's gone, then come back.
Q: How am I supposed to survive in the Mana Forest when everything
does 200-300 points of damage per hit?
A: You aren't. Go back to the Grand Palace. (That's the continent in
the southeast corner of the map, where the Tree Palace was. Remember
where you got the Dryad magic?) Walk clockwise around the Grand
Palace and when you reach the front of the Palace again, you'll
find... Neko! He's got some REALLY good (and expensive) armor for
sale. Buy it and you'll start taking more reasonable damage again.
Locations of the Eight Mana Weapons
-----------------------------------
Sword: Found in the river at the beginning of the game.
Spear: Sage Luka of the Water Palace gives it to you after you ride
there via Cannon Travel.
Boomerang: The Sprite Child has it when he joins you after the defeat
of Tropicallo. (The Boss you meet in the Dwarf Village.)
Bow: Given to you by the 'freak show' operator (Dwarf Village) after
the Sprite Child joins you.
Axe: Sold to you (for 100 gold) by Watts, the Dwarven Village
Blacksmith. Visit his shop after you've been given the Bow.
Glove: Carried by the girl from Pandora who joins your group. Meet
her on the top floor of Pandora Castle.
Whip: Given to you by the Witch after you defeat her pet, Spiky. (The
Boss of her area.)
Javelin: Received from Undine (the Water Elemental) after you defeat
the Biting Lizards (Boss) in her cave.
Locations of the Weapon Orbs
----------------------------
All weapons start at Level 1, so there are only seven Orbs to find for
each one. The Orbs are listed here in the order you're most likely to
find them for each weapon.
SWORD:
* Gained by defeating the Metal Mantis that attacks Potos Village at
the start of the game.
* After defeating the Evil Wall in the ruins south of Pandora, return
to Pandora Castle. Go to the Throne Room, and take the exit on the
northern wall, into the King's Bedroom. Talk to him, and he'll remove
the guard from a staircase. Go down those stairs and loot the
treasure chests you find. One has the Orb.
* Gained by defeating the Great Viper, while looking for the White
Dragon in the caves near Matango.
* Found in the ruins east of Northtown, in a chest. The chest is
behind a door that is protected by spikes -- you must first find the
pressure plate that lowers them, in order to reach the door.
* From the King of Tasnica after you defeat the Dark Stalker that was
impersonating him.
* From a chest under the Grand Palace after defeating Kettle Kin (a
new version of Kilroy, the robot you fought early in the game).
* Gained by defeating Thunder Gigas in the Mana Forest.
SPEAR:
* Gained by defeating Tropicallo in the Dwarf Village.
* Found in the Treasure Room in Pandora Castle after defeating the
Evil Wall in the southern ruins. (Same as the Sword Orb of the same
number.)
* Found in a chest in Santa's house in the Ice Country while you're
trying to locate Salamando.
* From a chest in the ruins east of Northtown. The chest is visible
from outside the entrance if you stand in the right place. It's on
the roof of the ruins, on the west side.
* From a chest in the entranceway of the Gold Tower (Light Palace),
north of the Gold City.
* Gained by defeating SHEEX (Aegagropilon) in the Grand Palace.
* Gained by defeating Mech Rider in the Grand Palace.
BOOMERANG:
* Gained by defeating Spiky (Boss of the Witch's area).
* Gained by defeating Spring Beak, after saving the Moogle Village and
'walking the seasons'.
* Gained by defeating Frost Gigas in the Ice Palace.
* Gained by defeating Vampire in the ruins east of Northtown.
* Gained by defeating Blue Spike in the Gold Tower. (Light Palace)
* Found in a chest at the entrance to the path underneath the Grand
Palace.
* Gained by defeating the Blue Dragon in the Mana Forest.
BOW:
* Gained by defeating the Evil Wall in the ruins south of Pandora.
* Gained by defeating the Water Beast after you return the stolen
Water Seed to the Water Palace.
* Gained by defeating Boreal Face (a Boss) in the Ice Country, on your
way to the "tropical paradise" city.
* Found in a chest on the right side of the roof of the ruins east of
Northtown. (Similar to the Spear Orb of the same number.)
* Gained by defeating the Gorgon Bull in the Gold Tower. (Light
Palace)
* Gained by defeating Kettle Kin (a robotic Boss) in the tunnels under
the Grand Palace.
* Gained by defeating the Snow Dragon in the Mana Forest.
AXE:
* Gained by defeating Fire Gigas in the Underground Palace.
* Found in a chest in the Moogle Village after defeating the three
monsters there. Kill them and then try to leave the Village.
* Found in a chest in the Fire Palace, shortly after the first Crystal
Switch. Leave northwest/down from the room after the Switch.
* Found in a chest in the eastern tower of Northtown Castle after
escaping from jail.
* %%%%%%%%%% (MISSING AN ORB) %%%%%%%%%%% *
* Found in a chest on the level after Blue Spike in the Gold Tower.
(Light Palace)
* Gained by defeating the Dragon Worm in the Mana Forest.
GLOVE:
* Gained by defeating the Biting Lizards in Undine's cave. (East of
the Water Palace.)
* Found in a chest in the Moogle Village after freeing it. (Same as
the Axe Orb of the same number.)
* Found in a chest in the Ice Palace.
* Gained by defeating Metal Mantis, after being captured in Northtown
Castle by the Emperor.
* Found in a chest behind a gate on ground level, at the front of the
Darkness Palace.
* %%%%%%%%%% (MISSING AN ORB) %%%%%%%%%%% *
* Gained by defeating the Red Dragon in the Mana Forest.
WHIP:
* Found in a chest aboard the ship that stole the Water Seed. (In the
Dwarf Village area.)
* Jema gives it to you after you defeat the Water Beast and
return the Water Seed.
* Gained by defeating Gestar's Airbike in the desert (after
sandship).
* Gained by defeating the Evil Wall in the ruins east of Northtown.
(Yes, it's a different Evil Wall.)
* Found in a chest in the eastern tower of Northtown Castle after
being captured by the Emperor.
* Gained by killing the Hydra in the path under the Grand Palace.
* Gained by killing Fanha (Hexas) in the Grand Palace.
JAVELIN:
* Gained by defeating Kilroy (the Water Seed-powered robot).
* Found in a room near King Truffle (in Matango) when you first meet
him.
* Gained by defeating the Minotaur in the Fire Palace.
* Gained by defeating Geshtar's Mech Rider on the roof of Northtown
Castle.
* Gained by defeating the Lime Slime in the Darkness Palace.
* Gained by defeating the Snap Dragon under the Grand Palace, after
first defeating the robot (Kettle Kin).
* Gained by defeating Axe Beak in the Mana Forest.
Location of the Elementals (in the order you'll probably find them)
--------------------------
Undine: In a cave east of the Water Palace after defeating Spiky in
the Witch's area. Luka will call you to go check on her (Undine).
Gnome: In the room after Fire Gigas in the Underground Palace.
Sylphid: Found in the Wind Palace after defeating Spring Beak in the
Upper Land forest. Sprite Child's grandfather summons it for you.
Salamando: Found inside a stove in the center of the "tropical resort"
town in the Ice Country.
Shade: Found after defeating Lime Slime in the Darkness Palace.
Lumina: Found after defeating Gorgon Bull in the Gold Tower. (Light
Palace)
Luna: Found after triggering the Crystal Switch in the Moon Palace.
Dryad: Found by walking into the Tree Palace, once you've proven
yourself to Sage Joch.
Locations of Miscellaneous Useful Objects
-----------------------------------------
Magic Rope: In the Gaea's Navel dungeon. In a chest on the west side
of the area after the lava, in a cavern. (You enter this area between
two 'Kid Goblin' guards and a Mushboom.)
Midge Mallet: After freeing the Moogle Village (possibly before),
return to Gaea's Navel and visit the Dwarf Village. Talk to the dwarf
standing next to the hole that led to where you fought Kilroy. (the
robot)
Flammie Drum: After you defeat Geshtar's Mech Rider atop Northtown
Castle, King Truffle will bring it to you.
Gold Tower Key: Get it from Mara in Southtown. She lives in the
northwest part of town.
Sea Hare's Tail: On a small island in the large bay area on the west
side of the main continent. North of Castle Tasnica, and south of
Kakkara. On the map, it looks like one island surrounded by six
little ones. Fly there on Flammie and visit the shop.
Moogle Belt: Get it from King Amar in Kakkara by bringing him a Sea
Hare's Tail to restore the town's water supply.
Boss Tips
---------
If you're having trouble with a particular Boss monster, or have good
advice on how to defeat one, please send me e-mail about it.
Once you've learned LUNA magic, the LUNAR BOOST and MOON POWER spells
can drastically increase the amount of damage you do. If both spells
are in use, and you've cast the appropriate SABER spell on yourself,
999 damage is not unheard of for a level 6-8 attack.
EVIL WALL: In Ruins south of Pandora.
* Some people have suggested that the best way to defeat this Boss is
to ignore its outer eyes entirely, and focus your magic spells on the
central eye. This may be easier than my preferred method.
* I prefer to knock out the two eyes on the sides, first. Use the
Targetting command to make the other two characters attack one eye
each. When both have been knocked out, the Wall will start moving
south. If it pushes you against the southern wall, you all die... so
you have to be quick. Hitting the central eye with three or four
EARTH SLIDE spells will take it (and the rest of the Wall) out easily.
DARK SLIME?: In the Mana Fortress (2nd Fortress Boss)
* Try to stay lined up with the center of the Slime, and whack on it
with high-level WHIP attacks, and spells from the SHADE Elemental.
Keep in mind that the Slime gets largeras you damage it, so it will
become very difficult to stay in line with the center of the Slime if
you move around much.
* An amusing thing about the Slime is the way it reacts to having
spells cast on it. If you hit it with a spell, it likes to cast the
Level 8 version of the spell back on a party member. Since it also
likes to cast ACID STORM to lower your defense rating, I cast WALL on
the entire party. Let a few ACID STORMs bounce off you and back at
the Slime, and then cast some offensive spells at it. The Level 8
versions it throws back at you will bounce off your WALL spells and do
serious damage to it. :-)
DARK LICH: In the Mana Fortress (3rd Fortress Boss)
* As soon as you're able to move, go over to the west side of the
screen. Stand directly west of the Dark Lich, don't move too far
north or south. Set your two followers to 'Guard' and 'Keep Away', so
they won't try to attack the Lich and get killed. Wield the WHIP,
which you hopefully have at a very high level by now. The Dark Lich
(Thanatos) is vulnerable to LUMINA magic, so have the girl from
Pandora cast LIGHT SABER on you. Stand at a safe distance from the
Dark Lich, and charge your WHIP to the highest level you can. Then,
when the Lich pokes his head out between his hands, or when he
completely materializes (and no longer seems transparent), cut loose
with the WHIP. You should do a very large amount of damage. He has
6666 hit points. Charge the WHIP again, and repeat. Easy, isn't it?
MANA BEAST: At the Mana Fortress (4th and FINAL Fortress Boss)
* Do all the damage yourself. Don't worry about getting your
followers to try and hurt the beast, because they're be very
ineffective. Wield the SWORD, which should be at level 8 by now.
* Be aware that you must have *both* of your followers cast MANA SWORD
on you, in order to have it work. When you've done this, the game
will print 'REVIVED THE MANA SWORD!' at the top of the screen. When
the magic expires, you'll be almost incapable of damaging the Beast.
Additionally, when it expires, you immediately lose your 'charge' on
your weapon, and will have to start holding down the B button all over
again. To reduce the chance of this happening in the middle of
combat, cast the MANA SWORD spells quickly when the Mana Beast swoops
in to physically attack after its fireball.
* Cast LUNAR BOOST and MOON POWER on yourself to improve your damage.
* Don't bother charging your weapon. Just swing every time you get
back to 100%, as long as the MANA SWORD magic is still running. Stand
right in the (left-to-right) center of the platform, as far north as
you can.
* Avoid casting WALL if at all possible, as it will prevent you from
being able to cast MANA SWORD on yourself until it expires. You'll be
casting MANA SWORD several times during the combat....
Miscellaneous Info
------------------
The levels of your spells can go up to the number of Mana Seeds you've
collected. Sometimes it's worth practicing your spells in order to
raise them levels and make them more powerful. This makes attack
spells do more damage, and 'modifier' spells last longer. It's worth
getting most of the elementals up to level 4, certainly, although it
isn't absolutely necessary.
You can get extra Weapon Orbs in the Mana Fortress by killing enough
of the right creatures. Tsunamis, Master Ninjas, and Terminators seem
to be the most likely candidates. You can get a weapon up to level 9
this way, although you can't become better than level 8 at using it.
give you Weapon Orbs. (See the previous paragraph, if you skipped
it.) I've gotten Amulet Rings (mostly), two Vampire Cloaks, and a
Faerie Crown.
You can get some of the 'special' armors by killing the same creatures
that give you Weapon Orbs. (See the previous paragraph, if you
skipped it.) I've gotten Amulet Rings (mostly), two Vampire Cloaks,
and a Faerie Crown this way.
I think I may have found something hidden in the game, but I'm not
certain. Go to the Mana Forest. Defeat the Red Dragon in the cave
area. In the back of his cave, look at the center of the north wall.
Do you see a little Skull Switch there, or is it just my imagination?
You can't get to it because of the rocks in the way, though. I tried
using some of the Level 8 weapon special attacks to get over the
rocks, but no luck. If anyone else has any luck triggering this
switch, or knows of other potentially secret things, please let me
know.