Final Fantasy - NES/Walkthrough
From WikiCheats
The places & enemies mentioned will alot of times have 2 different names. The first is what they were called in the 1990 N.E.S. original version of the game. The 2nd is what they were called in the playstation remake of it. with that in mind...
Coneria / Cornelia
You'll start the game by selecting the class for each of your four Light Warriors, and this decision is entirely up to you. As a suggestion, a well-rounded class would include a Warrior, Thief, Black Mage, and White Mage, but the final choice is yours. Start out by heading into Cornelia Castle and speaking to the King to learn about his daughter Sarah's abduction at the hands of the nefarious Garland. Now head into the town and buy some spells (Thunder and Fire for your Black Mage, Cure for your White) as well as some equipment from the Weapon and Armor shops, then leave town. Fight the random enemies on the world map around the town to gain Gil and EXP, and get your party to Level 5. Buy more equipment, if you couldn't afford it on the first go, then head to the Chaos Shrine to the north.
Temple Of Fiends / Chaos Shrine
There's barely anything at all to this "dungeon," so head to the northwest and southwest corners to find some treasure chests, and loot them good and proper. Now head for the center of the temple to fight Garland.
BOSS: Garland
Garland has 212 HP and is a total pushover, especially if you're at Level 5. Just attack him and cast Fire until he's dead.
Now that you've rescued the princess, the King of Cornelia will keep his promise to you and build a bridge to the land across the narrow strait of water. He'll task you to rekindle the crystals, and let you set out on your adventure. Once you cross the bridge to the north, you can go west to Matoya's Cave for a few treasures and some vague information regarding the Crystal Eye, or just go east until you reach the town of Pravoka. Save your game before entering.
Pravoka
Buy the Blizzard and Sleep spells from the Magic Shop, then spend the rest of your cash upgrading your weapons and armor. Now head to the northwestern house and speak to the pirate leader there. Your words will anger him, provoking him to fight you.
BOSS: Pirates
You'll have to take down nine pirates here, but they only have 24 HP each, so this shouldn't be a rough fight. Use the Sleep spell if they're giving you a hard time, though.
The pirate leader, in either a bout of reverence or stupidity, actually gives you his ship at this point, which you can immediately use to start sailing the open waters. You'll still be attacked while riding in your ship, but that's okay, because you should spend some time fighting these maritime baddies for the EXP. When you've leveled up a bit, sail southwest until you find another port, then dock. Continue in that direction until you see a town, then enter.
Elfland / Elfheim
If you can afford it, buy all the spells for sale here, but if not, at least buy Cura, Diara, Heal, Fira, Thundara, Blizzara, and Haste. Upgrade your weapons and armor as much as you can, and stock up on Potions and Cottages (or Sleeping Bags). Now head into the Elven Castle. It seems the prince has been cursed by a man named Astos, and only YOU can save him. Leave Elfheim now and head west through the mountain pass. You have to go to the Marsh Cave to the south to confront Astos, but first you should go north to the Western Keep to level up.
Northwest Castle / Western Keep
Head to the middle area of the Keep and speak to the king of this castle. He'll ask you to retrieve his crown from the Marsh Cave, which just so happens to be your next destination. The trek here should have netted you some nice EXP, as will the walk south to the Marsh Cave. If you need more items, head back to Elfheim and stock up, and pick up some Antidotes while you're at it.
Marsh Cave
Go south once you enter, then take the stairs down to B2F. Head left to find a chest with 680 Gil, and also pick up a Broadsword on this level. Now head to the southeast corner and descend to B3F. You'll start in the upper-left corner of this floor, which is divided into a 16 X 16 grid. There are treasures scattered about this floor, but the crown you're looking for is in the room two rows down and one to the right. When you step on the tile in front of the chest, you'll be attacked by three or four Piscodemons!
BOSS: Wizards / Piscodemons
Each of the 3 Wizards / Piscodemons has only 84 HP, but their defense is high, making them tough nuts to crack. Have your Black Mage cast Thunder spells on them and keep pounding away with physical attacks until they're all dead.
Open the chest in front of you, take the Crown. Hmm...Astos isn't here. Make your way back to the world map. Before you return to the Western Keep, head back to Elfheim and heal up, and buy any supplies you ran short on in the Marsh Cave. When you're ready, and at least at Level 8, return to the Western Keep and speak to the king who was seeking the Crown. It turns out he's Astos, the man who cursed the prince! Dastardly villain!
BOSS: Astos
Astos has a particularly nasty spell in his arsenal, Death, than can instantly KO your characters. Caste Haste on your fighters and go to town on him while your White Mage heals your party every turn with Cure / Cura. Revive fallen comrades with Phoenix Downs, and keep chipping away at his 420 HP.
You now have the Crystal Eye which, if you stopped by Matoya's Cave earlier, you've heard of before. Return to your ship and sail north of the bridge the King of Cornelia built to a dock. Lay anchor there, then walk north to Matoya's cave.
Matoya's Cave and the Mystic Key
A simple exchange here: give the woman the Crystal Eye and she'll hand over the Jolt Tonic, and if that doesn't "jolt" the Prince awake I don't know what will. Return to Elfheim and give the Tonic to the servant, who will use it to revive the Prince. The Prince will thank you and give you the Mystic Key, which you can use to open several locked doors for treasure. Check the castle grounds for a room you can unlock for lots of loot, then go back to the Western Keep to get the treasures there. Next, return to the Chaos Tower and open the northeast and southeast rooms for more booty. Finally, return to Cornelia and unlock the rooms for treasure and, most importantly, the Nitro Powder. Now take your ship northwest of Cornelia to another port. Dock, then head south to a cave in the mountains.
Dwarfs Cave / Mount Duergar
There are many chests to empty here, so take all the treasures, then speak to the dwarf with the greet hat, white beard, and red clothes (Nerrick). He'll use your T.N.T. / Nitro Powder to blast open a canal, opening up more of the world to you. Get aboard your ship and sail west to the town of Melmond.
Melmond
First stop: the Magic Shop. Buy Curaga, Firaga, Life, and Healara first and foremost, then spend the rest of your hard-earned cash buying new weapons and armor. You can hear some interesting information from the locals, including some tidbits on the "Terra Cave," which just so happens to be your next destination. Head southwest out of town, then bear southeast when you see a narrow strip of land connecting the continent to a triange-shaped peninsula. Enter the Cavern of Earth (the Terra Cave) there.
Earth Cave / Cavern of Earth
The Earth Cave / Cavern of Earth is rather extensive, so you may want to head in, level up a bit, then head out and heal up a few times before you make the trek to the bottom. There are several branching paths in this cavern leading to treasure, but usually you will have to fight a monster when you open the chest, so caveat emptor. Make your way to the end of B3, and heal up, as the vampire the Melmond locals were speaking of lies just ahead!
BOSS: Vampire
The Vampire has a high attack power but very low HP (only 280), so nail it with Fira and physical attacks. It should go down very quickly. Really, it's that easy.
Now open the treasure chest here for a Ruby. The other door here is locked, so leave the dungeon and return to Melmond to heal up and restock your inventory of supplies. Now head southwest again, but instead of turning southeast, keep heading southwest to enter the Giant's Cave.
Titan's Tunnel / Giant's Cave
Talk to the rock beast here and hand over the Star Ruby, which he'll promptly eat. Head south to a room full of treasure, take it all, then take the stairs to the north to exit back to the world map. Follow the path southwest to the next cave.
Sarda's Cave / Sage's Cave
Enter the second door and speak to the sage Sadda. He'll give you the Earth Rod, which you'll have to use in the room where you defeated the Vampire in the Cavern of Earth. Yes, you have to travel all the way back there!
Return to the Earth Cave / Cavern of Earth
Descend to the Vampire's room in B3, then head out the eastern door and approach the gray tablet. The sage's Earth Rod will make the stone disappear, opening the way to B4. Head north, collecting the treasures along the way to the stairs to B5 in the far northwest. Now go left and follow the path until you see a crystal. Heal up, save, then approach it to fight the Lich.
BOSS: Lich
Unlike the Vampire, the Lich has TONS of HP (1200, to be exact). Caste Haste and Temper on whoever's wielding the Rune Blade and let them attack as much as possible while your White Mage casts Dia-magic and your Black Mage casts Fire-based spells. The Lich has second-tier spells of his own, so heal if your HP is getting too low (though you shouldn't heal every round, as this would waste the White Mage's chance to use Diara or Diaga).
The Earth Crystal will be "rekindled" now, and the Earthgift Shrine will open up. Ignore it for now and take the teleporter behind the crystal to warp out of the cave, back to the overworld. Get back in your ship and sail southwest, out of the bay to the ocean. Sail west until you're on the eastern half of the map, and keep going until you reach a dock. Anchor your ship there and walk west around the water to the town of Crescent Lake.
Crescent Lake
Buy some new equipment from the Weapon and Armor shops (the Magic shop doesn't hold anything particularly useful) and then cross the bridge at the east of town to find the circle of sages. Speak to all of them, and the leader will give you a Canoe, which you can use to traverse the many serpentine streams running through this end of the continent. The sage tells you to defeat the demon at the volcanic Mt. Gulg, which is located to the northwest of town. Level up with the surrounding enemies until you're at least at Level 14 (but hopefully much higher than that), then paddle your canoe to the volcano.
Gurgu Volcano / Mt. Gulg
Stepping on the lava here will take away 1 HP per step, but it won't kill you no matter how much you walk on it. Head left to take the stairs to B2. The stairs to B3 are close by, but you should first explore this floor for lots of treasure, including the Great Sword. The stairs to B4 are nearby, so take them, then run across the lava to the southeast to take some stairs back to B3. The stairs back up to B4 are in the southwest corner of this area, so head there. Open the chests when you get back to B4, then go south to reach B5. Be sure to grab the Flame Mail here, then head into the room to fight this area's boss.
BOSS: Kary / Marilith
Despite what your intuition is probably telling you, Kary / Marilith is not weak to Ice spells. Instead, caste Haste and Temper on your Warrior and let him pound away at the boss while you cast NulBlaze on yourselves to cut down the fire-inflicted damage. Keep casting Temper on the fighter as he attacks and this battle won't last long.
Your party will now rekindle the Fire Crystal, meaning that there are only two crystals left to relight! The Hellfire Chasm will open up, but as with the Earth Crystal, ignore it for now and take the teleporter off the mountain. Return to Crescent Lake and stock up on Ethers, Potions, and Phoenix Downs, then head back to your ship and sail it north to a stream flowing into the ocean. Enter the stream to get back in your canoe, then take it west, north, east, north again, then west all the way to the Cavern of Ice.
Ice Cave / Cavern of Ice
We're here looking for a Floater / Levistone, which will eventually let us fly an airship. Head down to B2, then south (or west) to the stairs to B3. Take the next stairs back up to B2, then step on a crack to drop back down to B3. Leave the room and head left to find a chest containing the Ice Armor. Go south, then enter the room on the left for lots of Gil. Now go right and take the stairs back to B1. Go right, then enter the room. Take the treasure here, then drop through the hole to fight the cavern's boss.
BOSS: Eye / Evil Eye
The Evil may be able to cast Death, but the simple fact is this: it has 162 HP. That's it. If it takes more than a couple characters to kill this boss, you have some serious leveling up to do.
Grab the Floater / Levistone now and use an Emergency Exit, if you have one. Otherwise, drop through the cracked floor and make your way back to the exit. Get back on your ship and sail south along the coast past Crescent Town until you find another river flowing into the sea. Paddle your canoe north to the desert, then enter.
Ryukahn Desert and the Airship
Shortly after entering the desert, the sands will split apart, revealing an airship! Well good grief, that was easy. Head up into the skies and head to the town on the northeastern-most corner of the upper-right continent, Gaia.
Gaia
Nothing to do here but shop; buy some of the upper-level magic, if you can use it, as well as some new equipment. The Protect Rings are particularly useful. Buy copious amounts of Potions, Ethers, Phoenix Downs, and Cottages, then leave town and get back on the airship. Fly west until you see a dilapidated-looking castle. You can't land next to it because of the type of ground, so fly northwest and land on the dark green grass there, then walk back to the structure, which is actually the Catle of Ordeals / Citadel of Trials. Get to Level 23 (at least) before you enter.
Castle Of Ordeals / Citadel of Trials
Head up and speak to the dwarf elder, then go through the door to the northeast to find a throne. Sit in it to be taken to the second floor. Here, you have to take eight different teleporters to reach the stairs to the next floor. There are many treasures to collect here, the most important of which is by far the Rat's Tail to the east. Now walk toward the throne to be thrown into a boss fight.
BOSS: Zombie Dragon / Dragon Zombie
Another boss with very little HP (only 268). Have your Hasted fighter attack with a Flame Brand while your mages cast Fire and Harm /Dia spells.
You'll be warped back to the first floor, so head outside the Citadel, back to the overworld map. Get in your airship, then fly west to the group of islands dotted with caves.
Cardia Islands / Dragon Caves
Enter the caves from west to east, collecting all the treasures from each of them. On one of the islands you'll find a long hallway heading south. Keep going down the hall until you reach Bahamut, who sees your Rat's Tail and rewards you for finding it by upgrading your characters' classes.
Character Upgrades
If you chose the group I suggested at the start of this walkthrough, your Warrior will become a Knight, your Thief a Ninja, your Black Mage a Black Wizard, and your White Mage a White Wizard. Now you should stock up on magic you couldn't use before, like Cure and Cura for your Knight, Haste for your Ninja, Exit for your White Mage, and Teleport for your Black Mage. You can all also equip better armor, so head to Gaia to purchase more equipment! ONE IMPORTANT NOTE: Save 40,000 Gil for the upcoming mission.
The Faerie and the Oxyale
Fly west from Gaia until you wrap around the world map to the western side, and when you hit land, fly south until you see a desert. Land next to it, then walk into the "separated" section of desert to find the Caravan. Talk to the shop owner and buy the Bottle Faerie from him for a whopping 40,000 Gil! Return to Gaia and walk east of the Sanctuary, then follow the path to a spring. The released Faerie will give you the Oxyale, which we'll be using very soon. Fly back to the desert on the northwestern continent, land, then cross the river to the east to the town of Onrac.
Onrac
There's absolutely nothing to do here now but buy the new spells on sale here, like Healaga. You're probably pretty wiped out cashwise after dropping 40,000 Gil on that Faerie Bottle, so don't feel bad if you can't afford any of it at this point. Just remember where this town is for future reference. Leave town now and take the canoe north, up the river to a waterfall. Paddle straight into the cataracts to enter the Waterfall Cavern.
Waterfall Cavern
Walk north, then west when you can past the southern path until the path you're on splits into four more routes. Go northwest to another intersection, then south to a room filled with these treasures: a Ribbon, a Wizard's Staff, a Defender, and 24,850 Gil. Speak to the robot walking around and he'll give you the Warp Cube. Now leave the Waterfall Cavern and return to Onrac.
The Barrel Submarine
Head for the southeast corner of town and speak to the mermaid to hear her plea to save the other mermaids. Now enter the barrel behind her, which turns out to be a submarine! You will be taken to the Sunken Shrine beneath the ocean's surface.
Sunken Shrine
You'll begin on 3F of the shrine, and you can go either up to the fifth floor to claim the Rosetta Stone or down to the first to fight the Kraken. You should claim the Rosetta Stone first, so head up the right staircase to reach 4F. Make sure to grab the Diamond Armor from a chest on this floor before you head up to 5F. This floor has no enemy encounters whatsoever, so you can leisurely collect the thirteen treasures here, including the Rosetta Stone. Warp out of the dungeon now to heal up in Onlac, then head back to the Sunken Shrine and take the left staircase down to 2F. Take the other set of stairs back to 3F, then the next to 4F. Head around to the next set of stairs, and take them down to 3F. Head through the door here, take the loot from the chests, then pass through the next door to find the stairs down to 2F. There are several treasure chests to open here, so don't leave the floor without taking the second Ribbon and the Giant's Glove (it'll be useful for the upcoming boss). Take the stairs in the northwest corner down to 1F. Head down the corridors to the Water Crystal, where the Kraken attacks!
BOSS: Kraken
Have your Knight use the Giant's Glove to boost his strength, then have someone cast Haste on him to turn him into a powerhouse. Meanwhile, your Black Wizard should be hurling your highest-level Thunder spells at the Kraken, since that is its weakness. Have your White Wizard continually heal the party and cast Protect, and the Kraken will eventually drop dead.
Killing the Kraken triggers the rekindling of the Water Crystal and the opening of the Lifespring Grotto. Take the warp point out of the Sunken Shrine, then head back to Onrac to heal up. And if you haven't done it in a while (shame on you), save your game. You have two back-to-back dungeons ahead of you, so make sure you're fully stocked on restorative items and wearing the strongest equipment money can buy at this point.
Hop in your airship and fly back to the city of Melmond. Speak to Dr. Unne in the northeast corner of town and hand over the Slab / Rosetta Stone. He'll translate it, and in turn teach you the entire Lufenian language (your team has some very, very fast learners in its ranks, apparently). But where do they speak Lufenian? In Lufenia, of course, the only town on the world map you haven't visited yet. It's located on the southeastern corner of the northeast continent, on the long peninsula, but you can't land anywhere near it. Instead, land on the patch of grass next to the lake south of Gaia, and walk down to Lufenia.
Lefein / Lufenia
Head to the northeast corner of town and find the gap leading east. Follow it to two magic shops, one selling the Full-Life spell, and one selling the Nuke / Flare spell. Buy them both, as they're the best spells in the game! Before you leave, speak to the Lufenian east of the entrance to receive the Chime / Bell. Now walk back to your airship and fly to a town with some actual shops. Buy the maximum amount of Potions, and a handful of Cottages, Ethers, Phoenix Downs, and Remedies. Back in the airship, fly to the very large desert on the northeastern continent and located the tower situated in its center. Fly south of the desert to find a place to land your ship, then cross the burning sands to the Mirage Tower.
Mirage Tower
The Mirage Tower has only three floors, and if you're not interested in collecting the treasure here, you can rush through all three in no time at all. However, you'll miss out on the EXP and some great loot, so spend time exploring the first two floors for goodies. The first floor holds a Healing Helm, Tent, Aegis Shield, Vorpal Sword, and 23,960 Gil; the second boasts a Cottage, Sunblade, Thor's Hammer, Dragon Mail, and 58,958 Gil. On the third floor, head through the door to face a Blue Dragon.
BOSS: Blue Dragon
This game has a deep-rooted love for bosses with ludicrously low HP, and the Blue Dragon is yet another tribute to that love. With only 454 HP, your Hasted fighter should be able to take him down in just a couple swings.
Now move ahead and step on the flashing pad. The Warp Cube you picked up in an earlier dungeon will warp you to the Flying Fortress.
Flying Fortress
Like the Mirage Tower, you can sprint through this dungeon and ignore the treasures to reach the end in no time at all, or you can be smart and loot the place thoroughly, reaping the EXP of defeating the powerful monsters here in the process. On the first floor, go east and west to gather hordes of treasure, and south to find the Razer (which can kill this dungeon's boss in one hit!). Now head north to the second floor. The stairs to the third floor are just south, but you should check out the six other branches for treasure, particularly the southwest route to the Adamantite (which we'll discuss later). On the third floor, take the east and north paths to treasure, then west to the stairs to 4F. No treasure here, However there is a certain way to go. If you just walk straight ahead you'll literally go on for hours and never get anywhere. So...once you're on 4F go straight (right) to the first "intersection", then down one row to the next one. Right again to the next Intersection. Then finally down one more. If you went the right way through you'll see the stairs leading up to floor B5. If you don't...then you took a wrong turn somewhere. Try again...remember right, down, right, down.
stairs from 3F____
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| otherwise you'll walk around forever
the way through |
the 4F -----|
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stairs to 5F
Once you're on 5F, Walk up across the bridge to Tiamat's room. Hopefully you don't run into Warmech, a 1,000 HP "MiniBoss" with alot of Nuke Spells. Chances of actually having to fight this thing are very slim 1 in 10 or something. However if you do meet it, BE READY FOR A FIGHT!! Anyway...once across the bridge, heal your party and save your game, then head up and inspect the Crystal to face the guardian, Tiamat!
BOSS: Tiamat
If you want to make this a short fight, use the Razer you just picked up to kill Tiamat instantly. If you want the fight against this 2,400 HP beast to be a bit more fair, cast all the Nul-spells you have on your party to decrease the damage Tiamat will inflict upon you, then have your Hasted fighter use the Giant's Glove to slash at the boss repeatedly. If any of your teammates bite the dust, whip your brand-spanking-new Full-Life spell to bring them back to 100%.
The fourth and final crystal is now rekindled, and the Whisperwind Cove is now available for you to visit. Take the warp point behind the crystal to exit the dungeon.
Final Preparations
You can now either tackle the four optional dungeons you unlocked by relighting the crystals, or just head straight to the final dungeon, back at the Chaos Shrine (where you fought Garland). Either way, you should definitely make a pit stop at Mt. Duerger and speak to the blacksmith. Hand over the Adamantite you found in the Flying Fortress and he'll make you the Excalibur sword! Excellent! Now spend some time leveling up to around Level 35, and max out your supply of Potions, Ethers, and Remedies (or get as close as you can to maxing them out). When you feel ready to take on the game's final challenge, head to the Chaos Shrine north of Cornelia.
Temple Of Fiends Revisited / Return to the Chaos Shrine
The key to getting through the true Temple Of Fiends Revisited / Chaos Shrine is to conserve MP, so don't cast Black Magic unless you're taking out a large group of enemies, and use your Healing Staff and Healing Helm to heal instead of White Magic. From the entrance, take the southeast stairs to 2F, then east to the stairs to 3F. Head south and then east to the center of this floor and fight the Death Eye you're forced to do battle with. Open the chests in the northeast and northwest corners, then stand on the stone tablet in the middle of the room. You'll play the Lute, which you received eons ago, and a ladder leading down to 2F appears. Descend it, then take the stairs in the northwest corner to 1F. Head over to the northwest corner and take the stairs down to B1. You have to reach the southeast corner here, but you can't head there directly; instead you have to go to north, east, then south to reach it. As you near the stairs, heal your party fully and save your game, because you have to face the Lich again!
BOSS: Lich, Round 2
Lich has even deadlier spells at its disposal than last time, but you can negate most of them with Protect Rings and Ribbons. However, you'll still have to deal with its Flare spell, so use the Healing Staff and Helm to keep your HP (and MP!) up. To kill this boss, have your Hasted fighter use the Giant's Glove and slash over and over at Lich with the Excalibur to eventually bring about its doom.
Now take the stairs to B2. Gather the treasures on this floor, then approach the stairs down to face another fiend you've already fought: Kary / Marilith.
BOSS: Kary / Marilith, Round 2
Again, your Protect Rings and Ribbons will keep most of this boss's spells at bay. As for Firaga, cast NulFire on your party to help keep them alive, then Haste your fighter, use the Giant's Glove, and keep attacking until Kary / Marilith is dead.
Descend to B3. Head through the series of rooms to the stairs in the southeast corner, and heal up before you reach them, as you're about to fight the Kraken again.
BOSS: Kraken, Round 2
Don't bother casting Thundaga here, as the Kraken is no longer weak to Thunder magic. Instead, just do what you've been doing: Haste your fighter, have him use the Giant's Glove, then go to town on the boss. It's not rocket surgery.
On B4, you're going to want to set your sights on the legendary Masamune. Head to the far southeast corner of this floor and enter the room to find this powerful weapon, which you can equip on anyone (your Ninja is a good choice, since your Knight should be wielding the Excalibur). Now head to the northeast corner and approach the stairs down to face the last of the four fiends, Tiamat. Again.
BOSS: Tiamat, Round 2
Cast spells like NulBlaze, NulShock, and NulFrost, then Haste and Giant Glove your fighters. Lay into Tiamat with your Excalibur and Masamune, chipping tenaciously away at his 5,500 HP until there's nothing left to chip at.
Now head to B5, heal your party fully, and save your game. The final boss lies just ahead, in the center of this floor.
FINAL BOSS: Chaos
As the battle begins, cast NulAll on everyone in your party. Chaos has a bevy of powerful spells he'll be hurling at you, and you'll need the protection. Haste your two fighters, cast Temper, and have them use the Giant's Glove to increase their attack power. From this point on, it's all down to the Excalibur and Masamune. You're going to want your White Mage to heal the party every turn, and your Black Mage should toss them Ethers and Elixirs whenever their MP runs down. Garland will periodically cast Curaja on himself, healing 9,999 HP! As annoying as this is, continue with your unrelenting offense, and you will eventually chisel his 20,000 max HP down to that glorious zero.
With Chaos defeated, and the crystals rekindled, the world is a safe place once more. Now watch the rather unexciting ending to the first game in the Final Fantasy series.
