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freshfeelingI played again on August 19th. I felt like I got quite a few quests done in a relatively short play session, and also made some game progress.
Although I was set up from the end of the previous session to fight lots of Weretigers/MANCATs, I did something else entirely right away. I started by walking through lava to get the entire team down to pitiful amounts of HP again and then I prepared to have my ninja, Locke, solo the Mount Gulg.
This would check off a few boxes, but the actual completion order was sort of like this:
I happened to encounter a lot of Pyrolisks on Locke's trip through the volcano!
This was at least the fourth I encountered, and the second that included this many birds. Each time, of course, my heart sank a bit, anticipating getting Squinted out of existence... but it didn't happen. I ran from the first group of 5 birdies, but realized I could take advantage of the situation with the same amount of risk when I encountered this second group. Done.
I have... zero intent to actually use a Falchion.
Title: Weapons of the Cat Army
Since I was in the area, I chose to finish the walk to the Citadel of Trials. Frankly, it wasn't as long or inconvenient as I remembered. Also, while I was there, I decided I should defeat some Medusas to finally make use of my Gauntlets.
Title: Blue Magic: Mind Blast
Although I was set up from the end of the previous session to fight lots of Weretigers/MANCATs, I did something else entirely right away. I started by walking through lava to get the entire team down to pitiful amounts of HP again and then I prepared to have my ninja, Locke, solo the Mount Gulg.
This would check off a few boxes, but the actual completion order was sort of like this:
Title: The One Who Kills the Ogre Will Be Named Champion
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: You are the best and brightest in all the land. Today one of you will be named champion. That champion shall have the privilege to go forth and rescue the lovely Princess Sara from the Temple of Fiends. If for any reason the winner is unsuccessful, the first runner-up will take his place and so on and so forth. Some of you may die, but it's a sacrifice I am willing to make! And if Sara has already been rescued, you shall be allowed to take credit for it, and take one prize that makes much more sense than a bridge. Oh! What is that? It's hideous! Knights, new plan!
Requirement: With any solo character, win a battle that includes a Ogre Chief and a Hyenadon without them running away. If a qualifying battle is attempted and failed, your next attempt must be with a different solo character. After winning, report to the king in Cornelia.
Unlocks: (a)Mythril Helm
This whole thing was a gigantic Shrek reference, right down to the helmet reward. Locke happened to run into a gigantic squad of Hyenadons with an Ogre Chief and Ogre Mage, which met the criteria for this challenge. He wiped most of them by using two Blizzaras.
This, by the way, is a rather extreme example of an encounter that could never exist on the NES; these enemies are all considered "large" so the most of these enemies who could ever congregate together in older versions of Final Fantasy was four! Here, we got two ogres and seven donkeys!
Although the check-in with the king in Cornelia happened later, I thought that I should tell Locke's story in something like chronological order, so I put it here. I spoke to the king after finishing up in Mount Gulg.
This whole thing was a gigantic Shrek reference, right down to the helmet reward. Locke happened to run into a gigantic squad of Hyenadons with an Ogre Chief and Ogre Mage, which met the criteria for this challenge. He wiped most of them by using two Blizzaras.
This, by the way, is a rather extreme example of an encounter that could never exist on the NES; these enemies are all considered "large" so the most of these enemies who could ever congregate together in older versions of Final Fantasy was four! Here, we got two ogres and seven donkeys!
Although the check-in with the king in Cornelia happened later, I thought that I should tell Locke's story in something like chronological order, so I put it here. I spoke to the king after finishing up in Mount Gulg.
Title: Falconmaster
Author: FlamingXP (2025)
Story: The Falchion was named for an expert in falconry. To use it, you need to demonstrate your mastery over birds.
Requirement: Defeat a group with at least 5 Cockatrices and/or Pyrolisks.
Unlocks: (e)Falchion
I happened to encounter a lot of Pyrolisks on Locke's trip through the volcano!
This was at least the fourth I encountered, and the second that included this many birds. Each time, of course, my heart sank a bit, anticipating getting Squinted out of existence... but it didn't happen. I ran from the first group of 5 birdies, but realized I could take advantage of the situation with the same amount of risk when I encountered this second group. Done.
I have... zero intent to actually use a Falchion.
Title: The Phoenix Cave
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: In another universe (or timeline or something), the party's thief was known to be seeking a powerful treasure said to have the ability to restore life. Ultimately, he pulled off the amazing feat of travelling through a trap- and lava-filled dungeon to find the treasure only to find that it did not carry the same kind of power that legends suggested it would. However, he did find a powerful weapon - the Valiant Knife - during this trip.
Requirement: Solo Mount Gulg with a thief or ninja. You must enter Mount Gulg with the other characters dead, exit through the teleport square behind the orb, and open at least one treasure chest along the way (even if it's empty).
Unlocks: (e)Katana
This is why Locke was alone! It was actually quite easy, even despite doing other non-trivial quests along the way. Locke having an Ice Shield certainly helped. I made sure he inspected a chest during this trip.
This is why Locke was alone! It was actually quite easy, even despite doing other non-trivial quests along the way. Locke having an Ice Shield certainly helped. I made sure he inspected a chest during this trip.
Title: What Are You Doing?!
Author: beege_man (2019)
Story: Everyone gets a little confused sometimes...
Requirement: If you are playing with a controller, you must complete a trip from an Inn to an elemental altar while playing with the controller upside down. If not using a controller, complete said trip by only attacking physically and always picking a random target for your attack.
Unlocks: (b)Confuse
Did I mention that I did this entire solo trip with the controller upside down? Hahah.
It really wasn't that bad! I would say I sort of mostly got used to it, and I think the Pixel Remaster's diagonal movement made some of the trickier movement simpler, too. In the video posted above, you'll notice I held the controller up for most of the trip to make it apparent.
Four non-trivial quests done in one trip! The rewards aren't really a big deal at the moment, but I'll be thankful for the Katana later, for sure. This solo stuff was quick to set up and the result was encouraging, so I dove back into the lava to swap my solo character to Lenna. It ended up being a close call when she went to step out of the volcano!
Believe it or not, she survived this!
Our next stop was the Cavern of Earth. There were two side quests with heavily overlapping requirements that I could get done under these circumstances. There were times when it didn't seem like it would be a cakewalk.
She pulled through regardless! Against small undead squads she mostly used Dia instead of running.
Did I mention that I did this entire solo trip with the controller upside down? Hahah.
It really wasn't that bad! I would say I sort of mostly got used to it, and I think the Pixel Remaster's diagonal movement made some of the trickier movement simpler, too. In the video posted above, you'll notice I held the controller up for most of the trip to make it apparent.
Four non-trivial quests done in one trip! The rewards aren't really a big deal at the moment, but I'll be thankful for the Katana later, for sure. This solo stuff was quick to set up and the result was encouraging, so I dove back into the lava to swap my solo character to Lenna. It ended up being a close call when she went to step out of the volcano!
Believe it or not, she survived this!
Our next stop was the Cavern of Earth. There were two side quests with heavily overlapping requirements that I could get done under these circumstances. There were times when it didn't seem like it would be a cakewalk.
She pulled through regardless! Against small undead squads she mostly used Dia instead of running.
Title: The Quest for Life
Author: Diamond_Dragon (2020)
Story: Legends tell of the mythical fountain that can restore life. Turns out it's in the Cavern of Earth! Who knew? However, it is completely hidden to those without a pure heart.
Requirement: With a solo white mage (all others dead or stoned), enter the Cavern of Earth and exit out the portal behind the altar.
Unlocks: (w)Full-Life
Title: The Test of Exiting
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: Once you have proven your ability to exit a dangerous dungeon, mastering a magic that facilitates this must be easy, right?
Requirement: You must solo a multi-level dungeon with a "rear exit" with each character capable of learning (w)Exit. This could include any of the Cavern of Earth, Mount Gulg, Cavern of Ice, Citadel of Trials, Sunken Shrine, or Mirage Tower/Flying Fortress.
Unlocks: (w)Exit
Honestly, these quests are nearly identical, except for the fact that one more directly specifies which dungeon to do. It only made sense to me to do them at the same time. The reason this happened at all, to be clear, is because these were written in different years/threads.
This quest was easy to check off since Lenna was wandering around by herself anyway. It's also kind of useless at this point. Heck, it was kind of useless ages ago! It might be nice to swap the Broadsword with the Mythril Sword. Oh well. Lenna hammered a few Tarantulas to finish the quest.
This was also really easy while Lenna was alone. In fact, as we crossed Cardia, I think we only ran into one encounter.
It turns out there are 11 dragons in the Cardia Isles not including Bahamut.
I wanted to get some spells, like Healaga and/or Curaja, so after healing the rest of the team, I decided to head to Onrac for the first time.
I then got sucked into going through the upper levels of the Sunken Shrine and getting the Slab/Rosetta Stone.
Title: Kope's Keen Peepers
Honestly, these quests are nearly identical, except for the fact that one more directly specifies which dungeon to do. It only made sense to me to do them at the same time. The reason this happened at all, to be clear, is because these were written in different years/threads.
Title: White Mage's Adventure
Author: gameenjoyer (2019)
Story: Our resident white mage wants to prove their worth as a combatant and not just a healer. As such, they venture off alone to prove their skill in battle. Upon doing so, they weary of combat and brings the others back a weapon so they can fight more effectively.
Requirement: Win one battle in the (former) PNEoP with only the party's white mage alive. They must enter the battle alone and win.
Unlocks: (e)Broadsword
This quest was easy to check off since Lenna was wandering around by herself anyway. It's also kind of useless at this point. Heck, it was kind of useless ages ago! It might be nice to swap the Broadsword with the Mythril Sword. Oh well. Lenna hammered a few Tarantulas to finish the quest.
Title: White Mage's Compassion
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: In another universe (or timeline or something), the party's white mage was a hero renowned for their kindness. They had a deep connection with animals, and dragons in particular. An independent quest to focus on compassion while connecting with dragonkin may help awaken their latent power.
Requirement: With a solo white mage, speak to every dragon in the Cardia Islands (omitting Bahamut if you like) between saves. You may not deal damage to any monster during this quest.
Unlocks: (w)Curaja
This was also really easy while Lenna was alone. In fact, as we crossed Cardia, I think we only ran into one encounter.
It turns out there are 11 dragons in the Cardia Isles not including Bahamut.
I wanted to get some spells, like Healaga and/or Curaja, so after healing the rest of the team, I decided to head to Onrac for the first time.
I then got sucked into going through the upper levels of the Sunken Shrine and getting the Slab/Rosetta Stone.
Title: Kope's Keen Peepers
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: As you know, Kope of Onrac has a real knack for spotting distant objects. He's been looking out into the sea east of Onrac recently, and he thought he saw something really valuable, but there were too many damn fish in the way for him to tell what it was and exactly where it was located. Control the ocean populations and maybe he can help you out.
Requirement: After speaking to Kope for the first time, defeat 20 Sharks or White Sharks within the Sunken Shrine, and then speak to Kope again.
Unlocks: (a)Diamond Armlet
Along the way, I defeated over 20 sharks just incidentally. Very nice. The Diamond Armlet went on Locke at first.
I got the Rosetta Stone and did my Duolingo.
Although I didn't have a really plan to rush the Mirage Tower, I know there are a lot of goodies and a lot of quests there, so I went to Lefein to claim the Chime.
While I was here, I also got Full-Life! I can't actually unlock Flare/NUKE until after I enter the Mirage Tower, so this trip was necessary regardless. Here's what our mages' spell lists look like at the moment:
Next, I went to the Waterfall. Part of what I wanted to do here was Wyldstar's recently-added Diamond Legacy quest... but I found that, in this version, you can't canoe north of the Waterfall. That quest might not be possible... although we'll see, as I haven't investigated yet whether there might be a tiny airship landing spot.
In the Waterfall Cavern, I spoke to bats. I was sort of hoping to encounter a Green Dragon for a couple of quests, but that didn't happen. Cecil and Locke both got squinted in our first battle, so I was grateful to have just learned Full-Life for Lenna. The spiked square presented no real difficulty.
The Waterfall Cavern has two amazing treasures at the end and we can't use them yet.
By the end of the Waterfall Cavern, I still needed three more bats to total 50, so I wandered back to the Marsh Cave to finish up. FlamingXP had joined me and encouraged me to fight Hill Gigases for a few quests.
Along the way, I defeated over 20 sharks just incidentally. Very nice. The Diamond Armlet went on Locke at first.
I got the Rosetta Stone and did my Duolingo.
Although I didn't have a really plan to rush the Mirage Tower, I know there are a lot of goodies and a lot of quests there, so I went to Lefein to claim the Chime.
While I was here, I also got Full-Life! I can't actually unlock Flare/NUKE until after I enter the Mirage Tower, so this trip was necessary regardless. Here's what our mages' spell lists look like at the moment:
Next, I went to the Waterfall. Part of what I wanted to do here was Wyldstar's recently-added Diamond Legacy quest... but I found that, in this version, you can't canoe north of the Waterfall. That quest might not be possible... although we'll see, as I haven't investigated yet whether there might be a tiny airship landing spot.
In the Waterfall Cavern, I spoke to bats. I was sort of hoping to encounter a Green Dragon for a couple of quests, but that didn't happen. Cecil and Locke both got squinted in our first battle, so I was grateful to have just learned Full-Life for Lenna. The spiked square presented no real difficulty.
The Waterfall Cavern has two amazing treasures at the end and we can't use them yet.
Title: Decked Out in Mythril
Author: FlamingXP (2025)
Story: Once you're dripping with mythril, you might be able to attract a golem that provides enough extra mythril ore to craft a suit of armor from it.
Requirement: Equip one character with a Mythril Shield, Mythril Helm, Mythril Gloves, and any weapon made of mythril, then defeat a Clay Golem.
Unlocks: (a)Mythril Mail
I realized when I encountered Clay Golems in the Waterfall Cavern that I now had the required equipment unlocked for this quest. The Mythril Armor is never really going to be an asset, but I finished it anyway.
I realized when I encountered Clay Golems in the Waterfall Cavern that I now had the required equipment unlocked for this quest. The Mythril Armor is never really going to be an asset, but I finished it anyway.
Title: I'm Batman
Author: gameenjoyer (2019)
Story: Legends tell of a great hero who once donned a bat costume and fought against a really powerful villain named Bane. Prove yourself worthy of the hero's name and you can use the villain's sword. Retranslation may have ruined a fun joke here.
Requirement: Between the various dungeons, talk to at least 50 bats.
Unlocks: (e)Razer
By the end of the Waterfall Cavern, I still needed three more bats to total 50, so I wandered back to the Marsh Cave to finish up. FlamingXP had joined me and encouraged me to fight Hill Gigases for a few quests.
Title: Tanks, You're Welcome
Author: Diamond_Dragon (2020)
Story: The fighter is proving his worth as a tank, but he's not satisfied yet. His will to improve continues.
Requirement: Receive a hit from a Hill Gigas for exactly 1 damage.
Unlocks: (a)Knight's Armor
FlamingXP was on to something; this was super easy to check off in one trip into the Cavern of Earth's hall of giants. And since we were there...
FlamingXP was on to something; this was super easy to check off in one trip into the Cavern of Earth's hall of giants. And since we were there...
Title: Rare Drop from Hill Gigases
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: Let's be unoriginal!
Requirement: Defeat at least 32 Hill Gigases between saves.
Unlocks: (e)Great Sword
This was a bit annoying. The new format of the hall of giants meant that I had to re-spawn the cloaked figures by leaving and re-entering... although that's still faster than hoping for Hill Gigases in random encounters... probably. I didn't get any "naturally-occurring" Hill Gigases, so this was 8 dives into the Cavern of Earth. With auto-battle and whatnot this was a little under 10 minutes.
This was a bit annoying. The new format of the hall of giants meant that I had to re-spawn the cloaked figures by leaving and re-entering... although that's still faster than hoping for Hill Gigases in random encounters... probably. I didn't get any "naturally-occurring" Hill Gigases, so this was 8 dives into the Cavern of Earth. With auto-battle and whatnot this was a little under 10 minutes.
Title: The Spirit of Flame
Author: FlamingXP (2025)
Story: As the party approaches the Flame Armor, they quickly realize that it has been possessed by an evil flame spirit. It can be purified by sprinkling the ashes of an evil wizard.
Requirement: After facing the Red Dragon square by the Flame Mail, defeat one Dark Wizard with the finishing attack being fire-elemental. Then return to the chest with the Flame Mail.
Unlocks: (a)Flame Mail
I went to the Ice Cave and put a Flame Sword on Cecil for the purpose of this quest. The Dark Wizards had really wrecked my day during my prior visit so it was nice to have the fight go my way. I purposefully used the Flame Sword for this in order to double dip on another quest, too. Oh, and I did a super fast jaunt into the volcano to clear this after leaving the Ice Cave, but not before checking off the next quest.
I went to the Ice Cave and put a Flame Sword on Cecil for the purpose of this quest. The Dark Wizards had really wrecked my day during my prior visit so it was nice to have the fight go my way. I purposefully used the Flame Sword for this in order to double dip on another quest, too. Oh, and I did a super fast jaunt into the volcano to clear this after leaving the Ice Cave, but not before checking off the next quest.
Title: Professional Jewelers
Author: Zzonkmiles (2019)
Story: Nobody likes having their life snuffed out of them cheaply. Eliminate that problem by donning the armor that renders such attacks harmless! But there is a catch. The goons that are holding this armor are the goons that best exploit those who don't have it.
Requirement: Defeat two separate groups of Dark Wizards in the Cavern of Ice in one trip without magic.
Unlocks: (a)Protect Ring
So in just two Dark Wizard fights, I did this! They really do seem to have very high absorb, but their HP is low enough that they didn't get a lot of attacks off.
Around this point, as usual, the stream dropped, so this session continues in a second, shorter video. Now I chose to go back to the Citadel of Trials area to start the Cat Army quest that FlamingXP really wanted done. Despite his interest in cats and him having written the quest, he left before it concluded.
So in just two Dark Wizard fights, I did this! They really do seem to have very high absorb, but their HP is low enough that they didn't get a lot of attacks off.
Around this point, as usual, the stream dropped, so this session continues in a second, shorter video. Now I chose to go back to the Citadel of Trials area to start the Cat Army quest that FlamingXP really wanted done. Despite his interest in cats and him having written the quest, he left before it concluded.
Title: Weapons of the Cat Army
Author: FlamingXP (2025)
Story: In the forests near the Citadel of Trials, the party comes across a lost tower surrounded by an army of... cats. The cats request the party's help dealing with... dogs. After dealing with the dogs, it's important to take care of any additional dogs that may have followed the group back to the tower.
Requirement: After achieving class change, encounter a Weretiger group in a forest and run away without killing any of them. Then, defeat a group of Winter Wolves. Then, encounter another Weretiger group in a forest and run away without killing any of them again. Then, defeat a group that includes Warg Wolves. Finally, encounter a Weretiger group in a forest and run away without killing any a third time.
Unlocks: (e)CatClaw
It did conclude! Here's a magnificent screenshot of the aftermath of my encounter with Winter Wolves:
And here's what happened to the Warg Wolves after I checked in with the Weretigers again.
They were very dead. It took a long time to encounter Weretigers again after this. I instead found some Barettas and they were very cruel to me.
I was once again grateful for my resurrection spells. Shortly after, I ran into Weretigers for a third time.
Title: The Long Way
It did conclude! Here's a magnificent screenshot of the aftermath of my encounter with Winter Wolves:
And here's what happened to the Warg Wolves after I checked in with the Weretigers again.
They were very dead. It took a long time to encounter Weretigers again after this. I instead found some Barettas and they were very cruel to me.
I was once again grateful for my resurrection spells. Shortly after, I ran into Weretigers for a third time.
Title: The Long Way
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: The best way to master speed is to become aware of its significance.
Requirement: Travel from any town to the Citadel of Trials without using the ship, and without any characters who can learn (b)Slowra dying or being petrified.
Unlocks: (b)Slowra
Since I was in the area, I chose to finish the walk to the Citadel of Trials. Frankly, it wasn't as long or inconvenient as I remembered. Also, while I was there, I decided I should defeat some Medusas to finally make use of my Gauntlets.
Title: Blue Magic: Mind Blast
Author: FreshFeeling (2019)
Story: Sorcerers stand out as an enemy that has a proclivity for a spell-like effect similar to paralysis-inducing magic.
Requirement: Observe an enemy using Mind Blast. Win the battle without any characters who can learn (b)Stun having any negative status effects.
Unlocks: (b)Stun
We got this by happenstance. I didn't recall Mindflayers showing up the 2nd floor of this place, but they did!
I got a bit lucky with who was affected by Mind Blast, but it worked out.
Title: The uh, other God of Thunder
We got this by happenstance. I didn't recall Mindflayers showing up the 2nd floor of this place, but they did!
I got a bit lucky with who was affected by Mind Blast, but it worked out.
Title: The uh, other God of Thunder
Author: Linguar82 (2019)
Story: Lukahn has heard of an artifact that holds the power of an ancient god within. But in order to tap into that power, the bearer must prove themselves worthy in the eyes of the god for whom it is named after. He swears this one is different.
Requirement: Defeat 25 Medusas using only Thunder family spells or the Break spell.
Unlocks: (a)Gauntlets
It took ages to find enough Medusas for this to happen, but we got access to the Zeus Gauntlets! I don't have Thunder or Thundaga, so I exclusively used Thundara with both Locke and Vivi when opportunities presented themselves. This took two shots for Locke.
It took ages to find enough Medusas for this to happen, but we got access to the Zeus Gauntlets! I don't have Thunder or Thundaga, so I exclusively used Thundara with both Locke and Vivi when opportunities presented themselves. This took two shots for Locke.
Title: Diamond Drip
Author: FlamingXP (2025)
Story: Diamonds are so luxurious and expensive! Nobody could wear a hat made of diamond without amassing a ton of treasure, enough to buy several expensive jeweled bracelets. Once you have that kind of drip you might think the bracelets are garbage.
Requirement: Sell 5 Ruby Armlets at the same time.
Unlocks: (a)Diamond Helm
The shopping was very exciting after the last few quests.
When I went to Gaia to grab Cat Claws, I also grabbed a few extra Ruby Armlets and then sold a batch of them to finish this.
We're very well geared up and set to do either the Sunken Shrine or the Mirage Tower! I could go either way.
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The shopping was very exciting after the last few quests.
When I went to Gaia to grab Cat Claws, I also grabbed a few extra Ruby Armlets and then sold a batch of them to finish this.
We're very well geared up and set to do either the Sunken Shrine or the Mirage Tower! I could go either way.
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