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    Crimson Tears Mini-Guide by Daniel Glenfield (tom76b)

    Version 1.1  (Last updated 08/17/09) (US time format)

           Copyright (c) 2009 Daniel Glenfield
                 <[email protected]>


/*************************************
1.0 About the Guide
*************************************/

1.1. Brief Intro

I was very surprised to find that a guide had not been written for
Crimson Tears when visiting GameFaqs the other month. It's a fun
game for hacking and slashing mindless button-bashing fun, and
gets quite tough in places. I thought I'd put
together a few hints and tips in this mini-guide - a collection
of useful tricks I picked up during my 40+ hours of play time
with it.


1.2 Updates

Version 1.0  09/05/05
- Initial revision.

Version 1.1  08/17/09
- Added details on EX Mode (under 'Sidequest notes')
- Note: Wow four years sure does fly by...



/*****************************************
2.0 Button Config and Character Manoeuvres
******************************************/

X button        - Horizontal attack
Square button   - Vertical attack
Circle button   - Gun / Bomb
Triangle button - Special move
L1 button       - Evade
R1 button       - Guard



/*****************************************
3.0 General Tips
******************************************/

If anyone's seen my published guides before they'll be sure to recognise
the 'General Tips' section. Here you go, as standard.

* Choose your favourite hero and concentrate on powering up that and only
that character.
* Make good use of the evasion button (L1). At the end of the game you'll
find this an invaluable manoeuvre, so get practicing early on.
* Should you get defeated at any point you get to send in one of the other
two heroes. For this reason it is a good idea to keep your pals equipped
with fairly good weapons in case they need to perform a rescue (as you
cannot get to your item storage area). Oh, and you can save before you
teleport too.
* When rescuing, listen to the guidance by Lana and follow her directions.
* Finally on rescues, against a boss you can rematch whereby said boss has
only 50% health but you cannot use any items (making the functionality
next to worthless).
* Furthermore, it is not at all necessary to level up the other characters
as they'll get stronger by themselves. Simply choose your favourite and
stick to that one - the game will take too long otherwise.
* Have a selection of weapons that you level up throughout the game - for
example two or three glove-types, multiple knives, a couple of swords etc.
This is especially useful as some enemies are more susceptible to
differently-attributed attacks.
* Guns can be equipped alongside hand weapons. Guns can be used to
clear mines, take out enemies at a distance (such as dogs) and kill
those impervious to blades (Prototype drones). Guns do not break, nor
do they level up.
* If your inventory is full (24 items) you may not be able to swap
weapons. Remove an item to remedy this.
* Blue dogs
Appearing in the later stages these pests will steal a random item from your
inventory when they successfully attack, and then try to escape through the
nearest exit. Once they are through the door they - and your item -
disappear forever.
Because of the likelihood of your powered-up weapons being stolen it's best
to make these dogs a priority target and use guns to keep them at bay.
* Prototypes (White faceless drones)
These guys are the reason why you always carry a gun with you! Impervious
to bladed weapons and capable of seriously damaging knives etc. with one
of their combos, you'll need to blast away with a handgun to destroy them.
When encountered with other enemies draw the faster ones away and attack
them before the drone gets close. Move to the other side of the room
and repeat.

/*****************************************
4.0 Levelling Up (Character and Weapons)
******************************************/

* Make sure you have a Returner as you begin levelling up. Not being
able to return to the garage when you need to is a real pain!
In this situation all you can do is defeat every enemy you find until
you get one.
* EXP gained from enemies gets lower as you become stronger
e.g. when you enter a new level you may get 300EXP per enemy destroyed.
As you get stronger (and hence enemies get easier) the EXP gained is
reduced. When the EXP points gained start to get too low to be of
any benefit, look to be moving on to another level.
* Don�t do too much in one go. Returners are cheap enough and you don�t
want to spend 30 minutes power-levelling only for your best weapon to
break or get stolen right?
* Remember that the stronger a weapon gets the more expensive it is
to both repair and combine with the same type (to get a +1 advantage).
* Rare weapons (such as the Hell's Knuckle) are even more expensive to
repair and combine!
* If you have a commonly-found weapon and have the opportunity to combine
it with items in your inventory (to transform it into a rarer item) you
should consider holding off for a moment. By combining MyCommonSword with
identical ones you can create MyCommonSword+n, which can then be combined
with inventory items to make MyRareSword+n. This is preferable to finding
common items, combining to make rarer items, and then combining those
together.
* Check the status of weapons in hand periodically (yellow means damaged
so swap before it goes orange or red). The warning text is sometimes
only on screen for a moment so you may not notice.


/*****************************************
5.0 Items
******************************************/
A number of items come thoroughly recommended - here are a few of my
favourites.

* Teleporters � Warps you to the next floor. They Can be found in
Sealed Zone 10 and R&D Lab. Worth returning when you find one as they
are rare.
* Attack, Defence, and HP Boosters - Will increase your stats and are
vital to progressing through the later stages. These seem most common
in the Metal Processor stage, where they reside inside the empty oil
drums. Be sure to re-visit this stage often!
* Resurrection - very handy for the final level, these can be found
on the fourth floor of the R&D stage.
* Key / Exit Radars - It's best to use the Key Radar first as you may
well find the teleporter to the next floor on your way there.
Essential items for getting to the boss quickly.



/*****************************************
6.0 Levels
******************************************/
I shan't bother to give you a run through of all the areas in the game
as they're pretty similar, but I will point out a few tips for the
tougher sections of certain stages.

6.1 Tips
* Before attempting a level "for real" (i.e. to beat the boss) I first
suggest a run through the level to gain some EXP and learn what you�re
up against (types of monsters, strengths/weaknesses etc.).
* With a now-stronger character, stock up on health items and multiple
weapons, equipping your weaker ones until you get to the later floors
and the boss. Using the Key and Exit Radars run past the monsters,
fighting only when necessary as you�ll only damage your weapons and
use up health items.


6.2 Level 7 R&D
This level is particularly nasty as you have a total of 10
(count 'em!) floors, with a boss sandwiched inbetween as well as the
usual one at the end. Sounds daunting? Well it would be, if we were
planning on fighting past all those monster-filled areas. Instead,
try the following method of finishing the stage. Play through floors
1-3 using the usual technique of utilising Key Radars and avoiding
fights. Save on level four using the Recorder item and teleport to
level five. To defeat Time Reaper equip a Glove and use the X button
combo, levelled up so as to use flying kicks (which the boss cannot
block). Save again on level six, and teleport through the remaining
floors to the boss.
To beat the Unidentified Bio-Weapon see section 6.3 below.


6.3 Level 8 Boss fights
Here you fight the bosses again. You get EXP for fighting here and
can return at any point, but unfortunately you cannot teleport
or save :(
As such, you'll need health items. Get X-Energy on the fourth floor
and above in the R&D lab � they restore all your health!
Take a trip back to Metal Processor to find HP, Att, and Def
boosters and power up your character.

Item checklist:
(You can hold five of each � and you�ll need them!)
Energy Drink
Energy Boost
High Energy
X-Energy
Resurrection (one from the old mayor after rennovation, others on
the fourth floor and higher of R&D stage)
X-Coolant
High coolant

Weapons � Your favourites, levelled up hopefully. You must
include two Gloves and preferably two or three Thunderbolt /
Force Blades (Lightning-powered beam sword carried by the white
robots on level 7).

As a point of reference my character Amber was something like
Level: 55
Power with weapon: 220
Defence: 160
Health: 688


* Boss #1 Liquid Assassin
Get in close and hack 'n' slash away with weaker weapons that
you can afford to lose (perhaps powered-up Assassin Knives or Kaiser Swords).
When Talos starts disappearing stand still in the middle of the arena.
Turn and hit X to strike when he appears behind you. When he appears at
the edge of the inner circle run over to him and attack - you'll get
there before he fires off his liquid bullet attack.

* Boss #2 Mighty Destroyer
You can't kill the big juggernaut-wannabe but you can attack the small
drone that wanders around the arena. When its health is low run towards
it at a 45 degree angle so as to cut off its escape route (slash early
to catch him as he goes past). Strike the earthquake-causing foe and
dash away to create some space between you both.

* Boss #3 Flame Citadel
Get close (around the back or side) and attach with cool weapons if you
have them. When the boss generates its white aura and rises up push L1
as it falls to evade the
crush attack and continue hacking away.

* Boss #4 Roadside Predator
Stay close all the time! Use paralysis and overheat cures and equip a
weapon such as the Thunderbolt. Hammer the X button to strike him down
with the fourth blow. After rising he'll run towards you and kick
- simply evade with L1 and counter attack.

* Boss #5 Avian Transformer
Equip a Genbu Katana or other sword and run around in circles
repeating the two-slash combo (the second hit knocks the boss down).
Keep moving in a circle and attack when it has risen. When it splits
into two, go for the flying part and when they merge together again
repeat the previous tactic.

* Boss #6 Time Reaper
Hell Knuckle or other fighting glove and use the X combo to kick your
way to victory! Start kicking when she is on the ground � if you don�t
get a cheap hit in your combo will be in its latter stage when she
stands up.

* Boss #7 Unidentified Bio-Weapon
To beat the Unidentified Bio-Weapon use a weapon with a fair
range if possible (Thunderbolt is also a good option) and get your
hit in before the boss strikes.
With a one handed sword and upgraded combo you can continue slashing
to use a block-breaking attack and tag a couple more hits in after.
Back away as she rises and repeat.
When the stream of electricity appears run to the bottom of the screen
to avoid being forced there by it. Avoid the spiked balls the boss sends
out by running left to right or vice-versa, then run back to your
enemy when the barrier disappears and continue the attack.


6.4 Level 8 the Last Wildcat Lana

You can stand back and fire guns safely but this takes a long time
and you can do more damage up close, so long as you learn when
to dodge. When her health drops below 80% she�ll use charged plasma
blasts to attack, coupled with paralysis-causing ground slaps.
The attack pattern to follow should be along the following lines:
* Cure paralysis caused by the ground tremor or use L1 to evade it.
* Run from one side to the other to avoid the plasma blast.
* Get in close and attack two or three times (immediately
after the sweeping arm).
* Dash back to the bottom of the screen to avoid the flame blast
(she may use this up to three times) OR use L1 to evade it when
next to her and attack, then dodge the next and strike again.
* Attack quickly again before retreating.


6.5 Level 8 Vixer
All the way here and still no save point? Here�s how to best deal
damage to Vixer. It is very tough so you should aim to have plenty
of health top-ups still by the time you fight.
First of all don�t pay much attention to the 9000.00% health meter
� this will drop quick rapidly with each attack.
* When Vixer is surrounded by the crimson aura he is vulnerable,
so get a few hits in here. He�ll probably summon super-strong
faceless drones at this point but you can keep Vixer between you
and them and keep attacking.
* When he takes to the sky Vixer will launch white energy balls
which home in on your fighter. You can cause these to explode
harmlessly by running alongside the arena wall. Start from the left
or right side and keep running towards the bottom of the screen
and then back up the other side to avoid both volleys of shots
(you�ll notice them hitting the space behind you).
Note: Un-equip your weapon(s) now to avoid them taking damage.
* Vixer now lands and charges up another attack, which is to
cause firebolts to drop on your position one after another.
Don�t stand too close to him while charging as it�ll cause damage,
but you need to be ready to dash forward and attack quickly.
Keeping those prototype monsters in mind, position your character
so his/her back is to Vixer just after he unleashes his attack.
WHEN THE SCREEN FLASHES PRESS L1 to evade the firebolt and move
closer to Vixer. Turn and run to him and (equipping a weapon) strike
hard before the next bolt strikes (you have a chance to evade, but
the Prototypes will no doubt get a hit in).
* Vixer will then rise up and fire those white energy balls once
again, so repeat the same technique as before.

When the boss� health drops to around 1000% the arena turns
reddish to indicate a temperature rise � so remember your health
will begin dropping steadily from this point on. The same tactics
apply throughout the fight but the window of opportunity to get a
hit in after the first firebolt is greatly reduced � oh, and there
are many more firebolts so you WILL get hit. Hope you packed
plenty of X-Energy!


/*****************************************
7.0 Sidequest notes and renovating the city
******************************************/

* Completing a level will cause a side quest to become available
- go talk to the shopkeepers to learn of a special item hidden
away in the stage you just cleared. My advice is to get a few
spare weapons, max out your health items, and head straight for
the last floor (not the boss floor). Destroy all the monsters
here and you'll find the rare item which can be exchanged for
something useful from the shopkeeper.
* If you speak to the mayor in the area just past the shopkeepers
you can make a donation to renovate the city (i.e. increase the
traders' selection of goods).
He'll quite happily pocket all money above what he needs,
so here's how much you should offer to donate each time.
5000, 5000, 10,000 -> All shopkeepers get a stall.
23,000, then 50,000 -> Even bigger stalls are given out.
You'll be given a Resurrection item for your trouble as well.
* Once you have finished the game and have given the mayor enough
cash to renovate the city you can unlock the EX Mode quests.
Speak to the mayor and he should tell you that he'll give you
something good if you remove all your items. Store the items
and weapons in the garage inventory and speak to him again. He'll
say he's seen a portal around the back and will ask for money.
He'll charge 100G for the first floor (the only option) and the
screen will fade to black, starting the dungeon with your
character at level 99 equipped with some weapons but no items.

/*****************************************
8.0 Contacting The Author
******************************************/

If you want to send me a question, comment, etc. feel free to
contact me by email.

E-mail question/comments to [email protected]

/*****************************************
9.0 Credits
******************************************/

Ok I've hunted on the net, searched through my internet explorer
history, flicked through the instruction manual, and yet I
cannot remember the name or the website of the company who did
the translation and testing for Crimson Tears. But a big thanks
goes out to those unsung heroes.

And of course, the developers and testers at Spike and Capcom
for getting the cash together to publish the title.

I'm going to go ahead and thank all the people who have ever
supported me in all the things I've done in the past.
Thanks for helping me achieve my goals.

/*****************************************
10.0 Legal Info
******************************************/

Do what you like with this guide - but if you could give my name a
mention somewhere that would be appreciated :)