Castlevania: Circle of the Moon FAQ/Walkthrough Table of Contents I - Introduction Legal Information Version History II - Miscellaneous 01.0 - Items 02.0 - Equipment 03.0 - DSS 04.0 - Modes III - Walkthrough Prologue - Basic Strategies 001.0 - The Catacombs 002.0 - The Abyss Stairway/Audience Room 003.0 - The Machine Tower 004.0 - The Chapel Tower 005.0 - The Underground Gallery 006.0 - The Underground Warehouse 007.0 - The Underground Waterway 008.0 - The Observation Tower 009.0 - The Ceremonial Room 010.0 - The Battle Arena Welcome to my Castlevania: Circle of the Moon FAQ. Any questions, comments, corrections, or contributions are welcome, my email is tarrun75(at)gmail(dot)com. Please make sure to add something related to Circle of the Moon in the subject line so I don't have to figure out what game you're talking about. Also, questions regarding something that's already covered in the guide will not be answered. Credit will be given to anything sent to me that I add or major corrections. For corrections, please email me only if it's something really important, something that will clearly confuse anyone reading. Legal information: This document is copyrighted Tarrun 2005. This guide may not be reproduced under any circumstance except for personal or private use. It may not be placed on any web site, magazine or otherwise distributed publicly without advanced written permission. This guide may not be used for profit, and may only be used on gamefaqs.com. Use of this work on any other web site or as a part of any public display is a violation of copyright and is strictly prohibited. Version History First Submission: June 15th - June 28th - Version 1.0 II - Miscellaneous This section covers all of the little bits of information that's either too spread out in the actual walkthrough or not mentioned. 01.0 - Items Antidote - Cures poison. Cure Curse - Cures curse. Heart - Restores 10 hearts. Heart Ex - Restores 50 hearts. Heart High - Restores 25 hearts. Heart Mega - Restores 100 hearts. Meat - Restores 50 health. Mind Ex - Restores all of your mind points. Mind High - Restores half of your mind points. Mind Restore - Restores 30 percent of your mind points. Potion - Restores 20 health. Potion Ex - Restores all of your health. Potion High - Restores 250 health. Spiced Meat - Restores 100 health. 02.0 - Equipment 02.1 - Armor Bronze Armor Stat Bonus: +50 defense Dropped by: Flame Armor, Skeleton Knight Chain Mail Stat Bonus: +100 defense Dropped by: Flame Demon, Forest Armor, Lizard Man Cotton Clothes Stat Bonus: +20 defense Dropped by: Mud Man, Mummy, Zombie, Cotton Robe Stat Bonus: +25 defense, +100 intelligence Dropped by: Fox Archer, Were-Bear, Dark Armor Stat Bonus: +550 defense, -10 strength, -10 luck, -10 intelligence Dropped by: Lilim Diamond Armor Stat Bonus: +210 defense Dropped by: Ice Demon Gold Armor Stat Bonus: +80 defense Dropped by: Thunder Armor, Were-Jaguar, Earth Armor, Leather Armor Stat Bonus: +30 defense Dropped by: Skeleton Knight, Skeleton Spear, Axe Armor Magic Robe Stat Bonus: +200 defense, +300 intelligence Dropped by: Witch, Alraune Mirror Armor Stat Bonus: +300 defense Dropped by: Devil Needle Armor Stat Bonus: +400 defense, +10 strength Dropped by: Nightmare Night Suit Stat Bonus: +60 defense, +20 strength, +10 intelligence Dropped by: Hyena, Golem Ninja Garb Stat Bonus: +80 defense, +30 strength Dropped by: Were-Jaguar, Franken Platinum Armor Stat Bonus: +150 defense Dropped by: Dark Armor, Dullahan, Holy Armor Prisoner's Clothes Stat Bonus: +20 defense, +5 strength Dropped by: Gargoyle, Ghoul, Zombie Thief Rainbow Robe Stat Bonus: +140 defense, +250 intelligence, +15 luck Dropped by: Forest Armor, Fleaman, Ice Demon, Poison Armor Sage's Robe Stat Bonus: +250 defense, +500 intelligence Dropped by: Lilith Shinning Armor Stat Bonus: +500 defense, +10 strength, +10 luck, +10 intelligence Dropped by: None Note: You win this armor by completing the Battle Arena. And yes, it was originally supposed to be "Shining", but it's a typo in the game. Silk Robe Stat Bonus: +40 defense, +140 intelligence Dropped by: Fox Archer, Wight Soldier Fatigues Stat Bonus: +120 defense, +50 strength, +10 luck Dropped by: Franken, Catoblepas, Steel Armor Stat Bonus: +120 defense Dropped by: Evil Pillar, Golem, Ice Armor, Thunder Armor Stylish Suit Stat Bonus: +40 defense, +10 strength Dropped by: Harpy, Heat Shade 02.2 - Arm Arm Guard Stat Bonus: +10 defense Dropped by: Beast Demon, Bloody Sword Bear Ring Stat Bonus: -100 defense, -100 strength, -100 luck, -100 intelligence Dropped by: Skeleton Medallist Note: Wearing this, along with activating the Black Dog and Pluto cards, transforms your character into a bear that fires rockets. Just remember that you'll be killed in one hit, so save first. Cursed Ring Stat Bonus: +30 defense, +30 strength, -100 luck Dropped by: Poltergeist, Arch Demon, Beast Demon Double Grips Stat Bonus: +75 defense, +75 strength, +75 luck, +75 intelligence Dropped by: Dark Armor Note: You must have two Double Grips equipped for these attributes to take affect. Gauntlet Stat Bonus: +15 strength Dropped by: Merman, Werewolf, Earth Armor Hard Ring Stat Bonus: +60 defense, -10 strength, -10 luck Dropped by: Medusa, Stone Armor, Death Mantis Intelligence Ring Stat Bonus: -10 strength, -10 luck, +50 intelligence Dropped by: Succubus, Evil Hand Luck Ring Stat Bonus: -10 defense, +50 luck, -10 intelligence Dropped by: Zombie Thief Magic Gauntlet Stat Bonus: +10 intelligence Dropped by: Frozen Shade, Poison Worm, Thunder Demon Miracle Armband Stat Bonus: +10 luck Dropped by: Clinking Man Sage's Bracelet Stat Bonus: -25 defense, -25 strength, -25 luck, +100 intelligence Dropped by: Wind Demon Toy Ring Stat Bonus: None Dropped by: Skeleton Medallist Wristband Stat Bonus: +5 strength Dropped by: Spirit, Were-Panther, Bat, Devil Tower, Medusa 03.0 - DSS 03.1 - Action Cards Mercury Dropped by: Bone Head Effect: Changes your whip. Venus Dropped by: Slime Effect: Changes your stats Jupiter Dropped by: Heat Shade Effect: Creates a shield that revolves around you. Mars Dropped by: Bloody Sword Effect: Alternate weapons. Diana Dropped by: Man Eater Effect: Fires a projectile from your whip. Apollo Dropped by: Arch Demon Effect: Throw a projectile (half-circle beginning at Down + B) Neptune Dropped by: Ice Armor Effect: Immunity to a specific form of attack (fire, ice, etc). Saturn Dropped by: Fallen Angel Effect: Summon a familiar. Uranus Dropped by: Scary Candle Effect: Summon animals (half-circle beginning at Down + B) Pluto Dropped by: Trick Candle Effect: Miscellaneous attacks and stat bonuses 03.2 - Attribute Cards Salamander Dropped by: Skeleton Bomber and Imp Effect: Fire Serpent Dropped by: Earth Demon and Holy Armor Effect: Ice Mandragora Dropped by: Axe Armor and Lizard Man Effect: Nature Golem Dropped by: Electric Skeleton and Minotaur Effect: Earth Cockatrice Dropped by: Stone Armor and Death Mantis Effect: Stone Manticore Dropped by: Thunder Demon and Succubus Effect: Poison Griffin Dropped by: Skeleton Athlete and Siren Effect: Wind Thunderbird Dropped by: Were-Panther and Dullahan Effect: Electricity Unicorn Dropped by: White Armor (Battle Arena only) Effect: Holy and healing Black Dog Dropped by: Devil Armor (Battle Arena only) Effect: Darkness 04.0 - Modes After you complete the game in the normal mode (called Vampire Killer in the game), you're given a password to use as a game name to play the game in a different mode. Each mode gives your character different stats, better in some, worse in others, to make it more challenging or fun. Note that if you haven't beaten the game and try to enter the password, it won't register. 04.1 - Magician Requirements: Complete the game in Vampire Killer. Password: FIREBALL Positive Effects: Begin the game with all twenty DSS cards in your possession. Negative Effects: Your character is very weak, meaning that attacks inflict less damage than they normally would. 04.2 - Fighter Requirements: Complete the game in Magician Password: GRADIUS Positive Effects: Much higher stats, making all of your attacks much more powerful. Negative Effects: No DSS cards. 04.3 - Shooter Requirements: Complete the game in Fighter Password: CROSSBOW Positive Effects: Sub-weapons are very powerful, and you begin the game with a lot more hearts than normal. Also, if you collect two knives (picking up one with one already in your inventory) it becomes a homing knife, following the nearest enemy around the screen. Negative Effects: All other stats are lower. 04.4 - Thief Requirements: Complete the game in Shooter Password: DAGGER Positive Effects: Your luck is extremely high, so you'll find potions, DSS cards, and equipment more often than you normally would. Negative Effects: All of your other stats are very low. III - Walkthrough Prologue - Basic Strategies - Save as often as possible. Nothing's worse than having to replay an area, especially if you passed a save point and didn't bother to save your game. - You WILL have to do some leveling in the game; the guidelines are to increase your levels by five between bosses, but that's the minimum. If you find an area that seems to yield a lot of experience (whether it's a large group of weaker enemies or one or two powerful enemies) stick around and level up a few times. If you still need more of a "purpose" to level, try finding enemies that give up DSS cards (see the DSS section for a list) and attack them. - Forget about just running through the area to avoid dying; I've tried it, nine times out of ten you end up dying. More often than not you'll end up with a swarm of enemies attacking you if you get held up somewhere. Go through the castle slowly, attacking small groups of enemies at a time. 001.0 - The Catacombs DSS Cards To Find: Salamander (Skeleton Bomber), Serpent (Earth Demon), Mercury (Bone Head), Venus (Slime) 001.1 - The Catacombs The Catacombs are filled with your basic enemies: Skeletons, Poison Worms, Bone Heads, and Spirits later on; none of which, even at your low level, should take more than a few hits to defeat. There are a couple of Earth Demons roaming the area that can wipe the floor with you, but it isn't too difficult to learn their patterns. After dropping down from the Ceremonial Room into the Catacombs, walk forward and drop down into the next screen. There are about five or six Skeleton Bombers from here to the lowest level, so use this time to get used to the time-delay with the whip and the other basic controls. As you go down, collect the hearts from the candelabras and keep an eye out from the Salamander card, which usually drops in this area. At the bottom is a path on the right, so head through to reach the Catacombs. Skeleton Bombers are the main enemy here, but there are also Bone Heads, Bats, and Poison Worms. Destroy the first three Skeletons and head past the entrance to the Abyss Stairway above you. Down the slope is a pair of Bats and a Bone Head, so defeat them both. There's an entrance on the right, but you won't be able to get past the obstacle, so don't bother going there. Continue left down the slope and fight the Bomber, Bone Head, and Bat. Past the group is a Poison Worm, attack the main group on the ceiling and slide through the rest that dropped onto the ground. At the end of this path, jump up to the higher level and fight the Head. Continue left and enter the save point. Return to the fork and walk down the slope, there's another Bone Head on the ceiling. You aren't able to go to the end of the path on the left, so head right and whip the candle directly in front of you to collect your first sub- weapon: the knife. Pick it up and continue right, there are some more Worms on the ceiling. Enter the next area through the passage on the right. In this room is your first tough enemy: an Earth Demon. He deals quite a bit of damage, but his attacks are pretty easy to time. He flies around the room erratically (make sure to stay far enough away or he'll plow through you) and summons an earthquake. You have to jump over the earthquakes, which are signaled by the Earth Demon lifting up his arm and a small burst of electricity on whichever side the earthquake is going to begin. Jump over it and immediately attack the Demon; you should be able to get about four strikes from your whip and it takes about ten to fifteen to kill it. Repeat this as many times as necessary to defeat the Demon. Now walk to the opposite end of the room to collect your prize: the Dash Boots. By tapping either left or right twice, you can run, which, aside from the obvious benefit of saving time, allows you to make farther jumps. Hop up the platforms in front of the Dash Boots; you can't enter the highest room on the right just yet, but the one on the second level is available. A group of Bats are guarding the entrance, but a quick swing of the whip should take care of them. This next corridor will introduce you to another new enemy: the Zombie. Basically a Skeleton that moves around more, they also randomly rise from the earth to attack you. Depending on you level, you might be able to defeat them by sliding through them. If not this will be a little more difficult since you'll have to kill them before they walk into you, but still not impossible. Remember that their numbers are endless, so don't stand around trying to take them all down (and there are better places to level up). After plowing through the barrage of Zombies and Skeletons, enter the next area through the entryway on the right. This large room branches off and leads to a number of smaller rooms, so start from the bottom and work your way up. In the bottom right corner is a door that leads to another Earth Demon. Defeat him like you did the previous one and collect the Heart Max at the end of the hall. Return to the main room and jump up the platforms. Kill any Bone Heads or Skeleton Spears around you and jump over to the second level on the left side. Defeat the lone Bone Spear and then whip the wall to reveal a secret room with a MP Max being guarded by two Bone Spears. Return to the main room and jump over to the third level on the right side to find another save point. Save your game and continue up the room; there's a room on the left side of the highest level that has another MP Max. Now leave this area through the gap in the ceiling to continue. From the entrance to this area, head left past the Bombers and Bone Heads and slide under the wall. Head down this area to the lowest level, there's a HP Max in the room on the right (along with an axe sub-weapon). Run over to the opposite room on this level and slide under the wall and go through the entryway that leads back to the large area you were just in. Leave this region through the hole in the ceiling, and advance right without climbing up to the higher areas. Some Mud Men and Spirits will attack you in this corridor, which leads to an MP Max. You won't be able to reach the platforms above the Max, so run back to the entry point and jump up to the higher level and go left, killing Bone Heads and Bombers along the way. In this new area, jump down to the bottom of the room and fight your way through the barrage of Mud Men that attack you. Kill the Bomber on the platform and use it to jump into the next section. The room on the left is the last save point in the area, so save your game before continuing. Drop down the three platforms and head through the doorway on the left. Fight your way down the levels and enter the room on the left. This area is guarded by four or five floating Sarcophaguses, each of which releases three Mummies to attack you. This is a great place to level up; the Mummies are slow moving and fairly easy to defeat, and each one gives you three experience points. If you can get two or three Sarcophaguses on the screen, you can get the Mummies packed together and kill them all at the same time. You should be around a level three or four, so hang around here until you become a level five. Also, at the end of this area is a candelabrum with holy water (it's called the "potion" in the game, but after playing so many Castlevania games I'll end up calling it holy water eventually anyway). Leave this room and head up to the next level; enter the room on the left and collect the MP Max after killing the group of flea men. Leave, but don't enter the room on the highest level; that door leads to the boss, but save your game first. When you're ready, enter inside to fight the first boss, Cerberus. 001.2 - Boss: Cerberus Suggested Level: 5 Boss' Hit Points: 600 Cerberus is a fairly predictable boss, so your main goal is to not die; inflicting damage comes in a distant second because Cerberus leaves himself wide open while he's performing an attack. When Cerberus turns blue, he will do one of two things: either lunge forward at you or release two electrical orbs. It's pretty difficult to counter attack the dog when he lunges; but while the orbs are floating around he doesn't even move, so stand in the middle of the two orbs (where you won't get hurt) and attack him with your whip or throw axes/holy water (depending on where Cerberus is standing. When the dog turns red, he fires a laser from his mouth that goes completely across the room. Stand directly behind him and attack him with your whip. It shouldn't take too long before it dies. After Cerberus dies, head through the room on the left and pick up the Double, which allows you to perform a double jump in mid-air. 001.3 - Pre-Abyss Stairway Before you head to the Abyss Stairway, there are a few places that you can go to now that you have the double jump. The first is at the end of the long corridor with the Mummies. After passing the candelabrum with the holy water, jump over the wall and up to the highest level. Now face the wall on the right and attack the rock directly level with the floor you're currently standing on to reveal a secret room with an HP Max. The doorway on the left leads to the Abyss Stairway, but there's another Max upgrade we can pick up. Head back to the area with the gap in the floor (that leads to the large vertical room) and jump up the platforms all of the way on the right (past the mud men) and collect another HP Max. Now that we've covered that, head to either of the two areas that lead to the Abyss Stairway, there's the one in the room with the mummies and another in the very beginning of the Catacombs (it's a gap in the ceiling). 002.0 - The Abyss Stairway/Audience Room DSS Cards To Find: Mercury (Bone Head), Venus (Slime), Salamander (Skeleton Bomber), Mandragora (Axe Armor) 002.1 - The Abyss Stairway Whichever entrance you're at, you still have to go left (past the gap leading back to the Catacombs if you went through the door by the Mummies) and jump up the platforms. After making four jumps, attack the right wall to find another secret room with an MP Max being guarded by a slime and an Axe Armor. This is a great place to try and get the Venus and Mandragora cards, so remember it for later if you don't want to get them now. Continue up the platforms and take a right when the path opens. Defeat the Axe Armor and step onto the platform. Drop directly down (Down + A on a platform) to land on the platform below. Enter the room on the left and pick up the HP Max. You'll have to drop down to the bottom of the Abyss again, so retrace your steps back to the top. Continue up through the opening in the ceiling, and up three more levels in the next area. Jump on top of the cracked rock (don't bother with the Bone Tower) and over to the next platform before it breaks away (if it does just leave the room and reenter it), the second room on the right is a save point. Past the save point, Gremlins and Skeletons attack you, but by now they shouldn't be a problem. After climbing up about ten platforms, you come to an area that branches off into four separate rooms. Two of them, the rooms on the right and top right (the latter which you can't even see) are inaccessible, but the secret room on the left and the Audience Room on the far left are. The secret room is in the corner, just past the Bone Tower on the ground. Continue on to the Audience Room at the top of the Abyss Stairway. 002.2 - The Audience Room Since you can't get far in the room on the right, jump to the breakable rocks and over to the left and defeat the Axe Armor. Head through the door at the end of the hall and drop down three levels. At the very bottom is the Ceremonial Room and a blocked waypoint, so don't bother going there. Enter the Triumph Hallway on the left and fight your way through the Zombies and Skeletons, at the end is the castle's gates, along with a Fire Armor. He's a lot more difficult than the axe armor, his sword takes large amounts of life with each hit, and his defensive is a higher than any other enemy you've encountered so far. Just stay out of his way when he's striking and you should be fine. Behind the Fire Armor, just before the gate, is a candelabrum with the cross sub-weapon; in my opinion it's the best sub-weapon in the game because if you can hit an enemy with it just as it begins to return to you, it will hit him three or four times (on top of already being the most powerful sub-weapon, damage-wise). Return to the Audience Room and climb to the top of the area. Whip the left corner of the wall at the highest point and enter the secret room to find an HP Max. Leave the room and head right; the next hallway is filled with Axe Armors and Skeleton Soldiers. When the path branches off, enter the room in the middle and save your game. Now drop down and enter the next room, there are some skeletons, including an electric skeleton, guarding an MP Max at the end of the hall. Backtrack to the entrance of the room and jump up the platforms and collect the HP Max in the corner. Head back to the save point and continue up to the next room. Take the lower path first and jump over the gap to pick up the HP Max on the other side. Now take the high road and enter the Outer Wall. 002.3 - The Outer Wall This area is mostly filled with Skeleton Bombers and Spirits, so jump from the pieces of the bridge to reach the end. Instead of entering the next area, though, drop down and attack the ground (spin your whip while crouching) to uncover another hidden room. Defeat the Axe Armor and the Electric Skeleton and grab the HP Max. You'll have to make your way back to the beginning of the bridge, but it shouldn't be too difficult to get to the end again. If you don't have the Mercury and Serpent cards yet, simply continue to the end of this area and drop down into the Audience Hall. If you do, then freeze the Floating Brains and make your way to the top of the area. Don't stop at either the first ledges on the left or right, and then jump up to the highest level and head right. Drop down into an enclosed section with an HP Max. Now leave the Outer Wall through the hole in the right corner. 002.4 - The Audience Hall (revisited) From the entrance to the Outer Wall, drop down and jump to the section of the room on the left. Destroy the two Skeletons and head through the doorway. Activate the waypoint and travel to the other waypoint that was blocked by the large stone barrier. Jump on the button to disable the barrier, and then head through the warp again and continue right. There are a lot of regular and Electrical Skeletons, but that's about it. At the end of the hall, take the higher path and collect the MP Max. The middle path is a save point, and the lowest path allows you to proceed with the game. Drop down into the next area and take a left, killing the Devil Towers and Axe Armors as you go, and pick up the MP Max at the end. Retrace your steps, but continue going right. Drop down the first two levels and then break the left wall to find a hidden room with an MP Max. Get to the bottom of the passageway and take a right, jump along the platforms and collect the HP Max. You can't do anything else here yet, so return the vertical passageway and head through the exit to the left. Run along the corridor and find the hidden room in the left corner, which contains a HP Max. Continue following the main passage and head through the exit. From here, follow the lower path and head right when given the option. Defeat the Electric Skeleton and enter the save point. Now climb up the area; jump to each of the three breakable rocks and head through the door on the left, which leads to the boss. 002.5 - Boss: Necromancer Suggested Level: 10 Boss' Hit Points: 500 The Necromancer is a pretty simple boss to defeat. He flies around the room, and occasionally fires six energy orbs in all directions that are easy to avoid. He also summons Zombies that will walk around the floor and attack you if you drop down from the platform in the middle of the room. If you have the Mandragora and the Serpent cards, use them to form the Thorn Whip, and attack the Necromancer with that. When he dies, a Winged Skeleton takes his place. His moves are almost the same, he summons Skeletons instead of Zombies and he transforms into an energy orb and flies around the room (he's invincible in this state). Attack him the same way you did the Necromancer to defeat him with ease. Collect the Tackle afterwards in the room on the left, this allows you to break through any of those large cracked rocks blocking some passages. 003.0 - The Machine Tower DSS Cards To Find: Jupiter (Heat Shade), Venus (Slime), Uranus (Scary Candle), Cockatrice (Stone Armor), Manticore (Thunder Demon) 003.1 - The Machine Tower This is where the game starts to get tricky. Most of the simple enemies that you've encountered up to this point have been replaced. There are Fox Archers, Heat Shades, Medusas (coming into contact with one turns you to stone), Stone Armors, Earth Armors, and Thunder Demons to name a few. Even though they do a decent amount of damage, all it takes is patience to avoid their attacks and counter-attack. From the room with the Necromancer, return to the Audience Room and climb to the top. Enter the hall and jump on the button to destroy rock barrier. Take the warp point to the west end of the Audience Room (where the Ceremonial Room and Triumph Hallway is) and enter the second to last path on the left. Make sure to have the cross, though; it comes in handy for the next boss battle. Break the rock in front of you and continue. Enemies include skeleton soldiers, zombies, and ectoplasms, nothing too difficult. At the end is a platform leading to the Machine Tower, so head up. The main thing you have to take into consideration here is the Medusas that float around the room. They don't inflict a whole lot of damage, true, but they turn you to stone upon impact, leaving you open to any attack unless you break free. The first thing to do is jump up to the second moving platform and enter the save room on the right. Afterwards, head over to the left side of the area and climb up the platforms and grab the HP Max. It shouldn't be a problem to avoid the Fox Archers, but be careful or you'll be knocked off the platform and end up back at square one. When you've collected the max upgrade, return to the main platforms and enter the room right above the save point to gain another HP Max. Another two platforms up is an MP Max, but you don't have the items to reach it. Don't worry, you get the Kick Boots after defeating the Iron Golem, the boss of the Machine Tower. Before leaving this portion of the Machine Tower, attack the top left corner of the area to find a secret room with an MP Max being guarded by a Heat Shade. Take a left and kill the Heat Shades, if you don't have the Jupiter card by now it wouldn't be a bad idea to hang around here and get it. Climb up the platforms (don't forget the save point on the left) and kill the Fox Archers while avoiding the Medusas and electric traps at the top. Jump up to and enter the next room, this area can be frustrating if you don't time your jumps correctly. You have to not only make the jumps, but avoid the Medusa heads as well. Kill the Fox Archers at the bottom of the screen and jump to the third- highest platform. Wait until the fourth and last one is near you and then climb onto it, keeping in mind the electrical current on the ceiling. Once on the platform, crouch down and swing your whip to avoid being petrified by a Medusa head. At the end, kill the Heat Shade and jump to what is finally a floor that isn't moving. Whip the wall and enter the hidden room, while there is a Heart Max here, this area is much more important later on. Return to the main room and check out the bottom right corner of the area. Slide under the wall and fight the Thunder Demon. They're fairly easy to defeat, wait until the lightning appears overhead and hide in between them before attacking. In the top right corner is a hidden room with an HP Max guarded by a Fox Archer. Return to the room and head down, there's another Thunder Demon here. Jump up the three horizontal platforms on the left and enter the room on the left. Kill the Stone Armor (you can get the Cockatrice card here if you want) and collect the HP Max before returning to the main by sliding under the wall in the bottom left corner. Get back to the platform that passes under the electricity. When it reaches the right side, jump to the horizontal platform and head over to the exit on the right (don't get knocked over by the Fox Archer on the right). Jump down to the floor and kill the Fox Archer and Slime. Break the rock and enter the room on the right, there's another Stone Armor with an MP Max. Walk up the stairs and jump onto next level. Break the rock and enter the room on the second level, and then break the one on the next level to enter the room on the left. Fight your way through Fox Archers and Stone Armors and collect the HP Max. Return to the main room and retrace your steps back to the third level with the exit leading to the Audience Room. Jump onto the rocks and jump to the next levels and enter the corridor with the Slimes and Earth Armors. At the end of the hallway is a save point, so enter it before ascending to the next area. Kill the Fox Archers on your way up, and find the secret room in the top right corner with an MP Max and a cross. Climb down and enter the room on the right past the Heat Shades. 003.2 - Boss: Iron Golem Suggested Level: 15 Boss' Hit Points: 1000 The Iron Golems main attacks are pretty simple. He slams the ground, which besides causing damage if you're on the ground, knocks a few gears to the ground that you have to avoid. He also fires an energy orb at you that inflicts quite a bit of damage. However, the real problem when fighting the Golem is that he can regenerate his health as many times as he wants, meaning that you'll have to quickly drain his life or be forced to start over. The best way to do this is to constantly throw crosses. Not only do they inflict more damage than any other weapon, but if you can distance yourself so that the cross stops on the Golem before returning to you, it counts three or four more hits on top of the initial ones. Repeat this as quickly as you can and the Iron Golem should go down without a problem. When it's defeated, Hugh enters the battlefield and gets upset because you beat him to his trophy. After he leaves, enter the room on the right and collect the Kick Boots. If you hold R as you jump into a wall, you can kick off into the opposite direction and gain higher ground. 004.0 - The Chapel Tower DSS Cards To Find: Mars (Bloody Sword), Apollo (Arch Demon), Manticore (Thunder Demon), Thunderbird (Were-Panther) Before going to the Eternal Corridor, it would be a good idea to visit the Catacombs, Audience Room, and Machine Tower and collect some of the max upgrades that you couldn't reach before. Not only does this make things easier later on when you're trying to complete the map, but it also upgrades your stats before entering the Chapel Tower, which is an area that can cause problems. 004.1 - Eternal Corridor If you remember back to the beginning of the game, at the end of the Abyss Stairway there was an area that branched off into four sections: a hidden room, the Audience Room, a room with a statue in it, and one that was too high up to reach. Now that we have the Kick Boots, return there and kick jump up the wall and enter the Eternal Corridor. The first enemy you encounter is a Gorgon, a bull that snorts some sort of steam that can turn you into stone. Luckily, if you stay on the small wedge before the floor dips down, the steam won't come near you, leaving you free to attack the Gorgon from there. Make your way through the room, fighting Gorgons and Spirits as you go, and then continue to the next room. This room contains another new enemy: a Flame Demon. Like the ones you've already run into, the Flame Demon flies around the room, occasionally pausing to unleash an attack. It's attacks include sending out a wave of fireballs that spin and creating dozens of large fireballs on the screen that all converge right where you're standing. Fortunately, you can destroy the latter by swinging your whip, but you'll have to avoid the others the best you can. Things only get more complicated after the Flame Demon. The next room contains several Were-Bears and Beast Demons, whose combined attacks can make it tough to get by unscathed. While the Were-Bear slowly lumbers towards you and attacks only when it gets close, the Beast Demon stands on the opposite end of the screen and fires waves of projectiles at you. The only way to combat the two of them is by inching up to the Were-Bear and attacking it, but retreating when either it counter-attacks or the Best Demon decides to join in. After the Were-Bear dies, run right up to the Beast Demon and attack it. If you're close enough (literally right under it), its projectiles won't be able to hit you, making it easy to defeat. The next area contains another Flame Demon, except this time there are Evil Hands floating around as well. Focus your attention on the Evil Hands first, because if one manages to grab you, there's a good chance the Flame Demon will get a cheap shot in before you can escape. Now drop down into the hole; on the right is a secret room with a Heart Max. The left is blocked by another statue, so forget about that path at the moment. Continue onwards and run down the slope, there's a warp point at the top right, a secret passage with an HP Max at the bottom right, and a Heart Max at the top left. When you've collected everything, head back up to the highest level and enter the Chapel Tower on the right. 004.2 - The Chapel Tower The first thing to greet you in the Chapel Tower is a set of Flame Armors and Skeleton Knights. Jump up to the next level and run over to the right and save your game. There are a lot of Bloody Swords and Flame Armors here, making it difficult to move more than a few feet without having three or four Swords diving at you. Take your time and slide out of the way of any Swords and then counter- attack. After climbing up to the third level, whip the bottom left corner of the wall and enter the secret room with an MP Max and a Hyena. At the top of this first tower, take a left and check out the far left side of the room. Equip an ice whip or ice sword and freeze the Brains to climb up and collect the Heart Max. Return to the entrance and wall jump to find an MP Max, but not before fighting a group of Beast Demons the same way you did before. After you have both Max upgrades, return to the main tower and continue up. The next tower is basically the same as before, except with the addition of Marionettes. If one of them touches you, you become cursed and are unable to attack until it wears off. However, the Marionettes drop a lot of uncurse potions, so as long as you're cautious enough to avoid coming into contact with them, there shouldn't be a problem. Also, make sure to find the hidden room in the top left corner of the third level in a small inlet; there's an MP Max inside. About halfway up the tower, there's a save point on the left. Make sure to take advantage of it, since it's the only save point from here on until right before the boss. In the third section of the tower, a Thunder Demon flies down and attacks you. Kill it, and then head left and fight the Were-Panthers and Beast Demons. Climb up the platforms and continue on to the next area in the Chapel. It gets a little easier now. Instead of Bloody Swords and Flame Armors, there are Bone Towers and Skeleton Bombers, with the occasional Heat Shade. As you're wall jumping up the right wall, whip the middle of the right side and collect the HP Max in the secret room. Fight the Bone Towers on your way down and then wall jump up the middle of the area and land on the other portion on the left. Remember, if you fall here, you'll have to start back at the bottom. Continue down, past more Bone Towers, and enter the next area. Before proceeding to the top of the tower, run along the path on the lower level and kill the Gorgon. At the end, wall jump and pick up the Heart Max. Now head back to the beginning of the room and climb up; the Bloody Swords and Marionettes have returned. Follow this path up to the top and exit at the left. With the scenery reverting to the gray stone again, the Were-Panthers have also returned, along with a pair of Hyenas and Were-Bears each. At the end of the passageway is another hidden room with an HP Max inside, and above that is a save point. Run right and jump to the landings to reach the boss' room. You arrive just as Hugh is being thrown out in defeat. He warns you not to enter, but who are you to back away from a fight? 004.3 - Boss: Adramelech Suggested Level: 20 Boss' Hit Points: 1800 Adramelech has three attacks: it can release a swarm of skulls that fly from one side of the room to the other or launch blue fireballs at you. The third attack takes place throughout the entire fight, dozens of small purple bubbles will randomly appear around the arena. To avoid the skulls, simply stay in front of the skulls and run to the other end of the room. The blue fireballs can be dodged by staying against the wall and jumping or crouching as they pass by you. As for the bubbles, equip a Jupiter + Salamander or Serpent combination to create a barrier of fireballs to knock them away if you come near one. The only way to damage Adramelech is by attacking his head, so stand in the middle of the wall and Adramelech and throw crosses. Like with the Iron Golem, the crosses should stop right on its head and cause a great deal of damage. Repeat this as many times as necessary while avoiding the two attacks to defeat it. If you don't have the cross with you, however, try creating a Rose or Flame Sword with the DSS cards and use the same strategy. When it dies, enter the room on the right and step on the button to destroy the statue in the room, as well as every other one in the castle. Continue past the broken statue and collect the HP Max, and then return to the save point. 005.0 - The Underground Gallery DSS Cards To Find: Diana (Man Eater), Cockatice (Death Mantis), Salamander (Imp) If you remember back to before entering the Chapel Tower, there was a small, upside-down "T" shaped area with a hidden room and a statue. Now that the statues are destroyed, it's time to explore this place. The main thing to keep in mind is that many of the monsters in the Underground Gallery are poisonous, so be sure to have at least a few Antidotes on hand. 005.1 - The Underground Gallery The first enemy you encounter in the Gallery is an Imp. They aren't very tough; the only offense they put up is occasionally throwing stones that bounce around the room. Bat them away by swinging your whip and then attack the Imp itself to destroy it. When you reach the end of the floor, drop down into the larger, more open portion of the room. There's a button on your left that activates a platform, so jump on it and quickly get on. Protect yourself from the Brains as the platform moves across the room and then slide under the wall to find a Heart Max. Afterwards, enter the room on the left (under the button) and fight the pairs of Harpies and Imps. Past that is a vertical tower that has a save point at the top. Save your game and drop to the bottom of the tower to continue; there are several King Moths and Death Mantises, which can cause problems as you can be cramped by the wide attack range of the Mantis and the poison clouds of the Moths. Try to kill the Moth first since it will die in one or two hits, and then focus your attention on the Mantis. Halfway down the corridor is a breakable rock, and past that is another vertical tower. At the top right is an MP Max being guarded by Harpies, Mantises and a Thunder Armor. The bottom right corner is filled with Evil Hands and Killer Bees (think of them as faster, poisonous Evil Hands), with a Poison Armor and an HP Max in the back. Finally, the bottom left corner leads to a corridor with Man Eaters and Killer Bees; at the end is a large room with Poison Armors and Myconids, small, mushroom-like creatures that spray a cloud of poison. In the bottom left corner in the area is a hidden room with a Heart Max. Head through the top left exit and jump onto the bridge; it will begin to collapse, so run to the other side and slide under the wall before it gives out under you. Drop down and slide under the wall to find an MP Max. Return to the main room and exit through the top right; after jumping over two collapsing platforms, enter the save point on the left. Above you is the boss, but if you aren't a level 25 I suggest going back and fighting Poison Armors to gain experience. 005.2 - Boss: Dragon Zombie Suggested Level: 25 Boss' Hit Points: 1500 each This is the first boss that I really consider difficult; the two heads crowd you, often coming into contact as they sway back and forth while you attempt to attack them. As with Adramelech, equip a shield with the Jupiter card to avoid the falling rocks throughout the battle, and use your cross to inflict damage. The dragons only have three attacks; they can fire some sort of projectile from their mouths (the one on the left breathes fire and the one on the right releases energy orbs), slam the wall, causing pieces of the ceiling to fall down, or try to bite you. Stand on the lowest platform in the middle of the area and focus your attention on one dragon. Wait for it to move its head into view and then throw a cross. If either of the dragons try to attack, quickly jump to the platform above you to avoid it. When one dies, the other will eat it and regain health, which is why it's pointless to attack both dragons at the same time. However, with one already dead, you now have an entire half of the area to work with, making it a lot easier to avoid attacks. When both dragons are dead, enter the room on the left and pick up the Heavy Ring, which allows you to push those brown boxes that have block some passages. 006.0 - The Underground Warehouse DSS Cards To Find: Apollo (Arch Demon), Serpent (Holy Armor), Manticore (Succubus) With the Heavy Ring, you're now able to find almost every single room in the castle. As before, it'd be a good idea to search through all of the areas that you can now enter. The next few bosses, Death and Camilla, are pretty tough, so having as many HP, MP, and Heart Max upgrades is a definite plus. 006.1 - The Underground Warehouse Head back to the Triumph Hallway on the west side of the Audience Room; instead of heading through to the front gate, continue down the hallway and push the box blocking your path. Immediately after dropping down into the Warehouse, a Griffin will attack you; avoid colliding with it or its wind attacks. The best time to attack the Griffin is while its blowing wind since it doesn't move. Get behind it and whip furiously. After it dies, head right and fight past Wights (a more powerful version of the Zombie), Fox Archers, and an Arch Demon. Push the box out of the way an pick up the MP Max. Return to the room with the Griffin and continue left. Push the box to the right and use it to jump onto the ledge. In the next room, kill the King Moth and break the rock holding up the three boxes. Push the top block, which is now level with the ledge, over the left side. Kill the second Moth and then continue. In this large area, there's one enemy on each level; beginning from the top, there's a Thunder Armor, a Poltergeist, another Poltergeist, a second Thunder Armor, a third Poltergeist, and finally both on the last level, which also has a save point. The first thing to do is kill the three King Moths. Afterwards, check out the puzzle. It's divided between two levels; on the higher one is a breakable rock next to two boxes on top of each other. The lower contains a breakable rock in front of a box. Jump onto the rock on the higher level and push the box over the edge. Drop down and break the rock on the lower level, allowing you to push the box on top of the one already in the hole. Finally, climb back to the higher level and push the third box off the edge. Now you can slide under the wall and continue to the next area. It's a little more straightforward here; as you descend the room, a half-dozen Bone Towers will attack you, but they shouldn't cause a problem. There's a Heart Max on the right, but you can't reach it just yet, so exit through the door on the left. Jump up onto the ledge and break the rock there. Push the box to the edge of the floor, but don't drop it over the side. Use the box to jump to the higher level, and then to the area on the right with another box. Push it over the side, and then push the two of them over the edge, allowing you to slide to the other side. The next room contains the most powerful enemy you've encountered yet: a pair of Holy Armors. Even though they walk slowly, their attacks, firing a laser from their sword, pack quite a punch. However, they can't fire downwards, so if you stayed crouched and whip its legs you won't receive a scratch. Destroy the two Armors and then climb up the right side of the room, killing Fox Archers as you go. Find the hidden room at the top and collect the Heart Max and begin to climb back down. Push the box on the sixth level almost all of the way out, just barely hanging on the edge. Now climb down another two levels and push the next box all of the way out. Jump over to the ledge on the left and work your way up, using the higher box as footing to make the last jump to reach the MP Max. Now descend to the bottom once again and leave; although it's tempting to use this area to level up, you're a long way from a save point in either direction, so it isn't worth the risk of dying. A Succubus is flying around the entrance, so kill it before heading down. On the level directly under the entrance is a hidden room with Grizzlies and Fox Archers guarding a Heart Max. Return to the main area and continue down; after dropping down two more levels, enter the passageway on the right that's filled with Grizzlies. Past that is a large room with Holy Armors and Fox Archers, along with an HP and MP Max; however, you can't reach the Heart Max yet. Attack the Foxes and Armors from below to avoid being injured and make your way up the platforms. At the top, double-jump and wall kick off of the hole in the ceiling to land on the floor. Enter the hidden room on the left and collect the Heart Max after destroying the Holy Armor. Head all of the way back to vertical passage with the Succubus and continue down. Enter the room at the end and defeat the Bone Towers; afterwards, destroy the rock above the top-right box, and then push the box over the edge. Drop down to the lower level and push the box against the one you just dropped. Break the remaining rocks and push the last box over the side and put it flush against the wall. Slide through the hole and head through the door. There are a few Poltergeists and Forest Armors here, and about half way down is a save point. The bottom left exit leads to the boss, so if you aren't a level 30 yet, stick around and fight the three Forest Armors, which give you 1280 experience points each. 006.2 - Boss: Death Suggested Level: 30 Boss' Hit Points: 1,760 The second boss that has two forms, Death's attacks in Round One include pausing and releasing three spears from its body and firing two energy orbs that track you. And throughout the battle, dozens of small sickles are flying around the room; so make sure to equip a Jupiter shield to protect yourself. Follow Death as it flies around the room, whipping it when you get the chance, and throwing crosses when it stops to attack. When you defeat its first form, Death transforms into some sort of skull monster with claws. It lumbers towards you, slowly raising its hind legs, and then crashing to the ground, causing an earthquake. When its legs are low to the ground, you'll hardly be able to jump, so make sure not to get too close that you can't escape. The only way to damage this form is by attacking its shell, so throw crosses and keep your distance. After killing Death, enter the room on the left and pick up Cleansing, which purifies toxic water. Attack the wall behind it and enter the secret room, which has a HP Max and a Golem. 007.0 - The Underground Waterway DSS Cards To Find: Neptune (Ice Armor), Mandragora (Lizard Man), Griffin (Siren) Just to let you know, there are a lot of enemies that are ice-based; similar to the stone-based, if you're injured while frozen, it causes twice the normal amount of damage. The Neptune card grants immunities to certain elements, so fighting as many Ice Armors as you can to get one of these isn't a bad idea. 007.1 - The Underground Waterway Leave the Warehouse through the exit on the right; defeat the Golems and pick up the HP Max before sliding under the rock, which brings you back to the Catacombs. From there, head up the Abyss Stairway until you reach the entrance to the Waterway, right under a save point. Jump down and touch the water to purify it and enter the hidden room in the left corner, just above water level, and collect the Heart Max. Return to the main area and head right, there are Mermen in the water, but as long as you stay on the platforms you won't have to bother with them. In the next room, kill the Spearfish and hit the switch to raise the blocks. Run to the end of the passage and whip the other switch to lower them, allowing you to climb up. Fight the two Ice Armors; they throw two frozen spears, one high and one low. Continue up the blocks and jump over the Spearfish; hit the switch on the other side to raise the blocks again and run across the newly made bridge. Defeat the three Ice Armors on the other side and hit the switch. Drop down, kill the Ice Armor, and leave this area through the exit on the right. Hit the switch to raise the blocks, and then kill the Frozen Shade. Before the waterway on the right, wall jump against the blocks and land on the platform. Jump up the platforms on the left and head right. At the end is a room with an HP Max, so pick it up and head back to the beginning of the area. Head across the platforms, avoiding the Mermen that jump up and the Frozen Shade at the end of the passage. Hit the switch, and then head up the same way you did before. This time, the blocks are lowered, so head down and into the next part of the Waterways. Make your way from platform to platform, killing Witches and Abiondargs as you go, and drop down and enter the save point in the bottom right corner. Take the bottom path across from the save; there are Witches and Fish Heads, along with an MP Max at the end. Afterwards, head up to the top of the area and take a left. Since you never flipped the switch, the blocks are still raised, meaning that you can reach the far corner and climb up to the MP Max. Return to the middle path and hit the switch, and run back up, this time taking the stairs up. Before exiting, flip the last switch. Drop down and kill the Frozen Shades, and then hit the switch at the end of the passage. Climb up the blocks and kill the Frozen Shade. Then, after wall jumping, destroy another Frozen Shade and a Siren before heading to the bottom right corner and exiting the area. Climb down the platforms and flip the switch at the end. Continue right and fight the Ice Demon, use a Neptune/Serpent combination to have an immunity to ice attacks. After defeating it, kill the Lizard Men and take the Heart Max. Return to the previous area, the path that was blocked before is now open, so head through and take the upper passage in the second room. Fight another Ice Demon and three more Lizard Men, and then collect the MP Max. Now return to the lower passage and take the middle path, which is open because of the raised blocks. Climb up the pathway and save your game, and then head down and enter the entrance to the boss' room in the bottom right corner. 007.2 - Boss: Camilla Suggested Level: 35 Boss' Hit Points: 1,500 Similar to Death, throughout this entire battle, bubbles are flying around, so create a shield to avoid being hit. Camilla goes to either side of the room, pausing at one end to attack. She can flap her wings, causing wind damage, fire a laser from the skull's mouth, or create lightning from under her skull. The idea is to stay behind Camilla and throw crosses at her. When she performs her laser attack, stay off of the platforms and crouch on the ground. If you get caught in a corner, jump in the space near the door to avoid any of her attacks. When Camilla dies, enter the room on the right and get the Roc Wing. By pressing Up and R, you can fly. 008.0 - The Observation Tower DSS Cards To Find: Golem (Minotaur), Griffin (Siren), Thunderbird (Dullahan), Jupiter (Heat Shade) With the Roc Wing, you're now able to visit every area in the castle, so go ahead and fill in the rest of the map. Just as a note, above the save point before Camilla there's a hidden room across from an opening on the left, so make sure to pick up the HP Max. 008.1 - The Observation Tower Head over to the Outer Wall and fly up to the top left corner of the first area and land on the floor. Jump through the hole in the ceiling to reach the Observation Tower. Almost immediately, a Legion flies over to you; even though they're fairly slow moving, they have a knack for getting in your way. And to top it off, they curse, so make sure to take this area one step at a time. Above the platform with the torch on it is a hidden room, so fly up and whip the wall to find it. Collect the MP Max and continue over to the right corner of the room and exit. Fight your way past the Wind Armors and grab the HP Max, and then return to the main room. In the top right corner is a long corridor that leads to a Heart Max; the only problem is that it's guarded by a pack on Minotaurs, who you'll soon discover to be one of the most difficult enemies in the game to fight. Do your best to avoid its shockwave and throw crosses to quickly kill it. When you've collected all three Max upgrades, head over to the top left corner and continue up the Tower. Thankfully, there aren't any Legions around; instead, they've been replaced by Evil Pillars and Sirens. Make your way up the one side (don't forget the Heart Max inside the hidden room in the top left corner) and head over to the right at the top. In the top right corner is a save point, and below that is the path that leads to the rest of the Tower. However, at the very bottom is a room filled with Evil Pillars; above the ledge in the right corner is a secret room with an HP Max and Minotaurs. Collect the Max, and then head through the corridor above it, which is filled with Dullahan. Wait for them to come to you, and attack them when they pause to turn around. Kill the six of them and head up the Tower. The next area should be a breeze; there are three pairs of Frozen and Heat Shades, so defeat them and enter the room in the bottom left corner. Fight the two Alraunes, the naked girl in the plant, and the Demon Lords, and pick up the MP Max. Return to the room with the Shades and use the exit at the top left to continue. This area introduces the last Armor in the game: the Dark Armor. Like the Holy Armor, it walks forward and fires dark energy at you; except this time around, it can fire at all three levels, unlike the Holy Armor's two. This means that you have to be prepared to jump or crouch while still attacking it. However, each Dark Armor yields over 3000 experience, as well as some pretty useful items like Double Grips and Platinum Armor. Destroy the two Armors and exit the room through the door on the right. There are at least a half-dozen Dark Armors in this area, but it's also the last area before the boss. Take your time fighting the Dark Armors and Evil Pillars, and make sure to find the hidden room two levels before the top (its directly across from the hallway with the Devil). Defeat the Dark Armor on the level and whip the right wall; there's an HP Max and a cross. Also check out the passageway in the bottom left corner; there are Legions and Catoblepas guarding a Heart Max. By this time, you're probably looking for a save point before fighting the boss, right? Unfortunately, there aren't any. There is, however, a warp point nearby, but you'll have to get past the Devil to reach it. A few levels below the top, enter the passage on the left and find the Devil. For a lesser enemy, he has quite a few unique attacks. He can release a wave of smoke, create a tornado, send out a shockwave, or protect himself with a shield. However, he rarely moves around with the exception of an occasional warp to the other side of the room, so throw crosses to defeat him. Not only does the Devil drop some of the best items in the game (Potion High, Mirror Armor), but you receive 10000 experience each time you kill it. After fighting the Devil, continue left and drop down into the passage. There are a pair of Legions and three Evil Pillars, as well as the warp point and a hidden room. Defeat all of the enemies in the area and stand on the small ledge in the middle of the room. Whip the wall to find the secret entrance, and head inside to find a Heart Max guarded by Dark Armors and Evil Pillars. Return to the main area and head inside the warp point; I suggest going to the Audience Room (near the Necromancer) to save your game, as there are only a few Skeletons in the area. After saving, head back to the Tower and continue the rest of the way up. There are only two Dark Armors the rest of the way up, so you shouldn't have a problem reaching the boss with full health. 008.2 - Boss: Hugh Baldwin Suggested Level: 40 Boss' Hit Points: 2,800 Before you enter the boss room, make sure that you have a pair of Double Grips (dropped by Dark Armors) and the Mirror Armor (dropped by the Devil). With the high defense of the armor combined with the +75 to all stats that the Double Grips give you, you'll be set to fight Hugh. Fighting Hugh is basically fighting an upgraded version of yourself; he has command of all of the sub-weapons, and his main weapon is a sword compared to your whip. He can also create a large flame sword and swipe at you once with it, as well as charge across the room and ram into you. Since Hugh mainly runs up and tries to attack with his sword, the best way to damage him is to avoid his attack and counter when he's recovering. Stand in the middle of the room and throw a cross in Hugh's direction, when he gets close to you, back away to avoid his attack, and then quickly whip him. By now, the cross will be returning to you and land another hit on Hugh, inflicting somewhere in the area of 150 damage. Repeat this over and over to drain his life; just make sure to watch out for when he throws Holy Water. After draining enough of Hugh's life, he receives extra power and his attacks become more furious; besides having upgraded sub-weapon attacks, he also releases dozens of small fire swords that fly around and track you. The best way to avoid these are by flying up to the small ledge a few feet above the ground and swinging your whip to destroy them. Besides that, all of Hugh's attacks are the same, so use the same strategy as before. Eventually you're able to knock some sense into him, and he gets on his knees and begs for forgiveness. Enter the room on the left and collect the Last Key, which unlocks the Ceremonial Room. 009.0 - The Ceremonial Room DSS Cards To Find: None 009.1 - Pre-Ceremonial Room Before facing off with the Lord of Darkness, there are a few things you should do to prepare. The first is level up, since there aren't any enemies in the Ceremonial Room. There are two enemies that yield large amounts of experience: the Devil (10000 exp') and Lilith (20000 exp'). You should already know where the Devil can be found, and the Lilith is in a hidden room in the Underground Warehouse. Just past the room with the Holy Armors is the vertical passageway; a few levels down from the entrance, whip the right wall to find it. Even though it's tempting to fight the Lilith for the experience, fighting the Devil can be much more beneficial, since it drops Potion Highs. Besides your level, you should also consider your equipment. Hopefully you have a pair of Double Grips from the Dark Armors, otherwise go back and get them. As for armor, while the Mirror Armor is acceptable, the Dark Armor is a much better choice. If you remember back to the Machine Tower, there was a large room with moving platforms a few areas before the Iron Golem. You had to jump to the highest platform and crouch to avoid being electrocuted. In the very top left corner was a hidden room with a Heart Max. Now there's a Lilim flying around; equip whatever items grant you the most luck (Luck Rings will work) and use a Venus/Mandragora DSS combination to increase your luck by 25 percent. It might take awhile, but the Dark armor is a major step up from the other armors in the game. Besides, you get 8000 experience each time you kill the Lilim. And finally, collect all of the DSS cards. You probably found most of them already just by progressing through the game, but filling in the blanks would be helpful. The Jupiter card (Heat Shade) is useful for creating barriers, and the Uranus card (Scary Candle) allows you to summon animals to attack for you. Scary Candles are found in the room where you fought the Iron Golem, one of the candles is a different color than the rest. When you attack it, a spirit jumps out and melts into the floor. You have to kill it before it disappears, so use a Rose Sword or another powerful DSS combination to attack it. When you're ready, enter the Ceremonial Room. Drop down into the hole in the floor and whip the ground to find a hidden room with an HP Max. Fly out and up to the final area to confront Dracula. 009.2 - Boss: Dracula's First Form Suggested Level: 45 Boss' Hit Points: 1,200 To anyone who's played other Castlevania games, this fight should look familiar. Dracula warps around the room, appearing only to attack before disappearing. Luckily, he only has three different attacks at his disposal. He can release three birds that form a wall, two bats, one after another, or unleash a swarm of birds that fly out in all different directions. The first two attacks mentioned are fairly simple to avoid. As for the last one, the best strategy is to get as far away from Dracula as you can and try to jump and crouch to avoid the birds. And even if they do hit you, the damage is minimal. As for damaging him, throw crosses at Dracula when he first appears, and then worry about dodging his attacks. You should be able to kill Dracula pretty quickly, and you get a nice experience bonus for your trouble, 150000 points. But it's not over yet; Dracula escapes through a warp, allowing you to rescue Morris. Hugh arrives and escorts his father out of the castle, and wishes you luck before you follow the vampire. However, the first thing to do is save your game and replenish your supply of hearts. When you're back to 100 percent, return to the Ceremonial Room and walk into the warp. 009.2 - Boss: Dracula's Second Form Suggested Level: 45 Boss' Hit Points: 3,000 The final battle takes place in some world of chaos; Dracula has transformed into a huge demon with an eye in its stomach. The eye is what you have to attack, but it only opens when Dracula is in the process of attacking. Like before, Dracula has three attacks that he can perform. He can create a meteor shower, release poison bubbles, or fire a laser. The laser can be avoided if you stand on one of the platforms, and the bubbles can be destroyed with either your whip or a Jupiter shield. As for the meteor shower, if you have the Uranus card, you can summon an animal to fight for you; not only does it make you invulnerable, but it will damage Dracula at the same time. The best time to attack is when Dracula is firing his laser. Stand on one of the platforms and throw crosses at the eye; if you're on the opposite side of the platform from Dracula, his laser will miss you. This also works with the poisonous bubbles; use the Jupiter/Manticore combination to destroy them, and hurl crosses at the same time. Eventually, Dracula will sustain enough damage for him to change his strategy. He disappears for a moment and reappears on the far side of the area; after pausing momentarily, he charges at you. Since he's completely invulnerable during this time, stand on the platform and wait until he appears. When he does, fly up to the top of the room and then fall back down; by this time Dracula will be on the other end of the area. After repeating this a few times, Dracula will transform into a huge eye surrounded by bats and fly around the room. This is the only time that you can attack, so don't pass up the opportunity. If you have the Uranus card, use it combined with the Thunderbird card to attack. If not, create a Jupiter shield to avoid the bats and attack the eye with your whip. When the eye disappears, Dracula will resume his charge attacks, so repeat the flying technique to avoid them. Repeat this strategy as many times as necessary to defeat Dracula. When he dies, watch the ending cinematic as Nathan escapes from the castle and meet up with Morris and Hugh. Congratulations on completing Circle of the Moon. You receive the password FIREBALL to play as a Magician, which grants you all of the DSS cards from the beginning of the game. 010.0 - The Battle Arena DSS Cards To Find: Salamander (Skeleton Bomber), Golem (Electric Skeleton and Minotaur), Cockatrice (Stone Armor), Manticore (Succubus), Unicorn (White Armor), Black Dog (Devil Armor) While it's not necessary to complete the Battle Arena, it's sort of the last challenge in the game to test yourself against. The enemies are stronger than they normally are, and you aren't allowed to use DSS. To get to the Arena, use the warp points to get to the top left corner of the Chapel Tower. From there, enter the door on the left and drop to the bottom of that area (make sure to avoid or kill the Legions). At the very bottom is a door that leads to the Arena. 010.1 - Pre-Battle Arena This is pretty much exactly the same as preparing to fight Dracula. You should have the Dark Armor and Double Grips, as well as a lot of potions, preferably Potion Highs, which are dropped by the Devil and Wind Armors. Read the Pre-Ceremonial Room section for information on equipment and leveling. You should also have the cross sub-weapon, which can be found in one of the torches in the room before the Battle Arena. 010.2 - Cheating In The Battle Arena There are two tricks you can use in the Battle Arena to make it easier for you; the first one allows you to use DSS magic and the second one allows you to fight the last three enemies over and over without having to redo all of the other rooms. To use DSS in the Battle Arena, first equip the DSS cards you want to use. It's suggested that if you're going to do this, make sure that you're going to summon something (Uranus + an Attribute card), as that does the most damage with one attack. Go into your options menu and use a Mind Potion, and then return to the game. Quickly activate the DSS spell and perform the summon before your MP is drained. Keep in mind that if you screw up, you'll have to use another Mind Potion, so only try this if you're in a difficult situation (say... the room with the Minotaurs). The second trick allows you to go through the Battle Arena in the opposite direction, meaning fighting through the last room first, the first room last, et cetera. This comes in handy because the second to last and third to last rooms contain White Armors and Devil Armors, the monsters that drop the Unicorn and Black Dog cards. Since the chances of having these cards drop are slim, this makes it easier to go back and repeat these rooms without having to go through the entire Battle Arena. After completing the Arena, you're supposed to slide under the wall, which takes you back to the entrance. However, if you slide just far enough to appear in the other room, but not far enough to fall out of the hole in the wall, you can slide back into the Arena. All of the enemies will have returned, and you can go through and fight them over again as many times as you want. 010.3 - The Battle Arena Suggested Level: 55 Room One In the first room, you're faced with a Were-Jaguar and a Werewolf. Throw a cross at the two of them; the Jaguar should pounce forward at you, so jump to avoid it and swing your whip on the way down to attack it. The Wolf should be killed from the cross, so kill the Jaguar to proceed. Room Two The second room gets a little more complicated, but still nothing to sweat over. Two Hippogriffs and two Catoblepas are walking around the room, so quickly throw a cross at the Catoblepas to give you some space to fight the Hippogriffs. Maintaining your health is important, so your priority is to avoid their attacks and countering when the opportunity presents itself. When the Hippogriffs are dead, head over to the other side of the room and kill the other Catoblepas. Room Three Moving right along, there's pair of Wind Demons and three Witches. You'll want to kill the Wind Demons as quickly as possible, so throw crosses to take them down. As for the Witches, stay in front of them and attack with your whip. Room Four There are a few Stone Armors and Devil Towers in this room; destroy the Towers first, and then focus your attention on the Armors. Swing your whip to block the rocks they throw, and then attack them with your whip. Room Five The area is littered with different types of Skeletons: Bombers, Electricity, Spears, etc. You should be able to slide through the ones on the floor, and one swing of the whip should take care of the few that are on the raised platforms. Room Six This is where the Arena begins to get tricky. There are two Flame Demons as well as a half-dozen Bone Towers. Almost immediately, a Flame Demon will attack you, so quickly throw crosses before it gets a chance to attack. Repeat this with the other Demon, and then destroy the Towers. Room Seven What a joke. The Foxes are all lines up behind each other, so all you have to do is duck to avoid being hit. If you're strong enough to kill them in one hit, simply slide through their lines to take them all out. If not, then slowly make your way forward using your whip. Room Eight Poison Armors. Ouch. Throw crosses and avoid their poison clouds, once you've destroyed one or two of them you should have enough room to take on the bothersome Bloody Swords. When the Swords are down for the count, continue on and fight the rest of the Armors. Room Nine Another joke of a room, two-dozen Abiondargs are circling a platform. If you can kill them with one hit, jump onto the top of the platform and slide through. When you reach the end, slide back and kill the rest of them. If you can't destroy them in one hit, make sure to kill the ones on the top first, since they occasionally drop potions and meat. Room Ten Marionettes and Legions are bad enough alone. Packing them both into a small room is trouble. Avoid those things like the plague and throw crosses to destroy them. If you become cursed, use a Cure Curse to heal yourself. Also, make sure to only trigger a few Marionettes at a time to attack you. Room Eleven Quite simply the most difficult room in the Arena, there are a half- dozen Minotaurs lined up, all attacking a few seconds apart. If you plan on using the DSS cheat (see 010.2), this would be the place to do it. Otherwise, throw as many crosses as you possibly can and try not to get cornered against the wall. You'll probably take some damage, but this is really the climax; from here on it won't be too bad. Room Twelve First off, throw a pair of crosses at the Arachne; if you get tangled in her web you'll be a sitting duck for the Succubus. When the Arachne dies, focus your attention on the Succubus. When it's dead, kill the other one and then the last Arachne. Room Thirteen This is another one of the rooms that can be a little annoying. Your priority is to kill the Demon Lords first, and then worry about the two Alraunes. Throw crosses to quickly take down the Demons, and then stand in between Alraune's vines and whip her. Repeat this with the next set of monsters and then continue. Room Fourteen Absolutely ridiculous. Killing the Hyenas should take a matter of seconds; in fact, you can probably slide through them all. Only three more rooms to go... Room Fifteen Three Devil Armors and three sets of Evil Pillars, sounds fun, right? Jump up and destroy the Evil Pillars first, and then fight the Devil Armors. You should have had enough practice against these things in the Observation Tower, so fighting them won't be much trouble. NOTE: The Devil Armors drop the Black Dog card. Room Sixteen The White Armors, an upgraded version of the Holy Armor, are so easy to fight that it's almost pathetic. Since they can't attack down, crouch and whip their legs. If they get close to you, slide away and repeat. NOTE: White Armors drop the Unicorn card. Room Seventeen This is it, the last area in the Battle Arena. And as for providing challenge, the Devil certainly rises to the occasion (still not as tough as the room with the Minotaurs, thankfully). Remember to stay as far away from the Devil as possible; run away when he releases his smoke, fly up and hang on the ceiling when he creates the shockwave, and throw as many crosses as you possibly can. It might take awhile, but eventually the Devil will go down for the count. Continue on to next room and pick up your very own Shinning Armor, considered to be the best armor in the game. Remember that you also receive close to 300,000 experience for completing the Battle Arena, so if you're looking to level up this is the place to do it. Well, that's about all there is. I hope this FAQ is clear and helpful to anyone who finds it. Thanks for reading.
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