Final Fantasy/The Kingdom of Corneria



Treasure: Mythril Knife, Saber, Crosier, Steel Plate, Iron Shield, Werebane, Rune Sword, Potion, Tent, Leather Cap, Gold Needle, Nitro Powder, Lute

Cornelia Castle
When you start the game, you'll appear in front of a huge town. Forget the actual town for now and enter the castle in the center to talk to the King and learn the plot, the you can enter the town to go on a shopping spree. Once in the castle, ignore the rooms to the left and right and just head up until you reach the stairs. On the next floor, head up again and enter the throne room to speak to the king.

He'll explain that the rogue knight, Garland, kidnapped his daughter, Princess Sarah, and whisked her away to the ruined temple to the northwest. You'll find the place easily enough - it's the only place you can really go outside of Cornelia. After he's finished talking, head back outside and enter the town. You'll need to get equipped for the trip to the temple because there are some "mean" monsters outside.

Cornelia town
There isn't much you can do in this town except amuse yourself with the various quips from the townspeople, so time to shop. Head to the upper left side of Cornelia to find the equipment and magic shops.

You should definitely get Cure1 for your White Mage, and both Fire1 and Bolt1 for your Black Mage. Get all three for a Red Mage. However, before buying magic, you need to buy weapons and armor (especially on Normal Mode since you don't have enough money fore everything). In any case, you're probably going to have to battle around Cornelia for a while to get your levels up, which will result in you having enough gold.

Next comes level-building. Leave town, step outside the gates, and walk around. Most of the enemies you'll fight are Goblins, who are easily dispatched, even by a White Mage. Imp Guards are slightly stronger, but still not much of a challenge. Wolves and their large packs will present a little more resistance. Mad Ponies are the toughest here, and may require you to run away the first couple of times. Build your characters up to Level 2 or 3, and use the gold obtained from your battles to buy a few Heal Potions in Cornelia. Make sure you go back to the inn and save your game before going after Garland.

Now you should be ready to take on Garland. Walk to the Northwest until you see a ruined temple at the edge of the peninsula. It's not hard to find, as it's the only thing of interest in the area.

Floor 1
The Temple of Chaos isn't very big, but there still exists the potential for some dangerous random encounters. Tarantulas and Skeletons are easy to get rid of, though the spiders can poison you. Zombies and Ghouls are easy enough to take care of by hand, so don't waste Dia and Fire spells. Warg Wolves and Werewolves are where the most trouble lies; both have lots of HP (around 70) and the Werewolf can poison you. Just run; they aren't worth the trouble.

There is only one floor to the Temple, and four treasure rooms - one in each corner. However, the two rooms on the right are locked, so only worry about the two on the left for now. You'll pick up a Tent, Potion, and a Leather Helmet. Take them all and give the helmet to your weakest character. In the center of the temple is a room with Garland and Sarah. Go knock him down.

Garland
Despite his cool hat, Garland is only a little worse than the strongest random monsters you've dealt with so far. He has around 100 HP and a moderately powerful attack. This is an incredibly easy battle and you shouldn't have any problems. Warriors, Monks, Thieves, and Red Mages should attack. Red Mages should also heal the party when necessary if you bought Cure1 for him, otherwise he should just attack or use Fire1 or Bolt1 (if you bought him those spells). White Mages should heal when necessary, and attack if you want, but they won't do much damage. Black Mages should stick to using either Fire1 or Bolt1, and refrain from attacking at all. He should be dead quickly.

After you dispatch of Garland and you get your pile of experience and Gil, talk to Princess Sarah and you'll all automatically go back to the throne room in Cornelia Castle. The king will thank you and Princess Sarah will give you a very important item, the lute. Once you leave the castle, a bunch of Cornelian soldiers will rebuild the busted bridge north of the castle so you can cross it and continue your journey. As soon as you touch the bridge, some more text will pop up.


 * And so their journey began. As warrior of light, the four youths faced a staggering mission and a stormy destiny. The four crystals they carried remained a mystery to them... In ages past, those crystals had a radiant dazzling light, the time for Heroes is at hand. Darkness must be banished again so the life and peace can illuminate the world once more.

Chapter 2: The Journey Begins >>