Alisia Dragoon/Stage 5 - Cave

Area 1 - Underground Springs
Small flying monsters will swoop down or shoot bullets at Alisia, and stalactites will shake loose and drop when she moves under them. Advance slowly, and shoot the flying monsters and the stalactites from a distance.

After stepping past the waterfalls in the foreground, jump over the pit. At the apparent dead end, there are a Companion Revival Item and a Potion. Shoot open the wall here to find a hidden passageway. This secret room contains two Companion Upgrades and an Armor Upgrade. In the middle of this passageway, also jump up to the left to reach another hidden path, this one sloping up toward the top left, to an open spot above some waterfalls. This other secret room contains a Thunder Power Upgrade and a 1-Up (on Normal only).

Return to the pit, and drop through it. The green regenerating monsters can shoot bullets laterally. Quickly walk past them after stunning them, before they become active again. At the bottom level where the first green regenerating monsters are found, go to the left end, where there is a Companion Upgrade. Shoot open the wall here to find a hidden passageway. This secret room contains two Companion Upgrades and a Magic Fairy (temporary invulnerability) (on Normal only).

Go right along this bottom level. After the green regenerating monsters, there are boulder monsters. The boulder monsters can keep replacing the four revolving rocks around themselves, and when they die, they will shoot a bullet aimed at Alisia. (On Hard, the revolving rocks themselves will also shoot bullets.) For an easier time, hide behind the walls for cover and let Fel kill them first.

Past the boulder enemies, look out for more stalactites. Along the way, at the one-way drop down from a higher level, there is a Potion. Try to save this for later.

At the far right dead end along the bottom level (where the path narrows too much), there are a Meat Bone and a Potion. From here, jump up to the high path that goes back to the left. The boomerang monsters emerge from the ground, jump, and throw bullet-like boomerangs that will arc back at a different height. Some of the boomerang monsters appear in groups, emerging from the same spot one by one.

Leap over the pits (which lead back to the bottom level), and go to the upper left dead end, through some broken artificial pillars. At this spot with the pillars, there are a Thunder Power Upgrade, a Potion, and Twin Fairies. Turn back, but avoid the enemies who can appear again along the higher level by going down the one-way drop to the lower level.

The Twin Fairies will make a platform back to the right. Use it to reach the high ledge at the top right. On this high ledge, there are a Potion and a Meat Bone. Watch out for a few more enemies. The exit is at the far right.

Area 2 - Volcano
Avoid the steam bursts that are vented from the porous slopes, and avoid the flame pillars that periodically rise from the lava pools. Move forward and upward, stunning the regenerating monsters to temporarily stop them. Using Ru here can be a good idea.

At a dead end to the right, past two regenerating monsters and a flame pillar, there is a Meat Bone. Shortly after this spot, at a high dead end past two more regenerating monsters, there is a Potion. Then, at another dead end to the left past a flame pillar, there is a Potion.

At the very large chamber, jump straight up in the middle and shoot sweeping bolts to find two hidden Potions. The large stone monsters will teleport in and then cause rocks to drop in front of them. Move up close and shoot these monsters first. Some of them also fire energy waves. Jump over these waves.

The large chamber leads off in both directions. Go right first. Near a lone flame pillar, there is a Potion. Try to save it for later. Climb to a higher corridor with more lava pools and enemies. At the left end of this higher corridor, there are a Thunder Power Upgrade and Twin Fairies.

The Twin Fairies will make a platform at the left side of the large chamber, at the top of the steep slope. Use it to reach some higher corridors, where there are more boulder monsters. On a ledge at this spot, there is a Potion. Past some steam bursts to the right, there is a Companion Upgrade. On the next higher level, to the right over a steam vent, there is a Meat Bone.

At the top left corner, after Alisia climbs to the highest level, several boulders will fall down to block the way back. Watch out for more boulder monsters that will attack by dropping down along the path to the end.

Boss: War Machine
The war machine is a large vehicle that attacks with multiple weapons while driving across the cavern floor. Its weak point is the writhing node of wires on its rear top, but that can always be hit, from any side.

It first appears from the right, shooting laser bolts that can be aimed straight forward or diagonally downward. When it approaches, duck on the side platform that is farther from it to dodge the projectiles, and then move onto the highest platform and jump over it when it comes, all the while shooting at it.

Sometimes, instead of firing laser bolts, it will use its mortar attacks and its exhaust attacks, and it will stop and drive back the other way after crossing halfway across the room. If it uses its mortar attacks, jump over it as usual, but prepare to immediately leap over it again when it drives back the other way. (Its greater speed when it comes back allows this second jump to be safely made from the side platforms.) Land on the highest platform to avoid the exhaust.