Breath of Fire III/Recreating the Group

Two Unespected Encounters
Once on Yrall Road, royal guards will inform you that there is an investigation underway and that for the moment you cannot proceed. Then head to McNeil Village. If you go through the farm and talk to the villagers, you will find that the suspect is actually McNeil. Once in the village, Garr will ask you if there is an inn nearby. So go to the inn. The innkeeper will inform you that the tiger you met on Ogre Road has fled into Cedar Woods. When you offer to take care of that monster, she will let you rest for free.

Then head to the Cedar Woods, where the ruins of Rei's house are. Once on the spot, Ryu will have a flahback. He then proceeds to Rei's house alone, to discover that the tiger was none other than Rei. Rei will recognize you and he will be happy to know that you are alive, but he has no idea what happened to Teepo. He will also tell you that he is now using his power to take revenge on the people Balio and Sunder worked for and that he won't stop until he gets justice. After that, he will flee again.

Return to the village. You will discover that Rei has seriously injured Loki. Then go to the McNeil Manor. You will find out that Nina had McNeil arrested for his crimes. Nina will be very happy to see you again. After telling her what has happened since you separated from Angel Tower, she will join you and suggest that you go to Sin City, to finish the investigation.

Rei's Revenge
Return to Sin City following the same path. As soon as you enter, you will see that the city is turned upside down and that all the inhabitants are injured: Rei has already been through here. Proceed to the far end of the city, which was previously inaccessible. Speaking to a person inside, you will learn that the boss has fled to the Checkpoint to the north. Collect an Old Painting from the chest and exit the city, heading towards the Checkpoint. Here you will find that Rei has reached the black market boss Mikba and will stab him with his knife. When Rei turns to talk to you though, Mikba will turn into a monster and hit him from behind. Then choose a party member to partner with Ryu to help Rei against Mikba.

Boss Fight - Mikba
HP: 2400

Mikba is not an opponent to be underestimated. While his basic attack is not particularly strong, he has a very high counterattack ability, which allows him to respond to practically any of your attacks. Also, Mikba will very often get a Lucky Strike, damaging you heavily. Sometimes Mikba will use Venom Breath to poison your party, but this is more of a bore than anything else. When you start the battle, Rei will be KO. If you revive him, however, Rei will automatically transform into Weretiger. In this form, Rei has a very high attack power, but you won't be able to control his moves. Additionally, Rei will gradually become berserk and may therefore attack your party members. If you already have the Influence skill, you can use it to prevent this and you can then try to revive Rei immediately, otherwise it is better to wait until you have taken away most of Mikba's HP. However, the best thing to do at the start of the battle is to use Shield 2 or 3 times on the party to increase your defense against Mikba's attacks. After that, it is advisable to transform Ryu with the Flame, Thorn and Defender genes. Your third member must be dedicated to healing the party. Use Garr for this, as Nina, with her poor physical stamina, would KO too easily. Keep attacking Mikba until he dies.

After killing Mikba, Rei will decide to stop his revenge and join you. Put Rei in the group and break open the closed door that you may have previously noticed inside the building, to find a better fishing rod and a couple of other objects. Then take a long drive east until you reach the Eygnock Road.

Problems at the Plant
Upon reaching Eygnock Road, Nina will remind you that you will need a passport and the king's permit to cross the bridge to the east. But the king still holds you responsible for her escape from the castle in the past. She will also tell you that lately there are been problems at the nearby Plant, so she will suggest you go there and resolve the situation. In this way, you will be able to obtain the pardon of the king and the passport. Then go to the Plant.

Speaking with the various researchers, you will learn that the enhanced crops lately are no longer successful. Also, Director Palet has mysteriously disappeared and they are having a lot of trouble getting the machines to work. Explore the entire area, until you meet Momo. After saying goodbye and explaining the situation, you will decide to look for the director together. However, you will have to recover Peco first. Exit the Plant and head to the nearby Yggdrasil grove. You will find Peco contemplating the tree. Talk to him and he will join your group again. With the group finally recreated, go back to the Plant, taking Momo and Peco with you.

The situation here has worsened further. Now some greenhouses are filled with poisonous gas from the chrysms. Speaking with a researcher, you will discover that the only way to release the gas is to break the glass roof. In fact, he has already prepared some stones on the ground to achieve the purpose and traced the point from which they must be thrown with X. Use Peco to move the stones to the points indicated and then hit them violently to throw them on the roof of the greenhouses and bring out the gas. After clearing the greenhouses, a strange smoke will begin to come out of the building with the furnace. Go inside and examine the furnace door, discovering that it is rusty and disused. Destroy it with a blast from Momo's bazooka. Inside you will find a ladder. Go down it, to get to an underground laboratory.

The Underground Laboratory
The underground laboratory is infested with monsters. Some can poison your characters, so be prepared accordingly. Also pay attention to the Fly Man's Firebreath. You will necessarily have to take Momo with you on this mission, because she is the only one who knows how to use computers. Proceed to the right and go up the first ladder you come across to find a Skill Ink. Head back down and proceed to the right to reach a room with 4 computers. Computers are used to unlock doors with the corresponding number on the monitor. However, you need to find out the password for each computer. Momo will guess the password for the first computer by herself and unlock door # 1. Beyond the door on the left there is a room where you can rest and save your game. There is also a Healing Herb in the closet. Then go to the left of the ladder you came from. You will arrive in a room with three doors. Enter the one with the number 1. Take an Ammonia from the closet and go down the ladder. You will enter a room full of gas, where you can only stay a few seconds. By rotating the camera, you will spot a Peco-like creature on the ground. Examine it for the second password. Go back to the computer room and unlock door # 2. Go back to the room with the three doors. You can find a Silver Mail by opening the door next to the computer you may have noticed in the room you were in earlier. Then open door # 2. Use the switch to remove the gas from the room you passed through. Then follow the ventilation ducts until you find a sheet with the third password. On the ventilation ducts you will also find the Force gene. Then go back and use the conveyor belt to go back to the computer room, picking up the Sleep Shells on the way. Then go to unlock door # 3. Go back again to the room with the three doors and this time open the one with the number 3. Proceeding to the left you will notice gas coming out of a door. Go inside and get ready to fight.

Boss Fight - Huge Slug
HP: 2500

This Huge Slug is not very difficult to beat, having discovered its weak point. Its attacks aren't particularly powerful. Hit it with a fire element spell to destroy its protective coat, making it vulnerable to physical attacks. It is indeed very weak to fire. Cast Shield once or twice on the group if you deem it necessary, then transform Ryu with the Flame and Force genes, or Flame and Eldtrich. Then, hit the Huge Slug with Flame Claw. Momo will have to deal mainly with healing the group, while the third member will have to use the best attacks of her, preferably of the fire element. If you brought Rei with you and use his Weretiger (remember to use the Influence skill), you will defeat the Slug in no time.

After defeating the Huge Slug, go out and analyze the yellow book nearby to find out how to find the last password. Then analyze all the flashing panels in this room, memorizing the pressure values. There are 5. Also collect the Wisdom Ring. Go back to the computer room and enter the last password, entering the numbers in the right order, that is, from the panel with the lowest pressure value to the highest. This will open door number 4. Go to the adjoining room, rest, save your game and continue on, following the ventilation ducts. Go down the ladder to finally meet Palet, who had betrayed you without your knowledge many years ago. Palet will reveal that he intends to use a machine built in the past by Momo's father to bring his mother back to life, thanks to the sap from the Yggdrasil tree. When you try to stop him, he will drink the sap himself, turning into a monstrous cross between a mushroom and a brain.

Boss Fight - Shroom
HP: 3000

This Shroom is definitely more dangerous than the Huge Slug. It has a high attack power and a vast arsenal of skills, the most dangerous of which is surely Ragnarock, who can cause enormous damage to the whole group. The first thing to do is therefore to cast Shield on the group at least a couple of times. The Shroom is not weak to any element, but its physical defense is rather poor. Then transform Ryu with the Force and Thorn genes, or Force and Defender. For the rest, follow the same strategy you adopted against the Huge Slug: Momo will have to deal mainly with support spells and heal the group, while the third member will have to attack with his more powerful hits. Rei and his Weretiger form, supported by Influence, deal massive damage to this boss. If you follow these tips you shouldn't have too much trouble defeating Palet.

After defeating the Shroom, Momo will explain to you that it was actually her father Repsol who developed that machine to bring the dead back to life, but realizing that it was wrong, he abandoned the experiment. Turn off the machine and retrieve 400 zenny from the closet. Then exit from the underground laboratory and also from the Plant, here there is nothing more to do. Once back on the World Map you will automatically camp. Momo will say that she has decided to accompany Ryu on her journey. Then go to Wyndia to get your passport.

Escape from the Castle
When you enter Wyndia, Rei will automatically join the group and Nina will ask Ryu to wait outside. In the small square on the right you will meet the four children with whom you once played hide and seek. They too have become teenagers. By talking to them, they will challenge you again to hide and seek. Now that they are adults, however, they will no longer hide only from Wyndia, but all over the world. Each of them will give you a clue as to where he will hide. When you have found all four, they will offer to become your masters (see the appropriate section). Then go to the door of the royal palace and have Nina talk to the guard to enter.

Nina will report to the king, claiming that she would not have been able to do everything without Rei's help. The king will then have a passport prepared for Rei immediately. Meanwhile, Nina will decide to take Rei on a tour of the castle. You first take the stairs that go down to the basement. Nina will find out that Honey has been following you and will take her with her. Then go down to the prisons and use Rei to open the door of a cell where there is a chest, which you should have already noticed at the time of Ryu's childhood. You will find a Laurel inside. Go up and, to end your tour, head to the queen's room. The queen will congratulate Nina, but she will also remind her that she belongs to Wyndia and that she has duties to perform. When you get off, the banquet and passport will be ready. Nina will tell the king that Rei must leave right away. Just as you are leaving though, a guard will inform the king that Rei is part of Ryu's party. The king will then try to have you arrested. The guards will block your way, your only way will be towards the cellars. Nina knows it's a dead end, but Honey will start running and Nina will suggest following her and trusting her, as she did years ago. Go lower and lower until you reach the room with the closed door under the cellars, which you have probably noticed on your first visit to the castle. Honey will try to get through the door. Use Rei to pick the lock and enter. In the room you will find one of those mysterious machines that you have already seen somewhere, which turns out to be a portal for teleportation. Honey will activate the portal. After a final exchange between Nina and the queen, who has joined you with the guards, go up to the portal. You will reappear on another portal, under Durandal's hut, just outside the city. When you come out on the World Map, you will automatically camp. You will decide that the best thing to do now is to reach the Checkpoint before the king's guards and cross the bridge with your passport.