Ys: Ancient Ys Vanished/Gameplay

Adol
You control Adol throughout the game. Adol is on a quest to discover the source of the problems and demons that plague Esteria, and ultimately learn the secret behind the mysterious vanishing of Ancient Ys. During his quest, he must speak with many people, visit different locales, and do combat with a large number of monsters and enemies.

Adol has a health meter which is usually displayed at the bottom of the screen. This meter displays how much health Adol has remaining. Below that is a second meter which is used to indicate the amount of health remaining to the enemy that Adol has most recently fought. If Adol remains motionless for a period of time, he will begin to regenerate back any of the health he has lost in combat.

If Adol's health is ever reduced to zero, he will die. If that happens, he will only be able to continue from the last point in the game at which you saved, so save your game often. You are permitted to save at just about any time and place in the game, including right outside the door of bosses.

Adol starts the game as an able but weak fighter, only capable of defeating the weakest monsters in Esteria. As he continues to fight however, he will gain experience points for every monster he defeats. When he gains enough experience points, he will rise in level. With each new level, Adol gains more hit points, strength, and defense.

Adol can equip himself with a variety of gear, including swords for offense, and armors and shields for protection. The better the equipment, the more damage he can do to enemies, and less damage he will receive. Adol can also equip one of five rings. Each ring bestows a magical effect on Adol (although one is deadly without possession of the right item), but only one may be used at a time.

Combat
Throughout the game, it will be necessary for Adol to do combat with large numbers of monsters and enemies. The combat system of Ys is fairly unique. Rather than pressing a button to attack, Adol attacks his enemies merely by running into them. However, there's a catch. Naturally, enemies can harm Adol when they touch him as well. In order to avoid taking damage while trying to deal damage to an enemy, Adol must collide with the enemy as off-center as possible.

If Adol runs head-on into the center of an enemy, he will assuredly be hit by the enemy as well and take damage. If Adol is running up or down, then you should try to position him to the left or to the right side of the enemy that he is about to hit. If Adol is running left or right, then you should position himself above or below the enemy before he collides with them. The further off-center you are from the enemy when you collide, the less likely Adol is to take damage when he hits the enemy. (Note that if Adol stands perfectly still, he will take damage from an enemy regardless of their position in relation to his.)

It is important to remember this throughout the game, and with enough practice, it becomes progressively easier to do. Once you make contact with an enemy, you can typically push the enemy in some direction and continuously deal damage to it until it is defeated, even if you pin it against a wall. Just watch out for other enemies in the vicinity which may attempt to attack you from behind.

In general, beginners should stand still and watch how the enemies behave. Learn how enemies approach Adol. They typically line up with him in order to collide with him head-on and deal damage to him. After you learn how they move, you will learn how to make slight adjustments to your position at the last second and proceed to attack the enemy before they have a chance to correct their position. When attacking an enemy from the left or right, use the shadow beneath you and your enemy's feet as a way to judge your approach. If the shadows line up with one another, adjust Adol's position so that his shadow is above or below the opponent's.
 * Horizontal combat

If you are tackling an opponent from above or from below, judge your position by comparing the center of Adol with the center of your enemy. If they line up with one another, Adol is in danger of taking damage. Shift Adol slightly to the left or to the right to find a safer approach.
 * Vertical combat

Level chart

 * Level: This is Adol's level of experience. In most versions, the maximum level is 10.  (The TurboGrafx-CD version is a notable exception, and the chart to the left does not apply.)
 * EXP: Experience points are gained by defeating monsters and bosses. You must achieve a certain number of points to reach each new level of experience.  Up until the remakes, this typically maxes out at 65,535.  However, in most versions, you reach the highest level before this, when you attain 51,200 points.
 * HP: This is the amount of damage that Adol can sustain before dying. The maximum number of hit points Adol may have is 255.
 * STR: This statistic measures how much damage Adol can deal to his opponents. The maximum value for this stat is 255, and can only be reached by using the strongest weapon at the highest level.
 * DEF: This statistic measures how well protected Adol is from enemy attacks. The higher this value, the less damage he will take.  The maximum value is 255, and can only be reached by wearing the best armor and shield at the highest level.