Suikoden II/The undead armies

The Lampdragon Bandits
Head to the entrance of your castle. You will meet a little boy who will ask you if you are the hero. Answer him as you like, in any case he will recognize you. The boy will introduce himself as Koyu, the youngest of the Lampdragon Bandits and will tell you that he has a request for you. You will then find yourself in the great hall. Koyu will tell you that he was living with his brothers north of Tinto when those lands were attacked by a zombie army and he will then ask you to help his people. Viktor will understand that Neclord is probably behind all this. He will ask you what you intend to do. Answer as you like, in any case you will undertake this mission. Koyu will offer to accompany you to their stronghold and Viktor will join you as well. Then choose the rest of the group. Outside the great hall you will also meet Nanami, who you will have to take with you. Your next destination is the village of Drakemouth, southwest of kobold village. Then go to the place.

Drakemouth and Tigermouth
There is not much to do in Drakemouth. Apart from the inn, there are no shops. You can buy a calf for your herd from a guy. After exploring the village and talking to the villagers, head northwest. The guard won't let you pass, but Koyu manages to distract him with a ruse. Proceed. You'll encounter enemies in the next area, but they shouldn't cause you much trouble.

Follow the path. At the first fork, Koyu will tell you that going left will lead you to Tinto, while going right leads to their territory. Then go right first. Climb the ladder and go right again to find a Master Robe. Go back and up the ladder to the left. After a few steps you will meet Gijimu, Koyu's brother, with some bandits. Koyu will ask him what happened to his sister Lo Wen, but Gijimu won't be able to answer him. He will then inform you that a horde of zombies is heading towards Tinto and that they have destroyed the bridges to slow them down. Viktor will then say to go to Tinto. Go back to the first fork and go left. There are no more items to collect, so proceed west until you reach the village of Tigermouth.

There's not much to do in Tigermouth either, the only shops being the inn and an appraisal shop. In one house you will find an Old Book vol.8 on a shelf. After exploring the village, exit west to return to the world map. You reach the village of Crom, a little further on.

Crom
Here you will find some more activities. In addition to the inn, there is also an item shop, where you can buy supplies, and a trading post. In a house you will also meet Tenkou. If you have a Window Set in your inventory, you can ask it to join you.


 * Tenkou recruited

After exploring the village, exit, use the Bliking Mirror to return to the castle and add Wakaba to the party (if you don't already have her). Then have Viki teleport you back to Crom. If you try to enter the inn, Long Chan Chan will quickly come out and talk to Wakaba. A few moments later, however, a furious innkeeper will also come out and Long Chan Chan will flee, since he has not paid the bill. You'll find him again at the back of the item shop. Talk to him again and he will join you.


 * Long Chan Chan recruited

Exit the village and reach, Tinto to the north.

Tinto
Tinto is a much larger city than the villages you just passed through. Here you will find an item shop, an armory where you can upgrade your equipment, and a blacksmith who can upgrade your weapons up to level 13. You will also meet Raura, who walks near the city hall. Tell her that Jeane is at your castle and she will join you.


 * Raura recruited

By talking to all the inhabitants, you will also get a Unicorn Plan and a Dragon Plan. Then go to the city hall and talk to the guard, he will let you in. Go and talk to Lord Gustav, who will ask you to help Tinto. Answer him with the first option. Gustav will then call Marlowe, who will show you to your room. When he asks you something, answer with the first option. Nanami will then tell you that she is tired. Choose the first option to go to sleep or the second if you still have things to do in the city.

The next morning Viktor will wake you up and Nanami will tell you that Ridley and Klaus are talking to Gustav. Reach them. Lilly, Gustav's daughter, will come and say that the zombies are coming. Gustav will leave. Go to the city entrance to meet Neclord with his zombies. Viktor will accuse him of having allied with Highland, but Neclord will deny, saying that he simply wants to build his kingdom there and that the inhabitants of Tinto will have to choose whether to leave or become zombies. Then, he will leave. Enter the city hall again to talk to Gustav. At that moment, Jess and Hauser will arrive, who are gathering troops for Gustav. Jess will attack you, as he still holds you responsible for Lady Annabelle's death. Answer as you like, in any case Jess will not believe you, but you will be defended by Ridley. The two then leave, to fight Neclord's zombies. Talk to Gustav again, then Klaus will suggest you go to sleep. Talk to Lilly, out of the hall and go to your room. You'll meet Jess again, who doesn't trust you, then go to sleep.

During the night, you will receive another visit from Leknaat. When she's gone, go to Nanami in her room and talk to her. Nanami will offer you to flee the war and leave. If you want to see the worst ending of the game (see the related page), accept. After escaping Tinto, you'll need to make your way to Crom, Tigermouth, and Drakemouth. Here Nanami will lead you to a hut. At this point, you will be joined by your allies, who will try to convince you to go back. You can then resume the adventure from when you escaped and later Viktor will also give you back the Blinking Mirror that Nanami had dropped. However, if you get to this point, Ridley will die in battle, seeking for you. His place will then be taken by his son Boris, who will substitute him in the list of the 108 Stars of Destiny (so you can still have the best ending). If, on the other hand, you are not interested in this, refuse Nanami's proposal.

The next morning go talk to Gustav again. A soldier will arrive, informing him that Jess is letting the troops out. Then go to the entrance to the city. Jess will claim to have known where Neclord is hiding and remain determined to deploy the troops. Hauser, however aware of the risk, will support him and Koyu, Gijimu and Klaus will also go with him, to help. When they're gone, make your way to the entrance of the mine in the northeast part of the town. The miners will say that a tunnel has collapsed. Go in to check. In this area it is possible to meet some enemies, be careful because you will be alone with Nanami. Follow the path and use the elevator to drop further down. Keep going and at the fork go right, to find a Cape of Darkness. Return to the fork and go straight. Here you will meet Neclord, who will tell you that he tricked Jess. You will try to attack him, but of course it will be useless. Eventually, Neclord will use his rune to turn everyone into zombies, but your Bright Shield rune will protect you. You will be forced to flee. As you step outside, you'll find that the city is now full of zombies. The hero will collapse, exhausted, but Nanami will carry you away. After a short scene where you see Jowy and Pilika (who has finally recovered) in Muse, you will wake up in the village of Crom.

Seal Neclord's soul
When you wake up, Viktor, Nanami and Gustav will be with you. They will tell you that nobody knows what happened to Jess and Hauser and that Lilly is missing. Viktor and Nanami will join you. Downstairs you will also find Ridley, Klaus and Leona; thanks to her, you can change party members. Exit and head to the southern exit of the village. Here you will meet Kahn, who had already helped you in the Cave of Wind. Kahn will tell you that even by creating a magical barrier and hitting Neclord with the Star Dragon Sword, he can still come back to life. He is in fact looking for a way to seal his soul of him. He has already heard of someone who could do this and that is now in Tigermouth. Kahn will then join you. Go to Tigermouth.

Once in the village you will notice Sierra surrounded by the villagers, who accuse her of being one of Neclord's group, but she will drive them away with a bolt of lightning. At that point, you will step forward and ask her to join you. She will agree, but only if you're up to it and she challenges you to combat. Choose the first option to get started.

Boss Fight – Sierra
HP: 2800

This battle is easy. Sierra attacks twice per turn and has three types of attacks. Her phisical attack affects a single character and doesn't do much damage. In addition to this, she can use a bat attack, which does moderate damage to a single character, and an attack that moderately damages one of your columns. You can attack her using your magical runes (Kahn's, in particular, does a lot of damage) and your best physical attacks which, given Sierra's low defense, already do good damage. Heal yourself if necessary and, also considering her low HP value, in a very short time you will have the upper hand. After defeating her, Sierra will join you, regardless of your answer.


 * Sierra recruited

Return to Crom and join the others. Sierra will be very interested in Klaus. Then, you can go to sleep. The next morning, when you go down to the ground floor, you will learn that Lo Wen and Lilly have been kidnapped by Neclord. It's time to finish him. However, Tinto is surrounded by zombies, so Gustav will suggest that you use the mining tunnel to the east, which is connected to the city. When you are ready then, exit the village and go to the mine, which you have certainly already noticed. Keep in mind though that the Tinto Cavern is a very large dungeon filled with powerful enemies. In this mission you will also have to face two bosses, with no possibility to rest or save the game between fights. You should therefore prepare yourself adequately and make a good supply of healing items. For this mission you can freely choose only one member of your group, since, in addition to the hero, you will necessarily have to bring Viktor, Sierra, Kahn and Nanami with you. It is advisable to choose someone with a good aptitude for magic.

Tinto Cavern
In this cave you should use the Family Attack to quickly eliminate some quite insidious enemies, such as the Unicombies, which have a lot of Hit Points and the Neclordias, which can cause you decent damage and are usually found in the back row. On the first screen, just follow the path. In the second one, at the fork go right (the northern path is a dead end). The next screen may seem labyrinthine at first, but there is only one path to follow. Exit north. On the next screen there is a fork in the road - first go right to find Dancing Flames, then go back and go left. In the next two screens there is only one path to follow. You'll then come to a screen with an underground lake. Keep this in mind, as you may have to come back to it later. Even here, however, just follow the path. On the next screen, at the fork, take a right first to find a Full Helmet and a Stone of Mag-Def. Then take the path to the left and reach the next screen. Here, ignore the southern passage blocked by rocks and go north. On the next screen, at the fork, take the path up to reach a chest with a Master Garb. Then go down the nearby escarpment to return to the main route and continue to the right. In the next screen there is only one path to follow and in the next one at the fork go left, as the northern path is blocked by rocks. You'll come to a much longer screen, with the path intersecting. At the first fork go north, you will find a Window Set #5 and an Old Book vol.9. Go back and take the path to the right. At the next fork go right and reach the next screen (the path to the left is a dead end and you won't find any items). Continue to the right and you will come to a very large and labyrinthine screen.

Immediately go south and then left to find a Silver Necklace. From there, move right to find Mega Medicine. Go back to the start, go right and drop down the second escarpment. Then go down the escarpment to the right, continue south and, slightly to the left, you will find another escarpment. Go down it to find a Double Strike rune. Follow the slope to the left and a little further on you will meet Mazus. At the moment however, you will not be able to recruit him. Go down the short escarpment to the right, move to the right and take the upper right path. After a short climb you will come to a save point. Then go north and drop down the escarpment to the left. You will find Star Earrings. Head down the escarpment and down the next one as well, then take a right to return to the save point. This time go right and go down the escarpment at the bottom. You'll find a chest with a Wind Hat. Head down the escarpment to the south, follow the path and climb northeast, to return to the save point. Before continuing, you should save the game, because proceeding you can never go back, unless you have an Escape Talisman with you. Head down the escarpment directly south and enter the cave.

In the next two screens you will only have to follow the path. On the third screen, push the wooden crate to fill the gap to the north, then exit left. From here on, the path is very linear. As you walk north on the fourth screen, you will be attacked by a boss.

Boss Fight – Stone Golem
HP:7500

The Stone Golem is not an opponent to be taken lightly. It only attacks once per turn, but its attacks can do heavy damage to you. The most dangerous is undoubtedly its laser, which causes massive damage to the whole group. Its attack with rocks also damages the whole party, even if it does less damage. Finally, its punches heavily damage all characters in the front row. Since you will also have to face Neclord later, without being able to restore energy between fights, you should try to kill the golem quickly, retaining a part of the healing powers of the Bright Shield rune. The Lightning rune in particular deals massive damage to this boss. Use your most powerful magical attacks, but keep those of Kahn's Resurrection rune. You are also free to use your best physical attacks and your Unite if you can perform them.

Once the boss is defeated, proceed north. From here on the path is very linear and there are no more items to collect. As you proceed, you'll find that you're back in the mine near the town where you met Neclord earlier. At the only fork you come across, go right if you haven't taken the Cape of Darkness before, otherwise go straight south. Ride the elevator and walk the last few steps back to the outdoors.

The End of Neclord
You've returned to Tinto, but of course the city is full of zombies. To reach Neclord, you need to head to the chapel, north of the city hall. Along the way, you will necessarily have to fight against some group of zombies. Don't try to leave the city because it's useless, the zombies won't let you pass. Once you reach the chapel door, Viktor will ask if you're ready. Choose the first option to enter and face Neclord, who has taken Lo Wen and Lilly hostage and who will finally be vulnerable.

Boss Fight – Neclord
HP: 4500

If you have saved at least some of your magic attacks, as recommended, this battle will not be very difficult. Neclord attacks twice per turn and has four different attacks. His most common attack deals moderate damage to your entire party. Other times he will turn into a bat and attack a single character, dealing moderate damage. Less frequently, however, he will use a lightning attack, which causes massive damage to the entire party. His most dangerous attack instead causes enormous damage (and certain death) to one of your characters, however Neclord uses this attack very rarely and if you defeat him in a short time, most likely this attack will never be used. Use all magical attacks in your possession, especially Kahn's, which damage him heavily, heal when necessary, exploit your best physical attackers and you should defeat Neclord in a few turns.

Once Neclord is dead, all zombies will disappear. Lilly will be reunited with her father Gustav and Lo Wen will be reunited with her brothers. Jess will ask you why you freed Tinto. Answer him with the first option. He will then ask you to fight with you and will also want to know about Annabelle and Genkaku. Always answer with the first option and Jess and Hauser will join you. In addition to them, all the characters you have recently helped will also permanently join you.


 * Jess recruited
 * Hauser recruited
 * Kahn recruited
 * Marlowe recruited
 * Koyu recruited
 * Gijimu recruited
 * Lo Wen recruited

At this point, you can return to your castle. Before continuing with the story however, there are a few more characters you can recruit. On the path between Tigermouth and Drakemouth, going right at the first fork, you will meet Georg. Talk to him, always answer him with the first option and he will join you.


 * Georg recruited

In case you haven't recruited Sigfried and you still have a Listening Crystal with you, you can also return to the Tinto Cavern. On the screen with the underground lake (the sixth from the beginning) you can recruit Abizboah, approaching the lake.


 * Abizboah recruited

Finally, go to South Window with a group of physically strong characters and talk to Gantetsu. He will finally challenge you to a push contest. If you have strong characters with you, you will easily defeat him and Gantetsu will join you.


 * Gantetsu recruited