The game is cheating
In the western localization, the attributes growth of all the player characters is far lower than in the original. Even worse, when fighting another one of Lemele's warriors, that opponent keeps his/hers original Japanese attributes.
This accounts for the great difficulty of the game.
Cheats
Cheating in the duels
During a duel against one of Lemele's warriors it's possible to summon your ally. First, one of your characters must have learned the Revive1 spell (a bottle of Magic Water would not work). Second, before the actual fight leave town and let the other character die. When you start the duel against the other warrior, cast Revive1.
This trick only works during Chapter 4 and Chapter 6, where fighting a duel is part of the plot.
Four characters can learn the Revive1 spell:
- Valsu at Level 10 (he can likely do this trick already in Chapter 4; he can also learn Revive2)
- Esuna at Level 24
- Kamil at Level 30
- Olvan at Level 42 (very, very late)
Another trick when faced with a duel is to allow your main warrior die and gain a few levels with your companion alone. Since the character whom you need to duel remains at the same level as your main warrior, when you fight the duel using your companion alone, he or she may have an easier time doing so being a few levels higher.
Super-upgrades of Lux
In Melenam during Chapter 10, Lux can still move away while he's getting fixed. This way, he can leave and re-enter the room several times, until all his attributes are maxed out to the top. It's harder than what it seems: let the engineer approach the door and the other tetsujin move out of the way.
Secrets
Hidden items
There are 44 hidden items throughout the game. In order to find one, you have to stand on the right square, facing any direction, and search the area (open menu, select "Search"). The details and screenshots of every hidden item are described in the corresponding chapters of this guide.
Credit goes to Fistukman for the earliest complete list of the 44 hidden items.
Rare items
Four unique items are hidden around Ticondera. They are armors or accessories. A character can equip two of them at the same time: one cloak and one accessory.
- Cloak of Fire: search in Dowaine; it improves resistance against Fire spells (Fire 1-2, Firebirds, Fireballs);
- Cloak of Ice: search in the castle of Baran; it improves resistance against Ice spells (Ice 1-2, Blizzard 1-2);
- Ring: search in Pandam; it grants resistance against Vacuum spells (Vacuum 1-2);
- Amulet: search in Bilthem castle; it grants resistance against Debuff spells (MP-Catcher, HP-catcher, Defense-down, Petrify).
The extra protection granted by the Ring and the Amulet is checked before triggering a Mirror or a Harp, therefore they help saving on these items.
Secret passages
In the North Tower, two secret passages allow shortcuts. Their location and details are described in the corresponding section of the guide.
Plot coherence
In any fictional work where time travel is involved, it always makes sense from the point of view of the main character. It does not always makes sense from a strictly historical/chronological point of view, though.
This section shows that The 7th Saga makes a solid and coherent time loop from every point of view: from the point of view of the hero (obviously), from the point of view of fictional chronology/history (necessary for coherence) and also from the point of view of Gorsia, the other time traveller.
If it was impossible to coherently put the events in historical/chronological order, then it would be the case of a plot flaw (also known as alteration of the past or time paradox), unless you invoke alternative realities and parallel dimensions, (for example, that's the case of the Back from the Future trilogy).
No alteration of the past happens in The 7th Saga, and no plot flaw nor time paradox happen either.
Point of view of the hero
The legend:
- Saro and Gorsia (God and Satan in the original) are fighting the battle between Good and Evil.
- Saro wins, but he actually sends Gorsia in the future.
The present:
- Gorsia arrives from the past, kills Lemele and takes his place.
- Gorsia/Lemele gathers seven apprentices, including the hero.
- After five years of training, the seven apprentices are sent around the world to collect the Seven Runes.
- Gorsia attacks the successful apprentice (and his/her companion) to get the runes, and all three travel back to the past.
The past:
- Gorsia comes back from the future and attacks Saro.
- In the following battle, Saro is heavily wounded, but Gorsia is weakened as well.
- The hero (with a companion) arrives from the future.
- The hero meets Saro and receives the seven Runes.
- The hero defeats Gorsia, but his/her body is destroyed as well.
- The powers of Gorsia are sealed in the Seven Runes.
The present again:
- After that, the companion of the hero lives an uneventful life and eventually dies; if the companion is Lux the Tetsujin, he simply loses memory after a couple centuries.
- The soul of the hero is reincarnated in Lemele.
- Lemele/Remeer is the star of Brain Lord, Mystic Ark and Mystic Ark: Maboroshi Gekijou.
- Lemele becomes king and gets old.
- Gorsia arrives from the past, kills Lemele and takes his place.
Point of view of history
If the time loop is stable, this must make sense. It actually does: the plot is coherent!
The past:
- Saro and Gorsia (God and Satan in the original) are fighting the battle between Good and Evil.
- Saro wins, and he sends Gorsia in the future.
- Gorsia comes back from the future.
- In the following battle, Saro is heavily wounded, but Gorsia is weakened as well.
- The hero (with a companion) arrives from the future.
- The hero meets Saro and receives the seven Runes.
- The hero defeats Gorsia, but his/her body is destroyed as well.
- The powers of Gorsia are sealed in the Seven Runes.
Sometimes between past and present:
- After that, the companion of the hero lives an uneventful life and eventually dies; if the companion is Lux the Tetsujin, he simply loses memory after a couple centuries.
- The seven runes are scattered around the world of Ticondera.
The present:
- The soul of the hero is reincarnated in Lemele.
- Lemele/Remeer is the star of Brain Lord, Mystic Ark and Mystic Ark: Maboroshi Gekijou.
- Lemele becomes king and gets old.
- Gorsia arrives from the past, kills Lemele and takes his place.
- Gorsia/Lemele gathers seven apprentices.
- After five years of training, the seven apprentices are sent around the world to collect the seven runes.
- Gorsia attacks the successful apprentice (and his/her companion) to get the runes, and all three travel back to the past.
After this, the world is free from Gorsia, but the hero/Lemele vanished as well from history.
Point of view of Gorsia
The past:
- Saro and Gorsia (God and Satan in the original) are fighting the battle between Good and Evil.
- Saro wins, and he sends Gorsia in the future.
The present:
- Gorsia arrives from the past, kills Lemele and takes his place.
- Gorsia/Lemele gathers seven apprentices.
- After five years of training, the seven apprentices are sent around the world to collect the seven runes.
- Gorsia attacks the successful apprentice (and his/her companion) to get the runes, and all three travel back to the past.
The past:
- Gorsia comes back from the future.
- In the following battle, Saro is heavily wounded, but Gorsia is weakened as well.
- The hero (with a companion) arrives from the future.
- The hero meets Saro and receives the seven Runes.
- The hero defeats Gorsia, but his/her body is destroyed as well.
- The powers of Gorsia are sealed in the Seven Runes.