Kastolatian Sea

Size: 4x3 (Large) Overall Terrain: Archipelago 24 Hour Speed: Normal Stage Music: Viking Spirits Overall Difficulty: 4 Stage Boss: Porkyus

City & Roshian Temple Information Cities (5) Hidden Cities (8) Roshian Temples (3) Buried Treasure (0) Fanning Bipaoh RT #1: SW of Ma’ Aksaz     Rebel Base Eastern island along the RT #2 (H): Island at the   Palmirra edge of the map by itself SW corner of the map   Boss Castle Fakarabh RT #3 (H): Island at the     Jabb / Jabbk NE of Palmirra; at the NW corner of the map   N of Fanning edge of the peninsula     Ma’ Aksaz (Shop) Malden       NE of R. T. #1 W of Ma’ Aksaz; on island     Mull Ro’ Ha / Mullrou Pahpehte     SE of R. T. #1; on the W of Malden; on ‘glove’       island to the south shaped island       Pittokyan         SE of R. T. #3; on the       other ‘C’ shaped island         Salay Gom       E of Fakarabh; on island       Tokelau         W of R. T. #1; on island         Tongaleb         SW of Palmirra; at the end         of the road

Stage Shop Wares

Ma’ Aksaz “CURE” (Cure Potion) 400 Goth “HEAL” (Cure Stone) 700 Goth “BELL” (Dinner Bell) 2,000 Goth “REVIVE” (Ethereal Flute) 2,000 Goth “BOOTS” (7 League Boots) 3,000 Goth

It’s about time! Buy about 30 “BOOTS” (7 League Boots), as they are the most important and powerful usable items that you can buy!!  Especially on a stage like this, where the only units that are worth a damn are sky and water units.  30 is not an exaggeration, even though exaggerations run a plenty on this site! More strategy with these later below in the stage analysis section...

Neutral Encounters

LV: 11 Imp LV: 10 Fire Giant LV: 9 Octopus Mountains; largest island Mountains; volcano area Ocean

An interesting crew to recruit.  Imps are amazing, and you should try and get a couple if you don’t have a few by now. The good thing is that because they are Level 11 when you find them, you will probably be able to turn them into Demons right away! However, you will probably end up getting lots of Fire Giants in the process. This can be good or bad, but they aren’t really all that great, so it’s up to you whether you want to employ them in your units or not.  The Octopus is no big deal by this point, as he has been on practically every stage up to now!

Enemy Units

Different Types of Units: 8 Total Enemy Unit Deployed: 21 Enemy Level Threshold: 10- 12 Unit# 9-1

There are not any High Sky units at all on this stage surprisingly, but there’s a little bit of everything else.  There are many Water units, and only a few units won’t be able to move across the water very well.  Those units will stay roaming around on the main island.  All the same, be ready with your Valkyries, Wizards, & ”Hermit” Tarot Cards!!

Beat The Stage!

Prologue:  Centuries ago, humans and demons fought a vicious war. The humans allied themselves with the gods, and the demons were in allegiance with the imps & demons. The humans were close to defeat when 3 Sky Knights and 12 wise men descended from the sky and saved them, sealing the demon’s fate forever.  After the battle, the humans reigned supreme and developed the current culture. This legend, which is still told, is called “Ogre Battle.”
Could you meet the 3 Sky Knights, and share their power? To do so, you must find the Chaos Gates and go to the Sky Islands.  The key is somewhere in the Kastolatian Sea...

Wow, lots of important topics up there!  This is the place where you can get the almighty “BRUNHILD” (Brunhild) sword, which is the item that will allow you to find the Chaos Gates throughout the game!  So, this is by far your most important priority. Your target is R. T. #3, which is on the northwestern corner island of the map, with your Opinion Leader...  He still has the Gryphon in his unit, right...?  This stage is almost 70% water, (kinda like our own little planet...) so you had better have a few Water units or so.  Even if it means  editing & making some units just for this stage, you may have to if you don’t have enough High Sky units.

Deployment Time!
A cheeky way to beat this stage is to send a fast flying unit up and around the main island right to the boss castle of Palmirra.  However, you will miss out gaining any tribute from the towns, and there are a lot of them on this stage, even though most of the towns are hidden. The main flow of enemy units will come from the northeast, so this is where most of your units should go.  You could send a Water or High Sky unit along the bottom of the main island to scout ahead, and make sure that no units are coming this way for a sneak attack on your main base of Fanning.  Canopus should most definitely liberate the town of Ma’ Aksaz to begin your shopping spree.  Flying fighting units, such as Gilbert, are especially useful on stages like this. Just make sure that you deploy as many of these types of units that you have, as they can make up ground over both the ocean and the mountains on the main island.  Use Water units only after you have no more flying units. Have a city liberator take a stop off at the town of Jabb.  Then, keep Gilbert roaming around to defend your main base, as the enemy units will come very fast on this stage...  Have all of your other land units try and move northeast across the shallow water area nearby the hidden town of Tokelau.  This is probably the fastest way for your land troops to get to the main island.  Your Opinion Leader should head straight for your main objective of this stage: R. T. #3 on the northwest-most island of the map.

Step 1:  Once Canopus has liberated the town of Ma’ Aksaz, buy some “BOOTS” (7 League Boots) like mad!  These items are the best way to defend your liberated towns for the rest of the game!  If an enemy is on a mission to reclaim one of your unprotected cities, and there is no way that you can get a unit there in time, use one of these nifty items, and a unit of your choice magically appears on the city and is ready to defend!! All you have to do is make sure that you have units that can scout ahead of undefended towns.  This way you will know whether a town is in danger of being taken back over by the enemy, and you can transport a unit right onto it in time! Also, using these items on slow moving terrain based units is a great way to move these units across the board to strategic locations.  And that is what you will do right now! Use some “BOOTS” (7 League Boots) on all of your land units, that are sloshing it through the shallows, and teleport them onto the town of Ma’ Aksaz.  Now, you have them all ready to go on the main island!! Of course, you will probably want to leave one to uncover, liberate, and guard the city of Tokelau, if you didn’t already, so use your discretion with these items.

M.O.B.Q. Tip!

I cannot stress enough how important the “BOOTS” (7 League Boots) item is.  This will make the game light years easier for you, as now you can move units practically anywhere you wish on the map on a whim.  You can control which unit fights what & where. Got some characters who need to gain, and some who are too thick in the action?  A simple use of this item, and you can warp the unit that’s too big and bad outta there, and teleport in the one who needs training! You can also set up certain units to liberate specific towns by sending them to a nearby one with this item. The list of great uses goes on and on! You may not quite yet have the money to get tons of these yet, but you will want as many of these things as possible. And, since the shop town of Ma’ Aksaz is not very far away from your main base, you can use this as a great filling station for “BOOTS” (7 League Boots) later on in your quest. Just revisit this stage when you need some more, and have your Opinion Leader jaunt over to the town and pick up all that you need!

Step 2:  After visiting some of the towns, you’ll hear about why Porkyus, queen of the merfolk, started her war against humans.  It turns out that humans think that eating mermaids will grant them immortality.  Perverse to be sure!  After some time, you probably have uncovered the all-important Roshian Temple in the NW corner with your Opinion Leader.  By the way, it is not necessary for him/her to visit this temple in the flesh to get the item.  Any character can find this item.  However, since you shouldn’t be fighting anyway, he/she may as well do something! Now, according to my sources and memory, all that you need to get the “BRUNHILD” (Brunhild) is a better-than-average Reputation; somewhere in the neighborhood of 3/4th’s of the way full.  Opinion Leader stats, such as Charisma & Alignment, do not play a part in this item. At least I don't think they do...  Few more tests... Also, by now, you should have a flying unit close enough to the boss castle to see the stream of enemy units coming out.

M.O.B.Q. Tip!

Unlike most other hidden important things in this game, you actually can come back and pick up this item on a revisit. So, if you do not have a high enough Reputation to get the “BRUNHILD” (Brunhild), no skin off your back.  Anyway, this simple visit should provide you with the “BRUNHILD” (Brunhild)!  Now you are ready to rumble god-style!!  In order to find a Chaos Gate, a unit has to be equipped with the “BRUNHILD” (Brunhild), and move over the general location of a gate on a stage map. More on that in the Aftermath section...

Step 3:  You can either methodically march across the island, liberating all of the hidden cities as you go, or you can make a full fledged assault on the boss castle Palmirra itself. The ”Y Pattern” technique works wonders on this stage. But all you need to do is use a flying unit to bait the enemy units to chance him over the water. They will get hung up and travel slow in it, and the way to the boss will open up for you. Besides over the water, the other good places to attract enemy units to are the towns of Fakarabh & Salay Gom.  Either way, just make sure that you're own castle has a defender watching for stray units. Personally, I hate to have un-liberated towns when I beat a stage, so I liberate everything before I go to a boss.  And, with the town twos mentioned above garrisoned, you shouldn’t have too many problems making that happen. This is not always the best thing to do, but that is the compulsive & perfectionist freak in me, I guess... Gotta wipe the slate clean!  So, whenever you're ready, it’s time to...

Fight It Out!!

Boss Time!

LV: 11 Mermaid   Porkyus Nixie HP 169 LV 13 STR 123 CHA 59 AGI 127 ALI 63 INT 141 LUK 51   LV: 11 Mermaid LV: 13 Nixie     LV: 11 Mermaid LV: 11 Mermaid   4 Direct, 2 Targeted, & 1 Hit-All

This fight will be surprisingly simple, compared to the last few boss battles you’ve had to deal with. After Slums of Zenobia and Island Avalon, this is a welcome sight! The only thing that makes this one annoying is that Porkyus is in the Back Row. A Nixie is a beefed up Mermaid, as her Ice Storm attack will smack your entire unit instead of a single character! The quick and easy way to get to her is to throw out a ”Fool” card. A ”Moon” Tarot Card might work, but I wouldn't hold my breath. Damage Tarot Cards like ”Magician” and ”Hermit” will butcher this unit. Also, equipping weapons that have the Lightning or Fire element on them are a noticeable help.  Combine that with bringing in a unit with Valkyries and the like, and you've got a fairly easy battle.

Available Items

Only one item to find on this stage, but it’s a game breaker!

SNES Name: BRUNHILD Selling Price: 351,900 Goth PSX / Full Name: Brunhild Buying Price: - - Description: “Fenril’s holy sword.”

Aftermath

Other than liberating any towns you might have missed, or getting the “BRUNHILD” (Brunhild) if you missed it, there’s nothing really too special on this stage. Better move along now!

1) If you visit the previously hidden town of Bipaoh once again, you will meet with the witch Mango.  And no, not Chris Kattan from SNL in drag!  <slapping own ass>  And yes, just like all of the witches in this game, you can ask try to ask her out on a date! However, she also tells you more useful things, like about the 3 Sky Knights, the Sky Islands and the legendary “Ogre Battle.” A decent read for those not in the know.

2) If you did not have a high enough Reputation this first time around, or were simply preoccupied while fighting enemy units, come back and visit/liberate R. T. #3.  The “BRUNHILD” (Brunhild), is waiting for you!  You can do this any time in the game you have the necessary Reputation.

3) When you have the Goth to spare, grab several more “BOOTS” (7 League Boots) from the shop at Ma’ Aksaz.  These items aren’t sold often, so you want to make sure that your supply of them is nice and high!