Monica's Introduction

Monica's Introduction

Monica's introduction begins with her watching the storm that has engulfed the night. As she begins to walk back to her room in the Loanne Castle, she hears voices in the throne room. It seems Baron Godwin and the minister are plotting to overthrow Mikhail and become the new Marquis. Monica realizes she must notify her brother who is on the field with the army hunting monsters. Katrina helps her escape by using a hidden door behind a mirror in her room. Monica rides through the storm, but her horse refuses to move any further. She is then forced to walk through the rain to nearby Shinon. The scene shifts to Shinon where Julian asks Thomas and Sara to leave so that he may talk with Ellen about going to Yamas. Monica suddenly enters the pub demanding a horse. Everyone wants to set out immediately for Mikhail's camp except for Harid who suggests that everyone should rest the night first and set out in the morning when its less dangerous.
	The forest which you will travel through is very basic. In the first section travel as far north as you can then turn east. After going as far to the east as possible, head south then turn east once more when you reach the intersection. Now head north and attempt to exit this screen. Before you can, a bird swoops down to attack you.
Garuda Wing The Garuda Wing is the first boss in many of the quests you face. This battle is very simple, especially since you aren't given much time to gain any levels prior to the battle. Have Harid use Demi Rune and Ellen use Tomahawk. If Sara or Thomas have Shadow Sew, use it to paralyze the Garuda Wing. Everyone else should use regular attacks or any other wazas they might have already learned. In the Desert Lance formation, the Garuda Wing will be unable to do much damage, if any, against Harid. After killing Garuda Wing, Monica wonders why the Garuda Wing is there. Is it true that the Abyss Gates have been reopened? Now she'll exit the screen to arrive at Mikhail's camp. Mikhail thanks everyone for escorting Monica to him so that he may receive the news of Godwin's treachery. He now asks everyone to escort her to Podol where the Vampire Earl Leonid is. Right before everyone leaves, Mikhail asks for Harid to travel with him to help in the fight against Godwin. Harid agrees and leaves with Mikhail. Mikhail also gives the party: 3 Small Shields, 1Broad Sword, 3 Leather Armors, 1 Spirit Stone scroll, and 3 Sand of Mars scrolls.
	In the next area, head all the way north until you reach the next screen. In this screen head west down the stairs and head north a bit. You now have an option: you can continue north and go around to get to the other side of the bushes, or you can fight your way through the snakes to get there. I recommend the snakes so you'll become more powerful but it doesn't really matter either way. After getting on the other side of the bushes, continue to the north. Most likely, the spirit near the exit will attack you. I'm not sure if its possible to dodge it or not.
Sub-Boss Strategy: Whirlwind This battle is very easy if you've been fighting your way through all the areas. Now if you're like me when I was right here (trying to see if I could trigger the Thieves's Hideout Scenario with Monica by avoiding almost all battles), then this battle can be a bit hard. The Whirlwind recovers 57 HP every round, which I believe is 10% of its max HP. Its Wind Dart attack can do a lot of damage and can kill people if you're not careful. Depending on whether or not you've been fighting and gaining many waza will determine your strategy. Basically, use your strongest waza against the Whirlwind and use your Salves to heal.
	In Podol, you can rest at the Inn or talk around the town to learn a bit more about Leonid. He likes to take some of the younger women from the town and turn them into vampires also... ick. Mikhail was concerned for good reason about this happening. Exit to the north once you've finished exploring Podol. Now to enter the castle head east across the bridge and go up the slopes. Now go back to the west and take the exit to enter the castle courtyard. From there just enter the castle and continue to the north to encounter Leonid. Leonid will talk about how beautiful Monica is for a while and then tell her to let things work themselves out with Mikhail. He tells you that your rooms are on the left (I'm guessing he meant his left so don't take the door to the left unless you enjoy getting hurt). You'll see a spirit fly off and enter the door to the right. Follow the spirit and enter your rooms to rest. No one is really able to sleep that night, especially not Monica who has the room to herself. She enters Julian and the rest of the party's room and asks to spend the night there. Tom and Julian stand guard while the girls rest.
The next day, talk to Leonid and he'll mention the treasure cave to the north. He doesn't care about any of the treasure and will let you keep whatever you want from there. So obviously head north towards the treasure cave. If you want, you can enter the cave, exit it, and return to Leonid to skip it. Otherwise: After finishing the cave, return and talk to Leonid, and he'll tell you that Mikhail has defeated Godwin's army and probably has retaken Loanne. You'll return there for the awards ceremony. Several days later you'll hear that Harid is traveling to Lance to see the tomb of the Holy King. Katrina enters the throne room with her hair cut. She tells Mikhail that she has lost the Masquerade and wants the chance to go and find it. Mikhail spares her life and allows her to go on a quest to find it under the condition that she may not return to Loanne until it is recovered. Finally Julian enters the room. Mikhail tells him that he has set up a new group known as the "Princess Guard" to protect Monica. He asks Julian, who is hesitant at first, to join. He accepts and you regain control of Monica, in her room. Now enter Mikhail's room and talk to him. Monica will ask to go out for a while which he will agree to as long as Julian also travels with her.
	Monica and Julian are talking outside for a while, and he will walk off. Right after he leaves, a gigantic bird will swoop down and carry Monica off. She awakens in a cave to find that none other than Baron Godwin has taken her hostage. He warns her not to escape because of the monsters. Naturally, you should now try to escape from the cave. After leaving the room you were in, you will see a strange looking man walking around. His name is the Poet. Walk up to him and ask for the New Song. He will recite a poem and then join you because he feels inspired. It'll help you for the upcoming boss battle.
Evil Demon This battle was slightly challenging with Katrina, Harid, and Mikhail in their scenario. Sadly, you have none of them. Luckily for you, Julian will jump in and block the Face Hit attack which will save you from a fair amount of damage. Another good thing about this battle is that the Evil Demon has alot less HP than the one in Loanne Castle did. I had Monica use Axel Sniper, Julian use Rude Sword, and the Poet use Brain Split. Brain Split can occasionally put the Evil Demon to sleep before it gets a chance to go which can greatly help your chances of survival. If you have around 150 HP, then this battle shouldn't be a problem.
	You can now safely exit the cave by leaving the room you're currently in and continuing out the western exit in the next room. If the Poet was with you while you were in the cave, he will thank you for the experience and leave the party. To begin the Shipwreck Scenario enter Mikhail's room and talk to him. He'll tell you that the Duke of Zweig is here looking for a bride for his son. Monica's engagement has been arranged for her it sadly seems. Now comes the major fork in the story. You have the opportunity to either proceed with the story the "correct" way and permanently(? I've seen pictures of a reunion at the Devil King Palace with Mikhail, Julian, and Monica... no clue on anything about it though, nor does anyone else I've asked) lose Julian, or you can make an escape from the castle and keep him. The walkthrough will now be divided for each of these choices: Julian? Bah! I don't need him! Julian IS awfully helpful...
The Shipwreck Scenario Talk to Mikhail on his throne and agree to go along with the wedding. The new minister will come in, and Mikhail will tell him to prepare everything for Monica's wedding. The minister is upset because it seems the Duke of Zweig's son is a complete and utter moron. Mikhail will not go along with the minister's ideas though. An irate Julian is asked to go with Monica to her wedding as her guard. Both Julian, Monica, and the minister board the ship in Mules and set sail for Zweig. Go downstairs and talk to Julian. He'll let you know that everything is going fine, and you'll arrive in Zweig soon. Head back upstairs and the scene cuts away... It seems that the wonderful people in the Dophore Firm are smuggling goods in Mikhail's ship, how wonderful. To make matters worse, some monsters begin to appear on the ship! Head back downstairs and talk to Julian. He'll join you to protect you from the monsters. There are some treasures downstairs which you should get before heading up to the main deck of the ship. Once you have them go onto the deck of the ship and prepare for a battle.
Heptopus x5 Well it seems that 5 Heptopi have taken over the ship. The 4 Heptopi that surround the one in the center-back row have around 270 HP each. They're very easy to dispatch. If you have Snake Shot for Monica, then you should be able to wipe them out in no time. The 5th Heptopus is a beefed-up version and has around 470 or so HP and is around the same strength level. Their regular attacks do very little damage, but the ink attack does a fair amount more. Since there is water in the air, they will recover around 10% of their HP every round. If you have any Spirit Stone scrolls, I recommend using them to start the battle out if you don't have Snake Shot. This battle is really very simple. Sadly, since the ship is sinking, Monica and Julian are forced to jump overboard before they go down with the ship. Monica will awaken in Farce to find she has been separated from Julian. Sadly, Julian is nowhere to be found anywhere in Farce. Now the game begins... The Castle Escape Scenario Instead of talking to Mikhail on the throne, leave the throne room and enter the door on the right. Talk to Julian, and Monica will tell him that she's having to get married. When Julian asks you if it is alright with you respond "Absolutely Not!", and Monica will ask for him to help her escape. Julian will agree to and decides to go with you as well. Now you will appear in Mules and will be unable to return to Loanne until it is time to fight Byunei, the Wind Abyss Gate Guardian. Take a ship from Mules to Pidona. Now the game begins...

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