Secret of Mana help and discussion

[Kreegs]

So I am playing this game, but I am not getting that into it. Last time I remember the girl had just joined my party, then left me when I got to a cave? Is that right? I remember getting my ass kicked in that cave for some reason. What am I doing wrong?

[Ouenben]

You're not giving it enough attention, you've barely started! Try again!

I'm upto the final dungeon but I stopped to try and get the best armour etc to help with the final bosses. I shall compelte it soon!

[Kreegs]

Originally Posted by Ouenben

You're not giving it enough attention, you've barely started! Try again!

I'm upto the final dungeon but I stopped to try and get the best armour etc to help with the final bosses. I shall compelte it soon!

I just dont understand why my person has such a hard time killing things?

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by Kreegs

I just dont understand why my person has such a hard time killing things?

Don't overthink it. Secret of Mana is an RPG at heart. Here are some hints:

1. Equipment. Make sure you always have the best stuff equipped.

2. Learn the combat system. The two most important things about the combat system are charge attacks and timing. A) You can hold the attack button down to charge up for a stronger attack. Let the bar fill up then unleash. B) You don't want to keep button-mashing at enemies because your attacks won't be at full-strength. If you want for a couple seconds after an attack, you'll see the little metre recharge back up to 100%. That means your attack is at full strength again. This is a system to encourage you to make deliberate, well-timed attacks while also avoiding the enemies' attacks. This is very important.

3. If you're too weak, level up.

4. If one character is getting wailed on, you can switch to another character and help out! Don't waste your time. Be efficient by switching between characters when the time is right!

[sponge]

very helpful to spend time level grinding in that game. if you are getting your ass kicked, go back a little and level up!

[Kreegs]

Alright when I get home from work tonight I will pend at least 30 minutes with this today.

[Kurachi]

aww, if you did go to the forest where the girl wanted to go, and in 2nd part you'd hit that stone, she'd said you would need to get to gaia's navel, and not leave you

anyway, as said, lvl alot if having a hard time, i actually do that alot in any rpg (like BoF2 atm), i know i can go on now, but still lvling and getting money
i've completed SoM above lvl 50, but after that i was going further to max lvl

and yes, keep getting best armor, if you dont know, you can look at gamefaqs for a bit of help for armors

also: neko always has items double price, so if want candies, just go to other towns, but sometimes he has better stuff for certain placces, like armors, and if you need candies near his place, buy em

also, if you need money for both armor and orbs, first go for armors

ps. dunno if anyone agrees with my way of playing, but this way i played it all the times, and works great

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

I would say you don't need to look at FAQs to find good armour. Just keep up with the latest stuff in the shops or whatever good stuff you happen to find.

[Kurachi]

Originally Posted by Jogurt the Yogurt

I would say you don't need to look at FAQs to find good armour. Just keep up with the latest stuff in the shops or whatever good stuff you happen to find.

yea, but sometimes if you play a new game, or a game you never played before, you forget places, and sometimes it happens that people arent sure if they buy the best armor

i did once skip 1 armor, and when bought better one, i discovered i forgot 1 other one, a weaker one that is, and you always can check it out, cheaper is weaker

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by Kurachi

yea, but sometimes if you play a new game, or a game you never played before, you forget places, and sometimes it happens that people arent sure if they buy the best armor

i did once skip 1 armor, and when bought better one, i discovered i forgot 1 other one, a weaker one that is, and you always can check it out, cheaper is weaker

So you missed one set of armour... did that cause you to get weeks and weeks of game overs until you just couldn't continue? Sometimes I miss stuff but I just trudge on, not knowing the difference, until I eventually catch up with the next set of armour and the missed item is irrelevant.

My initial advice, if Kreegs was having trouble, was just to check the obvious and stay on top of things, not to obsessively hunt down every piece of +1-2 defence gear in the game before moving on.

[SlurmNator]

Alittle off topic but How good is this game? and is it on VC?

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by SlurmNator

Alittle off topic but How good is this game? and is it on VC?

1. All the way good.
2. Yes.

[SlurmNator]

Originally Posted by Jogurt the Yogurt

1. All the way good.
2. Yes.

What kinda RPG is it and what kinda game is it like?

[Kreegs]

Originally Posted by SlurmNator

What kinda RPG is it and what kinda game is it like?

Well let me explain. I am not a huge RPG fan, but I loved games like Pokemon SS and Paper Mario. This game is NOT like those. It has similar traits as in you can level up your character(s) and purchase items and such, but it is different in the way that you actually fight enemies in real time; there are no turn-based battle sequences.

I actually like the concept of the game, I just have to get into it more. When I get more free time I will try to play through it. I am not very far into the game, but the music is really the best part of the game. The title music is really epic! Answer your questions??

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Yeah, it's an action RPG. You fight by pressing the attack button in real time against free-roaming enemies in the area maps. I'm not going to compare it to other RPGs that came later, because it really is a kind of fresh take... so I'll say it's like Final Fantasy Adventure (the first game in the Mana series), and Sword of Mana (the remake of the first game). Oh, it might kind of be like Soul Blazer, which you probably also haven't played, since it's awesome.

Maybe you could think of it like Zelda except with stats and levels, a story, characters, more than one playable character, more magic, more stats, more than one weapon, dialogue, better music, and more betterness.

[Kreegs]

Joyo, how was my description based on my limited time of gameplay?? haha

[SlurmNator]

I've played a RPG called Sacred is it abit like that?

Edit: Thanks Joyo and Kreegs for the help

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by SlurmNator

I've played a RPG called Sacred is it abit like that?

Nope.

[SlurmNator]

Originally Posted by Jogurt the Yogurt

Nope.

So you haven't played Sacred or you have played Sacred but it's nothing like Sacred?

[Kurachi]

Originally Posted by Jogurt the Yogurt

So you missed one set of armour... did that cause you to get weeks and weeks of game overs until you just couldn't continue? Sometimes I miss stuff but I just trudge on, not knowing the difference, until I eventually catch up with the next set of armour and the missed item is irrelevant.

My initial advice, if Kreegs was having trouble, was just to check the obvious and stay on top of things, not to obsessively hunt down every piece of +1-2 defence gear in the game before moving on.

seems i still get lots of replies eh

anyway, what i meant was (read this well, or sleep a week about it, BEFORE replying)
if you like to know whether you have the best armor you can get at the time or not, to continue (some people want the best armors they can get at all places) you could use gamefaqs to see where
or ask me, or people here who always know everything better

i guess i wont even try to help people here anymore, i get critizised on that too, how low can it go?

so peeps, if you want help or tips, either ask others here, or PM me if you wanna hear from me

my opinions and tips arent good for these forums, so i quit

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by SlurmNator

So you haven't played Sacred or you have played Sacred but it's nothing like Sacred?

It's not much like Sacred.

Originally Posted by Kurachi

seems i still get lots of replies eh

anyway, what i meant was (read this well, or sleep a week about it, BEFORE replying)

i guess i wont even try to help people here anymore, i get critizised on that too, how low can it go?

my opinions and tips arent good for these forums, so i quit

Of course you get a lot of replies. When people post to internet forums, other people reply to them. That's what they're here for.

You seriously need to give up this sad persecution act. Just because every member of the forum doesn't chime in every time you post and say "Holy ****, I agree with Kurachi!!!" that doesn't mean you're getting criticized or that your opinions aren't warranted or valued. They are. My advice was just different from yours, that's all. But if you keep it up you're going to stop getting babied with encouraging posts like this one.

If Kreegs wants to, he can play through the game with a printed FAQ taped to his TV set to make sure he has all the best gear that's available at any given moment, of course. There you go Kreegs.

[Kreegs]

When multiple people share their personal way of playing a game, it just reminds me how cool video games can be! I find it really neat that so many people can get satisfaction from a game even though they are playing it in different ways.

I mean, remember that guy who posted his personal guide to SM64? That guy gets stars in a specific order based on a strange difficulty formula. I think its kinda weird, but he still loves it and thinks SM64 is a GREAT game.

I listen to all advice on the forum. If I wanted someone's personal advice I would send them a PM. So please continue to post your thoughts and tips without fear of judgement.

Also, I will be supporting Holland in the World Cup Final. Go Orange.

[SKTTR]

Kreegs, my best advices are,

1. Kill everything you come across. (Level up your stats early.)

2. Always forge better weapons (orbs are needed) when you see the dwarf. (Max out all weapons for all characters)

3. Everytime you touch a mana seed you can level up your magic. (Max out all your magic for the girl and the sprite everytime you get a mana seed)

4. If you play 1 hour of Secret of Mana half of that time is needed for grinding and the other half is for progressing with the story. Otherwise the monsters will eat you alive. I always decide: Will I now grind a bit or will I go for the next boss? You shouldn't grind and then head for the next boss, because if you grind you'll most likely wasted all your MP. Of course it's better to head back in a village to sleep (restore life, HP and MP) and save after a long fight before progressing and then falling into a trap.

5. Only progress if you feel you're strong enough (maxed out weapons and maxed out magic, maxed out items, and best armor)

6. This game is super easy and you won't have any money problems with my advice. Have a second and third player around to make the game even easier (and funnier).

[Kreegs]

Originally Posted by SKTTR

Kreegs, my best advices are,


6. This game is super easy and you won't have any money problems with my advice. Have a second and third player around to make the game even easier (and funnier).

The whole game is easy??? really now?

I have heard the multi player is cool. Although I have to wait until the girl rejoins me right? And is that after the cave that I'm in?

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by Kreegs

The whole game is easy??? really now?

I have heard the multi player is cool. Although I have to wait until the girl rejoins me right? And is that after the cave that I'm in?

You can go somewhere else and she won't leave you.

[SKTTR]

Originally Posted by Kreegs

The whole game is easy??? really now?

I have heard the multi player is cool. Although I have to wait until the girl rejoins me right? And is that after the cave that I'm in?

Yes, I'm surprised myself about how easy the game is, now that I'm playing it like I described above.
You wouldn't know how much difference a few level ups make.
Especially when the other characters have maximized magic powers, every boss is a matter of seconds.

But keep in mind, it's time consuming to grind for levelups, (like in every RPG) but note, it's never as dragging and boring and timeconsuming as in roundbased RPG's (Secret of Mana is much faster as it's an action RPG)
since you have full control over your actions any time: You can run away, you can move to a different position on the field to hit the enemies from a better angle. You can instantly switch characters. And you can comfortably switch weapons and use magic and items, from the ring menu (the game is paused then), whenever you want.

If you think the game is too hard, just fight monsters nearby a village and gain a few levelups. Get back into the village to stay at the inn (refill and save) if you're low on HP. Once a monster isn't giving you more damage than -1 you know when to proceed on your epic quest.

PS: The girl will join you, on the way back to the town after the dungeon.

[Kurachi]

Originally Posted by Jogurt the Yogurt

Of course you get a lot of replies. When people post to internet forums, other people reply to them. That's what they're here for.

You seriously need to give up this sad persecution act. Just because every member of the forum doesn't chime in every time you post and say "Holy ****, I agree with Kurachi!!!" that doesn't mean you're getting criticized or that your opinions aren't warranted or valued. They are. My advice was just different from yours, that's all. But if you keep it up you're going to stop getting babied with encouraging posts like this one.

If Kreegs wants to, he can play through the game with a printed FAQ taped to his TV set to make sure he has all the best gear that's available at any given moment, of course. There you go Kreegs.

i was trying to help, it wasnt meant for those who dont like what i type, but for the onrs who need help

if i get critic on anything i say, i better give up here
i cant even give advice anymore, advice which made the game good for me
i just wanted to help, and get critic on that, while its not bullcrap or a lie

if someone needs help, help your own way, not critic others on their kind of help

what good is it to give critic on someone's way to help? if it works its enough

btw, i'm not the one starting to P others off here, so dont tell me i cant say anything without getting critic for the rest of the topic

sry Kreegs, i didnt want to go offtopic like this, but others make me by doing that

lets see, can help by telling that i leveled alot before doing any boss, or going to new places, and once in new places, i start leveling there for a while

and yes, if you can use the controls well, and know about the basics, this game is piece of cake
and if its not the case, you'll learn in no time
my sis in no hardcore gamer, but more chatter in GW, and when she got a bit of help into directions in SoM, she finished the game too

she only wanted to complete it, not getting everything maxed, like i do
so dont worry about the difficulty

if you co0mplete the game, wait for some months and start over, but this time try to get everything, may be fun

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by Kurachi

i was trying to help, it wasnt meant for those who dont like what i type, but for the onrs who need help

And I added a helpful counterpoint to your advice, so Kreegs wouldn't misunderstand or be intimidated and think this is the kind of game where it's easy to miss important stuff. More information = more helpful. No one was saying your advice was invalid.

Originally Posted by Kurachi

i cant even give advice anymore, advice which made the game good for me

Originally Posted by Kurachi

i just wanted to help, and get critic on that, while its not bullcrap or a lie

Originally Posted by Kurachi

if someone needs help, help your own way, not critic others on their kind of help

Originally Posted by Kurachi

what good is it to give critic on someone's way to help?

Originally Posted by Kurachi

btw, i'm not the one starting to P others off here, so dont tell me i cant say anything without getting critic for the rest of the topic

Originally Posted by Kurachi

sry Kreegs, i didnt want to go offtopic like this, but others make me by doing that

What? So far, no one has done that in this thread yet.

Originally Posted by Kurachi

if i get critic on anything i say, i better give up here

Honestly, I'm telling you this in my official duties as a moderator of this forum: you need to stop turning every thread into a poor-me-tear-torrent every time someone says something in response to one of your posts. You really need to, or you're just going to give yourself headaches.

This is the last word on this unfortunate tangent.

[Mickeymac]

Yeah, Secret of Mana can be pretty tough. Honestly, I think the difficulty was scaled for playing with 2 or 3 people, so it can be pretty frustrating if you play it by yourself. But give it enough time and patience, and you're bound to go far.

Like Joyo said, its an RPG at heart, so if you're stuck, just kill some weak enemies over and over again until you and your weapon levels up. Also, make sure to make use of the charge attack and dodges/blocks. They're G-dsends, trust me on that. A charge attack can rip through multiple enemies and knock them back, giving you some much-needed space, as well as doing quite a bit of damage to a single large enemy. By pressing the attack button at the right time before an enemy lands a hit on you, you can perform either a dodge or a block. I'm not sure how to activate which, whether it relies on your timing, the type of attack, gauge level (note that it does empty your gauge once you perform a block or dodge), etc. All you really need to know is that both are helpful, so you should try to excecute them when possible. Even if you're underlevelled, a strong enemy can't kill you if he can't hit you.

Hope that helps. It honestly took me a while before I could get into SoM, so its not like you're the only one. Good luck and happy gaming.

[Betagam7]

I've started playing this for the first time last night and a bit more this morning. It feels a bit overwhelming with the large overworld and lack of direction I'm used to in RPGs...in a way though I can see why this made it stand out more at the time.

I'm not finding the story particularly engaging or clear so far. After being banished i found my way to a village where people were mute and I think I was supposed to go to a castle but I couldn't find it.

I ended going to Gaia's navel, finding some rope, beating a mini boss and getting a Sprite to join me. Am I on track? Was the girl I met supposed to have joined me by now?

[SKTTR]

@Betagam7: Yes, you are on track. The castle is somewhere in the town. The town has multiple exits, one leads to the castle where you find the Girl.
I never met anyone who got the Sprite before the Girl.

The beginning is the largest part of the game in terms of field size. But it's just the first portion of the game that has a few grass field maps. I think the beginning is good to give the game an epic scale (because there are many places on the overworld map that are empty (big patches of forests, mountains, water, etc.) The later accessible areas on the overworld map are much more compact.

Can't believe you're playing SoM for the first time ever. I hope you have someone to play co-op with.

[Betagam7]

Originally Posted by SKTTR

@Betagam7: Yes, you are on track. The castle is somewhere in the town. The town has multiple exits, one leads to the castle where you find the Girl.
I never met anyone who got the Sprite before the Girl.

The beginning is the largest part of the game in terms of field size. But it's just the first portion of the game that has a few grass field maps. I think the beginning is good to give the game an epic scale (because there are many places on the overworld map that are empty (big patches of forests, mountains, water, etc.) The later accessible areas on the overworld map are much more compact.

Can't believe you're playing SoM for the first time ever. I hope you have someone to play co-op with.

I know, never having played Mana is my secret shame as a SNES gamer I've never played Chrono Trigger either but I didn't have the import only excuse with SoM. I think that back in the day I wasn't a fan of this type of game...I thought Zelda 3 was alright but I wasn't hooked by it. It wasn't until I played Illusion of Gaia that my interest really took off. I absolutely adored that game and still do and, as you may know, I've since become a massive Quintet fan. I love their games and own em all but would buy them again for VC if they were released.

I don't have anyone to play co-op, but that isn't much of a problem as I only own one Classic controller anyway.

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by Betagam7

I don't have anyone to play co-op, but that isn't much of a problem as I only own one Classic controller anyway.

Pick up another one for $10 and get your woman on board, then! Co-op is so delicious in that game. And even when it's not delicious, your multiplayer can help get the AI party members unstuck.

[Betagam7]

Originally Posted by Jogurt the Yogurt

Pick up another one for $10 and get your woman on board, then! Co-op is so delicious in that game. And even when it's not delicious, your multiplayer can help get the AI party members unstuck.

Alas, the woman, like the majority of my collection is in Sweden. I hope the game isn't too tricky solo!

[Jogurt the Yogurt]

Originally Posted by Betagam7

Alas, the woman, like the majority of my collection is in Sweden. I hope the game isn't too tricky solo!

No, it should be fine solo, but it is a lot of fun to plan strategies with a second (and third!) player. When my brother and I used to play he would be the warrior and I would play the sprite, and we would both switch off to the girl when we needed healing.

Just remember that you can cycle between party members if any of them get snagged on objects in the environment.

[Yossarian]

Originally Posted by Jogurt the Yogurt

No, it should be fine solo, but it is a lot of fun to plan strategies with a second (and third!) player. When my brother and I used to play he would be the warrior and I would play the sprite, and we would both switch off to the girl when we needed healing.

Just remember that you can cycle between party members if any of them get snagged on objects in the environment.

Noted. I've exhumed this one from my SD card to give another go but after such a long break I have no clue what I'm meant to do. I remember going to the Haunted Wood and then a castle where werewolves murdered me.

I'm a bit lost on the menu system. Do I have to change characters in order to view their weapon stats and change their tactics?

Currently my team is Warrior(Level nine)/Girl(Level eight) /Sprite(Level six).

[SKTTR]

The castle with the werewolves is the right destination.
You're a little underpowered though. I think around Level 15 was good to beat the castle boss.

Don't forget to upgrade all your weapons at the dwarves cave / waterfall. Later you find other areas.

To view a characters specific skill list, and weapon/magic-select select it must be active.

[Yossarian]

Originally Posted by SKTTR

The castle with the werewolves is the right destination.
You're a little underpowered though. I think around Level 15 was good to beat the castle boss.

Don't forget to upgrade all your weapons at the dwarves cave / waterfall. Later you find other areas.

To view a characters specific skill list, and weapon/magic-select select it must be active.

Cheers, SKTTR. I'll head back to the cave for levelling up and to get used to the rhythm of combat. Is that Gaia's navel?

[SKTTR]

Originally Posted by Yossarian

Cheers, SKTTR. I'll head back to the cave for levelling up and to get used to the rhythm of combat. Is that Gaia's navel?

Yeah, I believe that place is called Gaia's Navel in the English version.



As long as you're in the first portion of the game you have to backtrack to one of the hidden caves behind the waterfalls to upgrade your weapons. Once you unlock the shortcut (the right cave?) it' faster to get to the forging dwarf.



You got the Magic Rope already? I don't know anymore if this is an optional item, but once you have it it's a permanent item in your inventory. Of course it's handy. I just remember it being in the Dwarf village.

[Yossarian]

Great stuff. I do have the rope but had forgotten its use. Saves me trogging back to the village when my team get thumped.